Behind The Scenes: A Surprisingly Quiet Summer (And Why I Loved It)

Readers often ask me what inspires my stories. What fills my creative well? 

Being a full-time writer doesn’t mean I spent every waking work hour behind my laptop. What happens on the page is born through everyday experiences in real places, with real people, and often far from my office space.

That may include crime & writing conferences, research trips, but also hikes through red rocks, kayaking under stars, and trips to museums… 

So, what’s been inspiring me lately?

Here’s the inside scoop on what I’ve been doing behind the scenes this summer to refill my creative well… and a preview of what’s coming next.

Writing can be all immersive and isolating. I spend countless hours alone, steeped in fictional crimes and research, that I sometimes forget I’m a human with a body and a life.

After a whirlwind spring, summer 2025 brought something I welcomed with open arms: a pause.

No major book tours. No back-to-back conferences. No red-eye flights or last-minute panel prep. Instead? A few blissful weeks to breathe, write, and actually enjoy being home in Phoenix.

I’ve been a total workhorse since January, deep in edits on my upcoming novel, drafting my next novel, writing four TV episode treatments, gearing up for the PR on my new release, What Darkness Does, plotting a brand-new assassin novel that’s already making me lose sleep (in the best way), and creating a brand-new course for mystery writers. With so many creative threads pulling at once, I was more than ready for a season of quiet.

But let’s be clear, “quiet” doesn’t mean slow or boring. I have harnessed summer in Phoenix for some playtime between the office hours. First, I got out of the house (a lot). I wandered. I listened. I wrote in new places. I melted into my work, almost as much as I melted during those 110 degree days.

This summer, I committed to being a person again.

I left the house. I said yes to invitations. I tried new things. I made the Midwest and Phoenix my playground.

Here’s a peek at my travel log from the past few months:

• Fourth of July at the Michigan Lake House – My non-negotiable summer reset. Family, fireworks, pontoon rides, and parades.
  
  
• A weekend in Chicago – Caught up with old friends, wandered the Art Institute (my forever happy place), and dined at The Purple Pig, 10/10, would recommend the pork shank with collard greens (mouth watering!).
  
  
• Sedona – Hiked the red rocks and soaked in the kind of silence that stirs story ideas. The landscape is like something from another planet. And thank God that planet is Earth!
  
  
• Central Coast of California – A breezy escape from the Phoenix heat! Beach time, long walks on marine-layered mornings, and laptop writing sessions from the patio overlooking the ocean.
  
  
• Home, sweet Phoenix – Most of the summer, I made it a mission to deepen my love with my own city.
  
  

From fashion exhibits at the Art Museum, to ice skating lessons (yes, really), this summer I decided to explore my own backyard with fresh eyes. Phoenix may be known for its heat, but beneath the triple-digit temps is a city brimming with culture, creativity, and unexpected eateries. 

I dove into some off the beaten path adventures this summer: 

• Swaying to live jazz at The Nash, one of the best-kept secrets in town
• Gliding across Saguaro Lake in a glowing kayak under the stars (magic)
• Twirling pasta at Saint Pasta, homemade, creamy, and entirely worth it
• Closing out a spectacular season with the Arizona Theatre Company
• Walking the quiet, powerful halls of The Heard Museum, honoring Native history
• Kicking my way through swim aerobics (who knew water workouts could be this intense?)
• Volunteering at French Kids Camp and being reminded how I need to play more!
• Trekking mountain trails at night, the desert air cooling as the stars came out, so did the scorpions! Use a blacklight to spot them. 
• Riding the Phoenix Metro just to dinner downtown. They just added a new B line.
• Fulfilling a life-long dream to take ice skating lessons… if I’m successful, I may join the Synchronized Skating Team… Ice Capades here I come! 
• Losing track of time at a fashion exhibit at the Phoenix Art Museum, costumes, color, and character galore

Somewhere in between ice skating and jazz, pasta and plays, I felt something shift. Not just a creative reset, but a personal one. The creative jolt I found in those everyday moments started to working its way into my characters, dialogue, and the texture of the stories I’m planning for next.

Out of all the places I visited, one continues to hold a special place in my creative process: The Art Institute of Chicago.

I’ve been coming here since my college days. There are certain paintings I return to like old friends. In college, I would sit in front of them with a notebook and just… write. No goal. No outline. Just a creative free-fall. 

Inspiration doesn’t always look like a crime scene. Sometimes it looks like a Monet.

Stories can start anywhere. I employ the same process even now, two decades later. It doesn’t always take place in a museum. Maybe a botanical garden. Maybe lakeside. Maybe a local coffee shop. 

The point is to first, be still and listen. Stillness creates space. Then, make haste to act. Motion sparks story and kills resistance.