D.E. Haggerty is the author of thirteen novels ranging from romantic comedies to cozy mysteries. She’s also a bit of a traveler, having lived in Istanbul, Germany, and The Hague. Picture Not Perfect is the second book in the Not So Reluctant Detective Mystery series.
Beginnings of Picture Not Perfect
D.E. said she introduced Alfred Schultz in book 1 of the series for some comic relief. “But then I thought – what if he ended up dead? Once I have a murder or – as in this case – the victim, it’s a matter of working backwards. Why was he murdered? For what other reasons could he have been murdered? Who had a motive to kill him?
“With regard to reading Picture Not Perfect, I’d urge readers to give Melanie a chance. She’s quite the character, I grant you that. But there’s more to her than meets the eye, and there may just be a reason why she seems to crave drama.”While writing Picture Not Perfect, D.E. and her family drove back and forth to Germany from the Netherlands almost every weekend. “While on the road in Belgium, a sign warned us ‘prudence’ (caution in French). I immediately pulled the car over, because I had to name the third woman in my novel Prudence aka Pru.”
Issues in Picture Not Perfect
“Although I always claim to not address issues in my novels, I always seem to end up doing so anyway. This novel actually deals with two issues: stalking and mental health issues. The two may or may not be related. I can’t discuss the mental health issue, but with regards to stalking the message is simple. The hands of the police are tied with regard to most stalking cases. When is it right to take matters into your hands? Or is it never right to take matters into your own hands?”Research and surprises
“While writing Buried Appearances, I traveled to the Netherlands to research the locations the main character, Skylar, visits. One of these locations is the dunes near The Hague where Dutch resistance members were executed by the Nazis. First, we couldn’t find the specific location we were looking for. Then, while wandering around the dunes, we got lost and ended up within earshot of a shooting range. I about peed my pants when they started shooting. As there is no legal hunting in the dunes, I hadn’t expected the sound. I was also totally in my head thinking about the war and the atrocious acts that were committed. The gunshots scared the pants off of me!”Learn more about D.E. Haggerty at dehaggerty.wordpress.com
D.E. Haggerty says
Thank you for hosting Picture Not Perfect on your blog today. I love how you pieced together this interview. Thank you!