I’d like to welcome Anna St. John to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

I like books, turtles, Madeline dolls and the beach.

Things I need to throw out:

Anything that’s been hanging in my closet more than five years, and half of my cookbooks.

Things I love about writing: When the characters take control of the scene and dictate their own dialogue. When the plot falls into place. When the first printed samples arrive at my door.

Things I hate about writing: When I write myself into a box and must figure a way out.

Favorite foods: My mother’s potato soup, ice cream, and anything chocolate.

Things that make me want to gag: I’m not a fan of turnips.

Favorite music or song: Jim Brickman piano music for writing. Sixties music for dancing. Country music for fun.

Music that drives me crazy: Anything with lyrics that are too fast to understand, or too rude to repeat in front of my grandchildren.

Favorite smell: Fresh-cut grass or blooming lilacs. Both take me back to my childhood.

Something that makes me hold my nose: The pungent odor of skunk spray on a wet dog. (Don’t ask me how I know this.)

Things you’d walk a mile for: My Old English Sheepdog, Oliver. (We do this almost every day.) I’d also walk a mile for a hug from either of my grandchildren.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Waiting “on hold” for customer support people.

Things you always put in your books: Strong, smart women. Small town charm. A few names of real people. Recipes.

Things you never put in your books: Profanity. Explicit sex scenes. Violence (Except for the murder.)

Things to say to an author: I love your writing and always write a five-star review. I can’t wait for your next book. Will you autograph this for me?

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I hate to read. It must be nice to get paid for doing something that easy. Are you rich?

Favorite places you’ve been:

This is a hard one, but my top five cities would include: Amsterdam, Budapest, Oxford, Prague and Venice. Top five countries: Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden and Thailand.

Places you never want to go to again: A cave we visited near the floating villages In Phang Nga Bay, not far from Phuket, Thailand. I had an anxiety attack when I learned we had to wade through knee-high water and duck under the low-ceilinged cave to get through a narrow passageway. I hyperventilated and chickened out.

Favorite things to do: Write, travel, spend time with my grandchildren.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Serve on a committee where the meetings drone on for hours.

Things that make you happy: I love to drive my little red convertible. It’s a Triumph Herald that my dad bought new in 1965. When I sit behind the wheel, I feel like I’m sixteen again.

Things that drive you crazy: Rude customer service. People who are intentionally unkind to others.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Signed with my agent Cindy Bullard, at Birch Literary. She is amazing.

Biggest mistake: Waiting too long to get started as an author.

The funniest thing to happen to you: I emceed a prayer breakfast with 600 in attendance. When it was time for the closing song, I introduced former Dixie Chick singer Robin Macy. As I handed her the microphone to walk off-stage, she wrapped her arm around me and pulled me closer. “Sing with me,” she said. (Note: I am not a singer.) I tried to escape, but she kept a strong grasp on my arm, and I gave up the struggle. Fortunately, the song was a familiar one. The entire audience rose to their feet and raised their voices “Praise God from whom all blessings flow…” From that moment on, I claimed that I’d sung a duet on stage with a Dixie Chick—to a standing ovation.

The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: After I completed chemo treatments, a friend took me to lunch to celebrate. A mutual business associate approached our table. Although he and I had worked together on several projects, the man ignored me and spoke only to my friend. I smiled and said, “It’s good to see you again.” He did a double-take and stammered. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t recognize you without your hair.”

The coolest person you’ve ever met: My sorority friend, Magi Watson. She lived to be 102, and never worried about anything. She said worry was a waste of time. “Either fix what’s bothering you, or let it go.” It was great advice.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Susan Dey, most known for her roles on The Partridge Family and LA Law. She looked reserved and glamorous in pictures. Working with our ad agency on a nonprofit video, Susan was warm and funny, with a huge heart for kids.

Josie Posey, a mature yet ever-feisty big city crime reporter turned crime solver, has officially retired to a small, touristy town in middle America where she and her posse of friends “unofficially” have their noses in everything.

Josie loves her new life, but a weekly game of mahjong isn’t enough: she itches to get back into the action. She gets more than she bargained for when The Village Gazette asks her to interview their local celebrity, a former NYC prima ballerina.

Then, the ballerina’s husband is discovered dead -- face down in the couple’s beloved field of flowers. Now, Josie has the inside track on solving the murder, with her quirky Mahjong Mavens as useful sidekicks.

And if a killer in their midst wasn’t enough distraction, Josie’s matchmaking friends are pushing her to date again—particularly, to pursue an attraction toward a certain local blacksmith, with whom sparks fly.

About Anna:

Anna St. John is a former newspaper journalist, award-winning advertising copywriter, and ad agency owner. She lives in a small Kansas town with a working blacksmith shop, much like the one in this story.

Anna is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, the Kansas Authors Club and the National Mah Jongg League.

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