Nickie's Views and Interviews: Campaigning Can Be Deadly

Say hello to Charlotte Stuart today! Charlotte is doing a virtual blurb blitz tour for Campaigning Can Be Deadly, a mystery, female PI book available September 29th from Walrus Publishing. The tour will run September 31 - October 9.

Charlotte Stuart will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Please use the following link to place your comment:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f3497/

Blurb

What begins as a prank ends in murder.

The campaign for the U.S. Congressional seat was referred to in the press as “Mr. Smith goes to Washington versus the carpetbagger.” The popular local candidate gets the majority of endorsements, but his opponent’s wealthy, out-of-state family is willing to do whatever it takes for him to win.

Penny-wise Investigations, a discount detective agency located in a mall, is hired to find out who is stealing the local candidate’s political signs. Two of their investigators, Cameron Chandler and Yuri Webster, not only catch the thieves in the act, they find a body next to a pile of stolen signs, proving that Campaigning Can Be Deadly.

Excerpt

The hardest thing about any political campaign is how to win without proving that you are unworthy of winning. - Adlai Stevenson

Billed by the press as “the carpetbagger versus Mr. Smith goes to Washington,” the contest between the two opposing candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives demonstrated the power of money in a campaign. With huge resources behind him, the “carpetbagger” became a household name overnight by bombarding the urban Washington State district with ads and flyers attacking his opponent. “Mr. Smith,” on the other hand, already a well-known local politician who had won most of the endorsements, tried to ignore the smear campaign from his opponent by consistently focusing on policy.

As the election drew near and polls suggested the race was too close to call, the candidate who had tried so hard to remain above the fray came out with an ad aimed at discrediting his opponent for moving into the district to run for office. Immediately the press jumped on the change in tactics. They tarred both candidates with the same brush and labeled the race as one of the most negative ever run in the state. It made good headlines.

Author bio and links

In a world filled with uncertainty and too little chocolate, Charlotte Stuart has a passion for writing lighthearted mysteries with a pinch of adventure and a dollop of humor. Her first discount detective mystery, Survival Can Be Deadly, was a Foreward INDIES finalist. Why me? Chimeras, Conundrums and Dead Goldfish was a semi-finalist for the Chanticleer Murder and Mayhem contest before it was published. She began her career in academia with a PhD in communications. Then, she and her husband decided to build a commercial boat and go fishing for salmon in Alaska. Currently she is the VP for Puget Sound Sisters in Crime and lives and writes on Vashon Island in Washington State’s Puget Sound. She spends time each day entertained by herons, seals, eagles and other wildlife.

I asked Charlotte where her interest in politics comes from. Here's her answer:

I was a debater in high school and for a while in college. Debating was the catalyst for an interest in communication, particularly in the art of persuasion and, in turn, political strategy. I ended up majoring in speech and spent several years in academia teaching speech courses. Not long after leaving academia, I spent a year as a speech writer and coach and had the opportunity of seeing campaigns from the inside and the distinction of never working for a winning candidate. I also spent the better part of another year working on a Congressional campaign that made me appreciate how devoted and hard-working volunteers are. But, unlike the campaign in my book, Campaigning Can Be Deadly, the passionate rivalry in the real-life campaign did not result in any deaths.

Life took me away from a direct association with politics, but I’ve never lost interest in tracking the ups and downs of political lives. Each election year I watch the presidential debates with my husband and our former college debate partners. (An aside tidbit - my former debate partner is married to my husband’s former debate partner.) We share similar politics and have lively discussions – and sometimes disagreements – about winners and losers. But we always sit down together and watch, this year via Zoom.

Finally, I would point out that for most people an interest in politics arises from caring about their local communities as well as about national issues that in turn impact the environment and people where they live. We only have one planet that we all share. Each of us has but one life to live. And what we pass on to future generations depends on decisions made today. I’ve never run for office, but I admire those who take on the challenge and try to make a difference. I know there are politicians who may not behave the way we would like them to or who do not support policies we believe critical to our wellbeing. But I still have faith in the process…IF we all pay attention and we all vote smart, caring people into office.

That’s why I’m interested in politics, and that’s my plea for readers to also care about politics enough to VOTE in the upcoming election.

Links:

Charlotte Stuart – social media

website: http://www.charlottestuart.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/quirkymysterie

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlotte.stuart.mysterywriter

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19305587.Charlotte_Stuart

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clzstuart

Campaigning Can Be Deadly -primary online purchase links:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/campaigning-can-be-deadly-charlotte-stuart/1136403993

https://www.amazon.com/Campaigning-Deadly-Discount-Detective-Mystery/dp/194044232X

https://www.bookdepository.com/Campaigning-Can-Be-Deadly-Charlotte-Stuart/978194044232