D. S. Lang, author of The Jammed Judges, a Doro Banyan historical mystery, is visiting Ascroft, eh? today to tell us a bit about her series the Doro Banyan historical mysteries.

So, I’ll welcome her and turn the floor over to her –

I am often asked what I like best about writing. At the top of the list is hearing people enjoy my stories. As an avid reader myself, I love when a book sweeps me away, and I’m thrilled when my readers let me know they had similar experiences. Another big plus is creating stories, characters, and settings. Since I write historicals, I enjoy putting old-fashioned events and customs as part of the stories.

My Doro Banyon Cozy Historical Mystery series is set during the Roaring Twenties in small town Ohio. The village of Michaw is semi-fictional but based on a place that once existed.

Mitchaw, Ohio was established as an unincorporated community in the nineteenth century. In 1883, a post office was created. It remained in operation until 1901, but the community remained strong until the Palm Sunday 1920 tornado. The area was also known as Mitchaw Corners, and there was a schoolhouse. Many farms surrounded the Corners, which is now part of Sylvania Township—population 60,000. A few farms remain, but the area now boasts several subdivisions. Although little information about the real town is available, my dad was born there and had the birth certificate to prove it!

I took considerable literary license in making the town much larger than it ever was, which is why I slightly changed the spelling. People in this area, and I live nearby, still remember the community.

To make Michaw a perfect place for my series, I placed a small college there and made my amateur a librarian. None of the characters is based on anyone who actually lived in the real Mitchaw, and the college is a figment of my imagination—which, as you might guess—is vivid! Creating fictional people and places is highly entertaining for me. Nevertheless, the language, clothing, customs, homes, and other details are true to 1920s small town America. That requires substantial research, which I also enjoy.

In The Jammed Judges, my latest release, the town May Days festival serves as the backdrop to the mystery. In times gone by, May festivals were more common, and they incorporated some fun events. One is the cakewalk. I took part in one as a little girl and thought it was exciting! What child doesn’t want to walk away with a beautiful cake? Adults are the usual participants, though.

Cakewalks are conducted in a way similar to musical chairs. First, slips of paper with numbers on them are placed on the floor. There are fewer numbers than participants, which is key to the contest. Music is played and, when it stops, everyone not on a number is eliminated. Then, a number is drawn from a hat, and the winner (who is standing on the number) gets chooses a cake (or another sweet treat). The game continues until all prizes are given out. In the 1920s, a phonograph and records would have supplied the music. In researching cakewalks, I discovered that Ragtime was the music of choice for most competitions. These contests were not only for May Day, but they were often part of other community celebrations. I read a few articles about them being used as fundraisers, which seems like a great idea to me.

Thank you for sharing this with us and good luck with The Jammed Judges, the latest book in the Doro Banyan mystery series.

Readers can learn more about D. S. Lang by visiting the author’s website and. her Facebook and Goodreads pages.

The book is available online at the following retailers: 

 Amazon – B&N – Apple – Kobo – Smashwords 

About D. S. Lang: D.S. Lang is a former teacher, tutor, mentor, and program manager. As an only child, she often created stories to entertain herself when she didn’t have her nose in a book. She is still making up stories, but now she puts them in writing.

She writes historical mysteries set in small-town America during the Roaring Twenties. Her books feature women amateur sleuths dedicated to solving crimes, along with a team of colorful characters—often including a local lawman.