Southern Fried with Sheriff Kenni Lowry and Tonya Kappas :

I feel so loved when authors drop by with a special gift. Tonya Kappas, author of Southern Fried, brought me a jar of moonshine. I’m okay with that. It’s been a long week. We settled in with coffee and a drop of the special “shine,” and the chatting began.

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Great to see you here! The cookies will be ready momentarily. I’m delighted you took the time to visit and tell us about your newest release Southern Fried.

In the South, it’s better when the food is fried and the secrets kept buried… After the dead body of a beloved Cottonwood resident is found tangled up in an electric fence, Sheriff Kenni Lowry has a hunch that somethin’ ain’t right. Her investigation heats up with a fierce cook-off competition, a euchre game where the intel is sweeter than the brownies, and a decades old family recipe that may just be the proof in the pudding.

The icing on the cake: Kenni is fighting an attraction to her recently sworn-in deputy sheriff, and election season is hot on her tail. When the killer comes after who she holds most dear, even her poppa’s ghostly guidance might not be enough to keep her and her own out of the frying pan.

What is your favorite aspect of Kenni, your protagonist – her strongest trait, quirky habit, etc.

I love that she’s the town sheriff and how she’s got a lot of gumption! Strong-minded and a good-hearted person who loves her community.

What is your favorite aspect of your antagonist?

She’s sneaky!

Did you have a strategy or outline during book one in this series to carry you into book two?

No. I only know the murder, who did it and why. Every book explores new and different areas in the community. Each book also explores new characters which add their homes/works/family to the plot which gives a great lead-in for new descriptions.

Oh the cookies are done. I’ll be right back with chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. While I’m getting them from the oven, tell us if Kenni were dropped off at the cinema, what movie would she choose?

She’d watch a little John Wayne or some fun Doris Day movies.

Here you go – please help yourself! I also made peanut butter cookies! What is one odd or unusual item right now on your writing desk?

Oh gosh.. nothing! I have to have a complete clean desk to write and I make sure it’s clean when I leave my office for the day.

What advice about writing a series would you give to other authors as they settle in for that first draft.

Use an address book to keep your characters in. I list all their stats. It’s perfect to remember hair color etc.

Thank you so much for visiting ePen! (I handed off the rest of the cookies and went for a wee refill of the moonsh- I mean, coffee.)

Be sure to check out the exclusive website for the Kenni Lowry Mystery Series where you can take a virtual vacation in Cottonwood. Check out the recipes and adult coloring sheets! There’s so much fun in Cottonwood. Click here! There are so many ways to be involved and connect with Tonya!