Now it’s time to learn more about the authors we read. . .

Why do you write the genre that you write?
I love the twists and turns of a mystery, the chance to play games with the plot and characters. As for writing historicals set in Victorian England, I’m a sucker for gas lamps, top hats, and hansom cabs!

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?
Good question! Quirk, huh? Well, Violet, my main character, is very orderly and logical, and at least to someone like me, that seems pretty quirky! Her half-sister, Sephora, is much more of an airhead, interested in fashion and society. That’s plenty quirky!

How did you come up with your pseudonym?
Yes, Anastasia Hastings is a pseudonym. I’ve also written under other names. I was searching for something Victorian English sounding so the Hastings came first. I played with the usual English first names to go with it: Alice and Eleanor and such. But then I decided that honoring my great and my great-great grandmothers would be much more fun and make for a more memorable pen name. That’s how Anastasia came to be!

Tell us how you got into writing?
I’ve been doing this for so long, it’s hard to remember. I was an English major in college, but never wanted to teach. Spent a number of years doing corporate communications, but there was always that niggling question in the back of my mind . . . what if I tried writing fiction? I started simply to see if I could really do it! That was 70 novels ago!

What jobs have you held before, during and/or after you became a writer?
This has always been it for me, though I did help out part time at a yarn store once. But that was just to feed my yarn habit!

Where do you write?
I have a room here at home that is my office.

What is your favorite deadline snack?
There lies the road to perdition! I try not to snack while writing.

Who is an author you admire?
So many, but if I had to pick one, Elizabeth Peters.

What’s your favorite genre to read?
I actually enjoy nonfiction.

What are you reading now?
See above, it’s a book about the new tarot card set I’ve acquired.

What is your favorite beverage to end the day?
Celestial Seasonings vanilla, honey, chamomile tea

What is next for you?
Lots of irons in the fire, but nothing I can talk about yet.

Where can we find you?
My website is mystery-book-series.com. All my pen names and titles are there.

Now to have some fun . . .

Chocolate or vanilla
Vanilla

Cake or ice cream
Ice cream. Always.

Fruits or vegetables
Veggies, especially sweet potatoes and roasted corn.

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner
Dinner

Dining in or dining out
In

City life or country living
No big cities for me! We’re semi-rural in a community that is 1/3 parkland. Perfect!

Beach or mountain
Mountain

Spring, Summer, Fall, or Winter
Fall, always and forever

Extrovert or introvert
Introvert except when I have no choice

Early bird or night owl
Somewhere in between!

And even more fun . . .

What is your favorite movie?
The Lost King

You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
Books, of course. Plenty of knitting projects. My family history documents to sort and research.

My bio:
Anastasia Hastings’s newest novel is “Of Hoaxes and Homicide.” It’s the second in the Dear Miss Hermione mystery series which follows the adventures of Violet Manville, a reluctant agony aunt (advice columnist) in Victorian England. The book received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly which called it, “captivating” and said “Readers will be ravenous for the next installment in the series.” As Kylie Logan, Anastasia wrote the Jazz Ramsey/cadaver dog mysteries, and as Casey Daniels, the Pepper Martin mysteries. When she’s not writing, she enjoys digging into family history, working with fiber, and in the summer, watching the hummingbirds–all while she plans her next murder.