Resale Boutique Mysteries, Writing

The Making of Kelly Quinn

The countdown has begun to the release of SILENCED IN SEQUINS, book two in the Resale Boutique Mystery series featuring fashionista-turned-amateur sleuth Kelly Quinn. She’s a hoot to write and I’m so grateful that somehow, someway the nugget of her character graced me one day allowing me to create (in my opinion) a fun, multi-dimensional, strong female character.

 

One question I get a lot is how stories and characters come to me. Sometimes a story idea hits me as a character goes looking for a missing dog and then finds the dog’s owner dead –murdered. Sometimes a character idea hits me like I want to write about a food blogger. Whatever the first spark of an idea, I think about all the what if’s and build a plot and populating the story with characters.

My plan was to submit the short story to an anthology.

For the Resale Boutique Mystery series, Kelly came to me several years ago when I wrote a short-story on a snowy weekend. Back then Kelly had a different name and was tracking down a missing dog only to discover the dog’s owner dead – murdered. Five-thousand words later I typed THE END and sent it off to my critique partner. My plan was to submit the short story to an anthology. After polishing the manuscript, I emailed it off and waited. And I waited some more. Then the email came and I kind of wished I was still waiting. It was a very polite rejection.

Yes, the rejection was disappointing, but I was busy with work and writing a romantic suspense novel so I dusted myself off and moved on. The short story remained in a file on my computer and in the summer of 2017 I pulled out the short story and revamped it for a proposal to send to my editor at Kensington for a new cozy series.

Kelly got her new name and a new career and then the devastating news her beloved grandmother had died. She then found out she inherited the tired, old consignment shop she spent so much time in as a child before leaving Lucky Cove to attend fashion school in New York City. I continued plotting the story and filling Lucky Cove with its residents.

First up is Pepper Donovan. She’s been the only employee at the Lucky Cove Consignment shop for over twenty years. She worked side-by-side with Kelly’s grandmother and they became the closest of friends. Pepper is having a hard time understanding why Kelly wants to change things in the store.

There’s Kelly’s uncle, Ralph Blake. He was named the executor of the estate by his mother. Ralph expected to inherit the shop, which sits on prime real estate in Lucky Cove and would sell for a very nice sum. Lucky Cove is a quaint Long Island town that’s not as flashy as the Hamptons but still draws very wealthy and successful Manhattanites during the summer months.

We also meet Ralph’s most-recent wife, Summer. She’s a model-turned-Pilates studio owner and can’t understand why her adopted hometown needs a thrift store.

Writing Kelly was a fun departure from writing Hope Early.

Luckily Kelly has her best friend, Liv Moretti, to lean on when things get out-of-control when Kelly is dragged into a murder investigation which begins with a psychic claiming one garment in the shop was worn during a murder. Word spreads quickly in Lucky Cove and business, which wasn’t good to begin with, plunges.

Writing Kelly was a fun departure from writing Hope Early, the protagonist in my Food Blogger Mystery series. She’s in her mid-twenties, whereas Hope is in her thirties. She doesn’t have the comforting support of her family like Hope has and returning to her hometown was the last thing she ever thought she would do whereas Hope always knew she’d be back in the place where she started. What they share is having their careers derailed, humiliating firings and a deep-seated need to seek justice for those who can’t. Oh, and one more thing, they each have a very cute guy that they heart. 🙂

Thank you for spending a few minutes with me today. While you wait for SILENCED IN SEQUINS to be released, MURDER WEARS A LITTLE BLACK DRESS is available and would be a fun cozy read this month if you haven’t read it yet. 🙂

Baking

My 20 Must-Haves For My Fall Baking Pantry

I’m waiting on fall. With temps at or above 80 degrees (even up to 90) I’m growing impatient.  Hear that, Mother Nature? Baking pumpkin bread while wearing flip-flops is just wrong. Well, except for you who live down south. But here in New England? It’s not normal. Though, while I’m waiting on fall to arrive I can take a moment to review my pantry and make sure I’m well stocked.

There’s nothing more depressing than having a spur-of-the-moment urge to bake something and find that I’m missing one or two ingredients. Either I’d have to run out to the store or get excited about baking something else. And this fall, I don’t have the time for last-minute trips to the grocery store. Not with a book coming out and two manuscript deadlines back-to-back coming up real soon.

Okay, so here’s my list. Give it a look over and let me know if there is anything you have in your Fall Baking pantry that I’m missing. 🙂

Twenty Must-Haves For My Fall Baking Pantry

  1. Flours: Unbleached All-purpose flour, Whole-Wheat flour, Cake flour, Oat flour, Gluten-free flour

  2. Baking Powder

  3. Baking Soda

  4. Sugars: White granulated sugar, powered sugar, brown sugar (light and dark), raw sugar

  5. Unsweetened cocoa powder

  6. Evaporated Milk & Sweet Condensed Milk

  7. Pure Vanilla extract

  8. Dried fruit: Raisins, cherries, apricots, dates

  9. Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, cardamom, cloves, vanilla bean

  10. Maple syrup

  11. Honey

  12. Molasses

  13. Corn syrup

  14. Cornstarch

  15. Unflavored gelatin

  16. Nuts: almonds, pecans, walnuts

  17. Baking chocolate: unsweetened, bittersweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate

  18. Unflavored gelatin

  19. Nuts: almonds, pecans, walnuts

  20. Canned pumpkin (many, many cans)

Now that the list is all taken care of, I thought I’d share a snippet of THREE WIDOWS AND A CORPSE, the third book in the Food Blogger Mystery series. While participating on a town scavenger hunt, food blogger Hope Early finds one thing not on her scavenger list – a dead body. And what follows with three women claiming to be the dead man’s wife has Hope smack in the middle of a murder investigation and possibly the next target of a vengeful murderer.

