From the Spark of Inspiration to Tough Decisions: Inside My Next Historical Mystery Series

Every story begins long before the first chapter is written.

For me, the earliest stage of a new novel isn’t about plot twists or polished prose — it’s about questions. Quiet ones. Persistent ones. The kind that surface while walking, doing mundane chores, or standing in front of a research bookshelf that suddenly feels ready to be cleared for something new.

With my next project, those questions arrived early — and they were bigger than usual. Because this time, I’m not just writing a single book. I’m building a series.

And before a word of chapter one can exist, there are decisions that shape everything that follows.

Choosing the Kind of Mystery This Story Wants to Be

Before I could even think about how many books this story might become, I had to answer a quieter — but equally important — question:

What kind of mystery am I actually writing?

Historical mysteries live on a wide and varied spectrum. They aren’t a single genre, but a constellation of possibilities — each with its own expectations, emotional weight, and rhythm.

Some lean toward classic whodunits, built on clues, red herrings, and the slow satisfaction of unraveling truth. Others drift into gothic territory, where atmosphere, secrets, and shadowed histories take center stage. There are police procedurals rooted in early forensic science, cozy mysteries shaped by community and character, hardboiled stories that expose the darker edges of the past, and spy-driven narratives where personal lives collide with political tension.

Each path asks something different of a story — and of the reader.

Choosing among them isn’t simply a matter of preference. It shapes pacing, tone, and how danger appears on the page. It determines whether the mystery comforts, unsettles, challenges, or quietly lingers after the final chapter.

This decision didn’t arrive fully formed for me. I circled it. Let research complicate it. Let history push back. Let the character’s emerging past weigh in.

While I do know where I’m leaning now, I’m allowing that choice to reveal itself gradually — both to me, and to you. Watching a story decide what it wants to be is part of the creative process. And, fittingly, part of the mystery itself.

The Second Big Question: Open or Closed?

One of the first choices a writer must make when planning a series is whether it will be open or closed.

An open series can continue indefinitely. Each book stands mostly on its own, and the story can expand as long as the characters allow.

A closed series, however, is different. It has a defined beginning, a middle, and an intentional ending.

From the outset, I knew this story needed to be a closed series — six books in total, following one central protagonist across the entire arc. That single decision immediately changed how I approached everything else.

Because a closed series doesn’t rely solely on character or setting to hold it together. It requires something more deliberate: a series story arc.

The Invisible Thread That Connects Every Book

When readers think about series, they often imagine recurring characters or familiar locations as the glue that binds the books together. And while those elements matter, a closed series depends on something deeper.

There is a larger story unfolding — one that begins quietly in book one and doesn’t fully resolve until the final pages of the last book.

That doesn’t mean every detail is planned in advance. Far from it. But it does mean understanding the emotional and narrative journey that spans the entire series. Where the protagonist begins. Where she needs to end. And why that journey matters.

Sketching that arc — loosely, imperfectly — has been one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of this process so far.

Names, Identity, and the Weight of Permanence

Alongside these structural decisions, I’ve been wrestling with something much smaller — and strangely just as important.

Names.

I’m still on the fence about my protagonist’s name, though a long brainstorming session with an author friend brought me closer to a final decision than I’ve been in months. In a six-book series, a name carries weight. Once chosen, it becomes inseparable from the character’s identity.

It’s a reminder that even the smallest details deserve patience at this stage.

The First Stumbling Block

Not every realization has come easily.

I knew my protagonist would be a sleuth. She was curious, observant, willing to ask questions others might avoid. But instinct told me that curiosity alone wasn’t enough.

I needed her past to support her present — to make her investigative instincts believable rather than convenient.

That uncertainty sent me back into research, back into reflection, and eventually, into a long walk with my husband. Somewhere between frustration and quiet conversation, the missing piece fell into place.

I won’t share what that past looks like just yet — or what kind of sleuth she becomes — but I can say this: once I found that thread, the character finally stood on solid ground.

Choosing the Right Moment in Time

Time period has always been one of the most intuitive parts of my writing, and this project was no exception. I knew I didn’t want to write a Second World War novel. But the years immediately after the war kept calling to me.

They felt unsettled. Transitional. Full of quiet tension.

What I didn’t initially understand was just how pivotal that moment in history truly was — especially here in Canada.

That realization came during an ordinary task, of all things. While washing window blinds and talking history with my son, he casually named what I had been circling around without fully articulating.

The Cold War.

That single word opened a door I hadn’t seen before. And when I followed it — when I began to explore how the Cold War began, and where — I stumbled upon a story that reshaped the entire series.

One that starts much closer to home than most people realize.

Where I Am Now

This is the stage I’m in as I write this — the fascinating, uncertain middle where ideas are still forming and research is actively shaping story.

It’s messy. It’s unfinished. And it’s full of possibility.

Over the coming months, I’ll be sharing more of this process — the discoveries, the roadblocks, the moments when history and imagination collide in unexpected ways.

If you enjoy seeing how stories take shape before they reach the page, I invite you to follow along. This series is just beginning — and so is the journey behind it.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a standalone novel or a series?
This project is a closed historical mystery series consisting of six books.

What does “closed series” mean?
A closed series has a defined beginning, middle, and end, with a larger story arc that resolves by the final book.

Will the series be historically grounded?
Yes. Real historical events and research play an important role in shaping the story.

Is the setting connected to Canada?
Yes — Canada’s historical context, particularly in the postwar period, is central to the series.

Will you continue sharing behind-the-scenes updates?
Absolutely. This blog series and the accompanying Author Notes YouTube videos will continue documenting the creative process as the story develops.