On a 63 acre estate Manny raised his children, looked after his animals and collected stamps, medals and records. He worked in his study in a converted colonial schoolhouse on his grounds.  The cousins at their writing-peak then wrote Ten Day's Wonder (1948), Cat of Many Tails (1949) and Origin of Evil (1951) After Lee married the cousins rarely visited each other. As they frequently phoned each other their writing methods were unorthodox. Unlike many detective writers who habitually start with the solution of the crime and work backwards, Dannay and Lee begin most any place, developing their plots from such random starting points as an exceptionally unusual clue, a remarkable suspect or a strange background. The Queen collaboration evolved over time. "Clash of personalities is good for the ultimate product. And we fight like hell. We’re not so much collaborators as competitors. It’s produced a sharper edge."(Schenker) According to Dannay, "we tried every form of collaboration known to man" before they settled on a system that suited them. They refused to discuss their system, but in years since, their children have revealed that Fred plotted all the novels and short stories, creating the characters and providing Lee with detailed skeletons that Manfred fleshed out. Their talents determined this arrangement. 'I'm sure Dad could never have come up with the sort of plots Fred did'  son Rand Lee said in an interview. In any event, the collaboration, though loyal, was not always peaceful; the cousins frequently raged at each other, and that passion can be seen in some of the books. Rand Lee continued:
'... Dad and Fred's differences were not only professional. Often I would pick up the phone, hoping the line was free, and put down the receiver moments later with Dad and Fred's arguing voices in my ears. On one occasion, Dad threw down a plot outline and exclaimed, "He gives me the most ridiculous characters to work with and expects me to make them realistic!" Cousin Fred probably felt some frustration about Dad's treatment of his plots....'
The fact that they continued together may be as simple as 'they needed each other to create'. "The three biggest writing principles Dad taught me were (1) read omnivorously, (2) write every day, (3) and when you’ve finished your first draft, go back and cut out all the adjectives and adverbs, including adjectival and adverbial phrases and clauses. Then, on the second draft, put back in only those absolutely necessary to carry your meaning.