Why do you write the genre that you write?
I write what I enjoy reading. Cozies and romance were my first loves, but now that I started reading apocalyptic, I also wrote Resurrection, a zompoc that came out in December 2021.

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?
The Dooziers from my Scumble River series are pretty darn quirky and I think Earl’s wife insane jealousy thinking Skye is after her husband is probably the most outrageous of them all.

How did you come up with your pseudonym?
I use my maiden name because my first editor was convinced no one would be able to spell my married name correctly. She was probably right. You should see some of the spelling on the mail we get. My favorite was St. Ybr 😉

Tell us how you got into writing?
I’ve been writing since kindergarten. My first book was an ABC book that I created when I was bored in class.

What jobs have you held before, during and/or after you became a writer?
My first job was a pharmacy tech in high school. I then worked as a police, fire, and emergency dispatcher while I was attending graduate school. After that I worked as a school psychologist for 22 years and moonlighted as a travel agent.

Where do you write?
I have an office with a terrific view of the wildlife that wander or fly through our wooded lot.

What is your favorite deadline snack?
M&Ms because I can reward myself with on after every paragraph.

What is next for you?
I’m currently writing the fourth book in my Chef-to-Go series.

What are you reading now?
Cobra Z (Necropolis Trilogy Book 1) I’m struggling to finish it so I probably won’t read the next book. It has lots of good reviews, so it’s probably more my taste than the author’s fault.

Where can we find you?
On my website at deniseswanson.com, on Facebook, and on Twitter at @DeniseSwansonAu.

Now to have some fun . . .

Vanilla or chocolate
Vanilla

Ice cream or cake
Ice cream—Dairy Queen blizzard

Broccoli or squash
Squash

Pizza, burgers, or pasta
Pasta

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner
Breakfast

Mountain or beach
Beach

City or country
Country

Introvert or extrovert
I’m an introvert that can be an extrovert for limited amounts of time.

And even more fun . . .

You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
1. An endless supply of diet coke and tasty treats.
2. My Kindle with a permanent charge.
3. My wonderful husband. He’s a retired engineer so he could be like the professor on Gilligan’s Island and invent anything we needed. 😉

My bio:
Denise Swanson is the New York Times bestselling author of the Scumble River Mysteries, the Devereaux’s Dime Store Mysteries, the Chef-to-Go mysteries, and the Forever Charmed paranormal cozy mysteries, as well as the Change of Heart romances and the Delicious romances. She worked as a school psychologist for twenty-two years before quitting to write full-time. She lives in Illinois with her husband, classical music composer David Stybr.