Make Note of Debra Sennefelder
Happy New Year, dear Noters!
I hope you all had a peaceful and joyous holiday season. I cherished my time with family and friends, visiting folks across Maine, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. And now, with a new year upon us, it’s time to tackle the challenges of 2023.
I’m very interested and excited to see where this year leads. With several book series now published, I am beginning to think about “what’s next?” Will I write another series? Should I focus more on producing books in one particular series? Lots of questions that I don’t have the answers to at the moment. All I know is that I’m having fun being back in Crucible, writing Hazel and Poppy’s next mystery adventure. The opening chapters of a series are always the trickiest for me, so it will be a relief once I have those in my rearview mirror!
My guest this week understands the challenges of writing a series and juggling multiple books at once. Without further ado…
A Bit About the Author: Debra Sennefelder is the acclaimed author of the Food Blogger Mysteries, the Resale Boutique Mystery Series and the upcoming Cookie Shop Mystery series. An avid reader who reads across a range of genres, mystery fiction is her obsession. 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. Her writing companion is her adorable and slightly spoiled Shih-Tzu, Connie. You can learn more about her and her books on her website at www.debrasennefelder.com
Debra, as an admirer of your books and your prolific writing career, it is an honor to have you here today. No doubt, you will serve as a wonderful inspiration to my readers as they prepare to tackle the year ahead. To begin, what book inspired your love of reading?
I honestly don’t remember. What I do remember is that I always loved reading. When I was in elementary school, we’d get book catalogs, and I would be so excited to take them home and show my mom which books I wanted to read. Then, like now, the list was always long.
I loved the Scholastic book catalogs my school handed out. We used it as a shopping list when we went to visit our local bookstore or library! Since you’ve always loved reading, how did you turn that love into storytelling? How did you begin your writing journey?
It began when I was a kid. I loved writing as much as reading. My creativity was off the charts when I played Barbie dolls with my friend down the hall (we lived in an apartment building). It was like a soap opera. Fast forward to my early twenties, when I got my first computer and wrote my first novel. Which was promptly and appropriately rejected by a long list of agents. Years later, I found a writer’s group, joined, and began pursuing publication again. I took a detour a few years later by starting a food blog, but after a couple years, I realized that I missed writing fiction. Because I never really left the writing community, I was able to find a critique partner and began the journey to publication again. Finally, in 2016, I signed with an agent, and by the end of the year, I had my first book contract. And last month, I signed my sixth contract.
It is very clear that storytelling and writing have always been a part of your life. I love your comment about Barbie—I did the very same thing with Polly Pockets and my American Girl doll. Nurturing your imagination in such a fun way really paid off for you.
Congrats on signing your latest contract. What a great way to end 2022. So, it’s now 2023. What’s one thing you’re doing to plan for the writing year ahead?
Make sure I have all my deadlines marked in my calendar.
I’ve always been a big fan of “going digital,” but this year I bought a daily planner to keep track of my tasks, week-to-week. I like trying “new” ways to be organized, and so far, it’s helped me structure my time to write the next Glenmyre Whim Mystery. You recently released Sleuthing in Stilettos, Book Five in the Resale Boutique Mysteries. What is Kelly Quinn up to in this latest installment?
Between grieving the death of her cousin, a rocky patch with her boyfriend, her uncle under suspicion for murder, and overextending herself by volunteering to chair the Shop Small Saturday event for Lucky Cove’s business community, Kelly Quinn is having a challenging time. Plus, she’s gotten into a killer’s crosshairs.
Miranda Farrell, a new business owner on Main Street, has returned to Lucky Cove after twenty years. Unfortunately, few people in town are happy to see her return, including Kelly’s uncle. So when Kelly finds her uncle standing over Miranda’s body, she knows it doesn’t look good for him, and she sets out to prove his innocence.
It sounds like Kelly has quite a lot to juggle! How did the mystery featured in Sleuthing in Stilettos come to you?
I knew I wanted to write a mystery featuring the local business community in Lucky Cove. I also was intrigued by the idea of someone returning to the town after leaving under a cloud of suspicion. And I knew I wanted the main suspect to be someone close to Kelly.
I love when a suspect is close to the main character. It fuels her desire to bring justice even more. What is the trait you admire most about Kelly?
I love that she doesn’t give up. The gal is tenacious.
A great quality in an amateur sleuth, for sure. Now, let’s talk more about you. Many people make New Year’s resolutions to take better care of themselves. How do you take care of your creative side? How do you ensure you don’t get burnt out as a writer?
I make sure to take days off from work. I may write on the weekends, especially if I’m in the first draft, but I don’t do any administrative work.
Great advice—giving your creative juices a rest is so important and can sometimes get overlooked due to everything being demanded from us. When it comes to writing, what’s been your favorite “research” moment or activity?
It would be recipe testing for my culinary mysteries. I love being in my kitchen so having to work on recipes is so much fun for me.
Yum! I bet that is loads of fun. That’s the kind of research I can get behind. What are three things that are always on your writing desk/writing space.
My planner, my WIP binder, and sticky notes
What is your favorite, can’t-live-without writing application?
Microsoft Word. I’ve tried other programs but I always return to Word.
A tried-and-true tool—for our final question, it’s time to put your sleuthing cap on. You stumble across a crime scene. What book character are you alerting first? Why?
Jessica Fletcher. JB’s power of observation is amazing. I’d love to watch her do her thing.
Not only would she catch the culprit, but she’d been witty and entertaining the entire time! Debra, thank you so much for kicking off 2023 with me here at Noteworthy. I can’t wait to learn more about your new series, the Cookie Shop Mysteries, when you stop by and have A Bookish Moment with us later this year. Noters, you can find Sleuthing in Stilettos, as well as Debra’s backlist, here.
Sleuthing in Stilettos: Kelly Quinn, owner of a high-end consignment shop, is a booster for her Long Island town’s small businesses—but now a store owner’s murder has brought big trouble . . .
Locals in Lucky Cove seem to harbor hostility toward Miranda Farrell, proprietor of a new shoe store. Nevertheless, Kelly invites her along to a Chamber of Commerce meeting. But soon afterward, Miranda’s body is found in her shop, with Kelly’s uncle—who’s had multiple public arguments with her—standing nearby. Could her uncle really have committed murder over a business dispute? Or is Miranda’s death related to her late husband’s long-ago embezzlement case?
Kelly feels compelled to investigate, despite her detective boyfriend’s objections—not to mention her commitment to promoting Small Business Saturday. But her effort to pump up sales may fall flat. After her presentation to the committee is sabotaged, the Chamber gives her the boot—and tongues start wagging. Now she has to do some fancy footwork to find the killer . . .