One Piece of Advice From 50 Mystery and Thriller Authors in 2023

There are few things I enjoy more than a good mystery. I like to binge mystery series on TV with my wife, and I love reading them on my own. Maybe that’s why I’ve interviewed so many mystery and thriller authors over the years.

(7 Mystery Novels With the Best Twists.)

I was fortunate enough to interview 50 mystery and thriller authors with new releases in 2023. Here I’ve collected one piece of advice for other writers from each of them.

If you’re interested in reading the full interview with each author, just click their names. Enjoy!

“To always dig a bit deeper. The timelessness of the COVID period made me write slower, to stop and write downwards and not just fast ahead. I believe it improved my writing.” –Tove Alsterdal, author of You Will Never Be Found (HarperCollins)

“Edit, rewrite, repeat.” –Lorna Barrett, author of A Questionable Character (Berkley)

“I would say to outline as much as you want, but to always be flexible with it as you write. I don’t think you should hold onto anything too tightly in your first couple of drafts particularly, other than a sense of who your main character is and what they need from the book.” –Ella Berman, author of Before We Were Innocent (Berkley)

“This job is 99% perseverance, and the other 1% is probably self-awareness.” –Eliza Jane Brazier, author of Girls and Their Horses (Berkley)

“Beware of any piece of advice that tells you there is only one way to do anything. At a recent crime festival, the four well-known authors on the panel all had completely different ways they wrote their first draft from starting from a blank page, a handful of notes, right up to a full-blown Excel spreadsheet of all the characters and scenes in the book.” –Verity Bright, author of Murder by Invitation (Bookouture)

“Read widely outside of your preferred genre. Seeing how an author from a different genre weaves character, conflict, setting, theme, and plot can help you to reevaluate your methods, bring something fresh, and elevate your writing. As writers, we tend to stay in our own lane, but stepping outside of the familiar can stoke the flame of inspiration.” –Lindsay Cameron, author of No One Needs to Know (Bantam)

“When asked this question, I always tell other writers and authors that you should always write what you want to write—what moves you and what makes you excited. Not what you think you should write. Stay true to your vision and write, write, and write.” –Jennifer Chase, author of The Rose Girls (Bookouture)

“Figure out what makes writing fun for you and do that. If you know you want to write, but can’t seem to get into a groove, it doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer, or weren’t meant to do it. It just means you haven’t figured out your own process … yet. Be patient with yourself and keep trying different ways to write until you figure out how to have fun. The pleasure you get from writing is the only thing that will keep you doing it through the anxious and stressful bits (which, sorry to say, never go away completely). Easier said than done? Sure. Also, there’s the not-so-small matter of having the time and resources (read: money) to explore your own process. I would not be in the position right now of giving other writers advice if I hadn’t had the privilege of another earner supporting our family while I worked on my novel. There’s no easy one-size-fits-all solution, but I think most writers who keep at it do so because they’re getting a certain baseline pleasure from it. That has to be the reason, because there certainly isn’t enough money and fame in this business to go around!” –Lina Chern, author of Play the Fool (Bantam)

“Taking breaks from work is really important. If you feel like throwing out a project or abandoning it, taking a break of several months can be really useful and productive.” –Eliza Clark, author of Penance (HarperCollins)

“You have to push on through the self-doubt and keep writing. There will be days when you think your book is going well and days when you think it’s terrible and you feel like giving up. First drafts are never going to be perfect. Far from it! But once you have that first draft, you have something to work with. Then you must be prepared to look at the book with a critical eye and make the necessary changes.” –Emily Critchley, author of One Puzzling Afternoon (Sourcebooks)

“Be your own biggest fan! If you aren’t excited about your stories, how is anybody else supposed to be amped for them? Love your work, love the process, love the promotion, love talking about your book. I think it’s fine to have frustrating moments and parts that maybe aren’t your favorite, but on the whole, I highly recommend stanning your stories. And if that feels weird to start, make like Bea in Stone Cold Fox and fake it till you make it. I promise it’s way more fun than that whole tortured artist thing.” –Rachel Koller Croft, author of Stone Cold Fox (Berkley)

“When you tap into that one wild idea that seems too “out there” or strange, lean in. That’s probably the one you’ve been waiting for.” –Ren DeStefano, author of How I’ll Kill You (Berkley Penguin)

“Hopeful career writers can be a lot like people in denial about their mental illness. What I mean by that is, they’re deeply unhappy about the things they haven’t done, and they tell themselves that if they could only accomplish x—sell a short story to a stellar magazine, get a full request, get an agent, get a book offer—they could be happy. And speaking from personal experience—maybe you will be happy, for a moment, but it won’t last. It’s a lot like some addictions: no matter how good this triumph feels, any high you get is likely to be fleeting and plagued with future anxiety afterwards. The truth is that the only part of writing that can ever come close to fixing that big empty space is the writing itself. The only part that is actually real and true and that can sustain or stick with you is those hours you steal for yourself, where it’s just you, stumbling through your best efforts and trying to find your voice.” –Maria Dong, author of Liar, Dreamer, Thief (Grand Central)

