Mystery author. Grit, twisted motives, flawed characters, noir NYC. Working Stiff paints murder in blood, smoke, and shadows. Crime fiction with a pulse. No DMs
New blog post today about how the Frank Leland mystery series is evolving.
While Book 2, THE BETRAYAL OF DANNY PRYOR, is now with beta readers, Book 3 has already started taking shape.
SNOWBLIND is set during the aftermath of New York City’s Blizzard of 1978❄️ and begins with a seemingly minor road-rage incident that leaves a young child dead.
The new post explores how the series has grown from a single noir novel into an interconnected look at crime, justice, and moral consequence in late-1970s New York City — and how each case is slowly shaping Frank Leland himself.
Here’s an early look at the cover art for Book Three: SNOWBLIND.
👉https://t.co/6rFU99p4mK
#amwriting #crimefiction #noir #writingcommunity
#NYC
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they��re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It��s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
On that old TV show The A-Team, Hannibal Smith used to say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”
That’s a little how I feel today.
My debut novel is out in the world and doing well. The sequel is with beta readers, and I’ll be hearing their feedback in a couple of weeks. And today I pushed the first five chapters of the third book out of my head and onto the page – just over 8,000 words.
Best of all, it’s tracking right with the outline and synopsis I already built. It’s like the dominoes are all lined up and starting to fall exactly where they should.
For a long time, this all existed as separate pieces. Right now, it finally feels like they’re starting to connect.
When does that start happening for you? When unfinished work begins to feel like it’s coming together?
#FrankLeland #CrimeFiction #MysteryBooks #WritingCommunity
@samlovesbook Introducing a PI like nobody has ever seen before in a story with so many twists and turns you'll have whiplash.
WORKING STIFF: A Frank Leland Mystery
👉 https://t.co/PTqxgBhShm
Got the first two chapters of SNOWBLIND written, and I think they're finally where they need to be.
Funny thing is, Chapter 3 scares me more than Chapter 1 did.
The plot is fully outlined. I know every major turn. But writing a mystery sometimes feels like crossing a tightrope with no net. Every clue, every setup, every seemingly throwaway detail has to pay off later.
You can fix prose in revision.
A bad setup can haunt an entire manuscript.
How careful are you when drafting a mystery?
#writingcommunity #noirmystery #crimefiction #writerslift
Got the first two chapters of SNOWBLIND written, and I think they're finally where they need to be.
Funny thing is, Chapter 3 scares me more than Chapter 1 did.
The plot is fully outlined. I know every major turn. But writing a mystery sometimes feels like crossing a tightrope with no net. Every clue, every setup, every seemingly throwaway detail has to pay off later.
You can fix prose in revision.
A bad setup can haunt an entire manuscript.
How careful are you when drafting a mystery?
#writingcommunity #noirmystery #crimefiction #writerslift
Got the first two chapters of SNOWBLIND written, and I think they're finally where they need to be.
Funny thing is, Chapter 3 scares me more than Chapter 1 did.
The plot is fully outlined. I know every major turn. But writing a mystery sometimes feels like crossing a tightrope with no net. Every clue, every setup, every seemingly throwaway detail has to pay off later.
You can fix prose in revision.
A bad setup can haunt an entire manuscript.
How careful are you when drafting a mystery?
#writingcommunity #noirmystery #crimefiction #writerslift
@theGrimWriter I make note of it but put it down. It's too easy to get distracted from your WIP. My advice: Keep your eyes on the prize and finish what you started.
Got the first two chapters of SNOWBLIND written, and I think they're finally where they need to be.
Funny thing is, Chapter 3 scares me more than Chapter 1 did.
The plot is fully outlined. I know every major turn. But writing a mystery sometimes feels like crossing a tightrope with no net. Every clue, every setup, every seemingly throwaway detail has to pay off later.
You can fix prose in revision.
A bad setup can haunt an entire manuscript.
How careful are you when drafting a mystery?
#writingcommunity #noirmystery #crimefiction #writerslift
Got the first two chapters of SNOWBLIND written, and I think they're finally where they need to be.
Funny thing is, Chapter 3 scares me more than Chapter 1 did.
The plot is fully outlined. I know every major turn. But writing a mystery sometimes feels like crossing a tightrope with no net. Every clue, every setup, every seemingly throwaway detail has to pay off later.
You can fix prose in revision.
A bad setup can haunt an entire manuscript.
How careful are you when drafting a mystery?
#writingcommunity #noirmystery #crimefiction #writerslift