Hope and her team have arrived at the Avery Bistro with their hunt list in hand. While her team heads inside the restaurant, something catches Hope’s attention to the back of the parking lot and she’s drawn away from her team – Claire, Drew and Jane. What she finds is a very dead man.

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Happy Baking!!!

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Debra Sennefelder is an avid reader who reads across a range of genres, but mystery fiction is her obsession. She’s the author of the Food Blogger Mystery series and the Resale Boutique Mystery series. Her interest in people and relationships is channeled into her novels against a backdrop of crime and mystery. Born and raised in New York City, where she majored in her hobby of fashion buying, she now lives and writes in Connecticut with her family. She’s worked in retail and publishing before becoming a full-time author. Her writing companion is her adorable and slightly spoiled Shih-Tzu, Connie.

Friday Reads

Friday Reads – Books on Sale!

Is it me or has the first couple of weeks of August flown by? Wasn’t it just July? This has me thinking that the rest of the month may follow suit. We’ll be celebrating Labor Day in no time. Well you know what that means. We have to finish up our summer reading and get ready for our fall reading. 🙂 Luckily my publisher, Kensington, has put many, many books on sale this month and among those sale books are several first-in series books so you can start a new series with a discount!

 

THE UNINVITED CORPSE

Book one in the Food Blogger Mystery series

Leaving behind a failed career as a magazine editor and an embarrassing stint on a reality baking show, newly divorced lifestyle entrepreneur Hope Early thought things were finally on the upswing–until she comes face-to-face with a murderer . . .

Hope’s schedule is already jam packed with recipe testing and shameless plugs for her food blog as she rushes off to attend a spring garden tour in the charming town of Jefferson, Connecticut. Unfortunately, it isn’t the perfectly arranged potted plants that grab her attention–it’s the bloody body of reviled real estate agent Peaches McCoy . . .

One of the tour guests committed murder, and all eyes are on Hope’s younger sister, Claire Dixon–who, at best, saw Peaches as a professional rival. And suspicions really heat up when another murder occurs the following night. Now, with two messy murders shaking Jefferson and all evidence pointing to Claire, Hope must set aside her burgeoning brand to prove her sister’s innocence. But the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she gets to a killer intent on making sure her life goes permanently out of style . . .

To buy THE UNINVITED CORPSE click here

WINE AND PUNISHMENT

Book one in the Literary Pub Mystery series

In the first in an engaging new mystery series from USA Today bestselling author Sarah Fox, the owner of a charming literary pub finds her fresh start on the rocks thanks to a case of murder.

Booklover Sadie Coleman knows that in life, as in fiction, the right setting can make a world of difference. The small town of Shady Creek, Vermont, seems like the perfect place to start over after losing her Boston job to a merger and her relationship to her ex’s gambling addiction. She’s bought and redecorated the old grist mill pub, transforming the Inkwell into a cozy spot where tourists and regulars alike can enjoy a pint or a literary-themed cocktail, or join one of several book clubs.

Little by little, Sadie is adjusting to the rhythms of her new home. Fall in Shady Creek is bookmarked by the much-anticipated Autumn Festival, complete with a pumpkin catapult competition and pie bake-off. Unfortunately, the season also brings an unwelcome visitor—Sadie’s ex, Eric, who’s angling for a second chance . . .

Before Sadie can tell Eric to leave, he’s found dead near the Inkwell. When the local antique shop catches fire on the same night, it’s clear the town is harboring at least one unsavory character. Now, with her Aunt Gilda, her friend Shontelle, and the pub’s patrons all in the mix, Sadie must uncover the truth . . . before a killer declares last call.

To buy WINE AND PUNISHMENT click here.

THE PLOT IS MURDER

Book one in the Mystery Bookshop series

The small town of North Harbor on the shores of Lake Michigan is about to have a new mystery bookstore. But before the first customer can browse its shelves, the store’s owner is suspected of her own murder plot . . .

Samantha Washington has dreamed of owning her own mystery bookstore for as long as she can remember. And as she prepares for the store’s grand opening, she’s also realizing another dream—penning a cozy mystery set in England between the wars. While Samantha hires employees and fills the shelves with the latest mysteries, quick-witted Lady Penelope Marsh, long-overshadowed by her beautiful sister Daphne, refuses to lose the besotted Victor Carlston to her sibling’s charms. When one of Daphne’s suitors is murdered in a maze, Penelope steps in to solve the labyrinthine puzzle and win Victor.