“Writing is such an intense business; you are so absorbed with your own story and thoughts as you go along, that it can be so hard to have perspective. That for me is always the battle; to read what I’ve written objectively. Stephen King in On Writing suggests putting it aside for as long as you can after finishing a draft, but it’s hard if you are on a deadline, or, like me, too impatient. I’ve tried printing it out or changing the typeface, but the most effective method in my experience is sending passages as an email and reading it on your phone. Like the best cons, it’s simple, but very effective.” –Sabine Durrant, author of Sun Damage (Harper Perennial)

“Try not to get in your own head to the point where it impedes your writing. I think it can be easy to fall into the trap of worrying so much about whether people are going to like your book that you begin trying to write to please everyone, which is an impossible task. Write the book you need to write and let the results go.” –Amy Engel, author of I Did It for You (Dutton)

“Your reader’s time is likely limited. Attention spans are getting shorter. While you don’t need a cliffhanger at the end of every chapter, or a new revelation on every page, always make sure that at page level, there’s something to keep the reader interested. This may sound really obvious, but it’s quite easy to forget that you as the author know that there’s a great twist coming up in five chapters’ time, but your reader doesn’t know that, and they need to be intrigued the whole way through. Just a new piece of information is fine, maybe a different side to a character, but there needs to be something to keep the reader turning the page.” –Caz Frear, author of Five Bad Deeds (Harper)

“Don’t worry about how good you are. Worry about how much you are producing. If you generate pages, you will get better, and if you generate enough pages, you will get good. Quality will come and nothing else should matter except for the quality of your work, because that’s the only area where you have complete control.” –Mark Greaney, author of Burner (Berkley)

“Publishing is a tough business, and it is only getting harder to break in. But if you really want to be an author then my advice is to write relentlessly, develop a thick skin, and never give up!” –Laura Griffin, author of The Last Close Call (Berkley)

“Aspiring writers—all I can say is keep going. The industry as a whole is rife with rejection, but it will never mean you’re a failure. Publishing is a business first and foremost, and that’s a hard lesson to learn when everything we do is with passion first. There is rejection every step of the way, from agents to editors to film rights to reviews, so my best advice is to develop a thick skin. Hone your craft as best you can and try to surround yourself with uplifting people who are ahead of you in the process and can guide you. It’s invaluable, and I love that every day is still a learning experience. The knowledge and persistence will eventually pay off.” –Jaime Lynn Hendricks, author of I Didn’t Do It (Scarlet Suspense)

“Read widely, in and out of the genre you write. The best way to learn how to write is to read.” –Christina Henry, author of Good Girls Don’t Die (Berkley)

“You’re going to need a community. Start now, search online, maybe your local library or community center. Find other writers and start building. These are the people with whom you’ll exchange critiques, craft talk, cheer and celebrate. They’ll provide the support you’ll need as you embark on your writing journey. I wouldn’t be here without mine.” –Veronica G. Henry, author of The Foreign Exchange (47North)

“Never give up! Whether it’s the lonely journey to getting published, or that mid-first-draft lull where it feels like you need a snow-plough to get through, patience and perseverance will win through in the end.” –Cara Hunter, author of Murder in the Family (William Morrow)

“Read, read, read. Fiction is a conversation; you need to listen at least as much as you talk if you want to be good at it.” –Joshilyn Jackson, author of With My Little Eye (William Morrow)

“Read. Read critically. Deconstruct what you read. Analyze what worked for you and what didn’t. Think about what you might have done differently. The best way to become a good writer is to be a good reader.” –Bonnie Kistler, author of Her, Too (Harper)

“It’s not rejection, but redirection. Said another way: What’s meant for you will never pass you by. Sometimes we need to take a step back in order to go forward in the right way. I’m not saying it’s easy, or that it doesn’t hurt. But this is a lifelong career, and it’s OK to adjust so that you’re on the right path or accept that a path is not for you. Keep writing and growing and you will get there.” –Vanessa Lillie, author of Blood Sisters (Berkley)

“Be persistent! The first three books I wrote didn’t sell but I kept going and I’m so glad I did! Someone once told me ‘don’t quit five minutes before a miracle’ and that is so true. Rejections are hard, but each ‘no’ is bringing you closer to a ‘yes.'” –Margaret Loudon, author of A Deadly Dedication (Berkley)

