Author, TV writer, and playwright Ellen Byron reveals her distant connection to the mob!

'Writers write what they know.' That's the adage and it's true. We pull from our real lives and mix our experiences with imagination and creativity and create something that is both grounded in reality and imaginary at the same time.

Ellen Byron is doing just that with her new Catering Hall mystery series, set in Astoria, Queens, a place she is very familiar with. On this episode, Ellen reads from book 1 in that series, Here Comes the Body, and in the interview shares with us the fascinating story of one of her grandfather's possible connections to the actual mob. (Yes, really!)

It was a delight to talk to Ellen about this new series. If you'd like to know more about Ellen's writing, you can also find our conversation about her Cajun Country mysteries in episode 61 of It's a Mystery podcast.

Press play (above) to listen to the show, or read the transcript below. Remember you can also subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts. And listen on Stitcher.

You can also click here to listen to the interview on YouTube.

This Week's Mystery Author

Ellen Byron’s Cajun Country Mysteries have won an Agatha award and multiple Leftys for Best Humorous Mystery.

Her new series, the Catering Hall Mysteries, written as Maria DiRico, was inspired by her real life. She’s an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning TV writer of comedies like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly Odd Parents. But she considers her most impressive credit working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.

You can learn more about Ellen and all her books, including the Catering Hall series, at EllenByron.com

Here Comes the Body by Maria DiRico (Ellen Byron)

After her philandering husband’s boat went down, newly single Mia Carina went back to Astoria, the bustling Queens neighborhood of her youth. Living with her nonna and her oversized cat, Doorstop, she’s got a whole new life—including some amateur sleuthing . . .

Mia is starting work at Belle View, her father’s catering hall, a popular spot for weddings, office parties, and more—despite the planes that occasionally roar overhead on their way to LaGuardia and rattle the crystal chandelier. Soon she’s planning a bachelor party for a less-than-gentlemanly groom. But it goes awry when the gigantic cake is wheeled in and a deadly surprise is revealed . . .Since some of her family’s associates are on the shady side, the NYPD wastes no time in casting suspicion on Mia’s father. Now,