Why do you write the genre that you write?
I’ve loved crime fiction ever since the Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew, Encyclopedia Brown, and Sherlock Holmes. When I was older, I read my mother’s mysteries: Agatha Christie, Rex Stout, Ellery Queen, all the golden age classics. I discovered Dashiell Hammett and James M. Cain and the noir writers on my own as a young woman, and that led me to more contemporary crime writers. Crime fiction is still my go-to when I need to leave the real world behind. . .

Tell us how you got into writing?
I started out as a reporter, writing for newspapers and magazines. Then I got my first job in book
publishing and I was “home.” I spent many happy years as an acquisitions editor by day and a nonfiction writer by night before becoming an agent with Talcott Notch Literary—my favorite job of all time. But I always wanted to write fiction, and once my kids were grown and gone I got finally serious about it.

What’s next for you?
I’m writing Book Four in the Mercy Carr series right now. It takes place at a wedding in June—and murder will happen. Oh, and there are goats. (And no, no goats will die.)

What are you reading now?
I just finished The Postscript Murders by Elly Griffiths, which was wonderful. I’m a huge Elly Griffiths fan. I recently caught up on all of Attica Locke and Adrian McKinty and Jane Harper, all great writers. I enjoyed The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz and I’m loving The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. Of course I have a front-row seat for all of my clients’ books, which are all spectacular. And there are so many great books coming out this summer and fall–I’m especially looking forward to The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny–that it’s a struggle to keep up. But I’ll try!

Where can we find you?
You can find me on Twitter @PaulaSMunier, on Facebook as Paula Munier, on Instagram as @PaulaSMunier, on Career Authors, at our Talcott Notch Literary website or paulamunier.com. You’ll also find me wherever crime writers gather online and off. . .

Now to have some fun . . .

Vanilla or chocolate
Vanilla with hot fudge sauce and strawberries

Pizza or burgers
Pizza! Pizza! Pizza! Tomato and Anchovy is my fave.

Broccoli or squash
I love all vegetables except for kale. But I keep trying kale recipes,
just in case I’m wrong. Got any good ones?

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner
Lunch is one of my favorite words. I LOVE lunch.

Mountain or beach
Give me a lake in the mountains so I can have both.

Introvert or Extrovert
As a writer I am a bookworm by nature, and so as outgoing as
I may seem on the outside, on the inside I’m an introvert dying
to get back to my couch and a good mystery.

And even more fun . . .

You are stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
If I can’t bring along any sentient beings (meaning no people or pets),
then I’d make do with oysters, cabernet sauvignon, and crime novels.

My bio:
Paula Munier is a literary agent and the USA Today bestselling author of the Mercy Carr mysteries. A Borrowing of Bones, the first in the series, was nominated for the Mary Higgins Clark Award and named the Dogwise Book of the Year. Blind Search was inspired by the real-life rescue of a little boy with autism who got lost in the woods. The Hiding Place debuts in March 2021. Paula credits the hero dogs of Mission K9 Rescue, her own rescue dogs, and a deep love of New England as her series’ major influences. Paula has also written three popular books on writing: Plot Perfect, The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings, and Writing with Quiet Hands, as well as Fixing Freddie and Happier Every Day.