Patricia Stoltey

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Sometimes I Wonder Where My Next Idea Will Come From … by Marilyn Meredith

March 31, 2016 By: Patricia

2016_Marilyn MeredithA common question people ask authors is “Where do your ideas come from?” Because I write two different series, sometimes the idea for the next book is right there waiting to be written, but not always.

When it was time to come up with the 12th book in the Rocky Bluff P.D. series, I had no idea what I should write about. Because much of this series is about the police officers and their families, there were some ongoing problems and events in their lives to continue with—but I had no clue when it came to what kind of crime to introduce.

Out of the blue, one of my author friends sent me an email that said, “You should write about a crushing death.” Okay, interesting, but I had no idea what a crushing death was so I investigated via the Internet.

What I learned was long ago, many different cultures would pile stones on someone’s chest in an effort to make him or her tell the truth. Of course it seldom, if ever, worked, instead the person died. Ah, ha, a new way to kill someone off.

From there the questions to be answered were:

Who was the victim?

2016_Meredith_A Crushing Death FinalWhat was the motive?

Where did it happen?

Who was involved?

Right away, the ideas began to flow and I began to envision in my mind exactly how the plot should go. Oh, of course there were side threads that I began to weave into the story, but I had the main idea.

The title was obvious, A Crushing Death.

Anyone else have unusual ways an idea for a mystery came to you?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

F. M. Meredith who is more commonly known as Marilyn Meredith

A Crushing Death Blurb:
A pile of rocks is found on a dead body beneath the condemned pier, a teacher is accused of molesting a student, the new police chief is threatened by someone she once arrested for violent attacks on women, and Detective Milligan’s teenage daughter has a problem.

F. M. Meredith who is also known as Marilyn Meredith is nearing the number of 40 published books. Besides being an author she is a wife, mother, grandma and great-grandmother. Though the Rocky Bluff she writes about is fictional, she lived for over twenty-years in a similar small beach town. Besides having many law enforcement officers in her family she counts many as friends. She teaches writing, loves to give presentations to writing and other groups, and is a member of Mystery Writers of America, three chapters of Sisters in Crime and on the board of Public Safety Writers Association.

Learn more about Marilyn and her books at her website and blog. She can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.

More from my site

  • When Inspiration Whacks … by Edith MaxwellWhen Inspiration Whacks … by Edith Maxwell
  • Writing from Experience … by Bill LamperesWriting from Experience … by Bill Lamperes
  • Using Personal Experience When Creating Plot and Character … by Betta FerrendelliUsing Personal Experience When Creating Plot and Character … by Betta Ferrendelli
  • The Message That Demands to be Heard … by Tracee SiouxThe Message That Demands to be Heard … by Tracee Sioux
  • ON LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION … by David FreedON LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION … by David Freed
  • Getting the House in OrderGetting the House in Order

Category: Books and Authors, Guest Blogger Tag: A Crushing Death, F. M. Meredith, finding ideas, Marilyn Meredith, Rocky Bluff P.D. series, where ideas come from

Comments

  1. Holly Jahangiri says

    April 4, 2016 at 11:52 am

    And this is why writers rightfully worry about the authorities looking too closely at their search histories… 😀

    Sounds like an intriguing book. Most of my stories come from the characters. When they’re darned good and ready, they begin to fill my head with their tales; it’s my job to take dictation and fill in gaps.

  2. yolanda Renee says

    March 31, 2016 at 1:46 pm

    Most of my ideas come from dreams or nightmares. They play like movies in my head and I usually awake with lots of questions. Writing flash fiction is done via a sentence or picture prompt which is always fun.

    • Marilyn Meredith says

      April 1, 2016 at 9:57 am

      Thanks for the comment Yolanda! I do at times have dreams that give me ideas.

  3. Alex J. Cavanaugh says

    March 31, 2016 at 11:33 am

    Became the story and the title – nice!
    I write science fiction and most of my ideas come from movies and music.

    • Marilyn Meredith says

      April 1, 2016 at 9:56 am

      I’ve never had a movie or music trigger and idea so that’s something new to me, Alex.

  4. Lorna Collins says

    March 31, 2016 at 10:42 am

    I love that you are always coming up with novel ideas. i know they sometimes come from the headlines, but other times they are more obscure. Thanks for not using the cliches.

    • Marilyn Meredith says

      April 1, 2016 at 9:56 am

      I don’t think I could write some of the things that people write. I try to have new ideas for each book, not always easy.

  5. Dean K miller says

    March 31, 2016 at 9:00 am

    I’m pretty open to the world around me and find ideas “pop in” my brain at the strangest times. I try to be sure to write them down as I can be forgetful (especially if the idea comes right before I go to sleep . . . I seldom recall those most brilliant ideas in the morning!) I haven’t done any mystery writing but my latest idea is a mystery/cop themed idea. I wrote it down (thankfully) and am letting it stew and brew for a while (other projects to finish) but keep a log book of characters, actions, etc. when they appear so I’ll have them ready to go when I start the project.

    • Marilyn Meredith says

      March 31, 2016 at 9:33 am

      Always a good idea to write everything down when ideas come to you. If I didn’t I’d be out of luck. It is especially important that I keep track of my new characters, their names, and what they look like so I don’t write something totally wrong.

  6. Marilyn Meredith says

    March 31, 2016 at 8:21 am

    Thank you so much for hosting me today, Patricia!

    • Patricia says

      March 31, 2016 at 9:08 am

      You are so welcome, Marilyn! I love having you here.

  7. Margot Kinberg says

    March 31, 2016 at 5:52 am

    You never do know where your next writing idea will come from, do you? Thanks for sharing, both. It just goes to show, too, that research can take you into all sorts of interesting places.

    • Marilyn Meredith says

      March 31, 2016 at 8:22 am

      Thanks for the comment, Margot. Sometimes I think the ideas will never come, at others they just bombard me.

Meet Patricia

I read, I write, I blog, and sometimes I do the laundry and cook. My 2014 novel, Dead Wrong, was a finalist in the thriller category of the 2015 Colorado Book Awards. Wishing Caswell Dead (Five Star/Cengage, December 20, 2017) is a historical mystery set in 1830s Illinois in the fictitious Village of Sangamon. The novel was a finalist for the 2018 Colorado Book Awards for General Fiction. My most recent release, In Defense of Delia (Five Star/Cengage, November 2022), is available in hardcover and will soon be available in ebook and trade paperback. Read More…

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