Secrets from the past.
Voices from the grave.
Because nothing stays buried forever...
Cypress Bend, Florida, is a small southern bayou town filled with long-buried secrets. It's also the home of successful, fiercely independent state prosecutor Grace Courtemanche, who's pulled into a world of terror and self-doubt when she receives a phone call from a young woman buried alive.
In a race to stop a revenge-seeking killer, Grace unearths skeletons from her past along with feelings for the one man she swore she'd never need again, Theodore "Hatch" Hatcher, a rootless, smooth-talking FBI crisis negotiator who's back in Cypress Bend to deal with a secret of his own.
Here are Shelley's answers to some questions:
According to your website bio, you used to write restaurant reviews. How did this segue into writing fiction, and can you tell us more about your path toward publication?
SHELL: A woefully practical writer, I knew
that it was hard to make a living as a fiction writer, so I worked as a
journalist for more than twenty years. My first job: covering high school
sports at age sixteen for my local paper where I got paid $2 an inch. Since
then I’ve worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, speechwriter, and
when my kids came along, I picked up freelance work, including a cushy
assignment as a restaurant reviewer for a national on-line entertainment guide.
And while I was paying my mortgage with
non-fiction work, I’d spend early mornings and weekends writing fiction. It
took me five manuscripts and five years before I got my first New York offer.
There’s nothing sexy about my journey: Write. Edit. Repeat. (And show gratitude
along the way!)
Gratitude is definitely important!
THE BURIED has a great villain called The Gravedigger. How did the character come to you, and what suggestions do you have for making villains memorable?
THE BURIED has a great villain called The Gravedigger. How did the character come to you, and what suggestions do you have for making villains memorable?
SHELL: As a child I had reoccurring nightmares
about being buried alive. Horrible, huh? Makes a soul long for those anxiety
dreams about forgetting your locker combination or showing up to work in your
underwear. Writing THE BURIED and creating the Gravedigger was an exploration
of one of my deepest terrors. But by tacking the fear through story,
I controlled the terror and guaranteed myself happily ever after.
As for what makes a villain memorable, three
things. The best villains are passionate and willing to die for their causes,
2) have some redeeming qualities that allow us to relate to them, and 3) are
smart enough, strong enough, and motivated enough to battle our heroes and
heroines.
It's great when we can confront fears through writing. And I loved the voice in your YA book, WELCOME
CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE. What do you like most about writing YA, and how does it
differ from crafting Romantic Suspense?
SHELL: All of my books feature relatively
strong, independent women not afraid to speak their minds and live their
truths, regardless of age. In YA, I love the raw truth and hope that defines
the genre. Interestingly enough, crafting YA and romantic suspense is the same
process. One character. One life-changing moment. One transformational journey.
So true! In your "Dream, Dare, Do"
workshop, you offer some excellent tips on how to create an effective business
plan. In your experience, what are the key advantages to having a business
plan?
SHELL: Crafting a business plan makes most of
us better business owners. It forces us to think ahead, set goals, determine
strategies, anticipate challenges, and define opportunities. Ultimately,
business plans keep us on course and on fire about our writing. Here’s a simple
business planning template for your readers.
Thanks for having me, Karen! Joy & Peace
to you and your readers!
And thank you, Shelley, especially for including the business plan template!
To grab THE BURIED for yourself, and its predecessor, THE BROKEN, click the links below:And click here to get WELCOME CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE:
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