Marlene M. Bell has never met a sheep she didn’t like. As a personal touch for her readers, they often find these wooly creatures visiting her international romantic mysteries and children’s books as characters or subject matter. Marlene is an accomplished artist and photographer who takes pride in entertaining fans on multiple levels of her creativity. Marlene’s award-winning Annalisse series boasts Best Mystery honors for all installments including these: IP Best Regional Australia/New Zealand, Global Award Best Mystery, and Chanticleer’s International Mystery and Mayhem shortlist for Copper Waters, the fourth mystery in the series.
In Bell's latest mystery, A Hush at Midnight, former celebrity chef Laura Harris, once celebrated for her show-stopping pastries and irresistible desserts, is now making headlines for a far darker reason: Laura has been accused of murder. How could this petite chef have brutally smothered beloved small-town matriarch and World War II ferry pilot veteran, Hattie Stenburg? Hattie wasn't just a pillar of the community, she was Laura's confidant and mentor. The shocking twist? Hattie’s Will included recent changes, bypassing next-of kin and leaving her entire fortune and historic estate to Laura. As Laura scrambles to clear her name, she uncovers sinister secrets lurking beneath the town’s idyllic surface. The real murderer is always one step ahead, leaving taunting clues and threatening Laura to leave Texas—or face deadly consequences. With time not a luxury, Laura must untangle the web of deceit before the killer makes her the next victim.
Marlene Bell stops by In Reference to Murder to take some Author R&R about researching and writing the book:
Research for novels has become more of a science for me. After four installments to my Annalisse series, a children’s book, and my new release cozy mystery A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT, I quickly found techniques that didn’t work and gravitated more to those that gave me the true results. Fear of a reader calling a foul on misinformation or bad information in my books has kept me awake many nights. Bottom line: Even though my stories are fiction, the sights, sounds, and actual scenery of the places I write about have to be accurate in order for the reader experience to feel real to that person.
My process begins with a complete outline of my manuscript, scene by scene. I envision each character; where they are, what they’re thinking, and how to leave a cliffhanger at the end of the chapter. Backfilling the sensory information once the outline basics are complete.
When I began to write the first Annalisse novel in 2010, I had no clue where the story was going, nor did I care. My objective was to write a romance. A standalone book. That’s it. It wasn’t until my third draft and wandering subplots I couldn’t keep straight, that a talented developmental editor came to the book’s rescue. She quickly saw the issues and mended my ways. Without an outline as a guide, I couldn’t contain the random elements that did nothing but confuse the reader.
I outline using lined 3 x 5 cards, one card per scene. In a separate diary, I list each character by name and add their characteristics to keep them real and unlike other characters in the book. Also listed are their motivations—what they want from the Main in the book. In my mysteries, I also like to drop a Cast of Characters page in front of the first chapter so that the reader can use it as reference in case they forget a player. A Hush at Midnight has fewer characters than in previous books. The more characters, the harder it is for the reader to recall each one should they show up in the beginning and not again until the mid-point. The Cast of Characters idea was taken from the old Pocket crime books from the 1950s. I hear from readers all the time about that page. It’s an overwhelming success!
How do I make my book locations come to life? Perhaps it’s the generation I grew up in, but I’ve found the old-fashioned methods work best for me. In the age of the internet, I see too many people relying on search results from the giant engines that power the information age. Unfortunately, many top result rankings are paid for by the corporations or individuals who are putting out a narrative. One of their choosing and not always the truth. Sites like Wikipedia and the like are places I tend to steer from because the information is a compilation of information and ideas from others.
Because my books are spiked with sensory details, the best place to obtain images for countries I’ve never traveled to are from the photographers and sightseers who have been there. My favorite place to retrieve the visuals and imagine the landscape are through coffee table books published by photographers who have been on the ground. They explain how it feels to be in the space. Most of the books in the Annalisse series travel to places like Greece, Italy, and New Zealand. Without the visuals and descriptions found in expert’s own published works, I can’t imagine my novels having the realistic feel to them. Readers love to be taken away to places they’ve never been. The more details an author can share, the more their readers will return for the next book.
Many of the stories I write about are based on my own personal experiences. I depend upon the experts to guide me through narratives out of my realm of expertise, such as the next project I’m currently outlining. My husband is an expert in the electric field, and I’ll be relying heavily on his experience—to get it right.
You can learn more about Marlene Bell via her website, and follow her on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Goodreads. A Hush at Midnight is now available via all major booksellers.
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