An author who imbues her book characters with her own sense of humor.

Please, introduce yourself. Tell us about your personal life, family, education.

Hi, my name is Maureen Fisher. I write funny and furry adventures and misadventures, guaranteed to tickle the funny bone, lift the spirits, and warm the heart! All my books contain relatable characters, animals, and always some naughty humor. As Charlie Chaplin once said, “A day without humor is a day wasted.”

My well-meaning parents transplanted me from Scottish soil to Canada at the tender age of seven. For the next eight years, I grieved my loss. Shy, withdrawn, and lonely, I tried to hide how I felt. Books were my salvation. At around age 16, I finally found my footing, discovered I owned a sense of humor, and never looked back—although I’ll always be an introvert.

Later as a University of Toronto graduate, I married my first husband and convinced the federal government to hire a Fine Arts specialist as a computer programmer (go figure!!!). In another four years, I graduated again, this time to full-time homemaker and mom, raising two wonderful sons. After plunging back into the business world twelve years later, I got a divorce, returned to work as a single mom, re-married, and started a management consulting company in partnership with my second husband.

After a century in the consulting world, I grew weary of wearing snappy power suits, squeezing into panty hose, and fighting rush hour traffic. I still didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up, but it sure wasn’t an I.T. consultant. After attending a 5-day seminar called How to Write a Novel, I ignored well-intended advice and quit my day job. How hard could it be? Look at the bookshelves. Thousands of authors pulled it off every year, some of them several times. Little did I know the challenges that lay ahead. Fortunately, I had planned ahead for my retirement. I’m now working on my 6 th book, a cozy mystery with senior sleuths (three wily sisters), animals, and a little (okay, a lot) of naughty humor.

Between as much travel as we can squeeze in, my husband and I live in Ottawa where I slave over a computer to improve my writing skills.

Ultimate Writing Goal

What is your ultimate writing goal as you see it today?

Thankfully, I’m not in it for the money. Writing is my creative outlet. It also keeps my brain active during my retirement years. But those aren’t the main reasons I write. Here’s the thing. In a world of growing uncertainty, we are constantly bombarded with news about disasters, tragedies, wars, murders, deaths, corruption, and despair. At a personal level, everyone experiences writing goal, private tragedies at one time or another, traumas such as abuse, the death of loved ones, illness, bankruptcy, and many more. Novels were always my happy place, my blissful escape, my salvation during up-close-and-personal encounters with personal traumas. Some things are worth escaping from. Despair is definitely one of them. I view my books as an antidote to despair. By creating a world full of excitement, fun, adventure, and romance, I take readers to a safe place where they can relax, smile, even laugh out loud, and forget their problems, if only for a few hours.

What do you like doing in your spare time?

Besides reading and writing, I’m a bridge player, pickle ball enthusiast, seeker of personal and spiritual growth, member of a women’s choir called DeciBelles, an infrequent but avid gourmet cook, and a former volunteer as counsellor’s aid for individuals impacted by the addicts or alcoholics in their lives.

My husband and I love to travel. We’ve swum with sharks in the Galapagos, walked with Bushmen in the Serengeti, sampled lamb criadillas (don’t ask!!!) in Iguazu Falls, snorkeled on the Great Barrier Reef, ridden an ATV over Venezuela’s rutted jungle paths, bicycled in the Netherlands, ridden an elephant in Thailand, watched the sun rise over the hills surrounding Machu Picchu, climbed to the top of Mount Vesuvius, and bounced from Johannesburg to Cape Town on a bus called Marula.

What inspired you to write your first book?

I’m not one of those people who knew from the moment she sprang from her mother’s womb that she was destined to be a writer. Far from it. I didn’t carry around a pen and notepad to scribble down pearls of wisdom. I wasn’t brimming with plot ideas. I almost never heard snippets of conversation in my head.

Here’s the thing. When I was in grade 7, my mom (with the best of intentions) re-wrote one of my essays to make it less boring. I received an ‘A+’ for her efforts. After that, we figured, why mess with success? Mom wrote another couple of polished pieces brimming with adult humor and wit to round out my primary school writing career in style. I sailed into high school with high marks and low self-esteem. Feeling like a total fraud, I made no attempt to write another creative word outside of technical reports for several decades. Fast forward many years. After several sessions with an energy healer, I made a life- changing decision. I would write books. Not dry, boring, technical treatises, but fresh, funny romantic suspense novels.

Always an over-achiever, I attended a one-week seminar on writing a novel, read a couple of how-to books, joined Romance Writers of America, and plunged right in. With the optimistic naivety only novice writers possess, I started writing my first book. Cracking open a bottle of wine, or maybe it was two, my husband and I conceived a plotline.

How much in your books is realistic and contains experiences based on someone you know, or events in your life?

Learning can be a humbling experience. After countless workshops, six-re-writes, twenty- five rejections, several tons of chocolate, and two first-prize wins, I sold my first book. Now self-published, I have a sixth book underway.

Truthfully, quite a lot, although I’ve never committed murder, never seen the inside of a fetish club, and never owned a dude ranch. Using one of my romantic suspense novels, THE JAGUAR LEGACY, I will illustrate some similarities to my own experiences.

