Now it’s time to learn more about the authors we read. . .
What drew you to the genre you write?
My mother read traditional mysteries so I had an early introduction. Before I started reading what she did (Mary Stewart, Phyllis Whitney, Agatha Christie) I read The Lennon Sisters on Holiday Island and Sea View Secrets (YA mystery books). Like many early readers (especially before the time of 24-hour television) I learned to pronounce many words by sounding them out as I read. For example, yacht was ‘yach-ett” to me.
Tell us how you got into writing?
I always assumed I would. On top of my mother’s reading, my dad wrote a number of stories and short novels. I saved them and had them electronically transcribed – sorry, Dad, not for prime time. He also did a lot of poetry, which I published (Miles D. Orr). Like many of us, I needed to work and did not carve writing into much leisure time until I was in my late thirties. When I had any time, I traveled or did stuff with family. I started more seriously writing in the mid-1990s and some of that I published but (fortunately) I knew much of that work was learning material. I took courses at writing centers and adult education sites starting in my thirties.
What jobs have you held before, during and/or after you became a writer?
I worked many years for the Government Accounting Office (now the Government Accountability Office) and ended my career there as the head of International Liaison. This was working with other countries, not the agency’s important reviews of U.S. program overseas. Part of that job was editing the agency annual report and an international journal of auditing. Any editing helps your writing later. Then I did twenty years for the National Academy of Public Administration (evaluation/analytical work). This was in DC, where I continued to ‘commute’ and work remotely for years after moving to Iowa in 1994. Eventually I worked for six years, in Iowa, for two members of Congress – one Republican and one Democrat. That would not happen today. Two very good public servants who wanted their staff to help them keep citizens informed or cut through red tape. Since ‘retiring’ I’ve done many things, including contact tracing during the COVID pandemic.
How many books do you have published?
I almost can’t believe I’m saying forty!! Most are in the six series which are largely cozies: Jolie Gentil at the Jersey Shore (14, plus novellas), River’s Edge in rural Iowa (3), Logland in central Illinoi (3), Family History Mysteries in the mountains of Western Maryland (5 plus short stories), Shore Shenanigans, also at the Jersey Shore (1 so far), Bay View Harbor Mysteries at Maryland’s Easter Shore (1 coming in August 2026).
I’ve learned books with a crime-solving professional but written with a ‘cozy feel’ do not sell as well – the Logland and Shore Shenanigans series. Cozy readers only want an amateur sleuth and other mystery readers don’t like the small-town-offscreen-violence motif.
I’ve written several standalone novels or novellas, a couple of plays, and a couple of books about writing. My first novel was set in Bath, England. It’s not as complex as things I wrote later, and I keep wanting to go back to learn more.
Where do you write?
In my office, which is crowded and in which I can distract myself (or my husband will help with that). I often go to a local library and occasionally a coffee shop. In those places, there can be noise all around me, but it doesn’t require me to pay much attention.
What’s your favorite genre to read?
I like mysteries but often read novels that are grittier than mine. I like John Sandford’s Virgil Flowers series (good characters and strong town environments), many of Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon books (the one that deal with art thefts and such more than Israeli intelligence). Book clubs also keep me reading outside of my familiarity. Possibly Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is my favorite book. Nope, it’s Pompeii by Robert Harris. You know how it will end, right? So well written.
What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
Most of my favorite places to have traveled are not typical tourist spots. I loved Morocco (only went as far south as Fes), Kenya (the Masai Mara is a place everyone should visit) and the Philippines (go outside Manilla to get to know the cultures).
I still substitute teach in a middle school. My friends think I’m nuts. Probably am. I’ve done six compression fractures on my back. This is not a good hobby but I probably would not have written as many books had I done fewer. I am impatiently recovering from one now.
Who is an author you admire?
Erik Larsen who writes nonfiction so thoroughly researched that it reads like fiction. Do read In the Garden of the Beast.
Have you any advice for aspiring or beginning writers?
I don’t know anyone who’s waiting for a muse, but so many people look for a block of time to really focus. Carry a notebook, continually jot ideas even if you don’t think you’ll write about the time you were stuck in an elevator for two hours or forgot to turn off the burner under a pan and made the entire house smell like burned rubber for days. If you think through some of what you want to write (an hour every Saturday morning), you can write in chunks. You’ll also keep thinking about what you’re writing as you do your day job. (Assuming you aren’t a firefighter or something like that.)
What is next for you?
I plan to keep writing as long as I can. I am motivated by the income I make. However, Amazon recently changed its algorithm so I make less. (If a reader searches for your book or your name, the other books offered beneath yours are those that make Amazon the most profit. I’ve sold a few hundred thousand books [not all with them] but am not a continuing best seller. When they don’t show readers your books, you can only find readers through your newsletter, library talks, etc.).
I’m trying to decide if I can write more books or should delve more into the family history research I love. I write for myself, I push myself to publish to make money. My husband and I like Illinois but would like to move to Maryland where my sibs and their kids are. It’s not a decision to make lightly.
My latest book, THE ART CRITIC’S LAST FORGERY, will be released August 14, 2026.
Where can we find you?
On my website at www.elaineorr.com, on my Irish Roots Author blog, on TikTok: (Trying to use it more and not always talk about writing), on Bluesky: (much friendlier than X), and BooksTo Enjoy: (Quit, leaving my 11,000 followers because it was so very negative. Just rejoined to see if it will counter Amazon’s algorithm changes.)
Now to have some fun . . .
Breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Breakfast
Fruits or vegetables.
Hard choice. Vegetables
Sweet or salty snacks.
Now salty. Used to be sweet.
Ice cream or cake.
Ice cream. Who would ask such a question?
Cooking or baking.
Cooking if I can use a crock pot. I’m a lazy cook.
Dining in or dining out.
Eating in.
City life or country living.
Smaller towns where you have needed services but it’s easy to get around.
Beach or mountain.
Water, not necessarily an ocean beach.
Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall.
Spring. Used to be Fall.
Extrovert or introvert.
I feel like an introvert but easily interact with people so others would say extrovert.
And even more fun . . .
What is your favorite movie?
Super 8 or Outbreak.
You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
Besides water and some food, probably books (duh), a way to keep in touch with my sister (I know you said deserted but it’s not negotiable), and a box full of all the dumb jokes my husband has told me or weird notes he has written). Maybe I should have said paper and pen.
My bio:
Elaine Orr – author of six mystery series covering the U.S. Midwest to the East Coast and in between. Lucky cancer survivor with a great family and many friends. Many years of public service combined with traveling in the U.S. and overseas have provided a lot of grist for stories.