Today I’m pleased to host my friend and former critique partner on Help From My Friends Friday. She’s also a 2020 Agatha Nominee because “Hint” she tells an amazing story. Please welcome Annette Dashofy.
Author Annette Dashofy
By Annette Dashofy
I’m about to release the 9th of my Zoe Chambers Mysteries. Yes. Mysteries. As in murder mysteries. Back when I was writing the first one, Zoe’s relationship with Chief of Police Pete Adams was strictly friendly. Yes, there was an attraction, but both characters carried so much baggage, they were determined to stay “just friends.”
I was determined to keep them that way too. I figured I was writing murder mysteries. The attraction would be a good source of tension. But as “just friends.” The struggle to solve the murder was at the heart of the story.
Silly me.
While I carefully plotted out the clues and twists in the mysteries I wrote, I never gave advanced thought to the relationship. Their first kiss came as a complete surprise to me. When asked at book events about where their relationship was headed, I responded, “I have no idea.” And I didn’t.
Shortly after the second book in the series came out, I learned that my readers were having none of it. And I learned from an unlikely source. A rather rough-looking gentleman (yes—gentleman) approached me at an author event, got right in my face, and demanded, “When are Pete and Zoe getting together?”
I was stunned. First, this fellow didn’t match my vision of my target audience. Second, his blatant impatience at the slow progress of Pete and Zoe’s relationship…after only two books…told me I couldn’t maintain their “just friends” status for as long as I’d hoped.
Nor could I continue to reply with “I don’t know.” Even though I still didn’t.
After a couple more books, I had another epiphany about the romance in my murder mystery. My readers would tolerate bumps in the relationship within the story, but only as long as Pete and Zoe were in a good place on the final page.
At that point, plotting the progression of their relationship, complete with ups and downs, took on as much importance as plotting the murders. Readers still demanded more, but I’d smile and tell them, “Keep reading,” and I meant it. I knew where the romance was headed. And I also knew I didn’t want it to happen too quickly or too easily.
One issue is that a reader may wait close to a year for the next book, however, each book occurs only a couple of months apart in Zoe-and-Pete time. They haven’t been dancing around each other for six years. For them, it’s only been about two.
My favorite part about their romantic journey has been their growth as characters. Zoe used to be less mature, less likely to trust in Pete’s feelings for her. She kept things from him for various reasons. And he sometimes kept things from her. She was protective of her friends. He was all business. In these last two books (Fair Game and Under the Radar), Zoe has grown up. She’s faced nearly losing Pete. She’s learned that secrets only drive wedges between them.
She’s learned to trust in what they have together.
Does that mean all is smooth sailing between them? Heck, no. But Zoe now shares everything (almost) with Pete. And he has learned she will not stay out of a case simply because he tells her to. Just give it up, Dude.
At the end of Fair Game, the 8th in the series (and currently nominated for the Agatha for Best Contemporary Novel), Pete finally popped the question, and Zoe said yes. Is that a spoiler? Probably. But it’s also the worst kept secret ever, so there you have it. Now, in Under the Radar, they must face conflicts with family, wedding plans, and—yes—major disagreements about the guilt or innocence of one of Zoe’s oldest friends. Just because Zoe tries to tell Pete everything, misunderstandings and Mother Nature (a blizzard) get in their ways and put them both in danger.
So what happens next?
Keep reading!
About the Author: USA Today best-selling author Annette Dashofy has spent her entire life in rural Pennsylvania surrounded by cattle and horses. When she wasn’t roaming the family’s farm or playing in the barn, she could be found reading or writing. After high school, she spent five years as an EMT on the local ambulance service, dealing with everything from drunks passing out on the sidewalk to mangled bodies in car accidents. These days, she, her husband, and their spoiled cat, Kensi, live on property that was once part of her grandfather’s dairy.
Her Zoe Chambers mystery series includes Circle of Influence (finalist for the Agatha Award for Best First Novel and the David Award for Best Mystery of 2014), Lost Legacy, Bridges Burned (nominated for the Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel of 2015), With A Vengeance, No Way Home (Agatha nominee for Best Contemporary Novel of 2017), Uneasy Prey, and Cry Wolf (Agatha nominee for Best Contemporary Novel of 2018), and Fair Game, which is an Agatha Award nominee for Best Contemporary Novel of 2019! Under the Radar, the 9th in the series, releases February 25, 2020.
Excellent topic and response to the problem. Go Annette!
Thank you, Nancy.
Annette, I’ve been on a similar journey with my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery Series. Like you, I’m plotting the 9th book, and link you, the relationship between Anastasia and Zack began platonically but has grown over the course of the series. Romance in mystery series used to be a no-no. Cozy readers balked at them. But times have changed, and many cozy mysteries now include more than a platonic relationship between the protagonist and another character. Sometimes those relationships even lead to marriage. Well written books need to include character growth, and that extends to the growing of relationships between characters. Readers love to follow how characters in their favorite series grow emotionally over time. Having Zoe and Pete’s relationship move on to the next level was a great idea.
Thanks, Lois. And best wishes to Anastasia and Zack…and to you with your ninth book!