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Behind the Writing of Campfires & Corpses

Tell us about the background for the theme, what inspired it or why you wanted to write in this setting, or with play with these tropes?

The series is set in a campground in rural Maine. It’s based on a real place; the campground where my family has gone every summer for over forty years, and where my favorite childhood memories were made. There are pine trees galore, a lake for swimming and boating, mountains for hiking, and a community of folks who enjoy it all from the coziness of their camping trailers or RVs. There is no cell phone reception, and everyone looks out for their neighbor. There are also all the amazing smells of food being grilled! This was the very first setting that came to mind when I thought about writing a cozy mystery.

Are any of your characters based on real people you know?

No, but they could be! The human characters are all made up, but are not far off from people you’d really encounter around the real campground. The main canine character, the beagle named Corny, is partly based on my own childhood beagle and also inspired by the beagles rescued by an organization called Beagle Freedom Project. Corny is the fan-favorite if ever there was one.

Tell us about character traits that were fun or hard for you to include in the book.

The campground grump, Tom Bosse, is a treat to write! He’s always chewing on a toothpick and answers most questions with short, one-sentence responses. He was always in every version of Chapter 1 that I wrote for this first book; no matter what else I changed, Tom stayed the same. Tom is annoyed at people just for breathing, and it’s fun to come up with his dialogue and the reactions it gets from the other characters.

Create a playlist with 5 to 10 songs with the below in mind:

I actually have public playlists on Spotify that I encourage my readers to check out, so you’re welcome to link to those: https://open.spotify.com/user/nicb513/playlists

My main character, Noelle, is a music lover, so her car radio is always on, or she’s humming something. Here are her top songs (if you don’t want to use the link):

Gypsy by Fleetwood Mac
Hold the Line by TOTO
Dancin’ in the Dark by Bruce Springsteen
Any Way You Want It by Journey
Wind of Change by Scorpions
Penny Lane by The Beatles
Come Sail Away by Styx
Message In a Bottle by The Police

Were there any alternate endings you considered?

There was a whole alternate killer in the first version of this book, so I guess the answer is yes! The protagonist was different in that version, too. But once I started writing this version, I knew exactly how I wanted the book to end, and I never changed that.

Which scene, character or plotline changed the most from first draft to published book?

In the first version of this book, the protagonist was a 60-year-old woman, married with a child and grandchildren. She was based on my mom, and I loved the idea of writing a book from the perspective of a woman with a lot of experience with camping and people. But as I struggled to write the middle part of the story, I realized that it was because I haven’t lived that life. I’m in my 40s and don’t have children, let alone know what it’s really like to have grandchildren. I decided to change the story to a woman a little closer in age to me, and the story just rolled off of my fingers!

Which of the side characters would you love to explore more, or turn into a main character in another series?

It’s a character who shows up in the second book in the series, titled Whoopie Pies & Alibis. In that book, Noelle becomes close with the daughter of campground gossip Claire Blais. Claire’s daughter Poppy is all about fashion and flirting, and she LOVES cheese. She also talks in a lot of questions; not just her voice going up at the end of a sentence, but she answers a question with a question, and not in an infuriating way. I would absolutely love to write another series with Poppy as the sleuth.

What special knowledge or research was required to write this book?

Well, I found out quick that making my character drive a classic (70s) VW Beetle meant more than just giving her a cute car! I don’t know how to drive a manual transition, so my father-in-law was quick to point out that I had Noelle putting the car in the wrong gear! I had also considered having a body in the trunk of her car at one point, but then realized that the character I had planned to kill was far too large to fit in the truck of such a small car!

There’s obviously plenty to know about Maine, and I’m not talking about the cute towns on the coast. Rural Maine is a place that not a lot of people visit, so I had to try to describe it without being long-winded.

The most important research I did was about Corny the beagle and his experience as a survivor of laboratory testing. That part of the story is told in more detail in the series prequel, Freedom & Fosters: A Beagle Rescue Short Story (available in the Bookfunnel promo). I have followed the stories of many beagles rescued from animal testing for years, but writing about it meant having to make sure I got the details right.

