I’ve always been jealous of writers who could think about a story then sit down and write it. You know, no plotting out red herrings and unrelated secrets, no writing up long and complicated character statements, just thinking about a story then sitting down and writing it.

Some time last year I read a fabulous profile of Lee Child. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it. You can access it here. Child is very much a “pantser” — he doesn’t plot out his books in advance. He says in the article that when he ends one chapter, he doesn’t know what’s going to happen next.

Our very own Janis Patterson, fellow Lady of Mystery, wrote something similar on her blog last week. How exciting! To play out a story in your head as you write it. I can see why these writers’ books are exciting, thrilling, fun to read.

Me? I’ve got note cards, Word docs, downloaded files. I use Scrivener and all the complex tools it offers to organize and reorganize your plot. (As an aside, I recommend Scrivener for all writers who, like me, benefit from the help of plotting tools).

As many of you know, I’m working on book 5 in the Adam Kaminski mystery series. This time, after doing some preliminary plotting, I thought, why not? Let’s give it a try. What’s the worst that could happen?

Yeah. That.

Needless to say, I had to go back. Re-plot. Re-organize. Redevelop and rename characters.

The sitting down and writing experience, as glorious as it sounds, is just not for me. At least now I know. When you’re a plotter, embrace it!

Jane Gorman’s books are available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other retailers.

Learn more at her website, JaneGorman.com.

I love going to beautiful places. After all, who doesn’t? Leaving your life and worries behind to visit somewhere romantic or cozy or exciting. And while I love traveling, that’s not the only way to get carried off.

I recently watched the Netflix show, The Crown (yes, I binge-watched it). I loved it! A little history, a little romance, and a lot of monarchy and aristocracy. Once I was hooked, the available episodes were not enough to quench my taste for the royal. So I went right to my books.

Nothing transports me quite like reading. Watching a TV show or movie is fun, no doubt, but reading really gets into my head. Instead of sitting passively while someone else’s imagination creates landscapes and characters, I put my own imagination to work when I read, imagining what the characters look like, what their stately homes look like, how their fancy gowns feel or elegant dinners taste.

I worked my way through three mysteries, each set in England or dealing with the aristocracy. I’m not sated yet, so we’ll see what the next week brings.

The greatest joy in reading, for me, is being transported. And I usually like to go somewhere beautiful. Which may make it seem strange that I enjoy mysteries. I do choose my stories carefully. Not for me the gruesome details of a serial killer or the torturous death of a child. I find that, in their own ways, mysteries can be beautiful, and not only when they’re located in a beautiful setting (though that helps!).

I agree with the sentiment, expressed by many before me, that crime fiction is good to read because the problem gets solved in the end. The killer is caught. Justice is served. Like in a classic western, the men in the white hats win.

Things get solved. The world is right with itself. And we, the readers, get some time away from home.

I’m curious, what are your favorite “transporting” books?

The Adam Kaminski Mystery Series by Jane Gorman is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iBooks and other retailers.

Follow Jane Gorman on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

I have an old, rough, gray woolen blanket that means the world to me. The blanket has been in my family for three generations and can be traced back to a very sad time in my grandfather’s life, during WWII. The wool is harsh. Merciless. As I hold it against my face and feel the roughness, I also feel the history and the love of family.

Most of us have the privilege of feeling. We have the sense of touch as one of our five senses (or six, perhaps, depending on your point of view). I’ve been watching a TV show recently in which a main character is not able to feel. He has a condition called congenital analgesia. Mostly the show focuses on the fact that he can’t feel pain, a clearly dangerous condition. But it also touches on the fact that he can’t feel good things either — the gentle caress of a warm raindrop, the rough edges of a woolen blanket, the warmth and softness of a kiss.

In my writing I focus, like all other writers, on developing three dimensional characters, on creating a setting that is real and vivid to my readers, and crafting a plot that keeps the reader trying to figure out whodunnit. In the process, I make sure that I catch all the senses: the dryness of an over-cooked steak in a cheap diner, the vibrations of a low bass that you feel as much as hear, the scent of a peat fire burning in the grate.

But I realized that the writers I enjoy the most focus even more on feeling; they allow readers to experience a touch from the character’s point of view. The blanket isn’t just rough, it rubs that sore spot that hasn’t quite healed. The rain isn’t just cold, it seeps deep into the bones and creates an ache in the ankle the character twisted when he was a teenager.

Just as a scent is a sure way to bring back a memory, so, too, is a touch. They’re so closely connected. By feeling something the way the character feels it, the reader is provided a glimpse deep into a character’s mind.

My challenge as a writer is to make sure that my readers experience a feeling — a physical feeling, not an emotional feeling — the way my characters do.

Learn more about books by Jane Gorman at janegorman.com or visiting her Amazon page.