“Attend conferences for writers. It’s expensive. It’s time consuming. It’s difficult for introverts. But it’s an investment in your future. I’ll provide an alternate piece of advice for those who have no way to travel (this was me when I had a newborn baby): Study the art and craft of writing any way you can, including books, podcasts, YouTube videos, and virtual classes. I spent five years doing exactly that before attempting my first novel. It paid off when I got a three-book deal on my first submission, and I’ve been published ever since. There are a lot of brilliant authors out there sharing their hard-won skills. Take advantage of any opportunity to improve.” –Isabella Maldonado, author of A Killer’s Game (Thomas and Mercer)

“I have to remind myself every time I sit at the desk to trust the process, something will come. For me the process is often fraught and full of anxiety. I worry will I ever be able to have an idea or write anything again, but I arrive at the desk and try and something always comes. It might not be very good, but I am in. And part of this is also to remember that first drafts are a clunky mess.” –Una Mannion, author of Tell Me What I Am (Harper Books)

“When I’m in the right frame of mind, I can write very quickly, and I really think that’s the best way to get things done. So I’d suggest that you set yourself a daily word count and stick to it. Don’t worry about the quality of what you’re writing—you will inevitably focus on that during the subsequent editing process. Instead, focus on getting your story down on paper from beginning to end. You can think about the rest later.” –Tom Mead, author of The Murder Wheel (Mysterious Press)

“Seek and accept feedback. Often, I see writers on social media who are so in love with their own work that they don’t accept constructive criticism. Many of them also complain that no one will publish their stories because they (the publishers) don’t “get” their work. Seeking advice and feedback, however, can help you take your ideas to the next level. It might not feel good to hear that something you wrote doesn’t quite work, but if you embrace what others have to say about it, you just might come up with something much better than what you started with.” –Nick Medina, author of Sisters of the Lost Nation (Berkley)

“Be as consistent as you can in your writing routine. I know it is easier said than done! I wrote this novel while working as a doctor, with three school age children at home, through the pandemic. Some days I could devote hours to writing, on others only a short time. But the more consistent I could be, if I sat down at the same time every day, the better the ideas flowed.” –Ritu Mukerji, author of Murder by Degrees (Simon & Schuster)

“The way you are as a person is the way you are as a writer. Vice versa, too. Your writing practice will be a reflection of the rest of your life. If you are inherently disciplined, that will spill over into your writing. Ditto if you’re an inherent procrastinator. If you are driven by achievement and status, or if you don’t give two shits about what other people think; if you fall down rabbit holes, or if you flit around like a butterfly; if you are cool and analytical, or if you cry all the time; all of this shows up in your writing practice. Get to know yourself as a person. Understand who you are. Understand what makes you tick. Understand what motivates you. This will probably make your writing richer and more interesting, but it will also allow you to shape your writing practice in the way that you need to shape it. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all solution to this conundrum of being a human, nor of being a writer. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” –Anna Pitoniak, author of The Helsinki Affair (Simon & Schuster)

“The same as the Nike slogan: Just do it. Write more than you talk about it instead of the inverse. I have never seen any other profession so obsessed with talking! You don’t see accountants discuss ad nauseum the accounting process, or lawyers talk about writing briefs—the practice is in just doing it. Once you’ve done it, then you’ll have something to discuss.” –Alice Pung, author of One Hundred Days (HarperCollins)

“Join a writer’s group. It always helps to receive feedback on your work, and providing it for others is just as beneficial. Storytelling and writing are like muscles that get stronger the more we use them, whether by developing our own work or helping someone else develop theirs.” –Ana Reyes, author of The House in the Pines (Dutton)

“The world of publishing is weird—and writing success never follows a straight path. I’ve been writing for 25 years, been a published author for 13, and an “overnight” success for seven. It’s been a long, strange journey with many detours, obstacles, and setbacks. Along the way, I’ve had to make some tough choices, including using a pen name because my sales were so dismal that my real name had become a liability. But each struggle also taught me a valuable lesson in perseverance. So that’s my advice: Persevere. Things might look bleak now, but if you work hard, believe in yourself, and learn along the way, amazing things could be in your future.” –Riley Sager, author of The Only One Left (Dutton)

“Hit the library, read widely, and note what resonates with you. When I see an author who is brilliant at something, I try to identify what they’re doing, even if I’m not yet skilled enough to execute it myself. List the ways they transition seamlessly into backstory. Diagram the pacing of their stellar action scene. Identify the word choice and rhythm that makes their dialogue snap. Sometimes I even write out favorite passages longhand, trying to get a visceral feel for the choices that author made as they wrote.” –Nina Simon, author of Mother-Daughter Murder Night (William Morrow)

