# Anyone Having Success Writing Cozy Mysteries?



## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

I was using Kindlespy to look at some mystery categories. It seems like this is a good genre to write in. I was curious if anyone was making decent money writing cozy mysteries and cozy mystery sub genres? I am just trying to find an area I want to focus on. It's either this or Sci Fi  I would like to write Sci Fi or some sort of cozy mysteries. I am confused on which direction to take. My gut instinct tells me that cozy mysteries are more profitable. But....I enjoy writing both genres which makes them both desirable to me


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## Jessica R (Nov 11, 2012)

Write both. You can always use different names. My Obituary series are kind of cozy mysteries, but they've got some paranormal and are overall a strange mix that seems to work. My first one sells especially well. Wish I knew what the magic ingredients were, but I think the title and cover are part of it.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Thanks. Yea I could write in both genres. I know the are both profitable. I am not sure which one I would enjoy more long term. I somehow think cozy mysteries will be easier to profit in though. I might be wrong, I just feel that way. Sci Fi seems harder to turn a profit. Plus, light hearted cozy mysteries could be fun to write


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## Lydniz (May 2, 2013)

Lots of people are having success writing cozy mysteries. Some of them even post on these boards.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Thanks. Hmm.....seems like a solid market. Not only that, seems like one that would be easy to come up with new ideas. Sci Fi is good too. LOL. I suppose I could write both and see which one works better for me?


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## Cap&#039;n Crunch (Aug 10, 2009)

I'll tell you when (if) my cozy mystery is picked up in the Kindle Scout program. (hint hint, please nominate me!)


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

I dont know. Actually I might just continue with the sci fi series I was working on. I can't make up my mind lately on this.


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## NewbieWan (Jul 21, 2013)

Cozy mysteries are hugely successful. I'm a mystery book reviewer, and also watch the new books coming in. I think it's even growing from what I've seen on Amazon.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Lol. Hmm......maybe I should write a cozy mystery. Hmm.....I had a feeling they were huge right now.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

I would love to hear any other feedback


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## CelinaGrace (Nov 20, 2013)

I write semi-cosy mysteries. My American readers seem to appreciate not having much gore/sex/swearing in the books (there actually is some of all three in each book but it's...subtle.) My main series would probably be classed as a cross between a police procedural and a cosy mystery - the crime takes place 'off screen', for example, in most books.

If I were you, though, I'd stop worrying about which is the most profitable genre and write the books that appeal to you. If you're not authentic in what you write, sooner or later it's going to show in your books.


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## amy_wokz (Oct 11, 2014)

Look at the author central pages of Emily Page and Lily Harper Hart (each with more than one book in the top 20) with Kindle Spy. Read a book or two by each, then join their mailing lists and write to them, praising their writing and asking questions about whatever you want. Most authors are very friendly and helpful.


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## TheLemontree (Sep 12, 2015)

You've got a sci fi series under way already? 

If you're asking this question now, is it because of problems with what you're currently writing? 

A break to write somethings else can help, but consider asking a beta reader for feedback on what you're currently writing. 

Sent from my GT-S7390 using Tapatalk


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## Jana DeLeon (Jan 20, 2011)

Well, my release yesterday hit #11 in the overall Amazon store today, so yeah, there are people making great money in cozies.


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## Spin52 (Sep 6, 2015)

CelinaGrace said:


> I write semi-cosy mysteries. My American readers seem to appreciate not having much gore/sex/swearing in the books (there actually is some of all three in each book but it's...subtle.) My main series would probably be classed as a cross between a police procedural and a cosy mystery - the crime takes place 'off screen', for example, in most books.
> 
> If I were you, though, I'd stop worrying about which is the most profitable genre and write the books that appeal to you. If you're not authentic in what you write, sooner or later it's going to show in your books.


I'm in much the same situation. The sex and violence in my novels is mostly off-stage, as it were, and there's only a little profanity. I have to classify them as 'cozy' because nothing else seems to fit, although I'd prefer the term 'traditional'. I wouldn't say I'm terribly successful in a financial sense, but feedback has been positive and I love writing them.
I agree with your other statement as well. I started reading mysteries when I was still in grade school, and several decades later, it's still my favorite genre.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Spin52 said:


> I'm in much the same situation. The sex and violence in my novels is mostly off-stage, as it were, and there's only a little profanity. I have to classify them as 'cozy' because nothing else seems to fit, although I'd prefer the term 'traditional'. I wouldn't say I'm terribly successful in a financial sense, but feedback has been positive and I love writing them.
> I agree with your other statement as well. I started reading mysteries when I was still in grade school, and several decades later, it's still my favorite genre.


