Stella Sands: On Shifting Gears and Switching Publishers
Stella Sands is the bestselling author of six true-crime books: Baby-Faced Butchers, The Dating Game Killer, Behind the Mask, Murder at Yale, Wealthy Men Only, and The Good Son. She is also the author of a children’s book, Odyssea, and many educational books, and served as the Editor-in-Chief of the award-winning magazine Kids Discover for nineteen years. She has appeared on numerous television shows, including People Magazine Investigates, ABC’s 20/20, and several episodes of Investigation Discovery. Sands lives in Sag Harbor, New York.
Stella Sands
In this interview, Stella Sands discusses how after a decade of true-crime writing she switched gears and wrote her new mystery novel, Wordhunter, her hope for readers, and more!
Name: Stella Sands
Literary agent: Anne-Lise Spitzer, Philip G. Spitzer Literary Agency
Book title: Wordhunter
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release date: August 6, 2024
Genre/category: Mystery/Thriller
Previous titles: Baby-Faced Butchers; Behind the Mask; Murder at Yale; Dating Game Killer; The Good Son; Wealthy Men Only
Elevator pitch: Wordhunter is a dark comic thriller centering on grad student Maggie Moore—tattooed, pierced, and socially awkward—who helps solve crimes by decoding the words of stalkers, rapists, pedophiles, murderers, and the like.
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What prompted you to write this book?
I had been writing true-crime books for a decade, most published by St. Martin’s Press. By the end of 10 years, I was ready for a change. It’s hard/heartbreaking to interview families of those killed. It’s also hard to visit convicted killers in prison.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
It took many years from idea to publication—more years than I care to admit. When I first began Wordhunter, my protagonist was a morbidly obese woman who never left her bedroom as she searched the internet to help solve murders. In the final iteration of Wordhunter, Maggie Moore had morphed into a skinny, pierced, tattooed, motorcycle-driving linguistic genius, who barely stayed at home.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
I was surprised at how long it took from acceptance of my manuscript to pub date. I figured the book was done. We’re done! However, so many more details still had to be attended to: editing, more editing, and more; layout; cover; and on and on.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
The biggest surprise was how long it took me to write the book. I must’ve gone over each sentence a thousand times, trying to make it as good as possible. And, of course, there is no end to how many different ways “good” can show its face.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope readers learn a bit about forensic linguistics and something about sentence diagramming, two fascinating fields to discover. I also hope they simply enjoy reading about Maggie, my protagonist and, as it turns out, my dear friend.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Stick to it.
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