The writing process fascinates me. I recently published my ninth mystery novel and I’m still in awe of how bits and pieces from my life and lots of other sources come together to form a book. Sometimes, it’s easy to figure out where ideas come from; other times it’s not. When an idea comes to me seemingly from “out of the blue,” I look up and say, “Thank You,” because I believe in giving credit where credit is due.
My favorite part of writing is creating characters. People and psychology have always fascinated me. My Malone mysteries have been described as “character driven” and my Small Town mystery series is also character driven. A house may have been the inspiration for both series but the characters quickly became the most important element to me.
So, how did I come up with the characters for my four-book series? Like all of writing, it was a process.
Kate, my main character, is based on someone I once knew who was the single mother of a young daughter. But that’s where the similarity ends. The two women are nothing alike in appearance or personality.
The rest of the characters are figments of my imagination but I know they each include characteristics of people I've known.
In Secrets in Storyville, Kate’s parents and grandmother are hiding a secret. They, Kate's daughter, the people Kate works with, several of the town’s residents and the man Kate meets and falls in love with all play a role in the mystery.
(If you'd like to read more about one of my books and/or you'd like to purchase it, click on the book cover on the right of this page.)
I hope you enjoy getting to know the characters in Secrets in Storyville, the first book in the series, as much as I enjoyed creating and writing about them and that you will go on to read the rest of the series.
Until next time, Happy Reading!
