Carmela Dutra is…On the Writing Block!

Sherry Ickes

Sep 22

6 min read

When it comes to food trucks, I get excited when a mystery author adds a little mischievous murder into the mix, which is exactly what my next guest On the Writing Block has in store for you all!

Carmela Dutra is a writer from the Bay Area who loves food trucks, family, and cozy mysteries. Her debut novel, A Murder Most Fowl, has been praised by Kirkus Reviews for its “serious set of crimes leavened by plenty of amusing moments,” lauded by Criminal Element for the “juicy reasoning behind the sabotage that was almost as shocking as the murder itself,” and described as “the perfect escapist read, brimming with banter and an extra helping of fun” by New York Times bestselling author Ellery Adams. Carmela has also been featured in CrimeReads Magazine.

A lover of humor, quirky characters, and all things geeky, Carmela spends her days sketching, sipping far too much coffee, and overcuddling her allergy-inducing cats and dog. She lives with her husband and two dinosaur-obsessed sons, drawing inspiration from rainy afternoons, bustling farmers’ markets, and the unexpected moments that make life memorable.

What is your ultimate goal as an author?

That’s a twofold answer. First, I want readers to feel something. I honestly don’t care what emotion it is: joy, sadness, anger, laughter, or even hunger (considering I write food truck mysteries, hunger is practically guaranteed). Stories are built on emotion, and if I’ve made a reader feel something while they’re turning the pages, then I’ve done my job.

Second, I want readers to genuinely enjoy spending time with my characters. Life is too short to force yourself through a book you’re not enjoying, and I never want someone to finish one of my novels simply because they feel obligated. My hope is that when readers close the book, they aren’t just satisfied with the mystery, but they’re already looking forward to visiting Beth, Seth, and the town of Clementine again. Even if a particular book in the series wasn’t their favorite, I hope the characters feel like old friends they’d love to spend another afternoon with.

How much research do you conduct for your storylines?

A lot, but not in the ways I expected. When I first started writing adult fiction, I made the very poor assumption that because it was fiction, I could simply make everything up. Turns out that’s not how it works.

My agent gave me one piece of advice that completely changed how I approach research: If a reader Googles something in your book, it should be accurate.

That stuck with me. For example, in A Murder Most Fowl, security cameras play an important role in the investigation. Sounds simple enough, right? I thought so too until my agent started asking questions.

How is the footage stored?

How long before it’s overwritten?

What happens if a camera glitches?

What causes a security camera to malfunction?

Who actually owns surveillance footage in California?

Who has the legal right to view it? To delete it? Where can cameras legally be placed on commercial property?

With every question she asked, I realized how much I didn’t know. So, I fell down a very deep research rabbit hole. And that was just the security cameras. Add in researching murder weapons, police procedures (thankfully I have a friend who is a retired cop that helps me). When I was writing Hot Wings and Homicide, I researched accidental deaths relating to festivals. I also had to research food festivals by attending and sampling food.

Between researching California homicide laws, questions to ask a defense attorney, and many other problematic questions, my search history has become… let’s just say if anyone ever looked at it without context, I’d have a lot of explaining to do.

Do you always know who the killer is, or do your characters surprise you in the end?

I usually figure out the killer once I understand the motive. Why does someone want the victim dead? What do they stand to gain? What do they stand to lose?

Once I understand the motive, I build three to six different suspects who could realistically fit those circumstances. They all need believable reasons to commit the crime because I want readers to suspect every one of them at some point.

After those profiles are complete, I choose my killer. Most of the time, the killer I select stays, but sometimes my characters have a mind of their own. For example, when I was writing book three in my Food Truck Mystery series, I made it almost to the end of my first draft before I realized something wasn’t working. The person I’d chosen as the killer technically fit the story, but it felt forced.

All the profiles I built could work, but none of them felt right. I remember being really stuck on how to finish. Was it better to proceed with my selected character, even if it makes my story feel unnatural? Or should I scrap that person and start again? I could have used any of the profiles, but each time I was left with that same feeling. Something wasn’t working.

I reread what I already had, and that’s when everything suddenly clicked. A character was there all along who fit the bill perfectly. They had means, motive, opportunity, and a real stake in the story. This was one of those characters that took over and belonged all along; I just didn’t see it at first.

So after finishing the manuscript, I went back and changed the killer entirely. I felt great about that decision, and thankfully, my beta readers all agreed it was the right decision. The new ending felt more natural, the reveal landed harder, and all the clues fell into place the way I’d hoped.

Sometimes the characters really do know better than me. The fictional world is theirs, and I am merely the one writing it.

How much is based on real life versus made up?

I’m a firm believer that truth is stranger than fiction. Real life is constantly handing me story ideas. I just have to pay attention.

Maybe it’s a person at a farmers’ market accusing a vendor of selling store-bought berries? It could be a feud between neighbors over public street parking. An argument over whether it’s acceptable to put trash in someone else’s garbage can the night before pickup. An ex-coworker with a grudge bigger than the Titanic. Neighbors rallying together after someone in the neighborhood passed away suddenly.

Every single one of these actually happened in my community. None of them became scenes exactly as they occurred, but they became seeds that grew into ideas. I take those ordinary moments, ask “What if?” and let my imagination do the rest. Because what if the argument over the garbage cans isn’t really about garbage? Maybe the feud over the parking space has been simmering for twenty years. What if that difficult coworker has something much bigger to hide?

That’s one of my favorite parts of writing mysteries. Life provides the spark, and fiction gives me permission to turn that spark into something wildly entertaining. Or maybe life already did that for me.

I guess readers will never know…

What is Hot Wings and Homicide about?

Twins Beth and Seth Lloyd are on the chopping block in the follow-up to A Murder Most Fowl, where a perfect recipe for murder is stirred up.

Business at Kluckin’ Good is smoking hot. To keep momentum going, Beth and her twin brother, Seth, just scored a prime spot at the Flavors of the Bay Food Festival. For three and a half days, food lovers will flock to the Bay Area’s biggest culinary event to enjoy gourmet food trucks, cook-offs, and live music, but this recipe for success is also the perfect setup for murder.

When the infamous food critic Brad Dawson—also Beth’s ex—turns up dead, the only clue at the scene of the crime is a Kluckin’ Good tumbler mug. The timing couldn’t be worse. Beth and Brad were seen in a heated altercation, and days prior, witnesses saw Seth punch Brad. Suspicion naturally falls on the twins. With the cops hot on their trail, Beth will have to avoid the flames to clear their names and save her food truck’s reputation.

But the chickens are out of the coop, and as Beth digs into Brad’s final hours, she will uncover rivalries, grudges, and a different side of Brad she never knew. If she doesn’t crack the case soon, she might be the next one to get cooked. Best of cluck!

A mouthwatering mystery for fans of Joanne Fluke that will leave you peckish for more.