FAQs

Behind the Scenes Facts about The Parker Inheritance:

Note: Mild Spoilers Ahead

  1. The book went through fifteen drafts! The original working title was WHEN IT WAS LIKE SEPTEMBER…which no one liked. It was then THE PACKER INHERITANCE, but that reminded me too much of the Green Bay Packers.
  2. The novel was first set in the 1980s! Candice was rocking New Edition and Janet Jackson posters on her walls. Also, the novel didn’t start out with dual timelines. I didn’t realize I needed that until I’d already written the first seven chapters. 
  3. The first chapter of the book—from Abigail Caldwell’s point of view—was actually the last chapter I wrote. (The paperback backmatter goes into much more detail on how much the opening of the book changed.)
  4. My editor, Cheryl Klein, sent me the longest editorial letter of my career while we were working on this book. The letter was TWENTY-ONE pages. SINGLE SPACED.
  5. One of the many good ideas that came from that editorial letter was THE BRACELET! This was one of my favorite elements of the book—but it didn’t exist until late in the writing process. And once I had the bracelet, I knew how I wanted the book to end!
  6. Mentor “texts” for weaving the bracelet in and out of the story include POSSESSION by A.S. Byatt, STATION ELEVEN by Emily St. John Mandel, HOLES by Louis Sacher, and the Christopher Nolan movie, INCEPTION.
  7. The last line of the book was inspired by Obama’s 2008 campaign chant, “YES WE CAN.”
  8. The color scheme for the different timelines in the book—I wish I could take credit for that, but that was all the brainchild of my other editor, Nick Thomas, and book designer, Nina Goffi.
  9. Near the end of the book, Candice mentions an author who wrote a book about raccoons. The author is C. Alexander London, and the book is THE WILD ONES.
  10. The reason that Candice’s dad works in construction and her mom is a writer? See my twitter bio.
  11. Last one…and I’m trying to write this in a way that avoids spoilers…key character names in the book were inspired by the names of two historic board game manufacturers. Any guesses on the manufactures?