Interview with Marian McCarthy, Author of Murder and the Brewer

What’s the story behind the story? What inspired you to write Murder and the Brewer?

My daughter and her husband are both professional, award-winning craft brewers, so I got to sample many of their wares in my research. I wanted to bring a craft brewery into the small town in my book because brewing is all about creativity and community. Since women were the first brewers in the Middle Ages, I created a female brewer named Hildegarde Yourish, named after St. Hildegarde of Bingen, a mystic and polymath who introduced hops to the brewing process. My Hildegarde is also a practicing witch and a distant cousin to Perrie Spock, my main character, who is a psychic mortician.

If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of Murder and the Brewer, what would they be?

Hildegarde, the brewer: Season of the Witch, Donovan.
Perrie, the mortician: The Dead Dance, Lady Gaga.
Reg, the sheriff: The Weight of the Badge, George Strait.

What’s your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

Mysteries. All kinds of mysteries.

What books are on your TBR pile right now?

Tarot for Writers by Corrine Kenner; Low April Sun by Connie Squires; Magic Maker by Pam Grossman; Case Histories by Kate Atkinson.

What scene in your book was your favorite to write?

When Perrie and her aunt set up wards around Hildegarde’s brewery.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)

I do some automatic handwriting in a notebook, with keywords that describe the scene I have in mind. Every scene must have a purpose. I write scene by scene.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

Carpe diem. Seize the day.

If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?

Honoring the dead is a sacred duty.

Marian McCarthy is the author of the new book Murder and the Brewer

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