EP 376 - Dianne Scott on Writing Historical Mysteries

Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing

Mark interviews bestselling and award-winning author Dianne Scott about her Christine Lane Mystery series which is set on Toronto Island in the 1960s.

Prior to the main content, Mark shares comments from a recent newsletter he sent out asking writers to share their thoughts on the collective noun for a group of editors, a personal update (including the launch of his new Kickstarter campaign), and a word from this episode's sponsor.

This episode is sponsored by Cruising Writers.

During their conversation Mark and Dianne talk about:

• How, after writing a creative writing piece in University that was supposed to be a research essay, Dianne's teacher suggested that she switch her major over to English
• The teaching that Dianne has done for the past 30+ years
• Other writing that Dianne has worked on and published
• Dianne learning from her father, how he, as a police officer, used to patrol Toronto Island, and the spark of that into some ideas for her novels
• Deciding to make her main character a female officer in that place in the 1960s
• Preparing the final and 5th book in the series, FINAL LOOK, for publication in June 2025
• Pitching and submitting her work to various Canadian markets
• The innate conflict that was part of the first novel in Dianne's Christine Lane series
• The "old VS new" conflict that happens in the stories in this setting
• Dianne's first two years in self/indie publishing
• Some of the volunteer work that Dianne does within her realms of expertise
• The importance of literacy
• The different types of creativity that can fulfill that internal desire
• Advice Dianne would give to other writers
• And more...

After the interview Mark reflects on the research Dianne had to do as well as the concept of being creative in different ways.

Links of Interest:

• Dianne Scott's Website
• Mark's Kickstarter for ONE HAND SCREAMING: 20 Haunting Years
• EP 374 - WMG Publishing Editor Round Table
• Mark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)
• Cruising Writers
• Buy Mark a Coffee
• Patreon for Stark Reflections
  • How to Access Patreon RSS Feeds
• An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and Libraries
• The Relaxed Author
  • Buy eBook Direct
  • Buy Audiobook Direct
• Publishing Pitfalls for Authors
• An Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & Bookstores
• Wide for the Win
• Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books
  • This Time Around (Short Story)
  • A Canadian Werewolf in New York
  • Stowe Away (Novella)
  • Fear and Longing in Los Angeles
  • Fright Nights, Big City
  • Lover's Moon
  • Hex and the City
  • Only Monsters in the Building
• The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and Automobiles
• Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die Hard

Dianne Scott lives a short ferry ride from Toronto Island, which is the setting of her mystery novels. She is the award-winning author of the Christine Lane Mystery series. The first book, Final Look, was a #1 Amazon bestseller, Kobo Emerging Writers Award nominee and winner of the Crime Writers of Canada Arthur Ellis Award. The second book, Missing, was a Finalist for the CWC Excellence in Writing Award. Lost and Found and Sabotage are the third and fourth books in the series.

When Dianne is not writing, she is walking Toronto’s neighborhoods, coffee klatching with friends and cuddling her Bichon Poodle. She also teaches literacy skills and is working on her Erne in pickleball. For more information about Dianne, visit her website at diannescottauthor.com

The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0