Behind the Scenes of Trinity Sands Beach Club

When Deborah Sprinkle, Sharon Carpenter, and I started working on our individual novellas for Trinity Sands Beach Club, I knew the behind-the-scenes part would make a fun blog post!

We often met for lunch at Cracker Barrel or Panera, and we also met via Zoom. Once we narrowed down specifics – characters that would play a part in each of our stories, and especially when we started writing, Zoom worked out best.

Let’s see what each of us answered on the behind-the-scenes questions!

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Behind the scenes: premise

How did you come up with the premise of your novella?

Deb – We decided to make our protagonists older females. So I thought about what has happened to my friends. Many of them are widows. I think that’s what put the idea in my head.

Sharon – When I decided that my heroine would be a never-married older lady, I had to think of why she never married. And what would bring her to a new place to start over. If she were starting over, would that be an opening for love to bloom? Also, what would put her in peril? It was fun to play with all of those dimensions, but then the actual writing started.

Jen – I knew my main character was over fifty, so I decided to have her be recently divorced. She’s a fun person, but battling self-esteem issues. Then I had her ex move in next to her, and the story blossomed from there.

Challenges

What was the hardest part of this project?

Deb – I think the hardest part was making sure the three of us treated the common parts of the island the same. We all talked about Ursula, the housekeeper, Maude, the grocery store owner, and a couple of other things about the island.

Sharon – Because this is my debut fiction piece, all of it was hard. Probably the hardest was coming up with the premise and deciding on the type of peril. It was difficult because there aren’t any real boundaries, and the options are wide open. It was sort of like being at a huge buffet and on a one-thousand-calorie diet.

Jen – I’d never written “short.” Not that my cozies are super long, but a novella is half of that, so you’re cutting extraneous stuff. That is challenging, but I ended up really enjoying it.

Behind the scenes: themes

What theme(s) do you see in your novella? Did you plan it or did it “just happen?”

Deb – Besides the obvious theme of helping a friend in need, I think my novella deals with finding your way through grief. Part of which is dealing with family and their desire to protect you, and guilt when you start to envision a new life—one that could be fulfilling and happy. The themes surrounding grief just happened as I began to tell the story. I knew my protagonist would be a widow, but as I fleshed her out, these other parts of her life became real to me.

Sharon – For me, it just happened. I was too preoccupied with the story to really write to a theme.

Jen – I see a theme of forgiveness between Karah and Gage, as well as between Karah and her daughter, Nikki. There’s also the theme of family. I didn’t plan it!

Pivotal moments

Were there pivotal moments or challenges in writing this novella that you think will help in future writing?

Deb – Yes, I enjoyed writing about someone more my age, and I realized I wanted to write more books with older protagonists. Men and women who have to deal with the issues of getting older, but still live vital lives. I hope my readers enjoy this novella and will support me in future endeavors.

Sharon – Just knowing I can do it is going to be instrumental in the next project. I no longer have the “can I do it” self-talk. I have reframed it to “let’s do it again!”

Jen – I loved the opportunity to write with friends. That’s something that usually doesn’t happen, as writing is a very solitary job.

Behind the scenes – let’s pick favorites!

Who is your favorite character in the novella? Why?

Deb – Choosing a favorite character is tough because I liked all my characters. But I have to say I enjoy writing quirky characters the most. Like Grace’s publisher, Olga, and Maude, the owner of the grocery store.

Sharon – That’s like asking me to choose between children! If I have to say, Ben would probably be my favorite because I see a lot of my husband’s qualities in Ben. Mostly when he is trying to be patient with Claire.

Jen – I have two favorites: Rusty the cat and Maude. I love Maude because she’s this crusty older lady who knows everyone on the island and everything going on.

What was your favorite moment(s) in our Zoom meetings and lunch meetings?

Deb – Another tough question. I enjoy our lunch meetings the most because we’re face-to-face. We get done what we need to, but I especially enjoy the stories that get traded back and forth about our lives. Amid lots of laughter. I love getting closer to these amazing ladies. And I feel blessed to call them friends.

Sharon – I love meeting with Jen and Debbie. I feel like the Lord took three writers who live in the same area and bonded us to make us not just friends, but good friends. I had many life events happen during the writing of this book, and they were such encouragers and prayer warriors. Every time we meet, I am more and more thankful for their presence in my life.

Jen – I agree with Sharon. The friendship that’s developed is priceless. I also love how we pray for each other. We laugh a lot too. When we eat out and talk about our stories, like how to kill a character, I wonder what other people in the restaurant think!

That’s it for behind-the-scenes on Trinity Sands Beach Club. Now it’s on to the next Second Chances: Romance & Mysteries novella collection – Bedlam in Bridal Falls – to be released in October 2026!

Read the blog post – Trinity Sands Beach Club – and then follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram, and subscribe to my newsletter to keep up with news about my book and any special offers!

Hi, I’m Jen! I’ve been married for 39 years, have 5 amazing kids, and have 3 adorable grandkids. I homeschooled our three youngest children and used to blog about homeschooling. I also taught Oral Communication as an adjunct instructor for over 5 years.

Jen Dodrill Writes is born of a passion of mine – to write a novel! My first cozy mystery – Birds Alive! – released Feb. 27, 2024, and the 2nd in the series, Where’s the Quetzal? released Feb. 25, 2025! My first novella, SeaBreeze Obsession in Trinity Sands Beach Club, released June 17, 2025!

When I’m not working, you’ll find me writing, spending time with my family, or curled up on the couch reading and drinking a mug of dark roast coffee. (Don’t forget to check out my mug shop – J DMugs!)