But as Samantha indulges her imagination, the unimaginable happens in real life. A shady realtor turns up dead in her backyard, and the police suspect her—after all, the owner of a mystery bookstore might know a thing or two about murder. Aided by her feisty grandmother and an enthusiastic ensemble of colorful retirees, Samantha is determined to close the case before she opens her store. But will she live to conclude her own story when the killer has a revised ending in mind for her?

To buy THE PLOT IS MURDER click here.

CREMAINS OF THE DAY

Book one in the Tallie Graver series

There’s no reverse on the hearse . . .

For Tallulah Graver, marrying wealthy Waldo Phillips seemed like the best way out of the family business, the Graver Funeral Home. But when her marriage falls apart and Tallie is left with next to nothing, she turns to cleaning houses to make ends meet. As humbling as it is to tidy the mansions of the snobby socialites she used to call friends, at least she doesn’t have to be around dead bodies. Until . . .

She discovers one of her employers lying in a closet with a knife sticking out of her chest. This unpleasant shock seems to be part of a web of weird experiences: Tallie’s friend Gina’s shop is broken into, her ex is stun-gunned where it hurts the most, and now she’s receiving flowers from the dead woman. Granted the deliveryman is handsome, but seriously, that’s enough to cast a pall over anyone’s day. Now Tallie needs to dig deep to clean up this mess—before she finds herself in a grave situation.

To buy CREMAINS OF THE DAY click here.

I hope you’ll find this short list of first-in series sale books helpful because we all know our TBR piles are never quite tall enough. 🙂

Coffee & Chat

Sunday Coffee & Chat

August has arrived and I’d like to say that July flew by in a blink of an eye but I can’t because I felt every single day of the month. And wasn’t I lucky there were 31 days. The days were hot and humid (yes, I’m complaining about the weather and no, I don’t need to be reminded of the brutal winter ahead – I’m familiar with it) and there was so much work. Luckily, I love my job and my office is air conditioned. So no complaints there. But, I did not feel the month flew by at all. Let’s see if I’ll be able to say the same about August.

What have I been up to this past week? So glad you asked because I’m so happy to say the first draft of my Halloween-themed novella for the Resale Boutique mystery series is finished. It came in at 27,367 words. Yay! I also spent the week prepping book 4 in the Food Blogger series to send off to my indie editor. I have a few more chapters to review and tweak before the due date. I had the pleasure of reading a couple of chapters of my critique partner’s WIP. There’s a new one in my inbox so I’ll be reading that today. The thing on my to-do list all week that I didn’t get to was to begin writing the guest posts for the upcoming release of THREE WIDOWS AND A CORPSE. So that task is going on the to-do list for this coming week.

I also finished reading My Ex-Best Friend’s Wedding. I really enjoyed the book and if you’d like to read more about it you’ll find my post here. In July I also read Manor of Dying, which I loved. If you’d like to read my post about that book you’ll find it here.

I also finalized the recipes in Food Blogger 4 so now I just have to select which ones I’ll share in the book. There’s one cookie recipe and muffin recipe that will definitely go in the book. I also selected the recipe from THREE WIDOWS AND A CORPSE that I will share on the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen blog.

My little guy Billy had no one but two visits to the vet’s office because of a bump on his head. It was drained at the first appointment but after 48 hours it became inflamed and red. Now he’s on some meds and the bump is looking better, just not getting any smaller. He has a follow-up in a few days.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! It’s been great catching up with you. Leave a comment below and let me know what you’re planning for this coming week.

Friday Reads

Friday Reads – My Ex-Best Friend’s Wedding

It’s August already! It’s hard to believe that the season of beach reads is winding down. With that in mind I made sure that Wendy Wax’s My Ex-Best Friend’s Wedding was up next to read. Before I discuss any more about the book, let’s first take a moment to admire. It’s beautiful!

A majority of the book takes place in the Outer Banks, North Carolina and it’s about two best friends who had a falling out but are still connected by one of their mother’s. Lauren set out for New York City to make it big as an author and her best friend was supposed to go with her but Bree changed her mind and remained in NC to marry Lauren’s ex-boyfriend. Over the years, Bree took over the local bookstore while Lauren launched her publishing career with an idea they both had come up with. Yeah, that’s a problem. Lauren’s mother, Kendra, has been the perfect mother showing both women that even given the most difficult circumstances a woman can survive and be successful. Too bad she has a secret that will rip her daughter’s heart to shreds and maybe show she wasn’t as brave as everyone thought. The three of them must find the strength to forgive and welcome each other back into their lives. I loved how the relationship between Lauren and Bree mended. There were scenes that I could totally relate to where the two women slipped into their old banter, their old rhythm of conversation, their suppressed feelings for each other and then quickly regrouped because after twenty years, their disappointment and anger of each other had festered so they couldn’t have that feeling of friendship, of love. Those scenes felt very authentic to me. I really enjoyed the book and I’m looking forward to Wendy’s next release.

What are you reading? Are you getting ready for your fall reading? No, I’m not pushing the season (though I wouldn’t mind a little less humidity) but we do have to plan. There are only so many hours of reading time. 🙂

 

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