Guest Blogging with the BookBitch – Inherit the Dead

book_bitch_blogThe wonderful Stacy Alessi, AKA the “Book Bitch” (and anyone who knows Stacy knows she is anything but a bitch), asked me to write a guest blog about the creation/editing of the serial novel “Inherit the Dead,” which I did for Touchstone/Simon & Schuster. It turned out to be great project for a good cause, and a dream team to work with. Here’s an excerpt:

 

“Take 20 great writers. Ask them to each write a chapter in a continuing story. Give them both direction and a free hand. Donate the proceeds to charity. Mix it all together. Stir. Simmer. Bring to a boil.
Voila! One great novel written in 20 voices.

To continue the recipe metaphor you could say that putting a serial novel together is a bit like making an omelet or better yet, a soufflé. You get all the ingredients together, whip up the eggs, put it in the oven and hope it doesn’t deflate. The good news is that this novel rose high above my expectations.

I started by asking a bunch of writers if they were willing to participate, and almost everyone said yes. I had already decided to donate the royalties to Safe Horizon, a charitable organization that aids victims of violent crime. It just made sense that crime writers – many of whom had profited by writing about violent crime – should be willing to give something back to an organization that helped real life victims, and they all agreed. Read More…