Words on the Page

I know a lot of authors who sit down to write with no outline at all, just a strong sense of their characters and an open mind. But maybe it’s because I was a journalist first, I found I had to carefully outline the plot of “The Dollhouse,” just as I would an article for a magazine (a reaaaally long article!) Without a clear a through-line, I’m liable to stare off into space thinking about what I want to eat for dinner rather than get the words down on the page.

So first I brainstormed scene ideas, and because I was working with two timelines – 1952 and 2016 – I then carefully wove the stories together. Since there’s a mystery element to the novel, the trickiest part was making sure I dropped the clues and red herrings in the right place, neither too early or too late, and that they propelled both story lines forward. Exhausting, to say the least! But also exhilarating once I realized I could do it.

To read more about the process and the inspiration behind the book, check out my blog on the Penguin Random House page here: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/blo...