Today, on Chicks: Fabulous guest Kim Harrington, whose debut adult cozy A KILLER FOR CHRISTMAS is sure to sleigh this holiday season. Take it away, Kim!
Puzzling a Mystery
by Kim Harrington
In March 2020, I bought a jigsaw puzzle. I hadn’t done one since I was a kid, but like so many people, I was looking for something to pass the time while we were all stuck at home. I figured it would keep me occupied for a weekend or two. Little did I know, it would become my new hobby.
Now, six years and an uncomfortably high number of completed puzzles later, I can confidently say why I love them so much. When I’m working on a puzzle, my brain is completely focused on the task in front of me. When I really get into it, the rest of the world seems to fade away. It’s almost a meditative state.
As it turns out, it’s also surprisingly similar to how I write a mystery novel.
Every puzzle begins the same way. I dump all the pieces from the box onto my table. That chaotic pile is how the beginning of a new novel feels. My head is full of characters, plot twists, red herrings, and scenes that don’t connect yet. Before I can begin, I have to sort through everything and organize the chaos. It’s not so different from searching through the pile for corner and edge pieces.
Next, I build the border. I start with the four corners and then work on each edge. In writing, that’s my outline. Even if I don’t have every chapter planned, I like to know the framework before I dive in. I need the inciting incident, a few major turning points, and a rough idea of the ending.
Now comes the hardest part of both puzzles and writing: the middle. Maybe you go from one corner all the way in a linear path to the end. Or maybe you hop around, depending on what pieces catch your eye. The important thing is to keep going, keep making that progress. Sometimes you’ll find that you’ve forced a piece where it doesn’t belong. Or you’ve written yourself into a corner. But that’s okay. That’s what revision is for!
One thing you should know about my puzzle obsession: my favorites are holiday puzzles. Maybe that’s why I was drawn to writing a Christmas mystery. I love cozy holiday scenes. Give me a snow-covered village, a fireplace with stockings…a murder weapon in the corner. Okay, maybe there isn’t a jigsaw puzzle quite like my book. But maybe there should be. Calling all puzzle manufacturers!
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Christmasville, Maine is the only place where Kelsey Hendricks has ever felt happy. When she loses both her job and her boyfriend, the move is a no-brainer, especially when she sees a listing for a position as Christmasville’s social media manager. Surrounded by twinkling lights and candy canes and with the perfect job, this tinsel town is working its magic on Kelsey. With two heartthrobs vying for her attention, her life is now just like a Christmas movie.
Except for the murders.
The first one is dismissed as an accident. But after the second, and definitely the third, it becomes abundantly clear that Santa is leaving coal in someone’s stocking this year.
Determined to bring back the holly jolly spirit to the town before her boss puts her on notice and tourists begin cancelling their reservations, Kelsey must sleuth her way out of a chilling murder mystery and back to a holiday romcom.
This charming and clever mystery-romance where a cozy winter wonderland warms the heart while suspense chills the bones is the perfect read for the holiday season.
Buy Link for PUZZLING A MYSTERY: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/808849/a-killer-for-christmas-by-kim-harrington/paperback/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
KIM HARRINGTON is the author of A KILLER FOR CHRISTMAS, her adult debut, as well as CLARITY, PERCEPTION, THE DEAD AND BURIED, and FORGET ME for teens and REVENGE OF THE RED CLUB, the Sleuth or Dare series, and Gamer Squad series for younger readers. She lives in Massachusetts with her family where she’s hard at work on her next mystery novel. Visit her website at https://kimharringtonbooks.com/
Also find Kim at:
Readers, do you enjoy puzzling? Do you have any other hobbies that feel surprisingly similar to writing? Let us know in the comments!
What a great analogy, Kim and congrats on your mystery debut.
Needlepoint is my hobby of choice. In fact, my next series is the Local Needlepoint Shop Mysteries. I’m writing the first draft now and one character explains to another how it’s much like solving a mystery. To which the other character responds, “That’s a reach.” Oh, well!
Hi Ellen! I love seeing your completed needlepoints on Instagram! I can’t wait for your new series. It sounds fantastic!
