Ask the Author: Anna Willett
Answered Questions (7)
Anna Willett
There is always an amount of research that goes into my books, especially when I’m writing about crime and police procedure. I take care to stick as close to the exact method as possible so that the story is authentic. Whether or not the reader is familiar with Australian law and process, I think as an author, I owe them realism.
To gain a better understanding of the process of investigation, I discuss the story with a former police detective. Having an expert on hand is a marvelous resource for a writer. His input gives me an insight into how specific crimes and investigations should be approached. Posing scenarios and discussing the what-ifs help me get a clear idea of how my characters would behave. I even go as far as discussing the way certain places might smell – you can never make a story too real!
To gain a better understanding of the process of investigation, I discuss the story with a former police detective. Having an expert on hand is a marvelous resource for a writer. His input gives me an insight into how specific crimes and investigations should be approached. Posing scenarios and discussing the what-ifs help me get a clear idea of how my characters would behave. I even go as far as discussing the way certain places might smell – you can never make a story too real!
Anna Willett
Hi, I’m so pleased you enjoyed Cold Valley Nightmare.
There’s definitely more to Lucy’s story and the lives of the cast of characters that surround her so I’m not ruling out another book. I have an idea for the next instalment but for the time being, I’ve put it on the backburner while I work on a new thriller. But I’m sure I’ll be revisiting Lucy Hush later this year.
Thanks for asking.
There’s definitely more to Lucy’s story and the lives of the cast of characters that surround her so I’m not ruling out another book. I have an idea for the next instalment but for the time being, I’ve put it on the backburner while I work on a new thriller. But I’m sure I’ll be revisiting Lucy Hush later this year.
Thanks for asking.
Anna Willett
It’s difficult to name one as there are so many authors I enjoy. At a push, I’d say Thomas Harris and his series of novels about the cannibalistic serial killer, Dr Hannibal Lector. I’ve read that Harris writes slowly, fastidiously referencing. Before his success as a writer, he worked as a crime reporter with an eye for detail, developing an intimate knowledge of police procedure and criminal psychology. I think it’s his attention to detail and masterful knowledge, not to mention his terrifying imagination, that produced what I consider to be a modern masterpiece; The Silence of the Lambs.
Anna Willett
When I was fourteen, a classmate of mine got off the bus on a Saturday afternoon and waved goodbye to her best friend - another classmate - and vanished. The girl’s disappearance changed the way I viewed life and remained a mystery for almost ten years. Her body was discover only a few hundred metres from that bus stop, buried under concrete at the back of a shop. A place I’d passed hundreds of times, alone and with friends.
Even though the mystery has been solved, it’s still a haunting event. On occasion, I still pass that shop. I think of that girl, still fourteen in my memory and wonder, why her? Why that day? Was she the first?
I write thrillers, trying to assemble the questions and answers into something that’s entertaining and as real as I dare make them.
Even though the mystery has been solved, it’s still a haunting event. On occasion, I still pass that shop. I think of that girl, still fourteen in my memory and wonder, why her? Why that day? Was she the first?
I write thrillers, trying to assemble the questions and answers into something that’s entertaining and as real as I dare make them.
Anna Willett
I’d have to say Sherlock Holmes and his friend and biographer Dr Watson. First created in 1887 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes and Watson have become the most portrayed movie characters in history. I first read a collection of stories featuring Holmes and Watson when I was a teenager and became a huge fan. For me, the duo never lost their appeal.
Anna Willett
I usually have at least two ideas working their way around my mind. Over time, one will begin to develop and come to the foreground. Once I can't stop thinking about the characters, story and what ifs, I know it's time to start writing.
Anna Willett
I came up with the idea of putting an ordinary couple in an extraordinary situation and making both vulnerable in some way. It was an idea that had been dwelling on the edge of my imagination for a long time and the more I thought about it, the more details began to fill in.
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