DEATH BY INFERIOR DESIGN, published by Bantam/Dell, is the author's first book under the pen name Leslie Caine. It is the debut title for the Domestic Bliss series. She has written two previous mystery series for Ballantine under her real name Leslie O'kane. The first is the Molly Masters series which revolves around a greeting card designer and the other is the Allie Babcock series whose protagonist is a dog therapist.
Born and raised in upstate New York, she now lives in Colorado.
Leslie was once taken hostage at gunpoint and says, "writing about crimes is infinitely more enjoyable than taking part in them." She recently agreed to an interview:
DC: An ongoing trend in mystery writing is producing a successful series. From the classics such as Agatha Christie to today's top crime fiction tale spinners like Ian Rankin, mysteries are hotter than ever. Is pitching the idea for a series a good strategy for new authors?
LC: Oh, absolutely! It takes more than one book for readers to discover an author's name. With the advent of chain bookstores, it's harder than ever for authors to keep their books on the shelves, but writing a series helps immensely. When books two and three of my Domestic Bliss series come out, bookstores will reorder DEATH BY INFERIOR DESIGN, because readers like to see how it all began. A book series is a bit like a series on TV; the audience gets familiar with the characters and wants to check in and see how they're doing. That's why it's critical that, when creating a new series, the author has central characters who can grow over the course of multiple books. The author must be willing to spend years exploring their lives.
DC: I understand that your publisher called your series The Domestic Bliss Mysteries. Are you happy with that title and did you have any input into it? How much input does your editor have in your overall writing?
LC: It was my second choice, actually, but, yes, I'm happy with it. No one person can be an expert on everything, so the challenge is to recognize-and act upon-good advice when you hear it. My editor felt strongly that "The Domestic Bliss Mysteries" was a good catch phrase for my books, and I felt strongly that my editor knows much more about selling mysteries than I do. The decision to trust her on the matter was therefore a very easy one to make.
