One wealthy businessman, a trio of unsuspecting wives, and an explosive turn of events. In this scandalous, twist-filled new series from award-winning author Shelly Ellis, will too many secrets and one devastating bond unite three women–or destroy them?
We chat to author Shelly Ellis about her new release The Three Mrs. Greys, book recommendations, writing, and more! You can find Shelly on Twitter, Instagram, and her website.
Hi, Shelly! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
I’ve been a writer as long as I can remember. I started writing short stories in my composition notebook when I was 11 years old. I studied journalism in college and my first job was a crime beat reporter where I covered the Hells Angels, drug raids, murder trials, and a helicopter crash and rescue once. Now I’m an editor for a nonprofit. My first fiction novel was published in 2011. I have a wide span of tastes as a reader and that’s definitely influenced my choices as an author. I’ve dabbled in different genres from romance to women’s fiction to historical fiction. The Three Mrs. Greys is my first mystery/thriller.
After the chaos that was 2020, have you set any goals for this year? If so, how are they going so far?
I used to set long-term goals, but I realized that this can sometimes set you up for disappointment. And after all, if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that life can be unpredictable and the terrain of reality can change dramatically at the snap of a finger. My philosophy for 2021 is to go full Dory: “Just keep swimming! Just keep swimming!” Maintaining mental, physical and emotional health and relative life balance while still writing fiction, working remotely, and helping my kid with her remote learning is key. Just getting ish done is my major focus. Everything else will work out as it should/fall into place, I guess.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
The first book I ever remember reading was a book about a girl who lived on a deserted island with dolphins. I can’t remember the title.
The book that made me want to become an author was Zoya by Danielle Steel. It was on my mom’s bookshelf for years and I picked it up out of boredom and because I liked the cover. As a black girl living in the inner city, Zoya was a world away from me and my life. I mean . . . the Romanovs, ballerinas, World War II, and old Hollywood . . . it was total escapism! I recognized then the power of the written word to transport you to another time and place. The book itself might not be my thing now (my tastes have evolved), but I appreciate the purpose it served in making me want to become an author.
The story that I can’t stop thinking about is The Wide Circumference of Love by Marita Golden. There are some books that just gut you with their honesty and rawness. A look at what it means to be in love with someone with dementia and accept what happens to them and your marriage and your perception of “til’ death do us part” was not an easy read, but it was a powerful one.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
I discovered my love for storytelling first. I was a storyteller before I was a writer. I remember one day I was at school and we had to wait for our parents to pick us up early because of a power outage. To pass the time and because we were stuck in the dark, kids started to make up games and then funny stories. When it was my turn, I started a make-believe story and the kids around me seemed riveted. They kept telling me to keep going. It was to the point that when our parents finally arrived, a few of the kids didn’t want to leave. They wanted to hear the rest of the story that I made up out of thin air! It was the craziest thing, but I figured out then that I was onto something.
Your new novel The Three Mrs. Greys releases on March 30th 2021! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Fun, campy, fast-paced, twisted, and sexy.
Now, what can readers expect?
The Three Mrs. Greys is about a man named Cyrus Grey who is shot and taken to the hospital. When three women arrive at the hospital all claiming to be his wife, the women begin to unravel their husband’s secrets and lies while also trying to determine who pulled the trigger and who is next on the would-be murder’s hitlist.
What inspired you to write The Three Mrs. Greys?
It was two-fold inspiration. I saw an episode on ID Discovery once about a Jamaican doctor who was in a car accident. His wives discovered he’d been married to them at the same time when he died as a result of his injuries. And not to get too political (but hey, art is political, right?), the past few years has shown the power of the big con. If you can control the narrative, you can get people to believe and do just about anything. That’s what the main character Cyrus does. He’s the puppet master with these three women dancing on strings. The power to manipulate isn’t fun to watch, but it’s fun to write about.
Were there any challenges you faced while writing? If so, how did you overcome them?
This was my first mystery. It was my first “whodunit” plot, so figuring out how to provide hints so that the plot seems plausible when the culprit is finally revealed without giving the whole plot away was a bit of challenge. I gave chapters to my beta reader incrementally and kept asking, “Did you guess yet?” When she kept saying, “no,” I figured I was okay.
If it’s not too spoilery, do you have any favourite moments that you loved bringing to the page?
My favorite moment is when all three wives have the first and only meetup and they finally are face-to-face. You get to see all the women interact with each other. It’s full of sparks and one-liners.
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you have received?
Best: “Focus on your own paper” a.k.a. Don’t compare yourself, your writing, or your writing career to other authors. It’s pointless.
Worst: “Write everyday.” While I appreciate that authors should be diligent, insisting that you write even when you don’t feel like it can be–at least for me–detrimental to the creative process. Sometimes stepping away from work for a day or two or even a week can help me figure out a plot point, a plot hole, or who the hell my characters are. I need that distance to clear my head occasionally.
What’s next for you?
The follow up to The Three Mrs. Greys is with my editor. No publication date so far. I’m also working on another dual-timeline historical fiction novel.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
Again, my tastes are pretty eclectic, but here are some of my fav reads:
- The Wide Circumference of Love by Marita Golden
- You by Caroline Kepnes
- The Girl Before by J.P. Delany
- It by Stephen King
- Wild Sweet Love by Beverly Jenkins
- Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