Wow that's awesome!! Congrats  Thanks everyone for the feedback. I think I might try my hand at a cozy series and see how it goes. If I get a good response I will continue. I will still write my Sci Fi series too, but at a slower pace in between my cozies. I just have a burning desire to try my hand at writing a cozy mystery. Something tells me I will do well with them. But I could be wrong lol. I think I am going to give it a go


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## Wayne Stinnett (Feb 5, 2014)

I'll answer your question with a question. And in your answer to my question, you will have answered your own question.   

What do you like to read most?


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Wayne Stinnett said:


> I'll answer your question with a question. And in your answer to my question, you will have answered your own question.
> 
> What do you like to read most?


LOL. Well, I like revenge stories and a few Sci Fi stories. But.....I also like some mysteries. Truth is, my mind jumps all over the place. I am pretty here and there. So in a perfect world, I would write all over the place. If I was writing for pure 100% fun, I would write all sorts of stuff. Most of it would be half finished though. I love the creating new worlds, characters etc. But, it is a bit hard to finish things.

But, I also really enjoy watching that investigation discovery channel on TV. I think I would enjoy writing some light breezy mysteries. I would also like to write some Sci Fi stories too. So I am not sure which way to go.


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## hunterone (Feb 6, 2013)

dragontucker said:


> LOL. Well, I like revenge stories and a few Sci Fi stories. But.....I also like some mysteries. Truth is, my mind jumps all over the place. I am pretty here and there. So in a perfect world, I would write all over the place. If I was writing for pure 100% fun, I would write all sorts of stuff. Most of it would be half finished though. I love the creating new worlds, characters etc. But, it is a bit hard to finish things.
> 
> But, I also really enjoy watching that investigation discovery channel on TV. I think I would enjoy writing some light breezy mysteries. I would also like to write some Sci Fi stories too. So I am not sure which way to go.


Honestly I think you might be wanting someone to tell you what is going to work.

I could tell you today that I am making X amount in X market and you could read all my books and try doing the same thing but unless you like the market, are highly driven to write and will stop flapping around "what should i write' nothing is going to change.

Just pick a market. Write your ass off, test it and see for yourself.

What is stopping you from writing in both?


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## Kathryn Meyer Griffith (May 6, 2013)

One (the other is my Dinosaur Lake series) of my best-selling 3 book series is my SPOOKIE TOWN MURDER MYSTERIES (the first Scraps of Paper is actually free now)...cozy mysteries set in an eccentric, small town. So, yes, cozy murder mysteries do sell.


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## KGGiarratano (Aug 14, 2013)

Why don't you write SF cozies? Cozy mysteries set in space? That would be cool and unique.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

hunterone said:


> Honestly I think you might be wanting someone to tell you what is going to work.
> 
> I could tell you today that I am making X amount in X market and you could read all my books and try doing the same thing but unless you like the market, are highly driven to write and will stop flapping around "what should i write' nothing is going to change.
> 
> ...


Yea I guess I kinda am looking for someone to tell me lol. I know that's impossible though. Well, I would write both, I just don't want to scatter my efforts. I figure I could write a 4 part cozy series and see how it goes. If it fails pretty bad I could choose to continue or try Sci Fi. I guess I just need to make a choice and get started. I was just hoping to see more people tell me that the Cozy mystery genre is amazing etc. LOL.....guess that's just a dream of mine. I know how it is, what works for some might not work for others. I suppose I just got to make my mind and test the market. I am leaning towards writing a cozy mystery series right now over the Sci Fi one.


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

KGGiarratano said:


> Why don't you write SF cozies? Cozy mysteries set in space? That would be cool and unique.


I thought about that. This really interest me a lot. But, I am worried it would not be well received. But, once I get a good mailing list, I think it could work  I could just tell my loyal readers "this cozy mystery is a little different. It has a Sci Fi setting etc." I think my readers would still read it  It is something to consider for sure.


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## Not Here Anymore (May 16, 2012)

dragontucker said:


> I thought about that. This really interest me a lot. But, I am worried it would not be well received.