What’s the strangest thing you had to do to create this story?

This is related to the question about research, because I had to join Facebook groups and Reddit forums to get answers from firefighters and other fire professionals regarding flammable items and fire retardants. I simply could not find the information I needed from Google searches (probably because I didn’t have the correct wording), so I had to join online communities and ask very specific questions about plot points without giving away too much about the story. It was some of the most creative writing I’ve had to do!

What do you hope readers will take away from this story?

That people and places might change but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t still for you. Noelle’s memories of the campground clash with the reality of it when she returns after 18 years away. And having to come face-to-face with her ex-boyfriend, and many other people who knew her years ago, stresses her out. But in the end, she finds her way and starts to settle in with all of it and all of them.

Was there something major that happened in your personal life while writing this?

I wrote, edited, and published this book from multiple locations around the world. Maine, Spain, and Florida just to name a few. And then, the entire week of the book publication date–including the day it went live into the world–I was sick with the worst flu I’ve ever had (Flu 2025 = One to remember). I was too sick and exhausted to even feel let down about it, but it worked out in the end!

Share a Recipe to go with the read:

“Deadly Delicious” Traditional Maine Whoopie Pies
Adapted from Barefoot In the Pines’ Classic Maine Whoopie Pie recipe.

• Ingredients
  • For the chocolate cookies
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 6 tablespoons unsweetened
  • Dutch processed cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or
  • vanilla powder
  • 1 cup milk (not skim)

• For the filling
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 8 oz marshmallow creme (like Fluff)
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1–2 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla
  • powder
  • Pinch of salt (optional)

NOTE: You can omit the marshmallow creme, just be sure to add 1-2 more cups of powdered sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of milk.

• Directions
  • Make the chocolate cookies
  • Preheat oven to 375℉. Then, line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt. Give everything 5-6 turns with a whisk.
  • In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy (about 2 minutes). I use a hand mixer; if you have a stand mixer, that is recommended.
  • Add the egg and vanilla to the cream and mix until just combined.
  • Gradually add the dry ingredients and the milk to the creamed ingredients. (Add a little, mix to combine, repeat.)
  • Put about 2 tablespoons of batter per cookie onto the parchment-lined pans. They will spread quite a bit in the oven, so leave at least 2” between each cookie.
  • Bake for 10-11 minutes. The centers of the cookies should be puffed/risen. Test with a toothpick to ensure fully baked.
  • Let the cookies cool completely before assembling with the cream filling.

• Make the filling
  • With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the butter until creamy and pale.
  • Add the marshmallow creme (if using) and beat until fully combined and fluffy.
  • Mix in powdered sugar ½ cup at a time.
  • Add vanilla and salt, beat until smooth.
  • Assemble the whoopie pies
  • Turn half of the chocolate cookies so the flat side is facing up.
  • Spread at least two tablespoons of filling onto each one, then top with the remaining cookies (creating a cookie sandwich).
• Enjoy!

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Synopsis:

When the campground becomes the scene of the crime, will Noelle’s peaceful summer go up in flames?

Down on her luck event planner Noelle Cooper is returning to rural Maine to do the one thing she swore she would never do: run her family’s campground. But it’s only for the summer, and the timing couldn’t be better–she’s lost her job and has nowhere to live. She hopes that a change of scenery will be the thing she needs to regroup and reinvent herself.

But Noelle’s plans go up in smoke on her first morning back when she stumbles upon the body of her high school rival. She barely has time to process this before she comes face-to-face with her ex-boyfriend, meets the handsome county sheriff, and is questioned by an intimidating state trooper who gives her the creeps.

While she’s busy dealing with a group of pushy campers who insist that the murder means she must cancel the annual bonfire, Noelle becomes the prime suspect in the murder investigation. She’s convinced that someone is feeding false information to the police and is determined to clear her name.

With the help of her podcast-obsessed cousin, her anxious rescue beagle, and a few eccentric campers, Noelle compiles a list of other suspects and pokes around to uncover the real killer.

Can Noelle prove her innocence before getting tossed in jail? Or is she playing with fire? Read Campfires & Corpses now to find out.

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