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Mystery Writers of America Discussion

Creating a Mystery Novel: Building Worlds and Plotting Twists and Turns.

Join the Mystery Writers of America for a panel discussion covering what it takes to create a mystery novel. Whether you're a reader or a writer, join us for a compelling conversation.

What makes the worlds of mystery novels so tantalizing and their twists and turns so intriguing? Four distinguished authors will delve into the creation of mystery novels, the thought processes, the ideas for worlds and plots, and the ever-so-satisfying aha moments. 

Join us for a panel discussion with panelists Dawn Barclay, Jeff Cohen, Kellye Garrett, and moderator Tom Coffey.

Registration is free and required.

Questions? Email reference@hobokenlibrary.org

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Panelists Bios:

Dawn M. Barclay is an Agatha Award and Lowell Thomas Gold Award-winning author and a Chanticleer finalist. She writes psychological/domestic/romantic suspense as D.M. Barr and nonfiction under her own name. Traditionally published works include seven novels, three anthologies, and three nonfiction books, with several anthologies to be published by White City Press in 2026. The owner of Suggested Development Editing and Book Coaching, she’s a former acquisition editor for Champagne Book Group, former editor for Down & Out Books, and the current editor for Hold Fast Publishing. She is the incoming co-president of Sisters in Crime New York/TriState and a former MWA board member.

Jeff Cohen, who also writes as E.J. Copperman, writes comedies that have mysteries in them. Sometimes they have ghosts. A lot of the time they don’t. He has been a newspaper reporter, trade magazine editor, freelance journalist and screenwriter (no credits on IMDb) and mystery novelist. The last one stuck. Jeff is a native New Jerseyan and has never been outside the Garden State for more than two weeks at a time. He has no patience for any form of entertainment that has no sense of humor at all, and will tell you about that at length if you are foolish enough to ask. Find him on Facebook and at www.ejcopperman.com. 

Kellye Garrett’s crime fiction novels have been named to Time Magazine’s 100 Best Mystery & Thrillers of All Time, were spotlighted as a $1,000 clue on Jeopardy, and have won Agatha, Anthony, Lefty, IPPY, and ITW Thriller awards. After breaking into publishing with the Detective by Day lightweight mystery series, she transitioned into standalone suspense with Like A Sister. Her latest, the Jersey City set Missing White Woman, was a Reader’s Digest Book Club pick, CBS New York Club Calvi selection, Apple Books Staff Pick, and Amazon Editors’ Pick. In addition to writing, Kellye is a co-founder of Crime Writers of Color, which received the 2023 Raven Award from MWA and Boucheron’s 2024 David Thompson Special Service Award. She’s a New Jersey native.

Tom Coffey retired from The New York Times in 2023 after a decades-long career in journalism. His first novel, THE SERPENT CLUB, was published in 1999 by Pocket Books, and earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly. In 2008 Toby Press printed BLOOD ALLEY, which also earned a starred review from PW. His series with Level Best Books, The Devine Trilogy, which is named for the dysfunctional family at its center, began in 2023 with the publication of PUBLIC MORALS, which gained four- and five-star reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. The second book in the series, SPECIAL VICTIM, was published in 2024, to similar acclaim. Tom recently completed the final book in the series, STOP AND FRISK, which will be published next year.

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