A Look Behind the Scenes of Writing THE CORPSE WHO KNEW TOO MUCH

 By Debra Sennefelder

I
thought I’d share with you a little bit of what went into writing my newest
release, THE CORPSE WHO KNEW TOO MUCH. It’s the fourth book in my Food Blogger
Mystery series, and it was inspired by my interest in podcasts and cold cases.
I knew I wanted to have an unsolved mystery in this book, and it seemed perfect
to add in a podcast that focused on such cases. The more I thought about the
story, I realized that the podcast’s host would be the daughter of the missing
woman. 

One
of the questions I get asked a lot is how long a book takes to write. Every
author will have a different answer. For me, it usually takes a year from when
I come up with the idea that generally is a few sentences to describe the story
to when I turn the completed manuscript into my editor. I go through four
drafts before I consider the manuscript completed. Then I received feedback
from my editor, and then the manuscript goes through copyedits. Finally, we go
into the final editing stage of proofing the manuscript before sending it to
the printer.

My
first draft is very messy, very sparse, and done very fast. It’s usually
completed in a month. Then it’s set aside while I work on something else, like
an outline for another book. When it’s time to work on the second draft, I’m
prepared to spend a longer time with the story. It’s here I rework sentences,
rearrange or add scenes if needed, cut what doesn’t move the story forward.
It’s intense and can take a whole day for one scene, depending on how long the
scene is. Once the second draft is done, the manuscript goes off to my
freelance editor, and when it comes back, I implement her changes. Then its
time to dive into the third draft, and that’s when I utilize the narrator
feature on my computer and have the manuscript read back to me. During this
process, I catch mistakes, typos, and awkward sentences. When that’s completed,
I then print the manuscript, using a different font, and read it one last
time. 

Since
I’m published by a traditional publisher, and they take care of all the
editing, book covers, and handle of lot of the marketing for my books. Aside
from writing the book, my most favorite part of the process is the cover
design. I’m very fortunate that my publisher asks for my input. So far, I have
not been disappointed by any of the covers. As I’m plotting the book, I begin
thinking about the scenes that could be depicted on the cover. For THE CORPSE
WHO KNEW TOO MUCH, I knew I wanted the Jefferson Library on the cover. I
compiled inspiration photos, described in detail what the outside of the
library looked like, and added in Bigelow, he’s Hope’s dog. He’s on all of the
covers. When I’m asked, I send this file to my editor, and the team at
Kensington goes to work to create the cover. Receiving the “cover”
email from my editor is one of my most favorite moments.

I
hope you enjoyed this glimpse behind-the-scenes of how THE CORPSE WHO KNEW TOO
MUCH was written. 

If
you’re an author, what does your behind the scenes look like? Readers, do you
have any questions about the writing process?

 Debra Sennefelder is the
author of the Food Blogger Mystery series and the Resale Boutique Mystery series.
She lives and writes in Connecticut. When she’s not writing, she enjoys baking,
exercising and taking long walks with her Shih-Tzu, Connie. You can keep in touch
with Debra through her website, on Facebook and Instagram.