Beginning at the beginning / Penny Sumner -- Sugar and spice and all things nice-- : character creation and development / Val McDermid -- Hunting the galosh : the business of research / Gillian Linscott -- From rough idea to final draft : some thoughts on plot / Jean Bedford -- Partners in crime : developing a series character / Marcia Muller -- Aiding and abetting : decisions about style / Sarah Dreher -- Through the door with a gun in his hand : creating and maintaining pace / Chris Niles -- Writing the villain in crime fiction / Stella Duffy -- The wrong way : my approach to plot, process and endings / Joan M. Drury -- Midnights dreary : creating atmosphere and suspense / Abigail Padgett -- A sense of place / Anne Wilson -- From sidekicks to sword-swallowers : unravelling the mystery of supporting characters / Ellen Hart -- Putting an end to the mystery / Barbara Paul.
