Melissa Lee

Love is Wild

A stack of hardcover books with covers in varying shades of green. On top of the stack is a silver skeleton key with a hemp cord looped through the key hole.

Using Folklore to Develop Paranormal Characters

How do we develop our paranormal characters? We draw from existing folklore but add a unique twist.

Mysterious Ms. Lee

22 minutes ago4 min read

A glass ball on wet ground reflects sunset, clouds, and trees. In the background is a blurred orange and blue sky.

Using Facts to Ground Our Fantasy

How do we keep the supernatural elements of our paranormal fantasy from feeling too vague or far-fetched?

Mysterious Ms. Lee

Nov 21, 20253 min read

Four friends chatting while sitting atop a rough rock wall. They are positioned in the bottom right of the photo with the rest of the image being a cloudless blue sky.

Creating a Likeable Team Versus a Cast of Suspects

In our hidden world romance/mystery mash-up, how do we develop enduring characters our readers want to root for while also offering a believable list of crime suspects?

Magical Ms. Melissa

Oct 16, 20252 min read

Photo of three stacked suitcases. The suitcases are old fashioned and one has a variety of travel-related stickers displayed along its sides.

Benefits of a Dump List

What do we do with sentences we don’t need now but might want to use in the future?

Mysterious Ms. Lee

Jul 31, 20253 min read