Interview with Chelle Corders

I met Chelle at a RWA meeting and got involved with several of her projects. Have read several of her books and enjoyed them very much. She's also responsible for my latest publisher Vanilla Heart Publishing.

1. What is your genre or do you write in more than one?

My main concentration is Romantic-Suspense although I have attempted a few forays into Mystery/Thriller.

2. Did you choose your genre or did it choose you?

I started out writing the type of story that I enjoy reading - Suspense; add to that, I am a hopeless romantic and think everyone should be in love.

3. Is there any genre you'd like to try or one you would rather avoid?

I have never been a huge Sci-Fi fan although I've been pleasantly surprised by a few good stories, but I don't think I have the type of knowledge necessary to write a successful and believable Science-Fiction... maybe one day I will try only because I believe in stretching oneself.

4. What fiction do you read for pleasure?

Love stories, romantic fiction, romantic suspense - I don't care for the old stereotype of romance with the helpless damsel in distress (most romance has NOT been about that thank goodness). I like to read about men and women who are strong (emotionally) and yet human with flaws,

5. Tell me a bit about yourself and how long you've been writing?

I've been writing... forever. My writing career has grown in stages but the earliest writing goes back to my childhood when my sister and I wrote a poem/story about Martians! I went to school for theatre and drama, and my courses included playwriting and reviewing. I also studied Creative Writing under the guidance of poet Daisy Aldan.

I wrote my first (published) newspaper article when I was 19. "Many" years later when I was pregnant with our daughter I started writing full-time for newspapers and magazines (hard news, advertorial, human interest, and opinion pieces). My first novel with Vanilla Heart Publishing came out in 2008.

6. Which of your characters is your favorite and where can she be found?

This is difficult because I tend to fall in love with all of my main characters.

It's a choice between 2 for heroines - Caitlyn from His Lucky Charm (formerly Forgotten) and Julie from Final Sin. Caitlyn lost a lot in her young life and yet, while it has left her with some insecurities, she is an amazingly upbeat person, very devoted to family and very supportive of those she cares about. Julie in Final Sin has a wild, untamed streak which I can relate to - she is also a Paramedic which is a profession I hold in very high regard. She is intelligent, devoted to her patients, thinks quickly and shows courage in her job and life.

Although you asked "where can she be found", I also have a favorite male character - Tom Hughes. Tom is introduced in His Lucky Charm and has his own story in Within the Law. Tom is Caitlyn's cousin and best friend, he is patient, down to earth, emotionally and physically strong - and ALL Alpha male with just a touch of bad boy in him.

7. Are there villains in your books and how are they created?

What is life without some "bad guys"? Villains can be bad or evil for a variety of reasons - cruelty, selfishness, obstinancy, and of course outright dastardliness. I don't believe that anyone is all good or all bad, people make their own choices as to which path to follow. Believe it or not, a "good guy" and a "bad guy" can share the same motivations, it's how they go about achieving their goals that makes a difference. The villain, or bad guy, thinks only of their needs and wants and is inconsiderate of other people's feelings. Most bad guys are rationale even if not admirable - although the occasional psychopath (as in Final Sin) certainly makes life interesting!

8. What are you working on now?

I am following up on one of the supporting characters from Final Sin - Matt Garratti, Julie's good friend and former Paramedic partner. Matt is now married with a family and he's made changes in his career and venue - he is now a Flight Medic in North Carolina. Like Final Sin, this book will also be a Mystery/Thriller.

9. How did the idea for your latest release occur and what is the name of the book?

Common Bond, Tangled Hearts. I had overheard a conversation about a woman who decided she had reached a point in her life where she wanted to be a parent so she was going to a clinic to be artificially inseminated. My overactive imagination wondered how much connection there was to the biological donors/parents.There is an expression that any man can be a father but it takes a special man to be a dad; Justin and Layne find out just how true that is.

