I'll be close to 80 when I get to 'Z' Is for Zero so we'll see how much juice I have left. I wonder if you have some one-offs in store for us after ‘Z’ Is For. What does that say about me and my readers? But, as you suggest, some story ideas will work only in a single book. I wrote one called The Reaper, about an engaging young vicar called Otis Joy who murders the bishop in chapter one, and of all the books it’s the one best loved. My readers seem willing to enjoy the break, too. Peter: Yes, occasionally it’s like taking a holiday to write a non-series book. Do you prefer the one-offs or the series? Again, are some stories better showcased in one form or the other? I’ve also read one of your stand-alone crime novels, Rough Cider. I've sworn if they ever go up against my wishes in that regard, I'll come back from the grave. I've made my children and grandchildren take a blood oath to that effect. Please believe me, even when I get to 'Z' I won't sell the rights. So, of course, I worry that the part of Kinsey Millhone would go to Eddie Murphy. a white, male Jewish burglar.was given to Whoopi Goldberg. When Lawrence Block sold the rights to his Bernie Rodenbarr series. In this country, a producer buys the rights to the character, not the book itself, which gives him the right to do anything he pleases. Sue: Since I only have the one series, I can't afford to sell the film or television rights. Diamond and Hen Mallin are of our time and I want that extra complexity. The Cribb series ran its joyful length in books and TV scripts and I can’t see myself getting back to it. In the new one, Stagestruck, Diamond must resolve a deep-seated fear of being inside a theatre before he can tackle the murder mystery in Bath’s Theatre Royal. The plotting has to be stronger, too, to match their personal struggles.

In the Diamond and Mallin series, the setting of Bath or Chichester is a given, so I like to work more with character, finding strong challenges for my detective and his team. The Cribb books all began with a theme based on a Victorian entertainment: marathon walking, prize-fighting, the music hall, the river, the waxworks and so on. Peter Lovesey: You’re so right about the differences in plotting.

How do you decide which you’ll tackle next? Do you sort out the project according to the nature of the story? I can imagine, for instance, that a plotline suitable for Sergeant Cribb would be entirely different from one you’d flesh out for Peter Diamond. Sue Grafton: I’ve sampled three of your series: Peter Diamond, CID Inspector Hen Mallin and the Sergeant Cribb/Constable Thackeray novels.

New York Times bestselling author Sue Grafton, one of Peter Lovesey's biggest fans, interviews him about crime novel plotting, the ins and outs of selling movie rights, and writing as a day job: Sue Grafton and Peter Lovesey: Author One-on-One

Stagestruck by Peter Lovesey