Buffalo native and author pens first mystery novel
Kathleen Bryant grew up on a farm located four miles outside of Buffalo. She recalls her upbringing fondly, stating that wherever she’s gone, she’s always, “Looking for something like Buffalo.”
Bryant graduated from Buffalo High School in 1978 and attended Moorhead State University. She began her writing career shortly after graduation, writing technical manuals for Great Plains Software in Fargo, ND. During this time, Kathleen also developed and honed her skills as a fiction author writing romantic suspense.
Kathleen moved to Arizona in 1988, landing a job as a travel writer where she wrote articles for Arizona Highways, a publication dedicated to travel and exploration in the Southwest. She lived in Arizona for 25 years, writing guidebooks to Sedona and its surrounding areas and cultures. Her first mystery novel “Over the Edge” was released on June 4.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
“I’d call it a traditional mystery, though that’s a large category. I was influenced by outdoor mysteries, including Nevada Barr’s national park series and Tony Hillerman’s books set on the Navajo reservation. “Over the Edge” begins when Del Cooper, a Jeep tour guide, discovers a murder victim in the backcountry of Sedona, Arizona. The story continues with elements of a woman-in-jeopardy thriller as Del works to unmask the killer before she becomes the next victim.”
How long did you spend writing it?
“I started writing ‘Over the Edge’ years ago, but travel writing deadlines kept getting in the way. Then the pandemic came along, and I suddenly had time to work on it. I finished the manuscript in a couple years, and then it took a couple more to shop it to agents, find a publisher, and work through the back-and-forth process of revisions.”
Where can people get it?
“They can order ‘Over the Edge’ from their favorite bookstore or from major online retailers, such as Bookshop.org. It’s available as a hardcover and an e-book, with an audiobook version coming soon.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
“I loved books as soon as I could sound out the words to Dr. Seuss stories. I attended a one-room country school and read nearly everything on its shelves. Some books I read over and over: Jack London’s novels, a biography of Crazy Horse, and “Night of the Grizzlies,” a real-life thriller. In retrospect, I see how all those outdoorsy stories influenced ‘Over the Edge.’
“My mom (Nola Bryant) also liked to read. She took me with her to the library, then located in a small Central Avenue storefront. In sixth grade, when I started riding the bus to school in Buffalo, I gained access to the junior high library. I was in heaven! Another key inspiration has been travel. My parents liked to explore, and we road-tripped through the West. I fell in love with those rocky landscapes.”
What is your preferred genre to write?
“I prefer to write mystery, though I read everything from histories to science fiction, classics to bestsellers. I use a basic four-act outline as a guide. I tend to write in scenes, then scramble them around like puzzle pieces until the clues and events build logically. I need to feel my way through a story.”
MEMORIES OF BUFFALO:
“My favorite memories are the everyday things I took for granted as a kid: Hanging out on the front porch with my mom and dad, who were entertaining storytellers in their own way. Playing for hours with the barn cats in the haymow. Walking through the woods looking for mushrooms or wildflowers. Skating on frozen ponds or lakes that seemed to go on forever.”
Do memories of Buffalo inspire your writing?
“I grew up on a farm about four miles from town. That rural setting connected me to nature, and the natural world is my touchstone, in writing and in life. My dad (Glen Bryant) used to keep a notebook, penciling in weather events, crop timings, and so on. From him, I learned to observe my surroundings--good practice for a travel journalist and novelist.
“I credit my rural Midwestern background for keeping me grounded and giving me the persistence I’ve needed to carry me through the ups and downs of a writing career. Of course, that upbringing has also given me the irrepressible urge to begin every conversation by talking about the weather. It’s not small talk--weather is important.”
Do you come back to Minnesota often?
“I lived in Arizona from 1988 to 2014—more than 25 years. For the last ten years, I’ve lived in a small Northern California town. It reminds me a lot of the Buffalo of my childhood—narrow two-lane roads lined with grasses and wildflowers, small farms and dairies, and a post office where people smile and say ‘hi.’
“Since my mother’s death a few years back, I’ve returned only once to visit my brother, David, and his wife, Jeanie, who still live on the farm. But I confess to checking the NOAA weather website nearly every day to see what’s happening in Buffalo’s skies.”