"Cozy" is actually a pretty broad category. There are all kinds of niche sub-genres: small town, cooking, crafts, paranormal, and historical to name just a few.


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## suliabryon (May 18, 2009)

Jessica R said:


> Write both. You can always use different names. My Obituary series are kind of cozy mysteries, but they've got some paranormal and are overall a strange mix that seems to work. My first one sells especially well. Wish I knew what the magic ingredients were, but I think the title and cover are part of it.


Jessica, I stumbled across your Obituary books today, and I noticed your first one had tons of reviews! I think the title and cover of your second is a really good match for the first, so I, too, confess I am stumped as to the disparity. Maybe a third one will be the charm, and bridge readers between the two?


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## dragontucker (Jul 18, 2014)

Sara Rosett said:


> "Cozy" is actually a pretty broad category. There are all kinds of niche sub-genres: small town, cooking, crafts, paranormal, and historical to name just a few.


You are right. The animal cozy mysteries interest me too


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## amy_wokz (Oct 11, 2014)

Write and publish on a regular schedule and it will all work itself out within a year.


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## countwordsmith (Aug 13, 2015)

I make my living from romance novels, but I picked up writing cozies last year. I don't think I've figured it out yet. My first series did really well, and the others do okay. When I have an ENT and have the first book free, I get the following books up to 60 copies for the month each. The norm is about 25 to 30 a month. I had a recent ENT for the first series book 1, and the following books are now over 100 for the month. I don't know what it is about that series that outshines the other series.

I want to figure out what I'm missing with cozies because the sales when the books first release are so awful. I'm used to romance releases and selling thousands of copies in the first month. It's pretty frustrating.

My cozies are one paranormal series and the other series are contemporary. I have an animal centered series, and all are in small city/towns.


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## Jana DeLeon (Jan 20, 2011)

I stopped writing my paranormal cozy mystery series because it didn't sell 1/5 what my other series does that has no paranormal element.


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## countwordsmith (Aug 13, 2015)

Jana DeLeon said:


> I stopped writing my paranormal cozy mystery series because it didn't sell 1/5 what my other series does that has no paranormal element.


Well darn! See I can't figure it out. My best seller series is the paranormal one.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

I have five cozy mystery series under two names and the paranormal ones do better than the contemporary for some reason. I will continue to do both as I move forward, though. Most of the future series (all except one) are paranormal cozies.


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## Jana DeLeon (Jan 20, 2011)

See, that's the problem. There's no way to tell what will work and what won't.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

Jana DeLeon said:


> See, that's the problem. There's no way to tell what will work and what won't.


I think it comes down to characters. I love Fortune and Gertie in your series. I would love them if they were paranormal, too.


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## Jana DeLeon (Jan 20, 2011)

Amanda M. Lee said:


> I think it comes down to characters. I love Fortune and Gertie in your series. I would love them if they were paranormal, too.


Maybe, but if people love Gertie, they'd love Helena. I think my Miss Fortune readers don't try them because of the ghost. But she doesn't read like a ghost and it's funny, not scary. I get email sometime with people saying they basically read TROUBLE IN MUDBUG as a last resort thing and loved it but weren't expecting to because it was paranormal. It's a shame really, but I can't see investing the same amount of time in writing that series as I do the MF series when MF makes so much more.


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## Amanda M. Lee (Jun 3, 2014)

Jana DeLeon said:


> Maybe, but if people love Gertie, they'd love Helena. I think my Miss Fortune readers don't try them because of the ghost. But she doesn't read like a ghost and it's funny, not scary. I get email sometime with people saying they basically read TROUBLE IN MUDBUG as a last resort thing and loved it but weren't expecting to because it was paranormal. It's a shame really, but I can't see investing the same amount of time in writing that series as I do the MF series when MF makes so much more.


I think it all depends on the entry point for readers, too. If people entered on the paranormal one they're fine with it. If they entered on the contemporary one and don't often read the paranormal stuff there might be more of a disconnect. I have found that if people like my paranormal cozy they go on to read my other paranormal stuff even though it's not the cozy genre. It's all different for everyone, though. I have to get back to my own writing because the end is drawing near and everyone is in a tizzy in my book, lol.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

I think it's hard even for good-selling authors to know why some things sell better than others. I've found with my own books that I can pretty much never tell when something's going to sell especially well or not. Not always a connection with rave reviews, either. Some of the ones that have sold the best have lower average reviews. 

