Sally Shivnan
Principal Lecturer, English
Project: “Researching Settings to Inform Two Novels in a Series”
A convention of mystery novels is evocative setting, for good reason. Compelling settings can flavor the story, drench it in mood, and make the plot, through vivid details, vibrant and convincing. Shivnan’s upcoming novel, Two Can Play, is the first in a literary mystery series of literary mystery novels. Work has begin on a second novel, a prequel titled The Prodigal Daughter, as well as the third book in the series. During her summer fellowship, Shivnan will travel to conduct research on two settings that will appear in the second and third novels: Florida’s Gulf Coast and the Brittany region of France. Character and plot are the children of invention, but details of place require eyes and ears on the ground—for writing fiction, there is no substitute for this kind of research.
For a list of previous Lecturer and Adjunct Fellows, please visit the Archives page.