One of the best things you can do as a writer, especially a mystery writer, is to look for opportunities to learn new things in your journey through life. The more areas of expertise that you can call your own, the more material you have for your writing. The more varied your experiences, the greater your understanding of the common issues that people face.

One good example of a writer who has benefited from her life's experiences is Elizabeth Zelvin who has just come out with her debut mystery, Death Will Get You Sober. Zelvin draws upon her extensive experience in alcoholism treatment programs in and around New York City: the Bowery, the Bronx, Coney Island, East Harlem, and Nassau County as a therapist and program director. Experience like that can be a gold-mine for one's fiction!

On the other hand, aspiring mystery writers have to keep a balance between living life and setting time aside to write about life. Even while pursuing a demanding career as a mental health professional, Zelvin has made time for reading and writing. Inspired by beloved books in childhood such Little Women, The Diary of Anne Frank, and the books of L. M. Montgomery, she went on to write and publish award-winning poetry. Her poetry is collected in two books: I Am the Daughter and Gifts and Secrets: Poems of the Therapeutic Relationship. In addition, she's written and published extensively on addiction-related issues.

Zelvin's writing routine involves working on her first draft in the mornings: waking up naturally and not necessarily at 4am to let her creativity simmer as her thoughts flow. She tries to do this every day if possible. Revising and editing can be done to a more irregular schedule. However, she spends every day writing at the computer even when she's not working on a first draft. Her inspiration for Death Will Get You Sober started with the title and the desire to write about recovery.

She adds, "Now I also start each project with my protagonist Bruce and his two sidekicks. When they start wisecracking in my head, I know it's time to get going."

When asked if she has any advice for aspiring writers, Zelvin provided the following. "Even as a therapist, I try not to give advice. I don't have all the answers, not even for myself. But I had two mantras in the long process of getting my debut mystery published: It takes talent, persistence, and luck--sometimes more like persistence, persistence, persistence--and Don't quit five minutes before the miracle."

Death Will Get You Sober is the first book in a series. Zelvin's short story, "Death Will Clean Your Closet", which appears in a Sisters-in-Crime anthology titled Murder New York Style, has just received an Agatha Award nomination for best mystery short story! The Agatha Awards will be announced at the Malice Domestic convention to be held this April 25-27.

What's intriguing about Death Will Get You Sober (other than its terrific cover) is its insider perspective on the subject of alcoholism and recovery. Protagonist Bruce is an alcoholic who wakes up in a Bowery detox unit, and realizes it's time to change his life. His closest friends are Jimmy an old drinking buddy who has been clinging to the Twelve Steps of AA for years, and Jimmy's girlfriend Barbara who is an addictions counselor.

When a murderer starts bumping off homeless alcoholics, Bruce's determination to find out why keeps him sober to his own surprise. He and his friends risk their lives trying to solve the mystery. Death Will Get You Sober can be found on Amazon through this link: Death Will Get You Sober