Writing Sabotage was such fun for me because the stable setting is, well, one of my favorite places. I know horses. I love riding. I love equestrian competitions. And what fun to write about something I love. But also difficult. In writing this, I often caught myself going into too much detail about the horses, or breeds, or riding techniques. I had to say, hey! Not everyone cares about this! LOL!
But, here’s what readers will love about this story and the reason it made such a perfect suspense setting—in case you didn’t know...there’s always lots of drama in barns, plenty of gossip, and a certain mystery about horse people that I don’t even think horse people quite understand. It was a great place for a murder and a romance.
Another factor in this story came from my own reading. When I started writing Sabotage, I had just finished a non-fiction book about a rescue ranch (Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch). The book got me thinking about these people (a couple) who run this nonprofit organization, which now has national acclaim—I wondered how they got started and who were they before they went into this unusual ministry. I knew they would have to be people who love horses, who know horses, but who also had a calling to serve in the ministry.
But to me the most interesting thing that occurred while I was writing Sabotage was my psychological discovery in the character of Emilie. I really had to get inside her and figure out what it was that made her want to win so badly. In the end, her character surprised me. I’ve always thought it was an overabundance of self-confidence that made athletes want to win. But that’s not always it. In fact, I started to see (in this case anyway) that Emilie needed to win as a way to reaffirm her importance in the world. While Emilie is brave and willing to take risks, she is not all that confident. Much of her drive is really a quest to understand herself better. So in fact, even though she’s an Olympic athlete, she’s really no different than the rest of us!
I hope you’ll read Sabotage and find out what happens to Emilie. Thanks for stopping by!
But, here’s what readers will love about this story and the reason it made such a perfect suspense setting—in case you didn’t know...there’s always lots of drama in barns, plenty of gossip, and a certain mystery about horse people that I don’t even think horse people quite understand. It was a great place for a murder and a romance.
Another factor in this story came from my own reading. When I started writing Sabotage, I had just finished a non-fiction book about a rescue ranch (Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch). The book got me thinking about these people (a couple) who run this nonprofit organization, which now has national acclaim—I wondered how they got started and who were they before they went into this unusual ministry. I knew they would have to be people who love horses, who know horses, but who also had a calling to serve in the ministry.
But to me the most interesting thing that occurred while I was writing Sabotage was my psychological discovery in the character of Emilie. I really had to get inside her and figure out what it was that made her want to win so badly. In the end, her character surprised me. I’ve always thought it was an overabundance of self-confidence that made athletes want to win. But that’s not always it. In fact, I started to see (in this case anyway) that Emilie needed to win as a way to reaffirm her importance in the world. While Emilie is brave and willing to take risks, she is not all that confident. Much of her drive is really a quest to understand herself better. So in fact, even though she’s an Olympic athlete, she’s really no different than the rest of us!
I hope you’ll read Sabotage and find out what happens to Emilie. Thanks for stopping by!
Kit Wilkinson