Okay, now, I think we're ready... my friend, Elizabeth Lynn Casey, aka, Laura Bradford, is here to talk about her latest release in the successful Southern Sewing Circle Mystery series, LET IT SEW. BTW, I love this cover! But I'll stop fussing and let Elizabeth talk.
Lynn
***
Ask a dozen writers what sparks a story and you’ll probably
get a dozen answers with a handful of similarities—a news article, a radio
snippet (a big one for me), and/or a dream. And most of the time, that’s
probably the case. Sometimes though, at least for me, the initial jumping off
point comes from a flash of something that, by itself, seems rather
meaningless.
Take for example my latest book, LET IT SEW—the 7th book in my Southern Sewing Circle
Mysteries. I knew it was going to be a holiday book and that it was to be
released in November of 2012, but beyond that, I didn’t really have a plan.
Then came the flash, or, rather flashes.
Flash One: A woman with Alzheimer’s and whether their long
term memory could remain intact, at least in spurts (the answer, according to
my personal neurologist, was yes—hurrah!).
Flash Two: A different woman hell-bent on claiming her spot
in a man’s life—his children be damned.
Most non-writers would probably see those flashes as odd
thoughts and move on. But for a writer? Game on!
Once I’d confirmed the memory possibilities for my
Alzheimer’s patient in the first flash, I began to build outward—using her
skill with a sketch pad to slowly unlock a murder. Sketch by sketch this woman
releases a chilling secret she’s hidden for nearly five years, a secret she
thought she’d been keeping to protect one person only to find out her silence
had actually enabled the real perpetrator to pull of the perfect crime.
But will anyone listen? After all, she has Alzheimer’s,
doesn’t she?
The holiday aspect of my book grabbed hold of the second
flash and spiraled that woman’s evil
intent in multiple directions, making her the perfect female Grinch to wreak
havoc among the series’ staple characters.
The next thing I knew, my fingers were off and running on my
keyboard as my first flash took center stage and the second flash morphed into
two different—yet interwoven—subplots.
Ahhhh…
I love it when that happens, don’t you?
Elizabeth Lynn Casey is the author of the Southern Sewing
Circle Mysteries with Berkley Prime Crime. LET
IT SEW, the 7th book in the series, is now available.
Additionally, she is also the author of the new Amish Mysteries (also with
Berkley) under her regular name, Laura Bradford. HEARSE AND BUGGY, the 1st
book in that series, released in June. When she’s not writing mysteries, Laura
occasionally dabbles in romances with her most recent release in that genre, STORYBOOK DAD. To learn more, visit: www.elizabethlynncasey.com or www.laurabradford.com.
3 comments:
Great story concept!
Also, I love that cover!
Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com
Yes, the plot sounds excellent. When my dad descended into Alzheimers, he told me details of his childhood that I'm sure he'd completely forgotten before the illness. That stuff is in there, covered up, for most of us. One of the only benefit of Alz. is the unveiling of those experiences, I think. Love the title!
Morgan, thank you!
Kathleen, you're right, they are like jewels. Precious jewels.
Kaye, I find it fascinating that Alzheimers' patients can be so clear and accurate with long term memories at times. It was fun to work with that in the book, even if it wasn't on a super deep level.
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