10. How does your latest book open? Include the first bit 400 to 500 words.

Confrontation - both my readers and the main characters are thrown directly into the first abrasive meeting between parents of the same child. A lot of questions remain to be answered.

~~~~~

If he was reading her surprised expression right, she was expecting somebody else to be on the other side of the door when she swung it wide open. Cautiously, the willowy blonde pushed the door partly closed before politely inquiring if she could help him.

Justin took his time letting his eyes roam from her short, tousled hair down to her very long legs. He noticed, in typical male fashion, how very shapely those long legs were. She was wearing a loose fitting shirt and cut off jeans, her feet were bare.

Layne felt uncomfortable as the stranger's eyes made their leisurely excursion. She closed the door just a little bit more and then fortified her courage with the thought that her nosy neighbor, Mrs. Addamson, would open her door at the least little yell she might make.

"Is there something you want?" She impatiently asked him and then blushed when his eyes flew up to meet hers with an amused smile.

Oh baby, where have you been all my life? He thought and then smiled politely. "I was looking for…" he carefully checked a piece of paper he held in his hand. "…for Layne Gillette." Justin said 'Lane'.

She refrained from correcting his pronunciation. For the last few years, Layne had explained to people that it was pronounced like Janie except with an L.

"Who's asking?" No matter that he seemed to fit the exact description of tall, dark and handsome that she and her friends always joked about, she was wary of any stranger who came looking for her.

"My name is Justin Ross…" He waited just a moment to see if there was any recognition, he was disappointed. "I was told that Layne Gillette lives here."

"It's Lay-nee…" She was expressionless.

"Hi, I take it you're Lay-nee?" His eyebrows arched as he emphasized the proper

pronunciation.

"What do you want?" Layne inconspicuously braced herself against the door so she could slam it forcefully in his face if need be.

"It's… uh… personal. May I come in?" He was mesmerized by her golden eyes.

"No." She was firm.

It took a moment before her refusal totally sunk in. Not many dared to refuse Justin Ross anything. He took a deep breath in and started to patiently explain to her that he needed to speak with her privately. "Look, I just came a long way… and we really need to talk…"

"Hey Mom, is that Rita?" The childlike voice startled the both of them. Layne turned her head to answer when Justin pushed on the door with his hand and knocked her off-balance. The door swung open and Justin got his first look at the little boy who had his mother's golden eyes. Like his own hair, the boy had jet-black curly locks and the contrast was extraordinary.

Writer Interview -- Marilyn Meredith

I met Marilyn at the first EPICON in Omaha and while we remain mostly online friends, I enjoy spending time with her talking about writing and other things when we meet in various cities for the conference.

1. What's your genre or do you write in more than one?

For the last few years I've been writing mysteries--two a year, actually, since I have two series, the Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series (Dispel the Mist is the latest) and the Rocky Bluff P.D. crime series, (An Axe to Grind is the lastest.)

2. Did you choose your genre or did it choose you? I love to read mysteries, and it seemed logical for me to write them too.

3. Is there any genre you'd like to try or one you wouldn't?

I've written historical family sagas and a romance with a touch of the supernatural. It's been an e-book for a long time, but the publisher of my Rocky Bluff P.D. series is bringing it out as a trade paperback.

I know I couldn't write erotic romance or fantasy or science fiction.

4. What fiction do you read for pleasure? I still usually read mysteries, though once in awhile I'll read something on the best seller list.

5. Tell me a bit about yourself and how long you've been writing.

I've been writing since I was a kid--but didn't get published until 1981. I grew up in Los Angeles and got married right after I graduated to the cute sailor I met on a blind date. We had five children and though I wrote things like PTA newsletters and plays for my Camp Fire Girls to perform in, my fiction writing was put on a back burner for a long while. I had lots of jobs along the way, telephone operator, teacher in a pre-school for developmentally disabled kids, and I also taught in day care. For 23 years my husband and I lived in and ran our own residential care home for 6 developmentally disabled women. That's when I really started writing on a regular basis.

6. Which of your characters is your favorite and why?

