Shelly Dickson Carr’s love of mystery fiction began at an early age, growing up surrounded by books written by her grandfather, a celebrated detective fiction author. She’s now bringing that infectious passion to her own creative writing journey, creating atmospheric, twist-filled mysteries that blend historical settings, gothic intrigue and seemingly impossible crimes. Following the release of her novel Who Killed Lady Pippa? What We Reading sat down with Shelly to discuss everything from the importance of playing fair with readers, her fascination with Victorian England, and the books and writers that have inspired her along the way.
Thanks for speaking with us, Shelly! First off, tell us a bit about yourself and what led you to the world of writing:
My grandfather was a famous detective fiction writer, a Grand Master of Locked-room and impossible crime murder mysteries. He gave me so many books to read when I was growing up, all mysteries. And nurtured my love of mystery fiction. And, of course, I read all of his books, plays, short stories…86 best-selling Golden Age mysteries. I was raised on murder you could say…
Talk to us about Who Killed Lady Pippa? What is it about, and how was the process of writing it?
It’s about a young woman at Wellesly College who travels back in time to 1890 Oxford England to solve the Demon Duchess of Devon Murders. She has time-traveled before and solved the mystery of Jack the Ripper. She’s been summoned back by a scholar at Oxford whom she’s in love with from her last adventure. His friend, 21-year old Lady Pippa, is about to be hanged for a murder she didn’t commit, yet all the evidence points to her being the murderer. Even her closes friends, eye-witnesses to the crime believe she did it. Writing was a dream for me. I love all the historical research and the setting. To me setting is character. I love to evoke the misty, gas-lit, Victorian era.
What is the number one goal you want your work to have with readers?
I want my readers to be supplied with all the clues, so they can, if they are astute readers, figure out the whodunit and howdunt of the murders. But If I do my job right, the reader will be guessing incorrectly all the way to the end of the book. And then I want them to say: “Of course! Why didn’t I figure out who the murderer was! The facts were in front of me all along!!!” I want them to be surprised. I write in the traditional manner of being fair with the reader. The reader should have everything they need to figure out whodunit. But I will always fool them.
What do you think makes you stand out as an author?
I always play fair with the reader with my mysteries. I know my craft well and know how to write page-turners. My books are atmospheric in a twisty, gothic-y, good way. I do a deep dive with research and my settings and characters ring true. And my main characters are always fun to be with as they race against time looking for answers to the murders.
What would you say has been your biggest success so far?
My short murder mysteries have won awards. And my novel RIPPED, a Jack the Ripper time-travel mystery also won a lot of awards and was on Amazon bestseller Kindle for two weeks for mysteries and young adult and historical.
If you could go back in time to one book you read for the first time, what would it be and why?
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. I think it’s the greatest murder mystery ever written! It’s set in 1930’s England and is a Gothic romantic suspense novel with a twisty, haunting murder. It’s a classic. She could write a haunting setting and manipulate atmospheric spine-tingles better than most writers.
What’s one tip you would give your younger self if you had the opportunity?
Believe in yourself. “No one is me, that’s my super power.”
And finally, what do you hope the future holds for you and your writing?
A movie deal or two. With Ripped, it was considered for a musical. A musical about Jack the Ripper would have been soooo cool. Fingers crossed.
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Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
