Lynn Slaughter is addicted to the arts, chocolate, and her husband’s cooking. Following a long career as a professional dancer and dance educator, she earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She’s the author of four young adult novels including Leisha's Song, an Agatha Nominee for Best Mystery Novel in the MG/YA category, and It Should Have Been You, a Silver Falchion finalist, and also the short story, "Missed Cue," which appears in Malice Domestic’s 2020 anthology, Murder Most Theatrical
Her latest novel, published today, is an adult crime fiction title, Missed Cue (an expansion of the short story). When ballerina Lydia Miseau dies onstage in the final dress rehearsal of Romeo and Juliet, homicide detective Caitlin O’Connor is faced with the most complicated case of her career. She strongly suspects that someone murdered the ballerina, and her investigation uncovers several people close to the star who had reasons to kill her. But the autopsy reveals no apparent cause of death. If Lydia Miseau was murdered, who did it, and how? Meantime, there’s Caitlin’s hot mess of a personal life. She has a bad habit of getting involved with married men. She knows it’s wrong, so why does she keep entangling herself in unhealthy relationships? She’s finally decided to go into therapy to find out.
Lynn Slaughter stops by In Reference to Murder to take some Author R&R about writing and researching the book:
Research Matters for Mystery Writers
Writers are often advised to “write what you know.” This is good advice. For example, while the ballet company in my novel, MISSED CUE, is fictional, there’s no question that my experience as a former professional dancer lends the characters and the setting authenticity. I’m familiar with artistic directors obsessed with their work, ambitious young dancers eager for their opportunity to perform major roles, and aging dancers facing the autumn of their professional careers.
On the other hand, I would never want to limit myself to only what I know. I also love writing about things I’m eager to learn more about. For example, in my novel, DEADLY SETUP, the protagonist ends up going on trial for the murder of her mother’s fiancé. Courtroom dramas have always intrigued me, and I was eager to try my hand at writing one. But I’m not an attorney. So, I did a lot of research on criminal and courtroom procedure, read countless opening and closing trial statements, as well as articles for criminal prosecutors and defense attorneys on strategies for effective witness questioning. I also solicited help from two attorneys who reviewed my work and helped ensure its accuracy.
For MISSED CUE, I had a different problem that required expertise I didn’t possess. I had this idea that a revered and seemingly healthy ballerina would die onstage, but the autopsy would reveal no apparent cause of death. The homicide detective in charge of the investigation of the suspicious death had to figure out not only who killed the ballerina, but how they’d done it.
So, I turned to help from my author friends from the Guppies chapter of Sisters in Crime. They advised me to contact Luci Hansson Zahray, aka “the Poison Lady.” Luci generously lent her expertise on just how you could cause a healthy heart to simply stop beating that wouldn’t be detected in an autopsy.
Sense of place is also essential for mystery writers. MISSED CUE is set in New Haven, Connecticut. Having grown up in New England, I’ve visited New Haven many times.
But the internet was also hugely helpful to me. For example, my protagonist, Lieutenant Caitlin O’Connor, is a jazz fan. In researching New Haven, I discovered it was the home of Firehouse 24, the only club in the state devoted exclusively to live jazz, which turned into the setting for one of Caitlin’s dates with a new man in her life, as did several other area restaurants.
One of the great things about restaurant websites is that most not only include menus but photos of their dining spaces. This enabled me to immerse readers in scenes with specifics about what the characters were ordering and and what the ambiance of each setting was like.
And, since Caitlin’s new romantic interest is a science geek, it was natural to research what places he’d want to visit with her, such as the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History and Mystic Seaport Aquarium.
Realtors’ websites and descriptions of neighborhoods online were also extremely useful in locating where my characters might live and what their homes would be like, such as the medical examiner’s sprawling colonial in one of Hamden’s prosperous subdivisions and the rehabbed Victorian in downtown New Haven that housed the office of Caitlin’s therapist.
The interest in doing both online and in-person research is a handy quality to have as a mystery writer. I feel fortunate to love research. It’s fun, and you never know what you’ll discover!
You can learn more about Lynn Slaughter and her writing via her website and follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads. Missed Cue is now available via Melange Books and all major booksellers.
