Spice up Your Mysteries - Just in Time for Valentine's Day

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Tomorrow’s Valentine’s Day. I know not everyone celebrates, but I do because it extends the party from my birthday. This year, it’s on Friday the thirteenth, but that’s another story.

So, let’s talk romance. A few years back when I was the program director for our mystery writers’ group, I invited some amazing romance writers to visit and give us some tips for spicing up our mysteries. (Many thanks to Mary Burton, Tracey Livesay, Avery Flynn, and Lisa Dyson for all their great advice!) The writers’ genres variety from sweet to va-va-voom, and it was a hoot to listen to them describe how to write romantic situations.

I write cozy mysteries that are PG-13, so anything too racy happens behind closed doors. That works for cozy mysteries that are primarily based on bringing the guilty to justice and strong character relationships. But, the industry is changing with a whole lot of new subgenres that blend with other book genres like romancy, a combination of fantasy and romance.

In my first series, my character was devoted to her job, and she really didn’t have much of a social life. And I received a lot of feedback from readers that they wanted more romance to make her seem more like a regular person. (Delanie did have a fling in Secret Lives and Private Eyes, and that caused a lot of conflict for the storyline. Later in the series, she starts dating an FBI agent.)

For two of my cozy series, I’m currently writing books 7-9, and I’m toying with the idea of having a wedding. No spoilers yet.

I think romance is important to any story, and here’s why:

  • A little romance livens up the story line.

  • It can create conflict for the characters to move the plot forward (or attempt to derail it).

  • It makes the characters more human. Emotions are a part of life.

  • And romance add some fun elements for the characters and readers.

Do you like a little (or a lot of) romance in your mysteries?

What To Do While You're Waiting...

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I never realized how much I would be waiting in my writing life. I am not a patient person. I like websites that respond in three seconds, check-out lines that are short, and quick responses. And I’ve learned, not everyone is on my schedule. There is a lot of waiting when you decide to write or publish a book.

If you want to be traditionally published, there are things you will have wait for. You will wait months (if not years) to hear back about queries, for edits, and for cover designs.

Here are some things you can do while waiting:

  • Write your next book, especially if you are querying your first book. If you get a multiple book offer, you’ll need to have that second book ready for submission in year (or less).

  • Work on your newsletter and social media followings. If you are querying an agent or publisher, they do look at your web presence. After I sold my first book, I spent a lot of the waiting time between edits building up social media followings. It took a lot of time, but it was worth it to build up a base and a small street team.

  • Create or spiff up your website. Make sure it looks like you and your style of writing. Make sure that all of the buttons and links work. The colors, graphics, design, and fonts should be unified.

  • Join a writing group. They are wonderful for networking, finding opportunities, and learning about your craft and genre.

  • Find a critique partner or group to help you polish your manuscript.

Keeping Track of Your Book Details

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I write four series, and I am often asked to provide details about the different books. I have to have a way to keep this all organized. Here’s what I do:

  • I keep (and backup) a Word file for each series that includes each book’s ISBN and buy links from a variety of different booksellers.

  • I have an electronic folder with the artwork for each book’s cover. I keep subfolders with copies of the marketing graphics that I use.

  • For details about me, I have a Word document with a standard small, medium, and large biography. I also have a list in this document of the links to my social media sites.

  • For the details of each series, I keep an Excel spreadsheet that has a column for each book. I list details for each character and what books they appear in.

  • And finally, I keep a Word document for each series that lists blurbs and reviews by book. If I ever need a pull quote, I have my choice.

What helps you stay organized with your writing materials?

Find Your Crew

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Lots of studies have been done recently that show the importance of connecting with others. Just Google the topic. There is an overwhelming number that show how we’ve become disconnected in the post-Covid, social media world. Writers need to pay attention to this. You need a team to help you with ideas, celebrations, and support through the bumpy times.

My advice to writers at any stage of their career is to find those people. It may be writing partners, a critique group, a writing organization, or a group chat with other writers. Regardless of whether you are online or in-person, you need to interact regularly with others.

Joining a writing group at the beginning of my journey was the best investment I made. I joined my national and local chapter of Sisters in Crime and James River Writers. I was fortunate that both had in-person as well as online programs.

Writing organizations offer wonderful programs, training, and meet and greet activities. When I had questions about agents, querying, publishers, there was always someone there who was willing to share their time and expertise. I have found critique groups, writing partners, and many many valuable contacts.

