Here’s how I usually write books.
I don’t pitch them. I don’t outline them. I don’t (usually) send early pages to my agent. My editor often has no idea what I’m working on until the manuscript shows up in her inbox, fully formed, bleeding from the corners.
It’s not about secrecy. It’s just how I operate. I get an idea—sometimes it’s a voice, sometimes it’s a scene, sometimes it’s just a feeling—and I follow it. I usually know the general shape of the story. I know the tone, the mood, the kind of mess the characters are in. But the specifics? The mechanics? Those come later. I build the road as I’m driving. That’s just how my brain works.
I’ve (almost) always worked this way. One-book deals. No safety net. No pressure, other than the voice in my head reminding me I’ve got about a year to turn this seed of an idea into a novel that won’t completely suck. And there’s freedom in that. And yeah, there’s a kind of isolation, too. No one’s waiting for the book by a specific date. No one’s asking a lot of questions. I’m the only one who has to believe it exists.
All this to say things are changing a bit.
I’m about to sign a two-book deal (standalone psychological thrillers). Which means more deadlines. Which means less time for editing and revisions. And that all comes with a new kind of responsibility: telling people what the hell I’m writing about.
That’s the part that doesn’t come naturally.
Because when I say I don’t outline, I mean I don’t outline. Not because I’m rebellious or lazy, but because I genuinely find it hard to see the story until I’m inside it, until my fingers are on the keys and all the what if questions start bubbling up.
But now I’m working on being… let’s call it “less chaotic.” I’m trying to meet people halfway. I’ve started putting together short synopses—not because I suddenly know how everything unfolds, but because it helps to lay down a little groundwork. Gives my editor a map. Gives me a check on whether the story has a spine or just a really compelling limp. After Tell Me What You Did, expectations are higher than ever—and I’d rather not completely tank the follow-up.
And you know what? It’s helping. Not in a “wow, I should’ve been doing this all along” kind of way, but in a “hey, maybe I don’t have to suffer quite so much during the rewrite” kind of way.
So no, I’m not suddenly becoming a plotter. But I’m learning how to talk about what I think I’m writing while I’m writing it. I’m learning how to share a story before it’s finished.
The story still starts in the same place. A strange idea. A single scene. A gut feeling that there’s something here worth chasing.
But now, someone’s chasing with me.
And honestly? That’s kind of cool.
Just don’t expect me to start using index cards.
Here’s a clue about my next book…Let’s just say it starts with snow and ends with a scream.
New episodes of my podcast Making It Up are out! Over the past month I chatted with:
- Cynthia Pelayo, Bram Stoker Award-winning author who blends fairy tales with themes of grief and violence; she talks about balancing a day job with writing, her take on social media, and creates an impromptu story inspired by a line from A World of Hurt by Mindy Mejia.
- Bob Johnson, award-winning short story writer who opens up about growing up with undiagnosed ADD, writing despite the odds, and what it’s like to be reviewed by The New York Times; the episode ends with a fast-paced story sparked by Sean Eads’ Seventeen Stitches.
- G.T. Karber, creator of the Murdle puzzle series and mystery writer, shares how puzzle logic fuels his storytelling, why clarity beats cleverness, and spins a suspenseful tale based on Stuart Turton’s The Last Murder at the End of the World.
- Emily Carpenter, critically acclaimed suspense author and former actor and screenwriter, talks about navigating different storytelling mediums, building tension, and co-creating a story using a line from Jennifer Chase’s Count Their Graves.
- Lori Brand, emotionally rich novelist who dives into character complexity, her balance between plot and emotion, and ends the episode with an imaginative short story drawn from Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian.
All episodes are available on my website, my YouTube channel, and wherever you get your favorite podcasts.
Went to the Gaithersburg Book Festival in MD (wonderful event!) and after my panel I had the chance to meet my humor-writer hero, Dave Barry!
REVIEWS
On the Page
A World of Hurt, Mindy Mejia
Mindy Mejia’s A World of Hurt, the second in her Iowa Mysteries series, punches hard and fast. This is rural noir with teeth—gritty, unflinching, and soaked in emotional fallout. Mejia gives us bruised hearts, bad choices, and broken people trying like hell to outrun their pasts. The darkness here isn’t just atmospheric—it’s personal, and it cuts deep. Mejia doesn’t flinch; she builds a propulsive, emotionally raw thriller from the wreckage. I tore through this one and didn’t want it to let me go.
On a side note, I got a chance to meet Mindy a couple of months ago at Joshua Moehling’s book-launch party in Minnesota. She seemed like a totally normal person—not nearly as dark and disturbed as her writing. I just love thriller writers.
On the Screen
Sirens (Netflix, 2025)
I watched the first episode of Sirens, and that was enough.
I usually love shows about rich people behaving badly—there’s something endlessly fascinating about power, entitlement, and quiet, razor-sharp cruelty. But Sirens? Sirens is what happens when the trope gets dragged out behind the barn and bludgeoned with a bottle of champagne.
Everything about the premiere felt over the top and cartoonish. Characters didn’t talk like people. The plot was a mess, straining so hard to be edgy it slipped into self-parody. I kept waiting for the moment it would settle down and show some valid intrigue. It never did. The stakes felt hollow. The world felt thin.
For comparison? Succession nailed it. That show was brutal, funny, mean as hell—and somehow still grounded. You believed those people. You hated them, feared them, pitied them. Sirens doesn’t come close.
Photo of the Month
Meet Michelle, my new best friend. She made it her mission to hand-sell 100 copies of Tell Me What You Did at the Barnes & Noble in Exton, PA where she works. She did! And what a cool display she made for my books! I think I owe her a steak dinner.
Update from my Kids
My Christmas gift to Sawyer last year was a trip to Nashville in May 2025 to see AC/DC in concert (one of his top 5 bands). What a show—those dudes are pushing 80 but sound amazing!
Update from my Pets
Some pupper is happy the boy is home from college.
Humor of the Month sent to me by a friend
All you writers!
I’ve spent years navigating the chaos of writing novels—figuring out plot (usually way too late), building suspense, developing characters who make terrible decisions for what they think are good reasons, landing agents, and learning how to survive the weird, winding maze that is the publishing industry. Somewhere along the way, I realized I love talking about that process just as much as I love doing it.
So I built something: Unbound Writer.
It’s a space for writers at any stage—just-getting-started writers, burned-out writers, curious writers, you-name-it. I teach live workshops, offer one-on-one coaching, and have a growing catalog of online classes taught by some seriously talented bestselling authors. (Not just me—soon we’ll be announcing three new classes!)
The goal? Help writers get unstuck. Build better stories. Write with more confidence and maybe even have some fun along the way. Imagine that.
So if you’ve ever wondered how to build a book from scratch—or rebuild one that fell apart mid-draft—I’ve probably been there. And I’ve probably got something for you.
P.S. I always offer a free Zoom consult to answer any questions you have about our services. Check us out!
That’s it for now!
Just a reminder to subscribe to my newsletter for more content and access to contests and giveaways. Oh, and if you follow me on social media you’ll see a lot more pictures of my goddamn pets. Until next month…
