Hello, and thanks so much for stopping by!
My name is Carolyn L. Dean, and I love to tell stories about small town mysteries. Before we go any further, you should know something: There’s another (very nice) author with the name Carolyn Dean, but she doesn’t use an initial in her name. If you want to read cozy mysteries instead of books about Irritable Bowel Syndrome, you’ll want to be sure the writer has the initial L in the middle of her name ????
And in case you’re wondering, the L stands for Liberty!
My books are traditional mysteries and pretty much G-rated. Don't be shocked if you see some sweet romances coming out this year, too!
Why do I write books like that? Well, I'll tell you: that's what I like to read, too.
I’m a long-time booklover and have been putting myself to sleep by imagining all sorts of crazy stories and unmet friends since I was a small child. I remember coming home from third grade, setting down my lunch box, and telling my mother I had decided to be a writer. Luckily, Mom was always supportive. ????
Like everyone else I’ve ever met, the things that have happened in my life have formed who I am and, since I’m an author, they’ve affected what I write. I grew up in a family with six kids, and married my high school sweetheart after college. After not being able to have kids, my husband died days before his 39th birthday. I had no idea how much grief and trying to find my feet again would change my outlook on life, priorities, and what I wanted to do with any future I had. After falling in love again and remarrying, I was thrilled to become a stepmom to two small children, and then had a baby of my own just after my 40th birthday.
My new family again snapped my priorities into focus, and when I started writing fiction, my author voice was full of characters who were inspired by the amazing, snarky and fun people I’d met in my own life. My love of international travel showed up as my characters took trips around the world. My childhood was full of happy visits to my grandparent’s fruit and nut farm in the Oregon Willamette Valley, and trips to the gorgeous coasts of Oregon and Washington, so I wrote about that. Beloved pets from my past live on in the animal friends I’ve put in my books, and the laughter and advice of people who have passed on still can be heard in the pages of my cozy mysteries.
So, I’ll leave it up to you to decide if I write cozy mysteries because I love to live in a happy small town or an exotic locale. Even something as simple as the apple blossom on the graphic I put together for this blog post means something to me. It’s a sentimental nod to my childhood swinging from the branches of the trees in the family orchard. Here's my youngest daughter, enjoying some apple blossom therapy after a bad day at school:
And now that you know all about my jumbled history, I hope you’ll check out my books and meet the pets, people, and places I love the most. If you’d like to get the newest info about freebies or upcoming books, my newsletter is spam-free , or you can stop by my website, at carolyndeanbooks.com . I'm also on Amazon. My books are my own small business I can do from home, and I appreciate every book sold and every page read. Thank you for making my life a better place, all because of my sentimental musings.
Warmly,
Carolyn L. Dean
Carolyn has always been an avid reader, and used to make up stories in her head to put herself to sleep as a child. Married with three grown children, she spends her time traveling whenever she can and learning more about her new home state, Texas. She's a sucker for a happy ending, and her husband often teases her about how she'll chuckle to herself while writing up new adventures for her characters. Want to know more? Join her spam-free VIP reader group!
