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- Author interview - |
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| Interview with Linda Opdyke, author of Lake Braxton and Stones Throw, the latter nominated for an Eppie Award. Also nominated for the Frankfurt E-book Award by the International eBook Award Foundation. Read our reviews of Stones Throw and Lake Braxton. Feature by PJ Nunn. PJ NUNN - Linda, tell us about your latest writing endeavors. LINDA OPDYKE - The book I'm currently working on is Between the Moon and Midnight. Elizabeth Walker returns to Midnight, Pennsylvania, determined to learn her dying, estranged father's role in covering the identity of her sister's killer fifteen years earlier. Her fragile mother, unable to cope with her grief, died in an asylum nine months after the murder. When Vince Walker is found smothered, Elizabeth gets another shock. Six months previously, Vince had married Emmaline McKinnon, accused killer Boone McKinnon's mother. Certain the McKinnons are working together to make sure proof of Boone's guilt never surfaces, Elizabeth can't believe what mounting evidence tells her: her father not only knew of Boone's guilt, he helped provide evidence to clear him. Who hastened the dying man to his death and why? Determined to see the man she believes a double murderer brought to justice, Elizabeth refuses Emmaline's demand that she go back to Ohio. When Elizabeth informs Emmaline she'll see Boone on death row, Emmaline warns her that meddling can be deadly. I'm trying to create multi layers and levels of suspense in Between the Moon and Midnight and I hope it works. As you know, I loved Stones Throw and the unique slant you took in Lake Braxton, the follow up. What's the plan for the next edition? Will you go on with the LB characters, or do another offshoot? Thank you for the kind words about Stones Throw and Lake Braxton. Lake Braxton is the story of Ethan "Cockeye" Jenks, the private investigator introduced near the end of Stones Throw. I'd like to create a series featuring this Nashville-based PI and his bartender wife. Reader feedback has been very favorable, so I'm developing a few ideas and situations. Each book will provide a pro vs. amateur scenario, though the competition is never intentional and the wife's involvement almost always inadvertent. Danger and trouble have a way of finding her. The descriptions of the settings in both books are so real. Are these places familiar to you? The towns of Stones Throw and Lake Braxton are fictional. But I've visited eastern Tennessee's beautiful Great Smoky Mountains (where Stones Throw is set) and the area of southern Tennessee where I set Lake Braxton. Roger Brashear of the Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee grew up in eastern Tennessee and was invaluable when it came to personal experiences about both his youth and moonshine. His stories were absolutely hilarious. The Stones Throw character of Gertie was shaped through some of the things he told me about one particular person. The research I did into mountain traditions, even just for the mountain galax and teaberries to decorate the Christmas tree, was fascinating. Tell us about some of the other things you've written. Stones Throw was my first book and Lake Braxton (Hard Shell Word Factory, July 2000) is my second. In addition to Between the Moon and Midnight set in Midnight, PA I'm working on Moonshadow, a psychological thriller, and mulling several ideas for the PI series. Has your writing won any awards? Stones Throw was named a Best of 1999 classic by Mystery Morgue, Best Pick for December 1999 by Belles & Beaux of Romance and is a finalist for an EPPIE 2000 award (given by EPIC) in the thriller category. Who are you when you're not writing? What kind of work do you do? What are your hobbies? When I'm not writing, I enjoy listening to country music, which has always inspired characters and settings for my books. Country music tells some of the best stories and provides wonderful "what if" scenarios and character sketches. I worked in various capacities, from reviewer to executive editor at several magazines, but have now turned my "work" life to fiction writing. Who or what has most influenced your writing? Different people influenced different areas of my writing. I find Sharyn McCrumb's descriptions and characterizations in the Ballad series incredibly well drawn. My goal is to convey to my readers this same type of realism, to draw them into my character's lives and make them care about what happens to them. The places I visit as potential settings are also a strong influence in that I try to make them come alive to all readers, but especially to a reader who may not ever physically visit such an area. As a writer, where do you see yourself in 10 years? I'd like to still be writing thrillers, creating plots that will keep a reader interested in the story until the end. One thing I would like to do is learn how to create a screenplay. This is something I plan to pursue in the near future. What do you enjoy most about writing? That's a hard one to answer. I enjoy almost every aspect of writing. I particularly enjoy creating characters, with all their unique quirks, habits, lives and occupations. The female protagonist in Lake Braxton is a bartender and I had fun putting drinks (descriptions and ingredients) like Knucklebuster and Blue Moon into the story. I also enjoy putting together a complex plot. I like a large cast in my books and it can be a lot of fun making sure that they're all as different as possible, yet all have one common thread. That thread is usually a murder victim. What do you find most difficult? Naming characters is something I struggle with, because a character has to "fit" his or her name and the name has to fit the character. I also find my story stalling when I haven't finalized names and this tells me I really don't have a grip on the characters yet. A lot of writers find naming characters one of the easy parts of storytelling. It's pretty much my nemesis. What is your best advice for new writers? Write what you most love to write, tell the story that you want to tell without worrying about what's currently in vogue. Listen to the sound advice, but don't change what or how you write to fit someone else's idea of writing. Read the authors you admire and understand what it is in the writing you admire, that keeps bringing you back to their work. Recognize your own writing strengths and weaknesses and adjust accordingly. Above all, be happy with what you do. To find out more about Linda Opdyke, visit her website. |
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