 Have you ever wished you could sit down with a successful author and ask the secrets to their success? We did! In this interview, Fleur Bradley talks about her go-to techniques, her writing rituals . . . and more! Fleur Bradley has loved mysteries ever since she first picked up an Agatha Christie book at the age of eleven. She’s the author of Agatha-nominated middle-grade mysteries Daybreak on Raven Island and Midnight at the Barclay Hotel(Viking/PRH), and the Double Vision trilogy (HarperCollins), as well as numerous non-fiction titles for the educational market. Fleur started her writing journey many years ago, writing short crime fiction, and still enjoys writing in the short form. Most recently, her work has appeared in the MWA anthology Super-Puzzletastic Mysteries, SCBWI’s The Haunted States of America (a story representing Colorado). How to Teach Yourself to Swim, originally published in Dark Yonder, was recently chosen for The Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2024 anthology. Fleur’s work has been nominated for the Agatha and Anthony Award and has won the Colorado Book Award and Colorado Authors League Book Award, among others. A reluctant reader herself, Fleur is also a literacy advocate and speaks at events on how to reach reluctant readers. Originally from the Netherlands, she now lives in a small cottage in the foothills of the Colorado Rockies where she fosters rescue animals. Keep reading to discover Fleur's insider keys! What rituals or tools help you stay productive without burning out? It really helps me to start early in the morning, before the rest of the world is awake. It can be hard to kick myself out of bed, but I know it’s the best way to get some words on the page, especially for that first draft. I can shut the world out a little easier in the early hours. How do you tackle writer's block when you're stuck mid-plot or with a flat character? Writer’s block (or whatever you call getting stuck) for me is usually a sign something isn’t working—plot, character, setting, whatever. It helps to step away for a day or two and think the hurdle through. I like to go for a hike. Once I figure out what’s wrong, I’m back to work. A flat character sometimes just needs an interesting, unexpected detail. That humanizes and makes the character three-dimensional.  Want to sell more books and market yourself? Check out the guide CREATE YOUR WRITER PLATFORM. The book explains how to build an audience, understand social media basics, sell more books, increase promotion & publicity, get engaged online, and much more. Do you have a go-to technique that's saved a manuscript? Print out the pages, staple chapters together, and read them. Lay them on the floor or a large desk. I love the analog, tactical approach this gives me as a writer. Experiencing your story the way a reader would really helps to see how to fix it. Revision can often feel endless. How do you know when your book is done? When I think of an idea, some sort of detail I can add to a story, and I go in the add it and I find it’s already there—that’s a guarantee it’s time to send the book to my agent or editor. That said, you can revise forever. It’s important to know when you should let a story go out into the world, or get outside eyes on it. After years in the industry, what keeps you excited about fiction writing? Seeing kids during school visits is the most inspiring to me, to keep going. And I also love that stage in writing when you just begin a story and it can be anything. That feeling of infinite possibility still gets me excited, to see how I can meet the challenge of my own imagination. What advice would you give new writers chasing their first big break? Enjoy the process of creating. The business side can be brutal—it’s so important to focus on the joy of writing, not where publication may take you.  From the critically acclaimed author of Midnight at the Barclay Hotel comes a thrilling new middle grade mystery novel inspired by Alcatraz Prison. Awards:
Tori, Marvin, and Noah would rather be anywhere else than on the seventh grade class field trip to Raven Island prison. Tori would rather be on the soccer field, but her bad grades have benched her until further notice; Marvin would rather be at the first day of a film festival with his best friend, Kevin; and Noah isn't looking forward to having to make small talk with his classmates at this new school. But when the three of them stumble upon a dead body in the woods, miss the last ferry back home, and then have to spend the night on Raven Island, they find that they need each other now more than ever. They must work together to uncover a killer, outrun a motley ghost-hunting crew, and expose the age-old secrets of the island all before daybreak.  This post was complied by Brandy Vallance, a literary agent with Barbara Bova Literary Agency, an award-winning author, and a Story Consultant for Writing Day Workshops. Brandy is the winner of two national writing awards, one of which included a $20,000 prize. Her novel, THE COVERED DEEP, has been featured in USA Today & Writer’s Digest. WITHIN THE VEIL has been called “passionate and riveting” and Publisher’s Weekly encourages those who like sweeping Scottish sagas to dive in because “the journey is wonderful.” Brandy loves helping writers break the chains of fear and self-doubt. You can find out more at brandyvallance.com.  Attend a Writers Conference in 2026:
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