Q1. Hello, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
A1. Howdy! I work in mental health litigation (i.e., testifying and evaluating criminals and criminal suspects) in addition to providing therapeutic treatment. My specialty is anxiety disorders (think OCD, eating disorders, panic responses), trauma, and grief. To protect my patients, I use a pseudonym. Wouldn’t want a judge throwing me out because I know too much about crime. 😉
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing your book “Dissonance”?
A2. I love an enticing, twisty story, and I love a novel that keeps me guessing, so I challenged myself to really give the reader an enjoyable experience while still being gripped by the tension and horror.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
A3. I am a voracious reader, from classical literature to pulp detective fiction (spending my nights with Nabokov’s Despair right now), but one author really sticks out. I met Chris Claremont at a comic con a few years back, and I was overjoyed: he was the first author I ever fangirled about (don’t hate on X-Men, ya’ll). He told these intricate, soapy pieces that just happened to be about saving the world. They made me feel safe, journeying with a madcap cast of characters as they faced unbeatable odds. Sometimes they didn’t win and the people they protected hated them, but they persevered and carved out an amazing world I could get lost in. Since then, I’ve always sought out those types of books: a thrilling action piece that’s full of heart, with characters that linger long after the last page (cue loose left feeling).
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
A4. There is a small hill in Rhode Island that a friend and I decided was a mountain one day. There is something awe-inspiring that happens when two people believe in the unimaginable or the unthinkable: to this day, that mountain feels like you can reach the stars.
Q5. What inspired you to write the book ‘Dissonance’?
A5. I work in the field and many of my patients struggle with trauma and dissociation. They were feeling frustrated that no one could seem to really capture their symptoms; ditto panic attacks and flashbacks. They felt less-than and alone, underrepresented in print and digital media. I started out simply writing a short story that I felt would better illustrate their experiences. I wanted to show them as real people, not their diagnoses or a mock-up that becomes a caricature. Then those people needed a world, and here we are.
Q6. How long did it take you to write your book ‘Dissonance’?
A6. I started writing Dissonance last May. It has been through many transitions: a clip here, a tweak there. I wanted Geyer’s Lake to feel just right for a repeat visit.
Q7. On what platforms can readers buy your books?
A7. It is available as an ebook on Amazon: it will be in paperback within the next two weeks.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘Deception’?
A8. My first two beta readers (bless their hearts) finished Dissonance and immediately wanted a sequel and I thought, seriously? You want to read more of my claptrap? But they did, and my next three beta readers did as well, so I wanted to take my peeps to the carnival. I worked in a haunted house during college while I was completing research on fear. While I was there, I had all these horrible visions of what could go wrong in a place like that and then one night, it did.
The cover has some fun little clues, just like Dissonance, but the pace is faster and the ride is wild; I wanted to really get a bit darker and probe some of the trauma the characters have while examining what happens when your trauma doesn’t end.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
A9. I write a few books at a time, so I have about fifteen mapped out. To keep things fresh, I explore different avenues that are influenced by my own work in forensics as well as therapy advancements. I go to the museum and library a lot, and I find nature very inspiring. Not gonna lie, I watch way more crime docs than I should, and if the FBI gets ahold of my browsing history, I’m done.
Q10. What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing?
A10. There’s always room on the bookshelf. Don’t judge your book against anyone else’s: it is unique and beautiful, just like the author, and it will find its audience. If you love what you do, you live what you love.
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