Read Crime Writer Margot Kinberg

Crime Writer Margot Kinberg

A Matter of Motive by Margot Kinberg’s first chapter is brilliant. You will want to know what happens next. But I won’t spoil it. Ronald Clemons is a loving husband and a fair-minded boss who runs a successful business. He is well-liked and the last person one would guess to be a murder target.

After reading two novels by Margot Kinberg, I’m a fan. I met Kinberg on social media, read her blog, and watched and subscribed to her YouTube, five minutes covering the main points of various crime novels. Most readers and writers can learn much from Kinberg.

Crime Fiction Author, Margot Kinberg Interview

As Kinberg taught graduate school, she shared the challenges and rewards of teaching education majors with her family. Her husband and daughter encouraged her desire to write fiction. The three family members proceeded to brainstorm her first crime fiction story. They even pointed out a person who could be the target of a killer!

If nothing else, this author’s interview vividly illustrates this true story. When she described the scene, I felt I understood Margot Kinberg. One evening at home, her husband and daughter leaped to jumpstart her first crime story. Their good humor engaged her in a playful session of what-ifs. Thus, her first mystery plot and character creation entered the realm of storytelling.

This early and enthusiastic brainstorming trio caused me to marvel at Kinberg’s open-mindedness. She welcomed their ideas and trusted the group process. Kinberg’s openness to share the process of plotting her first mystery transformed the planning stage of novel writing into a game. Every mystery writer should be so lucky.

A quick aside. In my experience, many writers are closed off from others’ ideas. I’ve known many who guard their original impetus for a book as if it were an atomic secret. Woah to a critique partner or kindly experienced editor who tries to help well-defended newbie writers. Writers who understand and value seasoned editors for their skills to elevate their craft to literary standards worthy of readers.

Kinberg sees herself as a high-stakes writer. Her themes lean into resilience and finding strength. “We have a shared humanity. Things we live through and experience, and I show and acknowledge the grief of the survivors in my novels.”

Margot Kinberg Knows Crime Fiction

As a reader, Kinberg was a mystery buff. She devoured Nancy Drew’s stories and the like. Recently, she has been learning crime writing methods by reading Michael Connelly’s novels. “I always learn from listening to writers, especially other crime fiction authors of genres such as suspense, thriller, noir, and cozy mysteries.” She belongs to a writers’ group on Facebook. Even wrote a book blurb, then shared it and requested others online to help her tear it apart and then help put it back together.

Her favorite crime fiction author remains Agatha Christie. Kinberg said, “Christie knew how to mislead her readers and then reveal the killer in a dramatic twist at the conclusion.”

Speaking writer to writer, Kinberg said, “Your book will not appeal to everyone.”

I asked her, “What helps you choose a main character for your novels?” Margot Kinberg said, “I let them take me for a ride. I enter their world with a deep dive.” She said of one of her characters, “She told me her name and added, I want to tell you, my story.” That’s how Kinberg starts: by letting characters tell about themselves while she takes notes. If you have never written a fictional story, this can sound a bit crazy. Yet many serious novelists will tell you of similar experiences.

Creativity takes many forms, but writing any fictional genre requires deeply identifying with strong personalities. These personalities either seem to speak to the writer’s inner ear or command the writer’s visual powers to spin an internal movie. I’ve had both types of experience while listening and meditating on what a character would do.

It’s also possible to interview a character once trust has grown between the writer and the character. This idea may seem far-fetched for some readers who have never written fiction before I took on the challenge of writing a mystery novel; I might have thought the author was joking. Yet, as I read and listen to more author talks, those who write character-driven novels often admit to this curious close relationship with their main characters. This dialogue with a character is an act of empathy. Empathy on the part of the writer. Many famous writers want their readers to develop a deep interest in their protagonists. Or to be rooting for a positive conclusion to the problems a set of characters face, like the sisters in Little Women. Sisters Amy, Beth, Meg, and Josephine “Jo” March struggle to help their parents yet have their dreams. The relationship between the author, Louisa May Alcott, and her lead character, Jo, gives depth and heart to this beloved story.

Some readers argue that writers always write about themselves. Some readers argue that writers always write about themselves. This idea needs to be more profound. And yet, writing about people we know, people we’ve met, and parts of ourselves emerges in most writers’ prose.

Margot Kinberg is a novelist and Associate Professor with many years of experience in K-12 and higher education. She is the author of the Joel Williams mystery series (Scene of the Crime comes out on 1 July) and the Patricia Stanley series (the next in that series is planned for 2025). Her other fiction includes Streets of Gold, the charity anthology In a Word: Murder, which she edited, and Shots All Around, a collection of her flash fiction stories. Since 2016, she has served on the judging panel for the Ngaio Marsh Awards for Best First Novel and Best Novel. Originally from the East Coast, she currently lives in California.

I read Kinberg’s A Matter of Motive, a Patricia Stanley Investigation. Find my Amazon book review: 4.0 out of 5 stars. Unexpected Good Guy Victim Will Keep You Guessing

It is said that our first love never leaves us. I like knowing that Margot Kinberg began writing at eleven years old. She credits her sixth-grade English teacher with cultivating her love of writing. Kinberg’s writing entered publication when she turned sixteen. I enjoyed interviewing Margot Kinberg. We hope to continue a literary friendship and mutual writer support.

I recommend her blog because Kinberg writes about crime fiction. She points out what makes each novel successful, touching on the setting, points of tension, the main character, and the plot. There are no spoilers.

Check out Kinberg’s Blog

Crime Writer Margot Kinberg…a crime-fiction site

Watch Kinberg’s YouTube Channel: Margot Kinberg Crime Writer

Kinberg describes one crime fiction novel in each segment. No spoilers!

https://www.youtube.com/@MargotKinbergCrimeWriter

You may also follow Margot Kinberg on Facebook.

Please leave us a like or drop a question or comment below.