Interview with Hy Conrad, author of Mr. Monk Helps Himself

Interview with Hy Conrad, author of 

     Mr. Monk Helps Himself 

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Publisher: Penguin USA (June 4, 2013)

Category: Cozy Mystery
Tour Date: August, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-451-24093-4
Available in: Print & eBook,  286 Pages

Blurb: 

Mr. Monk Helps Himself is an all-new mystery, written by Hy Conrad, the Edgar Award-nominated screenwriter and co-executive producer of Monkand starring the characters from the wildly successful television series.

Now that Monk and Natalie are both in San Francisco again, life is almost back to normal, with one exception:  Natalie is studying for her PI license, the last step to becoming Monk's full partner.

Before taking the plunge, Natalie sneaks off to Half Moon Bay for a retreat run by Miranda Bigley, charismatic leader of the "Best Possible Me" self-help program, whose philosophy has helped Natalie deal with her recent life changes.  Her plans for a relaxing weekend are disrupted when Monk tracks her down, determined to rescue her from the "cult."  Their argument is cut short when Miranda, in full view of everyone, calmly walks to the edge of a cliff and jumps off.

Even though Miranda's death looks like suicide-especially when it's discovered that she was on the brink of financial disaster-Natalie is sure it is murder.  But Monk brushes her off to help the SFPD solve the murder of a clown, despite his fear of clowns-number ninety-nine on his list of one hundred phobias.

Natalie and Monk begin their separate investigations and are quickly caught up in situations neither one of them can handle.  If they want to solve both crimes - and survive - they first need to learn how to be full partners.  Can Monk handle the change?

Author Interview: 

INTERVIEW WITH BOOK, BOOKS, AND MORE BOOKS
By Hy Conrad
Author of “Mr. Monk Helps Himself”

 

I appreciate your taking the time to visit with us today.

MINDY
What inspired this particular novel/book?

HY
That’s an easy one.  It all started in early 2002 when a complete stranger called up and said, “I found your mystery books in a bookstore, and I think you would be a great person for my new TV series.”  That man was Andy Breckman and the series, of course, was “Monk”.  That led to eight wonderful years writing and producing for the show.  Now I’m the only one left, keeping the legacy of Adrian Monk alive with these books.  This is number sixteen in the line-up.  The first fifteen were written by my friend Lee Goldberg.  When you add the books together, you get the same number of stories as in a regular TV season.  It’s as if the TV show has gone on for another full year.  And that’s pretty gratifying. 

MINDY
What character was your favorite to write for in this story? Why?

HY
I’m sure everyone is expecting me to say Adrian Monk himself.  He was a blast to write for in the show.  It was always comedy gold, coming up with new ways for Tony Shalhoub to make you laugh -- and irritate all the other characters.  But the truth is that Monk is a rather static character.  Like Sherlock Holmes, he doesn’t change much or grow.  And when he does, it’s by mere inches. 

It was a lot more interesting to write for Natalie, to figure out how she, the voice of the book, develops and matures as a detective and a person.   

MINDY
Which was your favorite scene to write?

HY
I love writing dialogue.  I guess that comes from years of writing TV.  The back-and-forth between Monk and Natalie is always a joy.  I would write twenty pages of them discussing laundry if I thought I could get away with it.  They’ve been together so long and have this wonderful co-dependent relationship.  At times it’s almost like an Abbott and Costello routine.

MINDY
What was the hardest thing about writing this story?

HY
I dislike action scenes.  For one thing, the reader knows that Monk is going to survive and win.  So, as a writer I have to come up with new, interesting ways to keep the reader engaged.  Also, I have trouble with technical stuff, despite all the help of the internet.  If you watch the show, you’ll see that we rarely used anything technical.  Very little DNA or complex chemicals.  A lot of good old-fashioned deduction.

We had one writer, in fact, who loved to make up stuff and see if anyone would catch it.  He considered it a point of pride when wrong facts wound up getting through the whole process and landing on the air.

MINDY
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

HY
Nothing about writing is interesting.  My biggest quirk is that I hate being absolutely alone when I write.  That’s why I never had a dedicated studio, like some of my friends.  But I also can’t have anyone talking or moving around.  I find dogs to be the perfect solution.

MINDY
Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like?  If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

HY
I’ve been lucky enough never to have worked in the normal sense.  I was, since high school, a professional stage actor, then went rather fluidly to making a living from my writing.  As for other interests, I have very few, except travel and dogs.  If you check hyconrad.com, you’ll see that my other fiction includes a travel agent detective series and a humor book about dogs.

MINDY
Where do you find your Inspirations?

HY
Inspiration is all around, from newspaper headlines to casual conversation in line at the grocery store.  A year or so ago, an acquaintance mentioned taking part in a wake, where the deceased left instructions in his will to fly all the mourners to Paris to sprinkle his ashes from the top of the Eiffel Tower.  The result of this tidbit will be in “If I Die Before the Wake”, the second book in my Abel Adventures mystery series.

MINDY
What do you like to read? Who is your favorite author?

HY
I’m a very fickle reader and I rarely love a mystery author after the first two books in a series.  Then you start to recognize all the tricks up their sleeves.  I still read Carl Hiaasen, but more from habit than love.

MINDY
Please let readers know where they can connect with you and purchase your books...

HY
Readers can check me out on my Facebook fan page or at my website, hyconrad.com.  I love to get feedback, so don’t be shy.  As for the books, they’re for sale all over.  If not, please yell at the bookstore clerk.  They love it.  Keeps them on their toes.

MINDY
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

HY
Part of the reason for me taking on the Monk series was to help publicize my other work.  So if you like my style and my sense of humor, please check out my other stuff.  Thanks.

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