Q:What made you decide to write this book? What’s its backstory? A:This is the second volume in the Couriers Series. I saw an exhibit on the Couriers at the Bright Angel Lodge museum at the Grand Canyon and immediately thought what a great historical mystery series they would make. The Couriers were the women guides of the Fred Harvey Indian Detours, which ran from 1926 to the late 1930s or early 40s. The Detours were car/van tours through the Four Corners region, running fro

One of the things that surprised me most when I started editing was the number of times I recommended a writer change where they started their book. Reading interviews with authors and talking to authors—maybe because I was looking for it—I noticed this was a recurring theme. Why is that? How do we tell where our books start? Not the hook that draws readers to keep reading, but the story itself. Inciting Incident A friend of mine tells the story of her first book, about a V

What does a manuscript revision look like when you've heard back from your editor? What steps should you take for a successful, stress-free revision?