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

What drew you to the genre you write?
I like crime fiction because it deals with big, important issues. If somebody commits murder, and that’s almost always the crime at the heart of a mystery, the entire community is disrupted. The murdered person has been deprived of everything. Their loved ones have been harmed irrevocably. Everybody else is in danger when a murderer is running loose. And everybody is dealing with the outrage that comes with a great injustice. A murder can’t be undone, so to me, a murder mystery is about the search for some kind of justice that will enable the rest of the community to achieve some kind of piece. These are big questions that I find endlessly interesting.

How did you come up with your pseudonym?
Mary Anna Evans is my real name. Interestingly, it is very close to George Eliot’s real name, Mary Ann (or sometimes Anne) Evans. Sometimes people ask me if I chose a pseudonym that honored her, but I have to answer, “Nope. It’s just a coincidence.” Once, I got an AI-generated piece of spam from a computer that thought I was her, asking if I wanted help promoting The Mill on the Floss. Since George Eliot wrote that book in 1860 and died in 1880, I don’t think that particular spammer is ever going to fool anybody. 🙂

Tell us how you got into writing?
I’ve always enjoyed writing, and I started writing seriously with hopes for publication in my twenties. I had two children in those days, so I had to fit my writing into little scraps of time here and there. I mostly wrote poems and short stories, and even those brief pieces came slowly. Then, when I was pregnant with my third child, I found out that I was going to be on bedrest for most of the pregnancy. I wrote most of my first novel, Wounded Earth, and it was the book that got me an agent. The next book I wrote was Artifacts, which was the start of my publishing career more than twenty years ago.

What jobs have you held before, during and/or after you became a writer?
Goodness. I think many writers have had a twisty career path. I know I have. I’ve wrapped Christmas presents at a mall department store. I’ve been a bank teller, a roustabout on an offshore natural gas platform, a tutor, a community college physics instructor, a college administrator, an environmental engineer, a youth choir director, and a university writing professor. And, most important of all, a mom!

How many books do you have published?
Thirteen Faye Longchamp archaeological mysteries, two Justine Byrne WWII mysteries, suspense novel Wounded Earth, Gothic novel The Dark Library, co-written academic books on math literacy and Agatha Christie, and two collections of short fiction, including the brand-new Something Old and Other Stories.

Where do you write?
I always write in a recliner on a notebook computer. I know it makes me sound like a slug, but it’s very cozy, especially in the wintertime when I can cuddle up with an afghan. When you write many hours a day, sitting at a desk can be hard on your body, so this is my solution. I have recliners in both my office and the living room, so I can move around the house as the mood strikes me.

What’s your favorite genre to read?
I read almost everything. Seriously. I was one of those kids who read the shampoo bottle in the shower and the cereal box at breakfast. As an adult, I read crime fiction, classics, literary fiction, science fiction, nonfiction…you name it. I feel like the written word is a gift.

What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
Um…I don’t know? Is having five grandchildren surprising? Probably not, but let’s go with that.

Who is an author you admire?
I’ve written a dissertation and a book about Agatha Christie, and I’ve co-edited two collections with Christie as the topic, so I think I’ll pick her. She was a fascinating woman who lived an amazing life while creating an admirable body of work.

Have you any advice for aspiring or beginning writers?
I think a writer’s goal has to be to make the reader feel something. All art, I think, is an attempt to reach out to other people and say, “This is how I feel. What about you?”

What is next for you?
My collection SOMETHING OLD AND OTHER STORIES, which is anchored by a novella that is the first Faye Longchamp story since 2020, has just come out. My next project will be to revisit another series character, Justine Byrne, who appeared in The Traitor Beside Her in 2024 . I’ve been thinking of writing the third in the series, The Physicists’ Children, for a while now. Now it’s time!

Where can we find you?
My website is maryannaevans.com, and there’s a newsletter signup link there. I’m also on Facebook (maryannaevansauthor), Twitter (@maryannaevans), and Instagram (maryannaevans).

NOW TO HAVE SOME FUN . . .

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner
Dinner. It’s a lovely ending to the day.

Fruits or vegetables
Vegetables. My mother said my first complete sentence was, “I want some peas and corns.”

Sweet or salty snacks
Sweet. I’m kinda known for liking Coca-Cola and Hershey bars.

Ice cream, cake, or pie
Now this one’s hard. Probably cake, unless the ice cream is homemade.

Cooking, baking, or dining out
This one’s hard, too! I guess I’ll go for dining out, because I don’t have to wash the dishes.

City life or country living
I really like where I’ve been living for the past couple of years. We’re right downtown in a small village near New York City. It’s definitely not the country, because I can walk to everything I need. It’s not the city, either, but I can walk to a bus that will get me to the train to Manhattan, putting me at Grand Central Station in an hour. So, what’s that? I guess it closer to city life than the country.

Beach or mountain
I adore the beach.

Early bird or night owl
I guess I’m an early bird. Sometimes I stay up late just for fun, but if I want to get something done, I need to start early.

Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall
Spring. I love the flowers.

Extrovert or introvert
I’m definitely an introvert, but I’m an introvert who likes people.

AND EVEN MORE FUN . . .

What is your favorite movie?
Probably Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
It seems like it would be cheating to say my loved ones, food, and shelter. So let’s say I have those necessities. What extras would make life on a desert island worth living? I’m gonna go with a big pile of books, my piano, and pencil and paper.

My bio:
Mary Anna Evans is the author of the Faye Longchamp mysteries, which have received recognition including the Benjamin Franklin Award, the Mississippi Author Award, the Oklahoma Book Award, and the Will Rogers Medallion Award. The latest Faye Longchamp mystery appears in Something Old and Other Stories. Her other fiction includes the Justine Byrne WWII Mysteries, suspense novel Wounded Earth, and Gothic novel The Dark Library. Her nonfiction has appeared in publications including The Atlantic, The Louisville Review, and Bayou, and it has received nominations for Edgar, Agatha, Macavity, and HRF Keating Awards.