AUTHOR BIO
Marjorie Mathison Hance is the author of the North Lakes Murder Mystery Series, including Murder at Pelican Lake, Cormorant in the Net, and The Man Three Cottages Down. The novels, all set in Minnesota’s northwestern lake country, were inspired by her time spent on Pelican Lake throughout her life, beginning in 1956 when she first learned to fish and waterski. Growing up she enjoyed reading and fell in love with mystery books after discovering Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden.
In 1968 her family bought a summer home on the lake. She was always intrigued by the people on Pelican Lake and enjoyed stories and mysteries about their lives.
With two daughters and sons-in-laws and five grandchildren, the lake has become even more important to her. Ten years ago, she rebuilt the cabin into a lake home as a family gathering place. It is where she wrote her three novels inspired by her love of the lake and the people who come there.
She began writing Murder at Pelican Lake when she found herself alone at the lake with no family for two rainy weeks after her husband’s death. As a Christmas gift, her daughters gave her a course at the Loft in Minneapolis on “How to Write a Murder Mystery,” launching her on a new path.
Creativity and innovation have been important to Marjorie throughout her life. Previously, she was a national sales manager with Honeywell and chaired the Business Department and served as Vice President for External Relations at St. Catherine University. She was named one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Business by The Business Journal and Outstanding Alumna of St. Catherine University and received numerous innovative programming, training, fundraising, and leadership awards.
Marjorie chairs the Jeremiah Program Board of Trustees for Minneapolis-St. Paul and just completed a nine-year term on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota.
In 2022, Marjorie married author Richard Sherry, who happens to have a PhD in English Literature and provides wonderful support to her writing career (when asked!). Residing in Minneapolis, they continue to make new memories on Pelican Lake with their families. Marjorie enjoys paddleboarding, swimming, and cocktail cruises around the lake. She loves meeting with book clubs to discuss her novels.
She is currently working on her next books, including The Widow’s Guide to Power Tools and Book 4 of the North Lakes Murder Mystery Series, set on Lake Lida, Minnesota during ice fishing season.