u/ABCReading

First off, please excuse me if this is the wrong area to post any/all of this information. I'm new to the Reddit world, and while it seems lovely, I am most certainly not confident in my abilities to post 'correctly'! All I know is this - I. Need. Help!

I’m a new writer and veteran teacher who has an idea I can’t seem to let go of: I want to write a mystery series centered around a murder in a school setting. The protagonist is a current teacher, who keeps getting pulled into mysteries involving her school, other staff, families, and the small-town community she teaches in. Her teaching background becomes her greatest investigative advantage.

To put it bluntly, I'm done pouring my all into education. It no longer provides me with any source of satisfaction or the joy I once knew. Sadly, it's been that way for far too long. I've dreamt of becoming a writer my entire life, and these last few days I finally allowed myself to start the pen to paper process of planning it out and - my goodness - even just the opening of my mind to that creativity that's been stuck there for so long has brought me more joy than I've felt in so many years. I want to share that with the world, especially the teaching community! We teachers LOVE to read, particularly if there's a murder mystery involved. You earn extra credit if the pompous principal gets the boot in the end! :) I've designed a school logo, mascot, color scheme, and have the whole staff planned out - along with a story line, of course!

Having worked in education, I know there are so many behind-the-scenes dynamics that could make a school the perfect setting for a mystery series.

I’d especially love advice from anyone who has written their first novel or turned real-life professional experience into fiction. What do you wish you had known when you started? Is there a different area of Reddit that I should have started at?

Again, I'm SO sorry if this was the wrong spot to ask this question. Please excuse my ignorance.