by Camille Cabrera

The journey from paper draft to perfected publication begins with unsettling blankness. Each story requires new information and copious amounts of crisp white paper. When writing a mystery novel, this process also requires answering questions. How can one not only create but navigate uncharted territory? While the answer might seem simple, it also provides a generous amount of leeway: it depends. The anticipation of the first pen stroke creates a sacred rite of passage.

When crafting a suspenseful mystery novel, I take a moment to sit inside the blank page. A lull is designed to facilitate more questions. When writing Our Perfect Murder, the lull lasted almost a week. I wanted to create a multi-cultural story rooted in family history. The protagonist, Ember Lopez, came from life experiences and personal reflections. How does it feel to exist in a place that refuses to let you take up space? In the larger setting of a mystery novel, such societal questions and personal experiences act as a pivotal linchpin. Actions required reaction. The first step as an author? Mapping out the protagonist and pondering the plot.

As a mystery author, the quandaries written into existence excite me. I’ve grown to revel in the promise of an open page and delight in the freedom attached to the unknown. Crafting a mystery adds another layer of obscurity to a creative process already steeped in uncertainty. Where are the red herrings and what are the next clues? Delving into the drafting process invites more questions than answers. Storylines painstakingly written out in one draft are haphazardly scratched out of existence in the next.

Mystery invites questions. And, if we’re lucky, it provides answers. It’s a genre that speaks to our ingrained curiosity. When done well it provides a much-needed sense of closure in an often open-ended world. A cozy mystery acknowledges wrongdoing and allows the reader and protagonist to stumble around in the dark, together. The uncertainty feels less daunting when traversed alongside a newfound companion. Over the years, I’ve written over four cozy mystery novels and have grown to enjoy the lighthearted banter. My Cozy Christmas series, oddly enough, performs well year-round. Perhaps it has something to do with the companionship between protagonist and reader. While a mishap or murder does take place, the questions and answers require a lighter touch.

In contrast, romantic suspense like Our Perfect Murder, primes readers for discomfort and impending chaos. Each mystery subgenre adheres to a different set of rules. Rules that are best bent to accentuate the twisted tales. For romantic suspense, uncertainty and affectionate ideals collide.

Over the years, I’ve learned how to play with tropes from all over the literary realm. For more traditional readers, such genre experimentation should probably be left behind on paper, unpublished. For me? Part of the thrill comes from sharing a story bleeding into unconventional territory. Asking hard questions about belonging and the power of societal perception. The mystery novel, just like the draft, rarely appears all at once.

Bits and pieces fall from pen to paper as the story shifts and changes with every frenzied scribble. My mind races with the next sentence as my unsteady hand strains to close the gap. I’m constantly contemplating the marked pages and searching for moments where the ink seems to stick, weighed down by unnecessary sentences.

For Our Perfect Murder, the ink tended to stick in specific scenes (now removed). I digressed into elaborate supermarket scenes and unnecessary adventures. A scratch of the pen removed the weight. Finding the balance between two languages––English and Spanish––and one story combined to give readers a fuller understanding of Ember’s complex personhood. Her imperfections and momentary lapses in judgment breathed life into the larger story. The pages filled with onyx scribbles as I incorporated a new person into contemporary common American culture. I wanted to create a dance between the societal senses. Who has permission to take up space in a culture where newness is often greeted by fearful glances? Who is expected to sit silently to avoid creating discomfort? Questions requiring thoughtfully inked answers.

In a world full of blank pages, a few well-placed blots of ink can become a comfort, indeed. I keep a small folded notebook nearby to prevent whispers of tales from drifting back into the beyond. A glutton for grabbing unmarked territory. But of course, it depends on one’s willingness to ask the right questions and mark the first blank page.

You can click here to purchase Our Perfect Murder from Amazon.

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Camille Cabrera is a national bestselling author. She focuses on crafting a vast range of mystery novels spanning from cozy mystery to noir. When Cabrera’s not writing, you can find her drinking a black coffee near the front of a local coffee shop.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.