Hiding in plain sight.
I would imagine, like many of you, my intention of becoming a writer, author, or even working in a profession where writing took a front seat could not have been further from my imagination. Although, life sometimes has other ideas that don’t require personal input. Thus, my journey to becoming a writer began, and my clues were hiding in plain sight.
It started in college. Having trouble understanding the intricate workings of the English language, a creative writing professor took pity on me and folded me under her wing, because she loved my stories. She didn’t mind my misspellings, poor placements of commas, or whether I capitalized in the right places. Teaching me the art of creative writing helped me through all my necessary credits to finish my degree. That should have been my first clue.
After that, over the next three decades, I did anything but write stories. Until my five-year-old grandson asked me to tell him a new story. So, I made one up on the spot. It turned into his favorite. Later, he asked me to write it down, so his mom could read it to him because, “she never gets it right.” That should have been my second clue.
Thirty-three children’s books later, I wrote a novel. It’s a woman’s literary fiction about love and secrets. After years of writing stories of roughly one thousand words, from start to finish, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven with the new-found freedom of expanded word count.
What I realized later, squeezing in surprises for children’s stories, developed a knack for hiding clues in plain sight. However, not satisfied with that manuscript, I stored it for five years, unpublished. Since then, I’ve changed genres and moved on.
Last year, I pulled that story from the mothballs, and did a rewrite. My editor has since gone through it, and dubbed me a master at hiding clues. Since I’ve changed my genre to paranormal cozy mysteries, this remark was just what I needed to hear, and timely, too.
Not too long ago, I released my first book in a trilogy, called Pirate Dreams, under my pen name, DL Morton. I’ve also received several wonderful reviews and received a golden award. Not bad for someone who couldn’t, wouldn’t, and thought she shouldn’t be a writer, much less a published author.
I find my stories seem to write themselves. I only provide the physical task of typing. That was the clue that tapped me on my shoulder. Telling me to open my eyes and see the clues hidden in plain sight.
No matter what your genre, hiding clues is something most everyone will find they need to do, and when writing mysteries, they are essential. You can slip a discrete clue into the most obvious of places, and before you know it, a good mystery emerges.
The moral to this story is two-fold. One, be sure to spot your own clues. They may give you a hint as to where you should be looking.
Two, be sure to look for them in all your walks of life. You might find an opportunity or interest pop up that you never knew or realized would tickle your fancy.
Happy hiding everyone.
Pirate Dreams
A Pirate Days Festival sets off a set of circumstances that could change Ginny McCarthy’s life forever. As a reclusive insomniac, stitching together pieces of a fragmented dream about an ancient pirate legend proves more difficult than she imagined. Determined to find the truth, Ginny’s forced to seek help through unlikely and untrusted sources. Calling on her best friend for support, they navigate through unusual and dangerous situations. Together, they face suspicions and risks as they try to understand the meaning of her dreams.
https://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Dreams-Ginny-McCs-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B0C2JW6TN7
An established author of children’s books, DL Morton is branching out to adult fiction. She’s now working on a mystery series starring Ginny McC and a stand alone women’s literary fiction novel. She lives in an author’s paradise in the mountains of Northern California.
Website:
http://dlmortonbooks.com
Ladies of Mystery 
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