Strike the Death Note (Octavia Fields Mysteries) by Rebecca McKinnon
About Strike the Death Note
Strike the Death Note (Octavia Fields Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting - Rocky Mountains
Independently Published
(June 26, 2025)
Number of Pages — 250
Digital ASIN : B0F336797V
With just two weeks left of the summer at Aerie Pines, music shop owner Octavia Fields should be getting ready to head back to the nomadic life she lives most of the year—but the season is set to end in a minor key for her little shop.
Octavia’s determined to do everything she can to increase sales so her employees won’t have to bow out for the next season. If she’d known it would involve coming across a body with a conductor’s baton sticking out of its chest, she might not have been so eager.
While Octavia is trying to focus on her shop’s problem, music students who know she played a part in catching the last killer keep telling her what they know about the victim. She wants to pass the information on to the detective, but when one of her employees becomes a suspect, Octavia has no choice but to become the conductor of her own investigation.
Trying to save her shop, solve a murder, handle threats, and deal with her growing feelings for the lead detective is keeping Octavia’s score full—but she needs to find the sour note before someone else plays their finale!
About Rebecca McKinnon

Rebecca McKinnon enjoys playing with her imaginary friends and introducing them to others through her writing. She dreams of living in the middle of nowhere, but has been unable to find an acceptable location that wouldn’t require crossing an ocean.
Interview:
1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always been a storyteller in one form or another. As a classical violist, the stories I shared were the ones I told through music. The written stories were just for me. Then one day my sister found one of my unfinished stories and read it. She wanted to find out what happened next, and asked me to write the rest. I never did finish that one, but seeing someone enjoy what I’d written set me on the path to calling myself a writer.
2. How long does it take you to write a book?
This is a hard one to answer. If we’re talking actual writing time, it could be anywhere from two weeks to a year. But writing time is just the final part of it. I have stories that have been slowly growing in my mind for years. By the time they reach the page (if they ever do), it may have been decades from the first idea to the finished story.
3. What is your work schedule like when you’re writing?
When I’m deep in the story, I get up, have some family time before everyone is off to their respective activities. Then I sit in front of the computer. Sometimes I leave the curtains closed, put on noise-cancelling headphones, and lose myself in the words. Sometimes I sit on my front porch, or, occasionally, in a park. On a good day, I may get 5-6 hours of good, solid writing in, but on other days, it may be only an hour. The hardest part is coming out of the writing zone. Coming up for air, moving between worlds, can be really disorienting.
4. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
If I have music on, there are rules. It can’t have lyrics in a language I understand. If it does, I either get distracted by them, or my fingers try to type them instead of the story. If I’m listening to classical music, it has to be something that will fall into the background. If it’s something I’ve played before, my fingers will try to play the viola part—which makes for weird not-words showing up in my draft.
5. How do books get published?
There are a lot of options here. The most basic answer is: either traditionally, or independently. I’ve gone the indie route, as I need the flexibility to be able to set my own deadlines.
6. Where do you get your information or ideas for yourbooks?
Ideas are everywhere. I like to play the “what if” game. Take something seemingly ordinary and start asking what if? What if you got an unexpected reaction? What if one slight change to something could completely change a character’s life?
7. When did you write your first book and how old were you?
I finished my first published book when I was 34.
8. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
I have a lot of hobbies. Probably too many of them! I love reading, obviously. And knitting, and puttering in the garden. I teach a women’s self-defense class. I like to draw and paint, and make things with my hands.
9. What does your family think of your writing?
My family is very supportive. My daughter is one of my proofreaders.
10. What was one of the most surprising things youlearned in creating your books?
That I like history. A friend of mine once told me she saw me as really loving history, and I was flabbergasted. In my head, I’d always thought of history as having to remember a bunch of dates and places. But when I was researching for my time-travel romance, I realized I’ve always loved history—just not the specifics. I love the stories, and digging out the little-known details.
11. How many books have you written? Which isyour favorite?
I think around 20? And a favorite? Honestly, whichever one I’m working on.
12. Do you have any suggestions to help me becomea better writer? If so, what are they
It’s great to learn how other authors work—but remember there’s no one right way. The process is different for everyone. For every book. So, instead of trying to do it “right,” try to find your voice. Figure out what works best for you, and for your specific project.
13. Do you hear from your readers much? Whatkinds of things do they say?
My readers love to tell me about how they’ve connected to my characters, and I adore hearing that! The characters I write are basically my imaginary friends, and hearing that other people love them as much as I do never gets old.
14. Do you like to create books for adults?
I do. But I also love writing books that can bring a lot of ages together. That’s one of the great things about cozy mysteries—an 8-year-old can read the same thing as their parent or grandparent, and have something to talk about and connect over.
15. What do you think makes a good story?
Fun, well-developed characters can really make the story. A good plot obviously helps, but without good characters I can’t get invested in a story.
16. As a child, what did you want to do when yougrew up?
I wanted to be a neurosurgeon until I decided it wasn’t worth all the math.
17. What Would you like my readers to know?
Every author hopes that the right readers will find their stories. That those readers will love their characters and settings, and share that excitement with their friends. So if you’re looking for some way to thank one of your favorite authors? Write a review. Loan your copy to your friends. Tell someone why that story touched you.
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I enjoyed the interview, thank you.
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