Off the Page with Molly Green
Greetings, Sleuthing Society!
It’s been a minute since I’ve posted on Noteworthy, hasn’t it? Life has been wonderfully chaotic. Between juggling projects, traveling, and settling into exciting new changes, I feel like I’ve been everywhere all at once. Naturally, some things have slipped through the cracks, like my poor blog. But I have been keeping up with my newsletter as best as I can (though a fresh update is definitely due soon).
One of the biggest pieces of news? We’ve added a new addition to our family: Itto! Welcoming him into our world has been an absolute joy, and let’s just say—he’s already made himself quite at home.
On the writing front, I’m currently in a bit of a limbo period, waiting for the finalization of #Throwback for Murder, the next Trending Topic Mystery! The anticipation is real, but I hope to have concrete details about the release rollout soon. In the meantime, I’ve been diving into other projects, including an exciting shift over to Substack. Have you heard of this platform? Designed with bloggers in mind, it’s proving to be a great space for It’s Bookish Time. I’ve been moving our communications there so folks can stay in the loop on new episodes.
And in particularly thrilling news, The Wren has officially launched a What Spine is Yours Substack to share her interviews with bookish characters with the world! Watching her take over is honestly so much fun, and today’s interview will be featured on her platform as well.
So, without further ado, let me hand the bookish reins over to The Wren for today’s feature!
Arms around,
Sarah
Greetings, bookish friends! The Wren, here. In today’s “Off the Page” feature, I’m sitting down with eco-friendly sleuth, Molly Green!
Molly, thanks so much for being “Off the Page” with me. I’m eager to learn more about you and your green thumb! By way of introduction, can you tell readers how you came to own Patty’s Plant Place, the local nursery in Hawthorn Heights, Ohio?
Hi, The Wren! I’m so glad to be here! I am one of three current owners of Patty’s Plant Place. My Grandma Patty and Grandpa Will left the garden center to my twin sister May, my cousin Shannon, and me to carry on. May and I work at the shop day to day, and Shannon just comes in once a week or so to check on things. I do all the planty things, and May does the money and marketing side of the business. I worked at the garden center when I was in high school and only took a break when I went to college. I could never imagine having another job. It’s the best.
I love to meet folks living their dream. Where does your love of nature and the environment stem from?
My parents would sometimes drop us off at Patty’s Plant Place when we were little and our grandparents were working there. May and I would play tag around the trees and perennials in the outdoor section or hide and seek in the greenhouse. We were just always around plants as kids. And behind Patty’s Plant Place is a section of the Buckeye Trail. This trail makes a big loop all around the inside of Ohio. With such easy access to the trail, I’ve always been drawn to it and love being in the woods. So, plants and being outside have been a big part of my life. Taking care of the environment stems from my love of growing things and the outdoors.
Aw, that’s wonderful that your family instilled this nurturing of nature within you. So, how did you go from managing your plant nursery to being involved in a mystery? What motivated you to investigate this case?
My first “succulent sleuth” case involved a college-aged hiker that went missing on the Buckeye Trail. He came into the shop, and we enjoyed his company, and then the next thing we knew, the police were asking if we recognized his hiking stick and backpack. The police didn’t seem to care to investigate some of the suspicious people I ran into, so I did some digging myself with my sister and our co-worker, Theo. Then I happened upon someone who had collapsed in the attack of our library. No one else noticed the planty smell that I did, and the EMS thought it was just a heart attack. I knew it wasn’t. In my latest adventure, a naturalist we knew died on the Buckeye Trail, and the police seemed to think it was a friend of mine who killed her, and I knew that was just wrong. So I can’t seem to help but get involved. Sometimes I have to step in to help.
Yikes! This is making me a little wary of leaving my books and going outside, LOL. When you’re on a case, are you a solo investigator, or do you have a team to help you?
I work with my sister May and my co-worker Theo. We talk a lot about the cases at work. May is much better at finding stuff on the internet than I am, and Theo is just more athletic than me, so we make a good team. My best friend since elementary school, Claudia, is also really happy to go investigate the trail with me when something seems out of place. She loves hiking like I do and is much better at talking to people than I am. And my husband, Scott, gets dragged along sometimes too. Turns out, he’s a pretty good actor when he needs to be. I’m not sure why they all think I’m the leader of our investigation group, but they seem to think I’m the “succulent sleuth.” I think we should really be the “succulent squad.”
I do love a good squad supporting their sleuth! So, your stories are billed as eco-friendly. What role does the environment play in your mysteries?
Well, people keep dying on our beloved Buckey Trail. That involves going out and checking out where it happened. You don’t have to tell me twice that I have to go on a hike!
What are some recommendations or tips you give to people looking to become more eco-friendly in their daily lives?
First, I want to say that we need systemic change both in the world and at the local level. Yes, we can all recycle better and use less energy, but we should encourage our government and business leaders to provide science-based environmental regulations, use more renewable energy, and protect habitat.
Individually, we can all eat less meat, use green energy, compost, drive less, and recycle right.
I also do a lot of composting of the plant waste at Patty’s Plant Place but also food scraps at our house. Apparently, there’s a statistic that says food waste makes more greenhouse gasses than most countries, only behind China and the United States. Isn’t’ that wild? But don’t stop at home. Encourage your favorite restaurants and schools to compost, too.
Greenhouse gases are the leading cause of climate change. Many of these greenhouse gases are caused by burning fossil fuels to make electricity. While not all of us can have solar panels on our roof, most of us can ask our energy/ electricity provider to switch to a green energy source. My Illuminating Company buys solar energy from a solar farm, and my energy virtually uses that energy. The more people that sign up for that service, the more green energy they buy versus electricity produced by burning coal or natural gas.
I could go on and on about this for maybe 300 articles, so I’ll stop there.
Wow, that is such great information and definitely eye-opening. We need to protect our planet, and I hope people will eventually wake up to this crisis before it’s too late. It makes me so sad/mad that this challenge is politicized as much as it is. We should all care about our planet.
Okay, I’m off my soapbox! What advice would you give someone who wants to follow in your footsteps as an environmentalist and amateur detective?
Well, I hope no one else runs into murder mysteries that need solving as much as I do! But I’d say keep an open mind and be curious. If you see justice not being served, don’t be afraid to help out. And I think that’s the same thing as being an environmentalist. If you see something polluting your local waterway or another environmental injustice, speak up. I think volunteering with your local environmental causes is important.
Too true! Are there more adventures in store for you and your author, Iris March?
Right now, we have a Christmas short story coming up that will be up for pre-order over the summer. We sell Christmas trees in the parking lot at the garden center between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Someone strung up some lights on the trees, and we don’t know who did it. We also have a nearly complete yet-to-be-named novel involving a local developer who dies in the woods close to the Buckeye Trail. Poor Upton was the first dead body I stumbled upon, and I’m worried he won’t be my last.
I’m delighted to hear you’ll be championing your community for more adventures to come, Molly. Thanks so much for coming “off the page” with me today, and for being such a pioneer in the cozy mystery space when it comes to promoting the environment!
You know what to do, my little Spine Sparrows! Check out Molly Green, the Succulent Sleuth, today 🥰
Important Links to Click!
Secrets, Songbirds, and Succulents: https://books2read.com/secretssongbirdssucculents
The Library Attic Attack: A Succulent Sleuth Mini Mystery: https://books2read.com/u/mVD6VM
The Broken Bridge: https://books2read.com/brokenbridge
Website: https://irismarchbooks.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/searchingformysteries/
Facebook: Iris March Books