“Don’t be afraid to take chances with your writing. Some of the most wonderful ideas come with letting go of what you think you “should” write. Write the wild and the weird and the things you think are unsellable. You might just surprise yourself with the end result.” –Nalini Singh, author of There Should Have Been Eight (Berkley)

“There are no rules. No writer has the same process as the next, and your process is never wrong (unless you are not accomplishing any writing). Get advice from other writers, try out new ways of writing, and tweak the process to make it your own. There are many authors who have had a great deal of success who will be happy to tell you what you must do to be successful. Rule one: Just write. That is really the only thing every author has in common. The mode in which we accomplish that is our own.” –Leanne Kale Sparks, author of Every Missing Girl (Crooked Lane Books)

“Write the book that you want to read, and others will be drawn to how genuine and unique your work is, they’ll naturally want to read it. If you write only what you think other people want to read, it’s guaranteed heartbreak.” –Benjamin Stevenson, author of Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Mariner Books)

“Please, please, please write your story to the best of your ability without looking over your shoulder at what the other guy is doing—or getting in return. We are a community of writers—celebrate one another’s success. Tell the green monster to take a hike. So maybe you haven’t been invited to join a writers’ colony. Perhaps, instead of five-hours of uninterrupted peace to write each day, you’ve got a job and a houseful of kids. Yep. Been there. Done that. You can write in 20-minute sessions. Close the door and write in the bathroom. Get up early and write before the house wakes up. Write at your lunch hour. At night after work. In the car while the kids are at the dentist or in sport events. Just get those 1,000 words in a day if you can. You’ll have draft in three months—a crazy, nonsensical, poorly-written draft—but there will be words on the page. And that’s a primed wall. Now, you can start really painting. To quote the beloved Nora Roberts: ‘I can fix a crappy page; I can’t fix a blank one.'” –Sarah Strohmeyer, author of We Love to Entertain (HarperCollins)

“You have to love the process of writing more than the dreams of being published. Don’t get me wrong: Publishing is a wonderful journey, and there’s nothing like holding your own book in your hands. But the piece that lasts longest is the joy you took in writing the thing, and publishing success is more or less out of your hands, anyway. If you don’t love the actual process of writing, how good publishing feels won’t make it worth it.” –Halley Sutton, author of The Hurricane Blonde (Putnam)

“It sounds trite, but honestly, it would be to simply write. Too often I get asked by aspiring writers how to get published and what to do about social media and other platforms when he or she hasn’t yet finished a book. The writing is the key. Everything else is secondary to that.” –Brad Taylor, author of The Devil’s Ransom (William Morrow)

“Writing is part talent—if you aren’t a natural born storyteller, you won’t get ideas for stories—but it is also part skill. That means the more you practice it, the better you will get. Many people who are far more talented than I have never been published because they just didn’t sit down in the chair and write and write. My advice is to write every day and keep writing.” –Victoria Thompson, author of City of Fortune (Berkley)

“Patience. For yourself and for the characters. Let them develop and become as real to you as you hope your readers will too.” –Charles Todd, author of The Cliff’s Edge (Morrow)

“Don’t let self-doubt rob you of your creativity. Write every day, and don’t give up. Persistence and will are what will bring you success.” –Peggy Townsend, author of The Beautiful and the Wild (Berkley)

“Keep going. Rejection is an opportunity to find something better.” –Harriet Tyce, author of It Ends at Midnight (Sourcebooks)

“Just write. There’s so much noise these days about what authors must do to self-promote on social media. So many writers seem to think that they need to be influencers in order to survive. Certainly, there are opportunities to connect with readers that never existed before. And that’s a great thing. But at the end of the day, no one will come to your work and STAY because you created the best video on TikTok. Readers come to your work and stay because you gave them a great story, one that moved and involved them, that lifted them out of their lives and problems for a time. And to give someone that, you need to bring the best of yourself to the page. So just write. Every day.” –Lisa Unger, author of Christmas Presents (Mysterious Press)

“Read widely and critically.” –Charlotte Vassell, author of The Other Half (Anchor)

“Try not to be too precious or make things perfect on the first go. Things will change and you will have to learn to know when to let go of things. That’s why I always start off with something I call a ‘vomit draft,’ whether it’s in screenwriting or writing novels, because I know a lot of things are going to be thrown out later.” –Iris Yamashita, author of City Under One Roof (Berkley Publishing)

“I would tell them what Patricia Highsmith told me in her writing book, Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction: “The first person you should think of pleasing, in writing a book, is yourself.” It’s impossible to please everyone, and there’s a lot of noise that writers hear, so if you do as Ms. Highsmith suggests and write the book YOU want to read, you’re on the right path.” –Robin Yeatman, author of Bookworm (Harper Perennial)