Fun analogy even if I am NOT a jigsaw puzzle fan! All those pieces sitting on my table, just staring at me, waiting for me to untangle the mess and create something cogent, I think not! I do much better when those pieces are words jumbled on the page. Not sure if it’s the physical mess or just what, but I just get crazed looking at those pieces all over the place.
Now your book sounds delightful and I have already added it to my want list and my TBR pile.
Yes, my husband looks at the pile of pieces and says, “This is fun for you?” Hahaha! Thank you for adding the book to your TBR pile!
Kim, thanks so much for being our guest today, and huge congrats! I loved puzzles as a kid (when they were very large pieces, lol), and we have several boxes of them in our games cupboard. But I think my spatial abilities are…not the best, and I get impatient (and discouraged). I’ll twirl a piece every wrong way first before (maybe) making a correct fit. I do like grown-up paint-by-numbers, though. They have the same pretty scenes.
I think paint-by-numbers probably gives that same meditative vibe when you’re locked in!
Congrats on your adult debut, Kim! Love the premise! With puzzles, I only like doing the borders–and the remaining lonely piece that completes the hole in the puzzle.
I can definitely feel it when I’ve forced a piece in my writing! As for hobbies similar to writing, I do like watercolors; something about creating on a blank canvas speaks to me.
Thank you so much, Jennifer! Yes, creating on a blank canvas sounds lovely. The infinite possibililties!
I like oil because I can “control” the paint more. But watercolor is so pretty…
I love doing puzzles of all kinds. I enjoy the challenge.
They can be really fun! My favorite are 500-piece because I can do that in one weekend.
Congrats on your new novel. And the perfect release date with Christmas rapidly approaching.
I’m a puzzler too and loved your analogy of puzzling and writing a novel. I’m going to add that clicking in that last piece of the puzzle reminds me of typing “THE END” on my manuscript. It’s finally done!!!
Thanks, Debra! Yes, clicking in that final piece is so satisfying–as is writing “THE END”! 🙂
I’m not a puzzle person. I just don’t have the patience for it. I want to feel like I’m getting somewhere, not spending 15 minutes looking for two pieces – any two pieces – that go together.
But I do love Christmas, and your new book sounds excellent.
Thank you so much! I hope you read and enjoy it!
I guess that is why I work so many puzzles and read so many books. 2o puzzles so far and 41 books this year. All the books are mystery cozies. The puzzles are all kinds but 1000 pieces each. I work them similarly to the way you do. All the straight edge and corners out that I can and go from there. Then this and that depending on what I see.
This is making me want to do another puzzle right now… 😉
What a fantastic analogy! Also, I’ve read A Killer For Christmas and it’s a fantastic take on the holiday TV movies / cozy mysteries.
Thank you so much, Olivia! Counting the days until THE KEY TO A KILLER!
Welcome, Kim! I can easily see how writing a mystery is like doing a puzzle. I went through a puzzle stage. Haven’t done one in a while though.
It’s funny that I never did one until 2020 and now I’m addicted!
Great metaphor! Solving a puzzle, solving a mystery — they both require lots of patience and you’re not finished until the last piece falls into place! Thanks for stopping by today — your book sounds great!
Thank you so much, Marla!
Kim!!! Thank you so much for visiting with us. I love your post. It’s fun, informative, and inspirational. Just what I needed while I work through my story revisions. Ha! And I love your book description. So fun! I’m looking forward to reading it.
Thank you so much!
Sorry for the late comment, but I’ve been traveling all day–home to CA from Paris. But yes, my family grew up with jigsaw puzzles, and we still often have one out now at our house. And I love the analogy of them being like plotting a book–so true!
Thanks so much for visiting the Chicks today, Kim! Cheers!
Thank you, Leslie!
Thank you so much for visiting us, Kim!
I adore your book cover and can’t wait to read this Christmas cozy!
The zen of jigsaw puzzles is sooooo relaxing for me, it’s impossible to dwell on much while putting one together. I find playing golf to be a similar type of activity. Hard to have much else on my mind when I’m lining up my next shot!