I'm not saying it's "magic" or "luck." I'm saying there's an element of "secret sauce" that is difficult to analyze about why certain authors and certain books are successful, in whatever genre. People love to rag on *name-the-book-here* for being a "terrible" book that became a bestseller, but marketing only gets a book NOTICED. What gives it legs is the secret sauce.


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## A Woman&#039;s Place Is In The Rebellion (Apr 28, 2011)

Jana DeLeon said:


> Maybe, but if people love Gertie, they'd love Helena. I think my Miss Fortune readers don't try them because of the ghost. But she doesn't read like a ghost and it's funny, not scary. I get email sometime with people saying they basically read TROUBLE IN MUDBUG as a last resort thing and loved it but weren't expecting to because it was paranormal. It's a shame really, but I can't see investing the same amount of time in writing that series as I do the MF series when MF makes so much more.


*awkwardly raises hand* I am someone who loves Miss Fortune yet I haven't picked up Mudbug. Ghosts aren't an issue for me so it isn't that. Maybe the idea of being haunted by an overbearing mother-in-law hits too close to home? On the other hand, you do make me laugh. Okay, off to download the first book.


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## Jana DeLeon (Jan 20, 2011)

Augusta Blythe said:


> *awkwardly raises hand* I am someone who loves Miss Fortune yet I haven't picked up Mudbug. Ghosts aren't an issue for me so it isn't that. Maybe the idea of being haunted by an overbearing mother-in-law hits too close to home? On the other hand, you do make me laugh. Okay, off to download the first book.


Now, see, THAT reason makes far more sense. But why do you think I wrote it that way......


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

I have two series Rafferty & Llewellyn and Casey & Catt. Readers seem to far prefer my Rafferty series. They're fun to write and they have a lot of (I hope!) witty dialogue.

But if anybody's read them, I'd love some feedback. Just basically to see what I'm doing right.


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## DashaGLogan (Jan 30, 2014)

Very interesting, i have something in mind for that too


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## VictoriaScribens (Sep 11, 2014)

Jana DeLeon said:


> Maybe, but if people love Gertie, they'd love Helena. I think my Miss Fortune readers don't try them because of the ghost. But she doesn't read like a ghost and it's funny, not scary. I get email sometime with people saying they basically read TROUBLE IN MUDBUG as a last resort thing and loved it but weren't expecting to because it was paranormal. It's a shame really, but I can't see investing the same amount of time in writing that series as I do the MF series when MF makes so much more.


I have to say, I started with the Mudbug ones (which I enjoyed), and only discovered the Miss Fortune ones later ... which I loved. (I can't say I was among those pushing your US Amazon rating this week, but I helped in Canada!) For me it's because I like the ongoing story and unfolding slow-burn romance--I don't like the romance series structure of one couple per book as much. That to me is the big difference in feel. I read the first three Mudbug ones and then found Sinful, and while I'll finish the Mudbug ones eventually, the relative lack of that central story means I find it less compelling. Also I've always loved humorous spy/crime caper novels, and these deliver.

On a related note, and not trying to hijack the thread (although I do think the point that an unfolding series arc story relating to the detective can be a driver of both plot and readers might be good for other people than just me; it's something that has put me off a lot of episodic cozy mystery series), I re-read the series this summer before _Hurricane Force_ came out, and was wondering to myself how long you were going to be able to prolong the resolution of Fortune's main personal story ... and I was delighted and impressed by how you did it in _Hurricane Force_. Just sorry the next installment won't be out till next year!


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

Adam Croft said:


> They seem quite similar to my Kempston Hardwick mysteries, so I'll have a read and see what I think


Great Adam,

I'll reciprocate. I love an author who makes me laugh.


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## Genre Hoarder (Oct 4, 2014)

Leighann Dobbs is doing something interesting with her Cozies. I think anything can work if executed well. Why not create a Sci-fi Cozy.

Here's a link to what Leighann is doing:

http://amzn.to/1KBZg85


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## A.W.Hartoin (Dec 27, 2011)

Depends on what you think is decent money. I'm happy with how my cozy series is performing. When I started the series the current wisdom said that it took something like 5-7 books to catch on because mystery readers like a lot of books lined up ready for them. I'm not sure if this is still true. I just released my fifth.


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## Victoria LK (Jan 31, 2014)

Sounds like there's hope....


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