Reality Writes

Send us a message! There is an unspoken agreement between every cozy mystery author and her readers. Nobody signs it, but every cozy lover knows exactly what it says and can feel it the moment something goes wrong. In this episode, the Tech Guy and I break down all six clauses of the cozy contract, from justice served at every ending to beloved characters kept safe, from the setting that must alwa...

Send us a message! Five more bookish hills. One major disagreement. And The Tech Guy is confident he's going to win this one. In this reader-focused follow-up to our fan-favorite Bookish Hills episode, I'm sharing five more hot takes that readers feel very strongly about, and this time, The Tech Guy actually knew what was coming. We cover whether you should ever read a review before fini...

Send us a message! Every book I've ever written started the same way: one word at a time. In this episode of Reality Writes, I walk you through my complete writing process. From the very beginning, when I was working another job with a kindergartner at home and 250 words a day felt like a genuine stretch, all the way to where I am now, writing 3,000 words a day across multiple series and genr...

Send us a message! It's June, darlings, but we are diving headfirst into fall because that's just how publishing works, and also because fall is my favorite season and I refuse to apologize for it. In this episode, The Tech Guy and I talk about why fall has become such a dominant season in books (genre mashups! cozy everything! readers simply demanding it!), and then I get to do my favor...

Send us a message! Got writing questions? We've got answers. In this episode, The Tech Guy and I dig into the questions that land most in our inbox, starting with a great one from a writer, Matt, in Cleveland, about how to structure and set scenes in a cozy mystery. From there, we cover coaching availability, what makes the Mystery Series Masterclass work, plotting vs pantsing, traditional vs...

Send us a message! We're coming to you live from Leavenworth, Washington—the real-life Bavarian village from the Sloan Krause Mystery series! While I was busy signing books at A Book for All Seasons, The Tech Guy was hard at work "researching" the local breweries. In this special on-location episode, we talk about what it's like to write about a real place, why I return in diff...

Send us a message! In this episode of Reality Writes, I'm sitting down with The Tech Guy to talk about the book trends shaping what readers are buying, collecting, and obsessing over right now. We cover cover art cycles, the love-hate relationship with movie tie-in covers and glossy finishes, the return of box sets, the stunning (and sometimes messy) world of sprayed edges, hidden Easter eggs...

Send us a message! You asked, and I'm answering! This week on Reality Writes, The Tech Guy and I are pulling straight from my overflowing inbox to tackle the baking questions I get most often from you. Am I a professional baker? Do I test every recipe? Can you swap almond milk for whole milk? We're also talking about foodie fiction beyond cozy mysteries, the dream of a Bakeshop Mystery c...

Send us a message! Have you ever wondered what really happens between the book an author planned to write and the one that ends up in your hands? In this episode of Reality Writes, I'm pulling back the curtain on one of the most surprising — and honestly, sometimes terrifying — parts of the writing process. The truth is, even the most thorough outline is really just a starting point. Once you...

Send us a message! Independent Bookstore Day is April 25th —and we're kicking off the celebration early! 📚 In this episode of Reality Writes, we're sharing everything you need to know about why indie bookstores are so much more than just a place to buy books. From the ongoing comeback story of independent booksellers across the U.S. to the very personal ways these shops help create comm...

Send us a message! A man staggers into a detective agency covered in blood with no memory of the night before and... The Tech Guy and I go spoiler free on a brand-new cozy mystery, A Death In The Dark, the latest entry in my Novel Detectives series (a spin off connected to the Secret Bookcase Mysteries), then pull back the curtain on how the story came together in a very specific place: a six-hour...

Send us a message! You've done it — you've written a first draft! But before you send it out into the world, there are five common pitfalls that trip up nearly every new writer, and I've seen them time and time again while coaching my writing students.  In this episode, The Tech Guy and I walk through each one: scenes that take place in a vacuum, too many characters, info dumping, a...

Send us a message! Reading is in trouble — and not just for kids. In this episode, I'm sitting down with the Tech Guy to talk about some genuinely alarming statistics about literacy in the United States, discuss why reading matters more than ever, and share some easy, actionable ways you can help turn things around.  From the surprising health benefits of cracking open a book (six minutes of...

