Marcy Blesy, author of Dead Focused and Hocus Pocused, an Empty Nest mystical cozy mystery, is visiting Ascroft, eh? today to share with us her experience of being an empty nester and how it contributed to the birth of this series.

Welcome, Marcy. I’ll turn the floor over to you –

Hello. I am Marcy Blesy, the author of several cozy mystery series including The Tucson Valley Retirement Community Cozy Mystery Series, the Monthly Murder Movie Club Cozy Mystery Series, and the Ghost Texter Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series. Today I am going to talk about my newest series, The Empty Nest Mystical Cozy Mystery Series.

Becoming a parent brings a whirlwind of change. No one can ever truly prepare one for everything that comes along. There are ups and downs and sleepless nights and celebrations. Being a parent is my single greatest joy and also my single greatest anxiety inducer. Right? I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. I love being a parent. The expression that the days can be long and the years are short is so true. When you are in the thick of the busy, busy, busy days, you’re exhausted. But, when the kids become more independent, every day they step further and further toward a life where they don’t need their parents to weigh in with every decision that they make.

My husband and I have entered this stage. Our sons are fully fledged from the nest. They’ve graduated college and begun their careers. We could not be more proud. HOWEVER….. Whew, talk about the quietness of the house whopping me upside the head. LOL. The timing of our children being fully out of the house coincided with me leaving my job in the schools and becoming a full-time author. In other words, I started working from home…in a quiet home.

I truly believe that Dead Focused and Hocus Pocused in the Empty Nest Mystical Cozy Mystery Series called me to write it. I know that sounds odd, but it was very freeing and therapeutical to take a character who is not adjusting well to being an empty nest parent and writing her into a story where she finds her wings and realizes that though life has changed, she has purpose and meaning in this next stage. Juli Tully reluctantly signs up for an Empty Nest Retreat along with other parents at a similar stage in life. Some parents are sad like Juli while others are excited about their newfound freedom. I wanted to honor that not all parents come to this stage of life with the same emotions. Four of the parents unite to investigate the murder of a staff member. The Sand Bur Estate is not as it seems in many ways. The paranormal experiences (flickering lights, temperature changes, talking cat) add to the mystery of navigating this new experience. The book is funny, mysterious, and heartwarming. The conclusion made my smile as I wrote it, and I can’t wait to create the next adventures for these found family characters.

You don’t have to be an empty nest parent to enjoy this book. Every stage of life is scary, no matter where you are along the continuum of life, but there is fun and mystery and growth to be found around every corner!

Thank you for sharing this with us, Marcy, and good luck with Dead Focused and Hocus Pocused, the first book in the Empty Nest mystical cozy mystery series. Readers can learn more about Marcy Blesy by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook, Goodreads and Instagram pages.

The book is available online at  Amazon 

About Marcy Blesy: Marcy is the author of over thirty  books across genres, best known for her Tucson Valley Retirement Community Cozy Mystery Series and the Monthly Murder  Movie Club Cozy Mystery Series —humorous, heartwarming whodunits filled with senior sleuths, quirky characters, and animal sidekicks. Her cozy mysteries spotlight midlife reinvention, found family, and laugh-out-loud amateur sleuthing, perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club, Finlay Donovan, and The Golden Girls.

Marcy also writes the Ghost Texter Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series, starring a kindergarten teacher-turned-reluctant sleuth, and the Secrets romantic mystery duo (The Secret of Blue Lake and The Secret of Silver Beach), transporting readers to the scenic and suspenseful shores of Michigan.

For younger readers, Marcy’s best-selling Be the Vet series offers interactive veterinary mysteries for kids ages 9–13. Her early chapter book series—Evie and the Volunteers, Niles and Bradford, Third Grade Outsider, and Hazel, the Clinic Cat—delight animal lovers and growing readers alike.

When she’s not writing, you’ll find Marcy treasure-hunting along Lake Michigan in search of rare red beach glass. She believes every story should offer heart, humor, and a hint of hope—whether it’s solving a mystery or chasing a dream.