Being a Scot myself, I needed to write a Scottish hero. The charming and slightly eccentric archaeologist, Alistair Kincaid, is a combination of several of my favorite men, all of whom will remain anonymous. Kincaid has a tendency to wear hideous Hawaiian shirts he believes are the height of fashion. He bores people to tears with his discourses on the intricacies of archaeology, has zero mechanical skills, and is the world’s worst bagpipe player. He doesn’t understand why others loathe his playing and head for the hills. He’s also the most attentive and empathetic listener a woman could ever wish for, loyal, persistent, brilliant, and witty, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous.

My heroine’s enjoyment of good food, particularly chocolate, is akin to mine. Also her quirky sense of humor. More to the point, my heroine and I share some real-life traumas. For example, our mothers were both substance abusers. Like me, my heroine figured she should be able to save the parent she both loved and hated, if only she could find the correct words to make her see the error of her ways. Of course, both my heroine and I were equally wrong. Writing the scene where my heroine finally gets it that she is not responsible for saving her mother, and free to pursue her dreams, was as cathartic for me as for my heroine. The setting is an archaeological dig in Mexico. I have visited several, and chose one called Monte Alban as the model for my book’s setting. Our guide was a fountain of knowledge about the ancient Olmecs, so I was able to write realistic details about their beliefs and lives. Details of the jungle and camp are also based on my own experiences. Extensive research might also have played a teeny-tiny part.

Her Writing Style

Have you developed a specific writing style, and why?

Life can get tough upon occasion. For that reason, I like a book that makes me smile. I’m even happier if it makes me laugh. My writer’s voice tends toward humorous, so I always try to add humor to each of my books. It’s my trademark. This excerpt from FUR BALL FEVER features Grace and her elderly Auntie Beth (a former hippie with outrageous behavior and a firm belief in free love) on their way to a stakeout:

After ten minutes of driving, Grace checked her rearview mirror for cops on her tail. She bit back a scream, swerved, and bounced back into her lane with a squeal of tires and the stench of burning rubber. With the car under control again, she yelled at the plump figure sitting in the rear seat, “Dammit, Auntie Beth. You took ten years off my life.” Lights from oncoming traffic illuminated Auntie Beth’s broad smile. “Always check your back seat before getting into your car, dear. I fell asleep after I hid under your travel blanket.”

Grace ground her teeth. “I should turn around and take you home.”

“You won’t,” Auntie Beth said with certainty. “I tried to warn you I wouldn’t take no for an answer. Watch out. I’m coming over.” She lunged over the back of the passenger seat, and hung there, legs waving, her feet beating a ragged two-step on the roof. “Stay where you are. You can’t—” Grace said a bad word while whipping the donuts out of the way. Napkins took flight. The driver behind leaned on his horn.

“I can and I am,” Auntie Beth said, her voice muffled by a mouthful of upholstery. “I hope you saved me a couple of Boston creams.”

A well-padded butt whacked Grace’s shoulder hard enough to jostle the steering wheel. Another contortion had her worrying about elderly ligaments. After more wriggles, her aunt did a half-twist and slithered into the front seat, where she heaved her bulk into place with a grunt of triumph, and engaged the seatbelt.

Impressed in spite of herself, Grace said, “You’re pretty limber for your age.”

“Thanks. Milt says that too.” Auntie Beth retrieved the donuts and chose a Boston crème followed by a maple glaze.

Do you remember the first book you read?

I’ll never forget it. I was seven when I read my first real book, WINNIE THE POOH. My mother bought it for me to read on board the ship that would take us to a new life in Canada. I got so caught up in the characters and the humor, I read it in one day. I re-read it many times, and it, along with the Enid Blyton adventure series, were my favorite books for several years.

Tell us about your books.

THE JAGUAR LEGACY is a romantic suspense, where past lives collide with the present.

FUR BALL FEVER is a romantic suspense with tons of humor. And dogs. Lots of dogs. Especially Murphy, the misbehaving schnauzer.

COLD FEET FEVER is another romantic suspense with tons of humor and a dog (Rex, the German shepherd, is a walking stomach with four paws and a gullet.)

HORSING AROUND WITH MURDER is a hilarious and heart-warming cozy mystery with senior sleuths (3 wily sisters) and animals (a stud named Lancelot, more horses, goats, and Larry the llama.)

DEADLY THANKSGIVING is another hilarious and heart-warming cozy mystery with senior sleuths (3 wily sisters) and animals (Snuggles the attack-cat, more goats, especially Fluffer, and Larry the llama.)

Solid Writing Advice

When you see new authors struggling, what single piece of advice could you give them on a moment’s notice?

I have more than a single piece of advice, so here goes:

  • Join a writing / critique group and write, write, write.
  • Don’t give up because of rejections or stinging critiques. Choose to fix what makes sense to you, the author, discard the rest, and keep on writing.
  • Mistakes are inevitable. Every writer makes them. Learn from your mistakes and keep on writing.
  • I was amazed at the number of authors who won’t submit their manuscript to an agent, editor, or contest because they fear criticism. So send that manuscript out, and start writing your next book.
  • Learn the art of delivering a pitch. Practice first on a fellow writer, then pitch your masterpiece at every opportunity. And keep on writing.
  • Keep learning. Hone your craft. Attend workshops and writers’ conferences (editors and agents often take pitches at them). Attend classes (there are lots of great online courses).
  • Read how-to books, and don’t stop writing.
  • Eat chocolate. Wine’s soothing too.
  • Persistence, persistence, persistence. Did I mention keep on writing?

Do you have a blog or website viewers can visit for updates, events and special offers? Include links to any and all of your sites. You can find all my books on my website: https://booksbymaureen.com/

At Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/t7cm3j6w