From the Booking Desk:
I am beyond thrilled to welcome Alexia Gordon to the BOLO Books Composite Sketch series. Alexia is an award-winning author, extremely smart, and always on the move – and yet, she remains one of the nicest and most unassuming authors you will meet at any crime fiction convention. Her work spans widely across sub-genres: blending cozy elements with a traditional mystery, spiced up with a clever paranormal angle. Clearly she is a woman who refuses to be boxed in, so it will be no surprise that Alexia’s wonderful answers to our weekly questions are just about as diverse and well-articulated as possible. Enjoy!
Name: Alexia Gordon
Location: Lake Forest, IL
This person from my personal life is such an inspiration:
My parents. They grew up poor in the rural South and experienced the Depression, WWII, and Jim Crow but worked hard to rise above their circumstances and create opportunity where there was none. They never looked at the odds against them and said, it’s too hard, I give up. They sacrificed to provide me with an easier life than they had. They passed on their work ethic and taught me never to quit and to always have a fallback plan.
One of the people I admire most in the crime fiction community is:
A tough choice. The crime fiction community is an unbelievably supportive community filled with brilliant creatives who encourage each other, celebrate others’ success, and work to advance the craft. I could choose Kellye Garrett for her advocacy, Gabriel Valjean, Dru Ann Love, or Kristopher Zgorski for their promotion of authors, Gabino Iglesias for his passion, Paula Munier for her sound career advice, L.A. Chandler, D.A. Bartley, and Aimee Hix for their kindness, so many more…
But Catriona McPherson rises to the top of my list. She was the first Big Name Author to say hello to me. She saw me standing in line for coffee at my first mystery conference, looking bewildered and overwhelmed and way-the-hell out of my league. My first book hadn’t come out yet and all I could think, when I looked around at all of the Famous People, was “I don’t belong here.” Catriona swept in, coffee in hand, and rescued me. She shepherded me to Charlaine Harris’s table, sat next to me, and kept the conversation going while I tried to untie my tongue. Despite writing two series and standalones and blogging, Catriona is generous with her time and support. She’s cheerful and funny and not afraid to standup for what she believes in. And she’s humble. All a part of her charm.
STALKER ALERT! If this fictional character were real, they would likely need to get a restraining order against me:
It’s a tie between Archie Goodwin and Jame Retief, my two literary crushes. Granted, some of their behavior (especially Archie’s) isn’t as socially acceptable now as it was when Rex Stout and Keith Laumer created them but I like to think their behavior would change, without altering their essential character traits, if Stout and Laumer were alive to write them today.
They’re handsome tough guys with a sense of humor, a golden heart, and brains behind the pretty faces. I started drinking milk and eating cherry pie and planted tarragon because Archie Goodwin likes milk, cherry pie, and tarragon, I push drawers shut all the way because he doesn’t like women who don’t, and I wanted an Underwood typewriter because that was the brand he used. When the red tape and office politics at my day job start to wear me down, I think about how Jame Retief would handle the situation. (Okay, he’d probably shoot some aliens, but besides that.) I try to channel his diplomatic finesse when dealing with bureaucracy.
I also must add Han Solo to this list. (Wow, that’s a lot of restraining orders.) He’s another smart, handsome, golden hearted, tough guy. Come to think of it, Archie, Jame, and Han are really the same character in different worlds, so it’s actually only one restraining order. I feel better now.
People are always surprised that I am a fan of this individual (singer, actor, or artist):
Lyle Lovett. People don’t usually look at me and figure I’m a country music fan. In general, I’m not. But Lyle Lovett released two albums, “It’s Not Big It’s Large” and “Joshua Judges Ruth,” that blended jazz and country and I loved the result. I can name a few more country/folk/bluegrass songs and artists I like, if pressed to admit it: “Crazy” and “Walking After Midnight” by Patsy Cline, “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus, “The Git Up” by Blanco Brown, “Everybody Walkin’ This Land” by Paul Cauthen, “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” by Johnny Cash, Blues Saraceno, Dorothy, The War and Treaty, The Avett Brothers, Rhiannon Giddens, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club… The blues-to-twang ratio is the deciding factor. More blues and less twang lands it on my Spotify playlist.
My personal catch phrase is (or should be):
–Blessed are the cynical for they shall not be disappointed.
–Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.
–Your failure to plan does not make this my emergency.
(Can you tell I work for the government?)
Love the responses about your parents and admired people, but the most telling is what your parents instilled in you – having the back-up plan. It comes through in your personal catch phrase and definitely is a plus in government (and life) to have learned the art of flexibility.
Thank you for the kind shoutout to this Archie G fan, and to all the authors mentioned. Yes, they are awesome.
Your failure to plan does not make this my emergency – so true! I say that regularly in my day job . . .
Nice to “meet” you here on the composite sketch, Alexia.
“Your failure to plan does not make this my emergency.” Love it.
So thrilled to read this composite. I met Alexia at a Sisters in Crime Chicago panel and she is so gracious and kind. I had my “fangirl” moment and she didn’t blink! I love her Gethsemane Brown series so, so much! It is powerful to read a woman of color writing about a woman of color who is smart, sophisticated, educated and funny! As a woman of color, I love the cozy genre but am sad about the lack of diversity. Alexia gives me hope!
Thank you for the shoutout, Alexia! I love you even more for the Han Solo mention and Johnny Cash. Wonderful interview! You’ve always been so inspiring to me. Xoxo
Wow, a Retief fan!!! Love it! Thank you!
Wow! Another Retief fan. Cool!
I so love seeing Alexia here–an amazing, smart woman and author. I love following her adventures on Facebook. I felt that kid kicking the back of the airplane seat!
What a flight that was! The others were pleasant, though.
Another Lyle Lovett fan here. He once played a show in Santa Cruz, and as I was having dinner downtown before the show, there he was, walking down the street outside the restaurant–tall, lanky, with that crooked face and crooked smile. A wonderful moment.
And I love–and am now going to adopt–all your personal catch-phrases. Hope that’s all right.
What a wonderful interview of a fabulous author and woman! Thanks Kristopher, and thanks, Alexia!
I ran into him once at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. Of course, I was too tongue-tied/shy to speak. Or to make eye contact for more than 0.3 seconds. But Mr. Lovett was incredibly gracious to the people who did speak to him.
Your parents are true inspirations for sure. You were blessed to have them in your life.
So wonderful seeing Alexia here. Amazing woman and author!! And love the catch phrases!
Another Archie Goodwin and Lyle Lovett — and Gethsemane Brown fan here! Adopting the catch phrases, Alexia. Thanks for the Composite Sketch, Kristopher!
Thanks for all the swell comments, everyone. And thanks, again, to Kristopher for inviting me to interview. His questions made me stop and think and inspired me to answer only after some introspection instead of off-the-cuff
Alexia is my blogging buddy on Miss Demeanors, and although I’ve just met her, I knew right away she was someone I wanted to know better. Loved her answers because it’s so much more fun–and realistic–to throw in a few surprises here and there. And did I mention she’s a terrific writer?
Wow! Great answers! So well thought out and interesting. You had me way before “jazz and country,” Alexia, but that caught my attention for sure. I don’t consider myself a big country fan, but add jazz, and I’m there. And, I have been meaning to get to your Gethsemane Brown series. I don’t often base my opinion on one article, but from this interview, I feel we could become good friends. I hope you will at Bouchercon so I can meet you, Alexia.
Love seeing my fellow Miss Demeanor here! Her answers always are the right combination of spunky and understated. Her catchphrase could be, “It’s the quiet ones you have to watch carefully.”