“The hardest part of writing romantic suspense for me is ensuring I don’t reveal the identity of the villain too soon but at the same time, I need to plant enough clues that when the reader discovers who the villain is, she goes, ‘Oh, of course, that makes sense,’” Amanda said. “It’s that balancing act that I find to be the hardest part.”

“There’s a coffeeshop near me that is perfect for me—I actually like to be in a noisy place because it makes me concentrate on what I’m working on,” Janice said. “I find that if it’s too quiet, I want to do anything but write. So I go to this coffeehouse when it first opens, sit down with a cup of coffee and open my [laptop], and that’s usually where I do my best, most productive work.”