The Real House on the Hill

The old house in Hanging Dog, N.C., had an unsettling resemblance to the one overlooking the Bates Motel (though I may be exaggerating with this photo!). We’d moved there when a legal dispute forced us off the land we’d contracted to live on near the Beaverdam community in the N.C. mountains.

The Real Mildred Bradshaw

"That pie ain't never seen no oven," my real-life neighbor, the one I based Abit's mother on in A Life for a Life, said to me as we sat across from each other at a restaurant. Her mouth was full of strawberry pie and whipped cream. Not a pretty sight, and a moment that stung.

The Real Elbert Totherow

Come on in,” Elbert Totherow said with a voice that could compete against a bullhorn. “I know it looks like we’re moving, but we’re not. We’re here to stay.”

The real man was just as kind as the Elbert Totherow in A Life for a Life. He was a gentle giant who reassured me every time I visited that he’d be there the next time I needed to refill my four-gallon pail of honey.

How Mystery Characters Are Born

Now, don’t laugh, but Abit Bradshaw—a lead character in all four books of the Appalachian Mountain Mysteries series, well, I think of him as my boy. Seriously. I (somehow) conjured him, reared him, and now I'm marveling at what a fine young man he's become. I vividly recall the first time he showed up in my writing. I had no idea he was about to make the scene. He just popped into the story and wormed his way into my heart.

Those Con Artists Were Real!

It's been more than 30 years, but I vividly remember where I was when I learned I’d been swindled by some pretty impressive con artists. At the time, I worked at the Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, N.C. (Abit Bradshaw’s The Hicks—or more formally the Hickson School of American Studies—is loosely modeled after this wonderful school.) Back then, all kinds of people were attracted to the school, so it wasn’t that unusual to see a mother and her two children show up, asking for refuge.

What About All That Food?

I’m a card-carrying foodie, so it’s not surprising food plays a supporting role in all my novels. The inspiration for those scenes comes from eclectic sources ranging from Appalachian neighbors, a Danish folk school, and one of my favorite restaurants in Washington, D.C.

The Real Myrtle Ledford

Myrtle was every bit as nice as the character she inspired in my first mystery novel A Life for a Life. Maybe nicer. I liked her so much, I brought her back in the fourth book, Murder Ballad Blues, launching September 2020.

She was the perfect example of how mountain folks could be amazingly generous to others, but often felt uncomfortable when favors came their way. “Hey, we’re just happy to help out,” I said. “You’ve had us over and given us all kinds of food you put up. And Roy’s moonshine.”