Send us a message! The announcement you've been waiting for is here, darlings! I'm so excited to reveal the author lineup for the 4th Annual Ashland Mystery Festival — October 8th through 11th, 2026 in Ashland, Oregon. In this episode, The Tech Guy and I share who's joining us this year, including a brand-new cozy adjacent element that I think is going to absolutely blow your minds....

Send us a message! Ellie Alexander and the Tech Guy explore the role of setting in storytelling and why the places where stories unfold are just as important as the characters themselves. Ellie shares how she approaches choosing locations for her books, including the decision between using real places and creating fictional towns. They also discuss the advantages of small-town versus big-city sett...

Send us a message! Online scams are getting smarter—and both writers and readers are being targeted. In this episode of Reality Writes, the Tech Guy and I break down the most common scams we’re seeing right now in the publishing and book world. From AI-generated emails inviting authors to fake book clubs, to scammers pretending to be literary agents, to bots impersonating authors on social media—w...

Send us a message! If you’ve ever wondered what actually happens at mystery conferences, conventions, and festivals, this episode is for you. Today on Reality Writes, I’m breaking down the differences between festivals, genre-specific mystery conventions like Malice and BoucherCon, general writing conferences like Willamette Writers, and even bookseller and library conferences. They may sound simi...

Send us a message! Book 22. I can hardly believe I’m even typing that. If you’ve been here since Book 1...thank you. Truly. And if you’re just joining at Book 22? Welcome to Torte. In this episode of Reality Writes, we’re celebrating the release of The Whisking Hour, the 22nd book in my Bakeshop Mystery series. In this episode, we talk about what it feels like to write 22 books in one series, a sp...

Send us a message! I’m talking romance today — specifically how love fits into cozy mysteries, why some readers adore it, why others don’t, and how I’ve woven romantic arcs into my series over time. We also dig into my recent shift into writing rom-coms, what surprised me most about the genre, and how writing romance has actually made me a better mystery writer. From slow-burn relationships and lo...

Send us a message! Writing doesn’t happen in a vacuum — readers are a huge part of the experience. But when it comes to reader feedback, not all of it carries the same weight. In this episode of Reality Writes, I’m talking honestly about reader feedback: when it’s genuinely helpful, when it’s not, and how writers can learn to tell the difference without spiraling. This episode is for writers navig...

Send us a message! How does a cozy mystery series last for dozens of books—and what causes one to end early? Ellie Alexander and Tech Guy go behind the scenes to talk series writing, subplots, reader expectations, publishers, and the real-world happenings that shape long-running cozy mystery series. 🎉 Join me on Patreon for bonus content. Website Instagram YouTube TikTok Etsy Bookbub Facebook

Send us a message! Ellie Alexander is facing her most intense writing year yet—10+ books, multiple series, overlapping deadlines, and an endless stream of rewrites, page proofs, edits, and launches. In this candid kickoff to Season 3 of Reality Writes , she and the Tech Guy break down the real-life logistics of being a full-time working author in 2026. They talk about managing burnout, the reality...

Send us a message! It’s officially peppermint mocha season…for some of us. In this episode, Tech Guy and I dive into the great holiday debate: when is the right time to start reading (or writing) holiday books? We’re talking about cozy autumn reading trends, the publishing realities of holiday releases, how to get in the festive spirit when it’s 75 degrees outside, and why your sales might spike a...

Send us a message! We’re recapping Ashland Mystery Fest 2025—aka my favorite weekend of the entire year! In this episode, we’re sharing behind-the-scenes stories from the third annual festival, including reader highlights, cozy chaos, mystery dinners gone wild, and why I still don’t have a t-shirt gun (yet). We’ll talk about what worked, what we’ll tweak for next year, and how it felt to hug hundr...

Send us a message! Join mystery author Ellie Alexander and The Tech Guy as they dive deep into Ellie's exciting venture into romance writing! In this episode, Ellie reveals her upcoming holiday rom-com duet, one of them featuring beloved characters from her Meg Reed mystery series. After writing dozens of mysteries, Ellie discovered that switching from plotting murders to plotting meet-cutes...