She plays journalist Nell Serrano, a writer who reluctantly accepts an assignment on the obituary beat.
She returned home to Southern California after a few years of making very bad choices and the character is trying to get back on solid ground.
But once she starts her new writing gig, she quickly discovers that, yes, "she sees dead people."
"She is an unfortunate, self-described disaster," said Rodriguez. "She was on one path and it's crumbled underneath her. She's picking up, going back to her old friends, family, job... and gets stuck writing obituaries."
Rodriguez said it took her a bit of time to find just the right story that would bring her back to television following her Golden Globe-winning role on "Jane the Virgin."
She said Nell's imperfect journey spoke to her.
"To see this character at the center of a tornado, messing up, making mistakes, being surrounded by redemption and forgiveness and people wanting to help her learn really felt like something I wanted to tell right now," said Rodriguez.
"Not Dead Yet" airs Wednesday nights on ABC.