Lately, I’ve been thinking about what it means to be a wilderness author and why the setting I’ve chosen is so critical to my novels. I naturally like to set my novels in a place I know well, and since I’ve lived in the wilderness for more than 30 years, it’s only logical for me to place my characters in this environment. I understand the challenges of the Kodiak wilderness, respect its tantrums, and love its beauty.

I know not everyone enjoys reading mysteries (crazy as this sounds to me), and of those who like to read mysteries, only a small fraction embrace wilderness mysteries. Mystery novels come in all shapes and sizes. We have cozy mysteries (think Agatha Christie), hard-boiled mysteries, police procedurals, thrillers, and puzzle mysteries to name a few. Except for cozy mysteries which are often set in small villages or towns, a large percentage of mystery novels are set in big cities, whether it’s New York, London, Tokyo, Chicago, L.A., a fictional city or somewhere else. Cities make sense as settings for mysteries because a large number of people live in a relatively small area in cities, and crime is not unusual there. City dwellers understand crime novels set in a city, and even the rest of us mystery lovers are intrigued by how characters navigate the obstacles of city life.

I recently have been on a search for readers who enjoy wilderness mysteries. Most authors, except Stephen King, John Grisham, and a few others, must work to find readers. Nearly 5,000 books are published every day on Amazon, so in this sea of books, how does a reader find authors who write the type of books he likes? How does a new author make a living at writing? It isn’t easy, and it may be impossible to succeed in today’s book marketplace unless you are lucky or connected.

Authors are dreamers by nature, though, and I believe one day, I will find my core group of wilderness mystery readers, and they will tell their friends who will tell their friends. Over the last several weeks, I have been connecting with folks on LinkedIn and telling them about my books and my newsletter, and several of my new connections have signed up for my newsletter which thrills me.

I am an introvert, so reaching out to people on LinkedIn has demanded courage. I have been exhilarated by the results, though. Frances Joyce the publisher of the e-zine This Awful-Awesome Life asked me to write an article about Kodiak and its wildlife, and I jumped at the opportunity. Then, I connected with Pamela Beason, a popular wilderness mystery writer who lives in Washington state. We hope to work together in the near future to promote our books. Pam’s mysteries featuring wildlife biologist Sam Weston are excellent. If you enjoy wilderness mysteries, you will love hers.

James Hayman is my latest interesting LinkedIn connection. He is the New York Times bestselling author of the mystery series set in Portland, Maine featuring detectives McCabe and Savage. As soon as we connected, Jim asked me if I would be interested in writing a guest blog post for him about where I live on Kodiak Island and how I use this setting for my novels. My post is now available on his site: http://jameshaymanthrillers.com/blog/. I hope to convince Jim to write a blog post for me. I recently read his novel, The Girl on the Bridge, and I highly recommend it. I plan to read the rest of the series, and if you enjoy mysteries, I’m sure you will want to read his books as well.

Do you enjoy mysteries set in the untamed wilderness where characters must navigate hostile environments, raging storms, Kodiak bears, and other wild animals? If you think you would be interested in reading an Alaska wilderness mystery, or you know someone who would be interested, sign up for my webinar (http://bit.ly/2pcCOo6), and at the end, you can download a copy of one of my novels. The only purpose of my webinar is to introduce myself to new readers. You can decide for yourself if wilderness mysteries are for you.

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Robin Barefield is the author of three Alaska wilderness mystery novels, Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, and The Fisherman’s Daughter. Sign up below to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.