As fun a challenge as it was—and as much as I enjoy saying I accomplished it—I don’t think I’ll ever take on something that insane again.
Morgan Talbot – 6 October 2013
The Back Flap
Margarita and Bindi have big plans for the Fourth of July, involving borrowed bicycles, a geocaching power trail, live podcasts, and plenty of fun. But their day quickly goes awry when they stumble upon what looks like a murder in progress.
Strange rivalries and secret alliances test Margarita’s puzzle-solving skills, and Bindi suffers a rather painful setback when she comes face to face with someone she never thought she’d see again.
The overly stoic sheriff can’t be in two places at once, so the girls need to figure out whodunit and rescue the next potential victim before the explosive finale.
About the book
What is the book about?
In Nine Feet Under, the third installment in my Caching Out series, my two sleuths, Bindi and Margarita, take a day trip on mountain bikes, intending to enjoy their favorite hobby. But naturally things soon begin to go less than smooth, and soon the pair is up to their handlebars in murder, deception, and betrayal.
When did you start writing the book?
I wrote it in November of 2012, during NaNoWriMo.
How long did it take you to write it?
The purpose of a NaNoWriMo month is to write a rough draft as quickly as you can, so that you complete it and have something to edit and polish. I completed this rough draft in about three weeks.
Where did you get the idea from?
I’ve indulged in the hobby of geocaching for over nine years, and it always seemed uniquely qualified to bring murderers and sleuths together in interesting places, because geocaches are so often hidden in out-of-the-way locations precisely so the average person doesn’t know they’re there. I checked Amazon one day in 2010 to see if there were any geocaching novels to read, and I didn’t find any. So I wrote my own, and it became this amazing series with all kinds of new and interesting people and locations.
Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?
Halfway through, I realized that I was missing a character. I immediately added her where she needed to be, but I kept getting distracted by details about her, like “What does she look like?” and “What’s her motive for her actions?” So I had to reverse-engineer her during my first edits and add her in at her natural inclusion point in the story.
What came easily?
Bindi. She has a larger role in this book than Margarita does. After two previous books with them, I could hear both their voices clearly. But knowing all that I was going to put Bindi through (sorry, Bindi), it was just a relief to have her responses and motivations come so easily to mind when I imagined new scenes for her.
Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?
All of my characters are on some level inspired by something about someone in the real world. But they’re never copies or interpretations of actual individuals. Not only would that strike me as unfair to the real person, but it would also seem unfair to me and to my readers. I enjoy stitching characters together in bright characterization patterns from many sources. My readers enjoy bold, vivid personalities. Fictional people are just more… condensed… than real people. I don’t think it does anyone a service to confuse the two.
Do you have a target reader for this book?
Cozy mystery lovers, women, outdoor enthusiasts, and geocachers will all enjoy this tale of murder, love, and hijinks.
How was writing this book different from what you’d experienced writing previous books?
Nine Feet Under stood out because it takes place mostly outdoors. The other books in the series are set in October and February, so I have to offer my characters some shelter in between their jaunts. This book shoves them outside. The weather still isn’t very clement—they’re in the middle of a heat wave—but that’s an acceptable risk for summer activity in Oregon. If it’s not raining, you go out and be outside, no matter what.
What new things did you learn about writing, publishing, and/or yourself while writing and preparing this book for publication?
I wrote this rough draft along with a MG mystery rough draft (for my daughter’s birthday) during one calendar month. I felt confident enough in my writing experience and style that I could plan two books and execute them back to back with a 30-day deadline. And I did it. But I nearly went nuts during the week I wrote the MG book, because I was constantly juggling the plot bits from Nine Feet Under in the back of my head so they stayed fresh. As fun a challenge as it was—and as much as I enjoy saying I accomplished it—I don’t think I’ll ever take on something that insane again. Any author worth their tendinitis can juggle numerous plot ideas and character details in their head at one time. But it’s another animal entirely to be on the cusp of writing down two separate books, and holding all those details—two sets of characters, two themes, two plot lines, two sets of settings, etc.—in your brain at the same time. Next time I want to try this, I’ll make myself wait until cloning’s a thing.
End of Interview:
Get your copy of Nine Feet Under from Amazon US (paper or ebook), Amazon UK (paper or ebook), or Barnes & Noble.