Ask the Author: Maris Soule
Answered Questions (8)
Maris Soule
I have so many books on my to-be-read list, I'm not sure where to start. For a book club I belong to, I picked Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham to discuss, so I know I'll be reading that book. While at Sleuthfest 17 last February, I picked up books by David Baldacci and Reed Farrel Coleman, so those are on my list, and I recently downloaded Foreign Eclairs by Julie Hyzy. There are more, but I need to get off the computer so I can start reading.
Maris Soule
I'm trying to think of mysteries in my own life. There have been people I knew who have disappeared from my life. I would love to know what happened to them, what they are now doing, but I don't see those stories as interesting enough for a book. There's one person I knew well for a couple years who later wouldn't acknowledge any contact. I wish I knew why. I suppose a plot could be developed around that, but it's not one I wish to pursue. Where I get my ideas are from events that don't touch me personally but trigger my imagination. Two hunters being killed not far from where I lived triggered the idea for THE CROWS. Seeing a boat explode on Lake Tahoe, tossing its two occupants into the lake, triggered the idea for EAT CROW AND DIE. Watching a TV interview of Elizabeth Smart triggered the idea for ECHOES OF TERROR.
Maris Soule
This is a difficult question to answer. I've always madeup stories in my head, even when I was a child, so, with me, the inspiration is simply something I feel the need to do. What triggers a story idea? That might be listening to someone tell about an experience in his/her life, it might be an article I read in the paper, something on the news, or even a TV show or book that gets me thinking, "Instead of this, what if this happened?" Once that occurs, the idea takes form until I finally feel the need to write it down.
Maris Soule
I've only really run into this situation once. What I finally discovered was I was asking a character to do something that was against his nature. Once I figured that out and made adjustments in the direction of the story, the block was gone.
Maris Soule
My characters become real to me, so when I meet people who have read my books, and we can talk about the characters as if they are mutual friends, it's a great feeling.
Maris Soule
Read the type of books you want to write (you can learn a lot from reading others), don't simply aspire, actually write. Even if what you write isn't wonderful, you'll be learning from the experience. And finally, don't give up. Keep trying. Perseverence sells more books than anything else.
Maris Soule
I'm working on a short story (or maybe it's a novella) of what happens to P.J. Benson and Wade Kingsley after the end of EAT CROW AND DIE.
Maris Soule
With A KILLER PAST, I'd watched Nakita on TV and started wondering what an assassin would be like in her 70s...and what if no one (not even her family) knew what she'd done in her 20s.
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May 22, 2017 02:04PM · flag
May 22, 2017 06:33PM · flag