Writing a Mystery: Chapter Titles/Playlist A Killer Among Friends

In my debut novel, The Godfather of Dance, I used song titles to name each chapter, which suited a novel set in the ballroom dance world. Reader feedback about this was positive, so it made sense to continue the style for the second Jade Riley mystery, A Killer Among Friends. It also matched the story because the second point of view character is a drummer in a rock band. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Chapter Titles/Playlist A Killer Among Friends

Writing a Mystery: Crafting a Series

In the first part of this blog series, Writing a Mystery: Introducing Jade Riley, I introduced the protagonist for The Godfather of Dance. A journalist by trade, Jade hails from Melbourne and has a past tinged with the tragedy of her best friend’s death. Today, I share how I am developing the Jade Riley Mystery Series, and how I envision future books. Of course, this will almost certainly change along the way due to factors beyond my control or my evolving creative preferences. Continue reading Writing a Mystery: Crafting a Series

Diane Clarke on wartime evacuation and her novel, The Photograph

Diane Clarke was born in South London and spent her childhood on the Sussex coast. She trained as a speech pathologist and worked in that field most of her career, continuing after she immigrated to Australia 27 years ago.

When she took three months off to find another job, she decided to dabble in writing, and now, her debut novel has been published, The Photograph, a family drama about a woman looking for her lost brother. Continue reading Diane Clarke on wartime evacuation and her novel, The Photograph