One of the things that makes “cozies” popular is the quirky small town. Pinyin Bay has definitely become a character in its own right in The ABCs of Spellcraft. Initially I just thought of it as being on a body of water and having a tourist area that was pretty dead in the winter. Maybe I was thinking about poking around Lake Mendota when I lived in Madison and watching the muskrats.
But the Pinyin Bay Boardwalk soon played a bigger part in the story, giving it some local flavor. At that point the city was feeling more like the Niagara Falls of my childhood (I grew up just down the river), or maybe like Wisconsin Dells. Tourist trap places with all kinds of oddball shops and attractions…some of them a little ragged around the edges, but still good fun.
My favorite neighborhood in Pinyin Bay has definitely come to be Scrivener Village. I think I’d love to live there, even if it probably meant my plumbing wouldn’t always work and I’d be privy to the arguments of all my neighbors.
What is the quirkiest place you’ve ever lived?
Spellcraft #12, Bucket List, Just came out! Find it here.
Jordan Castillo Price 