I also had my first publishing credit for a short story that was accepted into an anthology. I learned about editing, revising, following guidelines, and submitting work for publication.

The publishing business is like no other, and it is beneficial to be able to talk to people who understand the experience.

No matter what stage of your writing career you’re in, my recommendation is to find a group of writers to share the joy and provide support when there are road bumps.

Writerly, Bookish, and Fun Resources

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I subscribe to a lot of newsletters and podcasts, and I want to share some interesting ones with you. These are great for research and ideas.

Newsletters - I love keeping up with authors and what they’re writing, and bookish events. Here are a few that are worth checking out:

Podcasts

What are your favorite newsletters and podcasts?

Some Things to Think about if You Write a Series

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If you think you want to write a series, there are some things to think about when you’re writing and revising.

  • Create connectors or mentions (of characters and events) and sprinkle them in without providing spoilers.

  • Think about your character arcs. Do you want them to grow or change? Some series, the character is basically the same age. In others, the change jobs, get married, get divorced, and age as time passes.

  • Have an idea for the plots and stories as you’re writing. You may want to have some kind of reference at the end that sets up the story for the next book.

  • Think about whether readers can read the series out of order and still enjoy the book. Some dedicated series readers read them only in order. Other readers find you mid-series.

  • Make sure there is going to be a next book if you write a cliffhanger. Readers don’t like to be left “not knowing.”

  • For fiction series where you have recuring characters and new ones, you may want to have a short list at the beginning for a reader reference.

What else would you add to my list?

10 Things I Learned Along My Writing Journey

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There have been a lot of lessons learned along my writing journey, and I am sure that there are more to come. Here’s my list of the top ten so far.

  1. Don’t give up. Keep writing.

  2. Treat your writing like a business.

  3. Guard your writing time. It’s precious.

  4. Find your crew to help you celebrate and get through the rough times.

  5. Keep your biography and your headshot current.

  6. Write your synopsis and marketing documents after you finish a round of editing. Your characters and story will be fresh in your mind.

  7. Keep a up to date character list for your book and series.

  8. Record dates, contacts, and key information when you agree to do something, and keep your calendar up to date.

  9. Keep good records. Keep all your receipts. Tax time always seems to be around the corner.

  10. When you type “the end,” put down your manuscript for a few days before you start editing and revising.

Organizing Your Book Files

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There is nothing that will make an author cry faster than not being able to find the most recent version of a manuscript. I really dislike not being able to find things when I need them, so this is the method that works for me.

The Writing Files

  1. I use Microsoft Word, so I create folders for each of my books.

  2. There is one main file. At the end of each writing session, I make a backup of that to my cloud files. (I talked to a writer recently who saves each update in a new file with the date in the name. She mentioned that it took her a long time to find which changes she was looking for. My writing time is limited. I don’t want to spend hours looking for a file.)

  3. When I get edits (because each publisher has its own file naming convention), I put my original manuscript in a subfolder (e.g. Original Files) and save the edits in the editor’s format. When other edits happen, I do the same thing. There is always one main book file that gets backed up.

  4. If I have chapters or paragraphs that I’m removing, I make a copy of them and create a file in the “Original Files” folder for unused material. Make sure the file name describes what it is because you don’t want to have to open a bunch of files if it’s called something generic. Are you going to remember what “old chapter four” is several months later?

  5. I create a character spreadsheet for each series. When there is a new manuscript, I make a copy of it and save it to the new book’s folder. Then I add a column for this book. I note which reoccurring characters appear in the new book and add the new folks. This file has what recipes I used, key information on the characters, and location information that I don’t want to lose between books. I also add names of people I want to recognize in my author notes, so I don’t forget anyone.

  6. I have a Word document with my current biography, social media link, and book links. This helps when I need to create a post or provide this information. This document gets updated every time something changes.

Graphics and Book Covers

  1. When I get the graphics of the final book cover, it goes in my master file on my laptop (and gets backed up.) This way, I can find all the book covers in one place.

  2. I make a subfolder for each series/book for different promotional graphics for the book.

  3. When I make a new image or a video, I put it in its folder.

  4. I use BookBrush to create the book with different backgrounds and in different formats (e.g. ebook, audio, paperback, hardback). I use Canva to create my graphics.