This past weekend I participated in a Facebook Hop to help promote the 50 Shades of Cabernet mystery anthology which is about to be published. It was a first for me. People were encouraged to hop from one FB page to the next and register for whatever that person was offering. It seems to have been very popular.

My giveaway was signed copies of my books. In order to qualify, I asked people to answer the question, “If you could be reincarnated as any writer, any time, anywhere, who would it be? Why?” Given that this was associated with a mystery anthology, it isn’t surprising that many people cited mystery writers. But not all! Here, in alphabetical order, are all the writers mentioned.

Jane Austen—who can count the reasons?

Agatha Christie—a classic choice by several for reasons from youth reading, to she went to exotic places, to she solved crimes before technology

Beverly Cleary—even though she’s still alive

Blaise Clement—b/c her pet sitting books are great

Jackie Collins—b/c her books are fun

Michael Creighton—b/c the reader learns something new in every book

Tim Dorsey—b/c he seems to really enjoy his life

James D. Doss—writes clean mysteries with hilarious acerbic asides

Jessica Fletcher—b/c she is fictional and will live forever!

Dick Francis—b/c he got to ride horses, worked for the Queen, and lived a long life

Robert Frost—b/c his poetry is wonderful

Homer—and who needs a reason?

Colleen Hoover—b/c she is just damned AWESOME

P.D. James—insert your own reasons

Carolyn Keene—b/c she was a favorite youth read (for more than one responder)

Alexander McCall Smith—b/c he’s charming, witty, and down-to-earth (listed here b/c his last name is McCall Smith)

Margaret Mitchell—b/c of Gone With the Wind and loving the Civil War

L. M. Montgomery—b/c she lived on Prince Edward Island

Edgar Allen Poe—b/c of his fascinating imagination

Mary Roberts Rinehart—b/c she was such an interesting woman

Nora Roberts—b/c I love her book

J. K. Rowling—right before she became famous for Harry Potter

Ann Rule—b/c she has a really special mindset

Dr. Seuss—b/c of his wonderful imagination

Anna Sewell—wrote Black Beauty, etc.

J. R. R. Tolkien—b/c he has a rich imagination

Laura Ingalls Wilder—b/c she wrote what she lived

Virginia Woolf—b/c she felt so deeply and expressed those feelings wonderfully

I’ve edited some of the responses to fit the “because” format, but tried to keep the meaning. All of these come recommended. Why not pick up an author you haven’t read?