Thursday, July 23, 2015

Characters, Fashion and a Writer's Budget.

Hi all!  Please welcome guest author Claudia Lefeve to Killer Hobbies today!  Like she and her protagonist, Kate and I share the same taste in clothes--though that's not surprising since we both make our living teaching yoga.  Claudia, tell us more about your protagonist, Jules Cannon and the fashion choices you share.

Tracy Weber


Many readers wonder if characters are modeled after their creators. I can't speak for other authors, but there is a little piece of me in all my main characters. In this case, Jules Cannon, my immature sleuth in Destined for Trouble, shares the same taste is fashion as I do (and that's pretty much where the similarities end). 

Basically, Jules wears much of what I personally own in my closet. She wears a lot of brightly colored shifts, shorts, and skorts. And flip flopsalways flops. Were both Gulf Coast beach gals  (okay, another similarity) and our style reflects that.

As Im sure you might have noticed, if youve pursued my website, Jules and I both have a penchant for Lilly Pulitzer and all things comfortable. But it can come at a price. Yes, I own a lot of Lilly, and even though I search on Ebay, consignment shops, and other sites for vintage shifts, it's not always in my writers budget. 

So this year, I decided to sew my own summer shifts, using real vintage 1960s patterns I found online. Since I work from home, I can pretty much wear what I want, and shifts are what I want. They are great to run errands in, play fetch with the pups, and even sitting at my desk writing at home or at the coffee shop. In Jules Cannon's case, she's comfy enough to solve crimes while catching some rays in her hometown of Trouble Island, Texas. 

So it comes as no surprise that the second Jules and I ditched our government jobs (fine, a third thing we have in common), so did our drab, dark business attire and high heelsremember, always flops! 

Destined for Trouble (Book #1 Jules Cannon Mystery Series)

After getting dumped by her boyfriend, FBI crime analyst Jules Cannon flees to her hometown of Trouble Island, Texas, to nurse her wounds. All she wants to do is unwind, forget about her failed relationship, and work on her tan.

But when the owner of the local crab shack is murdered at Juless welcome-home party, she is forced to scrap her rest-and-relaxation plans. Now her best friend, Abby Lee, is the prime suspect, and her high school sweetheart, Deputy Chief Justin Harper, is working the case. Even though Jules knows she shouldnt, she just cant keep herself from getting involved in the investigationand entangled with handsome Assistant District Attorney Hartley Crawford. While an old flame threatens to rekindle and a new one sparks, Jules must find a killer and prove her friends innocence. But will she put two and two together before trouble catches up with her?


Bio:

Claudia Lefeve was born and raised so far down the Texas Gulf Coast she has to pull out a map to show people it's nowhere near Houston. Now living in Northern Virginia, she is taking a hiatus from a civilian career in law enforcement to write full-time. She lives with her husband and three dogs.

1 comment:

Joanne Guidoccio said...

Hi Claudia, Love the idea of wearing shifts. So comfortable...so easy. Joanne :)