Elizabeth George talked about her process for creating a novel, starting with choosing the unique settings that characterize her novels. Her overview included a discussion of how she researches her book’s location, develops her characters, and turns scenes into a rolling plot that becomes the draft for her novel. She is known for the accuracy of place and people and explained that she achieves this by visiting the location, taking lots of pictures and interviewing local residents. She noted that her characters provide the “core need” and “tell me what the story is about.” Once she has the location and characters, she writes up scenes on envelope size paper and spreads them on the floor in order to organize her running plot. After explaining her process, she answered questions about her writing and her plans for the future. She wants to finish her YA series set on Whidbey Island and spend some time in Italy to immerse herself in the language and culture. She also shared her two favorite books that she has written: Missing Joseph and In the Presence of the Enemy. You can read more about her life and books on her website: http://www.elizabethgeorgeonline.com/
