Today we sit
down for a chat with mystery and suspense author Lynn Chandler Willis.
Learn more about her and her books at her website.
When did
you realize you wanted to write novels?
In the 7th
grade. Treasure Island was required
reading that year, and I was totally mesmerized by an author’s ability to
transport a reader to an entirely different world.
How long
did it take you to realize your dream of publication?
About ten years from when I
got serious about it to the year my first book was published.
Are you
traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?
Traditionally, but open to
all means.
Where do
you write?
My kitchen table or at the
local coffee shop when I need to get out of the house.
Is silence
golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?
I need chaos or at least a
soundtrack. I can’t concentrate in silence. I’ve found my calling writing about
the Appalachian region and the people who call it home. Part of their culture
is Bluegrass and good ol’ mountain music with a lot of banjo and fiddle. Even when I’m not writing,
that’s the music I’m usually listening to.
How much of
your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in
particular?
With the Ava Logan series,
a good portion of the character and small town newspaper business is very
true-to-life. I owned and published a small-town paper for 13 years. Granted, I
didn’t have near as many murder investigations as Ava has, but I can vouch that
the small-town politics are just as a ruthless in real life!
Describe
your process for naming your character?
The name has to fit the
character’s personality and the time frame, although old-fashioned names are
becoming popular again. I’m big on the meaning behind names and try to match
the name to the character trait I’m hoping for.
Real
settings or fictional towns?
Both. In the Ava Logan
series, I use real settings and regions, even some of the towns. I make up
street names, store names, etc…
What’s the
quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?
Mary McCarter is an
Appalachian Granny Healer. In her early 70s, if you saw her today you’d think
of a 1960’s hippie. She’s quiet by nature, spiritual, and deeply in tune with
her surroundings. She and her son, Keeper, are introduced in Tell Me No Secrets and their story
continues into book three, Tell Me You
Love Me.
What’s your
quirkiest quirk?
Probably that I work best
with a lot of activity around me. Silence disrupts my concentration!
If you
could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which
one would it be? Why?
Anything by Megan Abbott –
her use of each and every word is mind-blowing. There isn’t a wasted word in
her books and even the “a” and “the” serves a purpose. Her words are pure
lyrical.
Everyone at
some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?
I wish I had stood my
ground on my first published novel and went with the opening I originally
wrote. The editor and publisher made me change it and years later I still wish
I had fought for it more.
What’s your
biggest pet peeve?
People who block the
grocery store aisle with their carts. Road rage in the grocery store LOL! And
the fact McDonald’s ice cream machines never seems to work. Other that those
two, I’m pretty easy going.
You’re
stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?
My dog Finn, pen and paper,
orange-speckled Life Savers.
What was
the worst job you’ve ever held?
A gluer in a foam
manufacturing plant. I lasted one shift LOL!
What’s the
best book you’ve ever read?
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier.
Ocean or
mountains?
Oh mountains all the way!
City
girl/guy or country girl/guy?
Country to my bones.
What’s on
the horizon for you?
I’m working on a
stand-alone in the Crime genre set – where else – in the NC mountains.
Anything
else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?
I’ve been told I write
fantastic characters who are so real they could be your neighbors. They aren’t
glamorous or rich or have fancy cars – like most people. My books aren’t
fantasy trips to exotic locations. They’re more immersive than escapist.
They’re down to earth.
Tell Me No Secrets
An Ava Logan Mystery, Book 2
In the heart of Appalachia, newspaper publisher Ava
Logan should feel joy and pride as she watches her thirteen-year-old daughter
being baptized in the cold water of Jackson Creek—but she can’t rejoice when
thoughts of an employee who failed to show for work keep pulling her attention
away.
Ava’s convinced something horrible has happened to
Scott. Then his backpack is found floating in the same river her daughter is
being baptized in.
While clue after clue leads her deeper into the
hollers of Appalachia—ripe with tradition and folktales, store front religion,
and the darkest of secrets, Ava discovers truths about those close to her and
about her own beliefs.
With her own life in jeopardy, how deep will she go
to find the truth? What secrets will she expose? What secrets will she keep?
Buy Links
2 comments:
Thank you so much for having me as a guest!
Happy to have you stop by, Lynn!
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