how i used the seven deadly sins to write the hitchcock hotel
7 points of view, 7 sins
Why are we talking about The Hitchcock Hotel again?
Because in just 47 days—on September 16th—the paperback hits shelves in the US!
(UK readers, yours is already out. You can buy it here.)
You know how this goes: when a writer has a book coming out—in any format—we find creative ways to talk about it in the hope that you’ll preorder. Since I believe subtlety is overrated when it comes to supporting my livelihood, let me make that preorder link big and bright:
Now onto something more fun.
When THH launched last fall, I found myself telling the same handful of stories during interviews and events. One that resonated most? How I used the Seven Deadly Sins to build my cast.
The Sins have always intrigued me—thanks to nine years of Catholic school, the movie Se7en, and a love of anything resembling personality classifications. They’re just plain epic, y’know? Who wants anger when you can have WRATH?
Since THH is a whodunit, I needed a large cast. That scared me. Too many POVs can confuse readers (not to mention authors). I needed a way to anchor each character quickly. Enter: the Sins.
This isn’t to say all hedge fund managers are greedy or all trust fund kids are lazy, but leaning on caricature early helped me get to more dimensional characters. Here’s where I landed:
Grace is Greed. A hedge fund manager who always wants more—financially and emotionally.
Samira is Lust. A sex toy entrepreneur and sex ed advocate.
Julius is Sloth. A trust fund kid with zero ambition.
TJ is Wrath. A bodyguard furious with others—and himself.
Zoe is Gluttony. A chef who struggles with alcohol and the word “no.”
As for the other two POVs, Alfred and Danny were always so clear in my mind that I didn’t need a Sin to keep them straight. But for fun?
Alfred is Envy. He’s opened his dream hotel but still wants what others have—Hitchcock’s genius, his friends’ college experience, and maybe the girl who got away.
Danny is Pride. If you’ve read the book, you know why.
These labels didn’t define the characters, but they helped me get started. By the end, the cast stood on their own.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll be having fun with this theme. Next month’s newsletter includes a quiz to find out your deadly sin, and I’ll be sharing book, movie, and TV show recommendations by sin on socials. Stay tuned!
What I learned this month
Recently I have been using AI, specifically ChatGPT, more frequently in my writing process—not for the actual prose, but as a sparring partner, research source, and career coach. I prefer optimism over fear-mongering when it comes to new technology, but I will say that this article from The Verge—You sound like ChatGPT—gave me pause.
Words like “prowess” and “tapestry,” which are favored by ChatGPT, are creeping into our vocabulary, while words like “bolster,” “unearth,” and “nuance,” words less favored by ChatGPT, have declined in use. Researchers are already documenting shifts in the way we speak and communicate as a result of ChatGPT — and they see this linguistic influence accelerating into something much larger.
I felt mildly reassured that I happened to use the word unearth in my writing hours before reading this piece, but that reassurance was cut short when I came across this:
And the deepest risk of all, as Naaman pointed to, is not linguistic uniformity but losing conscious control over our own thinking and expression.
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how AI will affect different facets of our lives (jobs, art, education, etc.), but I hadn’t much considered the impact on language. As a peddler of words and creative expression, this article is provoking deeper, and often uncomfortable, reflection. I plan to write more about my process shift in a future newsletter, but for now, I’m still hammering out how I do or don’t want to use AI tools long-term.
Art picks
The Water Lies by Amy Meyerson: So well-executed is this thriller that I can’t believe it’s Meyerson’s first. Our protagonists are heavily pregnant Tessa Irons, who is convinced her toddler knew the dead woman that turned up in the canal outside her Venice Beach home, and mother of the deceased, Barb Geller, who refuses to believe her daughter’s death was a drunken accident. Naturally, the police dismiss their suspicions, but does that stop these two? It sure doesn’t! What a thoughtful examination of IVF and motherhood, stacked on top of a stellar plot. Folks, I know this is important to a lot of you: I did not guess the twist. It’s my job to come up with twists! Meyerson is sneaky! It’s not out for a few months, but you should just pre-order it now as a gift to your future self.
The Hurricane Blonde by Halley Sutton: It was SO nice of Halley Sutton to write a book just for me. At the risk of sounding like Bill Hader’s Stefon, this book has everything: 1) a murder bus tour, 2) a hot mess nepo baby protagonist, and 3) a deep dive into Hollywood’s seedy underbelly. The Hurricane Blonde is like your true crime-obsessed friend pulling up a chair next to you at the bar and going, You’re never going to believe this… For the twist lovers, once again, I was bested! Twice in one month! I’m both sad and delighted to report that this particular twist will break your heart a little. Buy the book here.
Line of the month
In honor of the impending paperback publication, this month’s line is the very last sentence of The Hitchcock Hotel.
“Burn it to the ground,” she whispers with a smile.
Diabolically yours,
This is so fun! And such a smart way to write an ensemble cast.
Officially my favorite sin is TJ's, but my real one is Zoe's. 😉 Loved all the POVs!