I am very fond of Deputy Tempe Crabtree, a Native American. I've loved learning about her Indian heritage and figuring out ways to use in in my books. She is very real to me and I know her better than I know any of my family or friends--because I know how she thinks.

7. Are there villains in your stories and how are they created? Because I'm writing murder mysteries, every book has a villain--some worse than others. I have to create someone who would have motive enough to kill another person--and something that's fun to do.

8. What are you working on now? I just started writing a new Rocky Bluff P.D. which doesn't have a title as yet. That series has an ensemble cast; members of the Rocky Bluff P.D. and their families. Each book features different characters, though alll of them appear. This particular book is going to focus on Gordon Butler, a patrol officer who has been the comic relief in several books, in this book he's going to come into his own and be the hero.

9. What's your latest release and how did the idea arrive? An Axe to Grind is the latest in the Rocky Bluff P.D. series and I got the idea when I attended an Sisters in Crime meeting and heard a coroner tell about a murder victim who's been decapitated. (He even showed us slides.)

Dispel the Mist came about because I learned about the Hairy Man, the Big Foot like creature our local Indians believe in and knew I had to incorporate him in a story.

10. How does the book open? This is the opening scene of An Axe to Grind.

Chapter 1



Sergeant Abel Navarro fought to keep from gagging. It wasn’t only from the smell, though that was bad enough.

“Somebody really did a job on the poor slob.” Officer Gordon Butler spoke from the open front door.

“You could say that." Abel shook his head, had to be the understatement of all time. His wife, Maria, would have a fit if she knew he was in a room with this much spilled blood without any protective gear on. As a nurse, she’d lectured him many times about how airborne droplets of blood could contain the HIV virus along with other terrible diseases. He’d have to take his chances. Until the detectives arrived, there wasn’t anything he could do except make sure no one messed with the crime scene.

“You didn’t touch anything, did you, Butler?”

“Nope. Only poked my head in the door. It was obvious from here the guy was dead.” Gordon was the newest and youngest officer on the Rocky Bluff P.D. Mostly because of his gung-ho attitude, he had a record of mishaps. He’d calmed down a bit, and finally earned the respect of most of his fellow officers.

There wasn’t any need for medical help, though the EMT’s would arrive soon. The victim’s body lay sprawled in a pool of blood that had emptied from the neck cavity. The head was missing. Abel couldn’t spot it from where he stood about two feet inside the modest living room. Globs of blood and rivulets decorated the plain white walls, the beige slip-covered lumpy couch, and light green overstuffed chair. In fact, there didn’t seem to be any surface free from congealing spots of blood.

“What brought you to the scene?” Abel asked.

“Paperboy,” Gordon said. “Poor kid’s pretty shook up. Got him sitting in my unit now. He was collecting, went to knock on the door and realized it was open. Gave it a shove and this is what he saw. Jumped on his bike and went racing down the street. Flagged me down. I took one peek inside and called it in.” Gordon’s cheeks flamed red. Obviously, what he’d seen had shaken him too.

“I got your call about twenty minutes ago, around seven-thirty and notified Milligan and Marshall. They should be heading for the crime scene about now.” Abel longed to be outside to breathe in the fresh sea air. He would never get used to the pungent coppery smell of freshly spilled blood, the sickening stench of evacuated bowels and urine. Though murder wasn’t unknown in the seaside community of Rocky Bluff, this was one of the most brutal and gory he’d ever seen.

“Anyone around when you drove up?” Abel asked.

“Nope.” Butler nearly filled the open door with his bulk. His arms were crossed over his massive chest, and dark glasses hid his eyes. Bright pink colored his cheeks.

Abel glanced again at the victim, ignoring the gore, he took in the fact that the body was that of a white male. Including the missing head, he would be around five-foot-ten, slim build, no noticeable tattoos on his arms. The body was clothed in a striped polo shirt, khaki pants and sneakers. He had on a watch, but no rings. Studying the rather plain room, except for the body and the blood, nothing seemed out of place. It was an ordinary living room in an ordinary small rental.

The sound of squeaky brakes announced the arrival of at least one of the detectives. Taking care to walk out exactly as he’d come in, Abel stepped outside.
Marilyn

http://fictionforyou.com

http://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com