CHRISTOPHER NULL

Kris Bock has her hand in a lot of writing pots — not just thrillers, but also romance and children’s books, which are published under two different pen names. And that’s not including the writing partnerships she’s undertaken with her brother (a well-known screenwriter). Kris has a lot going on, but she took time out to answer a few questions on the eve of her new book’s publication day. A Stone Cold Murder hits on April 28.

Who are you, and what do you write about?

As Kris Bock, I write mystery, suspense, and romance, often with Southwestern landscapes. I live in New Mexico with my husband and our ferrets. I love hiking and taking photos of the desert scenery and the changing clouds in the sky. My home office looks out on nature, complete with distracting wildlife such as roadrunners.

In the Accidental Detective humorous mystery series, a witty journalist solves mysteries in Arizona and tackles the challenges of turning fifty. This humorous series starts with Something Shady at Sunshine Haven, which made Barnes & Noble’s list of “Handpicked Favorites You’ll Love!” My romantic suspense novels include stories of treasure hunting, archaeology, and intrigue. Readers have called these novels “Smart romance with an Indiana Jones feel.”

I have over 100 books for children published under the names Chris Eboch and M. M. Eboch. My novels for ages nine and up include The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery in ancient Egypt; The Well of Sacrifice, a Mayan adventure used in many schools; and The Genie’s Gift, a middle eastern fantasy. I also write a series with my brother, scriptwriter Douglas J Eboch, who wrote the original screenplay for the movie Sweet Home Alabama.

What is your favorite word?

I like lunar for the sound of it.

What is your least favorite word?

I’m not even going to write it down, but I despise slang words for female body parts used as insults.

What is the trait you most like about yourself?

I tend to be calm and rational. That makes it a little easier to get through life. It helps that when things are stressful, I can turn my focus to solving a story problem. There are so many things in life we can’t fix, so worrying about them is useless but often unavoidable. If I can concentrate on solving something I can fix in a novel, at least I make some use of my time.

What is the trait you least like about yourself?

I don’t have much patience, especially for stupidity or long-winded, boring people. I try to accept people as they are, but it’s sure hard sometimes. That’s another nice thing about writing novels. I can create heroes and sidekicks I enjoy, and kill off the nasty people or put them in prison.

What is your greatest fear?

In physical terms, being unable to breathe. I discovered how much I hate the sensation of not breathing normally when I did scuba training. Not fun.

In emotional terms, none of your business.

How do other people describe you?

You’d have to ask them. But I have a lot of friends who are in the sciences, and people have made comments that I think more scientifically than a lot of scientists. Other writers comment on how hard I work. I do work hard, but I don’t put in especially long hours. I write quickly and I’m pretty good at juggling a lot of different things, like writing a novel, marketing a previous novel, and doing the work for hire jobs that actually pay the bills.

What talent would you most like to have?

Actually making good money from my writing! I guess that would be a talent for marketing or publicity. I get great reviews and have some devoted fans, but that doesn’t mean I sell a lot of books. Maybe marketing isn’t as sexy a talent as being a world class singer or speaking a dozen languages, but it would be more useful in my life. (You said talent rather than superpower, so I’m assuming things like teleportation are off the table.)

If you weren’t working as a writer, what would you be doing?

As AI and current politics are destroying a lot of writing jobs, I’ve had to think about that. Problem is, I’m not good at anything else. Or rather, I’m good at critiquing/developmental editing other writers’ manuscripts, and at teaching writing workshops, so I guess I could do those things if you can consider them “not working as a writer.”

How would you like to die?

I wouldn’t.

If you were to die and then come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

A person. Preferably me.

When and where were you happiest?

I am generally happy. I wouldn’t want to go back to being a teenager in high school, but everything from college onward has been pretty good, if you look at the big picture. Ups and downs, of course, but overall enjoyable. I love living in New Mexico, I have a great husband, and I love my work, so now is good – though I wouldn’t mind if someone took 20 years of aging off my body.

What is your greatest regret?

I try not to bother with regrets. Sure, there are a couple of relationships I should probably have ended earlier. There are different paths I might have taken, and it’s interesting to think about the person I might have become if I’d gone a slightly different route. (I think of Kate in my Accidental Detective series as me if I were a little more outgoing and reckless and had gone into journalism instead of creative writing.) But I like where I am now, so what’s the point of regrets?

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I’d take perfect health! I know many people who have it worse, but it sure would be nice not to deal with back and joint problems.

Who is your fictional hero?

I can’t think of anyone, so I guess I don’t have one.

Who are your favorite writers?

My favorite writers are people I know, like my many writing friends, and especially my brother, scriptwriter and novelist Douglas J Eboch. We write the Teenage Adventures of Felony Melanie, a comedy series featuring the characters from the movie Sweet Home Alabama. It’s great having another writer in the family. Well, great for us. It’s possible our mother and significant others get tired of the writing talk.

As a reader – for mysteries, I like Ellis Peters (both Brother Cadfael and her standalones), C. S. Poe (Madison Square Murders), Steven Spotswood (Pentecost & Parker PI mysteries), P.J. Fitzsimmons, (Anty Boisjoly Mysteries), Allison Montclair (Sparks & Bainbridge Mysteries), and Leigh Perry (The Family Skeleton Mysteries). I’ve loved Dorothy Gilman’s Mrs. Pollifax series for years. I’ve been reading Agatha Christie lately too.

KJ Charles is a big favorite because she writes so many different kinds of books well. I love the Murderbot series by Martha Wells. In historical romance, Courtney Milan, Joanna Bourne, and Cat Sebastian. T Kingfisher for fantasy. Jordan Hawk for historical paranormal romance horror. AJ Demas for historical alternate world comfort reads. Ally Carter for rom-com thrillers.

What have you been working on lately?

I recently finished writing book 3in the new Reluctant Psychic Mystery series. Book 1, A Stone Cold Murder, is out April 28, available in ebook and print at all major retailers.

Petra Cloch can touch an object and sense the emotions of the people who’ve held it before. It’s a miserable way to live. She studied geology because rocks rarely ‘talk’ to her, and she’s dodged friendships so she won’t need to explain her gift or feel like a voyeur.

She’s starting a new job at a quirky private museum in a small New Mexico town. When she picks up a jagged crystal in her new office, she’s overcome by flashes of rage, fear and death. Everyone says her predecessor died in a car crash, but what if he was murdered?

Petra normally avoids involvements, but if the previous curator died because of the job, she could be next. Can she trust her chatty colleagues? And what about the far too watchful Sheriff who keeps showing up unexpectedly…

Readers say “I really really enjoyed this – and my first thoughts upon completing it are ‘I hope this is actually the beginning of a series!’” Another: “A good old-fashioned murder mystery with a twist. The supernatural elements make this book interesting. I empathized with the main character … it was suspenseful and kept you guessing until the end… Good read.”

Learn more about my books, or sign up for my newsletter and get an Accidental Detective short story and other freebies. Then every two weeks, you’ll get fun content about pets, announcements of new books, sales, and more.

Thanks for hosting me, Christopher!

Find Kris on Mastodon and Bluesky, and check out A Stone Cold Murder at Amazon!

Want to be the next thriller writer profiled on the blog? Email me here!