Let's Talk with Debra H. Goldstein

Talking about myself is difficult. Consequently, when I ran for positions in high school, during undergraduate school at the University of Michigan, law school at Emory, or as a civic volunteer, I usually used cartoon characters with speech bubbles coming out of their mouths to describe me.

My website (https://www.debrahgoldstein.com) bio says that judge, author, litigator, wife, stepmom, mother of twins, and civic volunteer, are all words that have been used to describe me. I would also modify the list with grandmother and widow. Perhaps, the best way for you to get to know me, though, is through my writings.

You see, after twelve years as a litigator and twenty-three years as a sitting judge, I walked away from my legal career to follow my dream to be a writer. For the past decade, I have been enjoying my second childhood. As of today, I have had seven novels, approximately seventy short stories, and one collection of short stories traditionally published. I also blog regularly with fellow writers for Booklovers Bench, Writers Who Kill, and The Stiletto Gang. In addition, I have my personal blog, It’s Not Always a Mystery, that features guest authors every other Monday.

If you look at my published writings, you can get a sense of me. For example, my first book, Maze in Blue, is an academic mystery set on the University of Michigan’s campus (where could I have come up with that idea?). My second book, Should Have Played Poker: a Carrie Martin and the Mah Jongg Players Mystery’s protagonist is a young corporate attorney (I started my career doing international tax for General Motors before joining the Department of Labor). In that book, she is helped to solve the mystery by a group of Mah Jongg players (I don’t live in a senior center, but I do play a good game of Mah Jongg). Kensington’s five-book Sarah Blair series, beginning with One Taste Too Many, offers insight into a woman who finds being in the kitchen more frightening than murder (when my first two books were orphaned, I wanted to write a cozy mystery, but realized I didn’t personally like crafts, cooking, or baking – hence, Sarah was born).

My short stories also provide windows into my background. Although each is imagined out of my head, I can’t help but incorporate characteristics of people I’ve met or from situations I’ve been in. For example, my newest short story (which I modestly believe is one of my best), “Musicians of Bremen,” included in the Wish Upon a Crime anthology, retells the fairy tale by blending its elements with the Holocaust (my mother was a survivor), October 7^th (an event that haunted me), Violins of Hope (a program that exists where two violin makers restore violins that once belonged to people killed during the Holocaust), and survival (a concept I think we all cherish).

I also tend to be a doer, having held many civic and community board positions before becoming a writer. Since then, I have somehow managed to be President of Sister’s in Crime’s largest chapter, the Guppies; am presently the Vice-President of Sisters in Crime Worldwide; and, will be its President beginning in October 2026. I also have served on the national board of Mystery Writers of America and been President of SEMWA.

Perhaps, though, the most important thing to know about me is that I write because I love it and because I want to share my joy with you. My goal is that when you read my words, you are transported to a place that you escape from whatever is going on in everyday life or the world and have fun.

For a chance to win an e-copy of Wish Upon a Crime, One Taste Too Many, Maze in Blue, Should Have Played Poker, or With Our Bellies Full and the Fire Dying, leave a comment about either whether I’ve succeeded with my writing goal or if you think authors should share a similar goal.

Want to know more about our author Debra H Goldstein? Visit her WEBSITE.

While you’re here, check out our July contest, which runs from July 1-22. Two books will go to one lucky winner. CLICK HERE for the contest.

All photos were provided by the author.