HERE'S 'THE PLAN': Walton County cop pens Southern murder mystery

Growing up in Chipley, Walton County Sheriff’s Office Inspector Wendy Ammons used her experience on the police beat and her southern roots to write her first novel.

Ammons’ novel “The Plan” is based on the fictional town of Omega, Ala., in the early 1940s. She said the town is based on places like Malone, Fla., and Grangeburg, Ala., where her parents grew up.

“The south in general is a huge influence in itself,” Ammons said. “It has some interesting characters. How can you not write stories about them?”

“The Plan” is a murder mystery, which follows Preacher Mode Lee, who takes over as pastor of a long-established church congregation.

Omega is in the midst of a summer drought — in addition to the Great Depression.

After Pastor Lee arrives, things go from bad to worse, with long time residents turning up dead. Victims are intertwined with issues ranging from adultery, child abuse, discrimination, and idolatry.

_____

For an interactive list of local authors and their works, click here.

_____

Ammons had the writer’s itch early in life. She can remember writing short stories as early as the sixth grade.
Adjusting the badge on her belt as she spoke, she said that “I’ve been writing for years and that it was just a hobby of mine.”

When in high school, Ammons remembered taking journalism classes and “absolutely loving them.”

“I thought that was the path I was going to head down,” she said. “But when I went to college I decided that law enforcement was more my calling.”

Ammons, who has been with the Sheriff’s Office for the past five years, admits to being a “daddy’s girl” growing up and that since her father was in law enforcement, it just seemed right.

Ammons’ main influences are her parents, but she also draws inspiration from her southern roots and life events.

“My father told me a story from his childhood about a man being lynched,” Ammons said. “He remembered it from the ’30s when he was a little boy.”

That lynching in Jackson County would later be made into a book titled “Anatomy of a Lynching: The Killing of Claude Neal” by James R. McGovern.

There are parts of “The Plan” that are loosely based off of those events.

While it only took Ammons a year to write “The Plan” it would be many years later until it would show up in print.

“I wrote it when I was a senior in college,” Ammons said. “I wasn’t working so I had plenty of time to write.”

After pushing it aside for years, she entered her story into a contest through Amazon.com.

“I didn’t win the contest,” she said. “But I got far enough in the contest to where they hooked me up with a publisher.”

It was funny Ammons said, “I didn’t tell anyone in my family that I had written this book.”

When she did tell her father about her novel, the reaction was classic.

“He was tearing up and clearing his voice,” Ammons said. “He told me, ‘that’s good baby, I’m proud of you.’ ” Her parents are still reading the book. “My mom is about half through, and I’m not sure my dad has started it yet.”

“I have already started on the sequel,” she said. “I am probably on chapter seven or so.”
Ammons said the sequel is going to take place about 20 years in the future and feature many of the same characters.

“I have sold about 50-60 copies so far,” Ammons said. “I am currently trying to find local bookstores that would be willing to sell my book.”