A Goodreads user asked Susan Strecker:

Hi Susan! I just wanted to ask about how you relate to your books. I've read them both (night blindness and nowhere girl) and they are both pretty dark. Is that something you can relate to? Will all your books be of this same vein? Thanks for your time.

Susan Strecker Hi Grey! Thanks so much for the question. And for the compliment- I consider "dark" a great thing. My favorite novelist of all time is Pat Conroy and his work was so dark and beautiful and haunting. I like to think that I got some inspiration from his books.

My characters tell the story, I'm just the vessel they use to relay their tales to the world. Jenny and Cady dictated the rhythm of the stories. While I didn't necessarily set out to write two dark books, that was the path the stories took.

I'm currently writing my fifth book. And no- the three that will follow NIGHT BLINDNESS and NOWHERE GIRL aren't nearly as dark. While there is a person who died before the story opens in books three and five (just like the first two), all three of them are much lighter and were much more fun to write.

Thanks again for the great question!

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