Today I am interviewing the fantastic author Sloan McBride. I have had the joy of reading both this book, which I will be discussing today, Together in Darkness and one of her other books. The main story of Together in Darkness is about a woman named Allison Brody and the visions she has as well as how she sees through the eyes of the murderer.
This is definitely a change from your historical book Highland Stone, what made you want to write this book?
The characters called to me. I couldn’t ignore them.
With how well described some of the processes were for the police force, how much research did you have to do? And did you have a contact you could ask your questions to?
Actually yes. My family and I went to Gloucester, MA for vacation and while I was there, I went to the police station, explained that I was writing a book set in Gloucester and had questions. I spoke with a patrolman, a sergeant, and then they passed me on to the Lieutenant who was wonderful about explaining the whole procedure to me from start to finish. The whole time I was writing and rewriting Together in Darkness, the Lieutenant and I e-mailed and I would send him scenes to make sure they were accurate. He was a great help.
I do not want to give any of this book away but did you find it difficult to write about the hero Jake and the man behind the murders? How did you keep them straight?
The killer is hell-bent on revenge. When I was in his head, I saw pain and red hot rage. Jake is driven and wants to put an end to the madness. He believes he’s the only one who can do it. I knew which one I had each time I wrote their parts of the story.
Was there something that gave you the premise for this story?
I can’t really say there was. The idea for Together in Darkness just came to me one night. It just popped into my head, which is what often happens when I come up with a story idea. Unfortunately, I don’t have any funny anecdotes or stories to tell about how I devised the plot. : -(
Was there any part of the story that you struggled with the most?
Honestly, when I first wrote the book, Allison was not psychic. I had completed the book but it didn’t sing to me, so I went back and rewrote it adding the paranormal angle and it worked.
Besides writing these well developed stories, is there anything you like to do in your free time?
I rarely have free time these days, but I read a lot, and listen to music which has always been my passion. Throw in a husband, a house, two children and two dogs, and I stay pretty much busy all the time.
Do you have a job outside of writing and how do you manage to balance them both?
I do have a full time job as a legal secretary. Sometimes it isn’t easy to balance. When my head gets locked on a project or doing something with the kids, the stories lay dormant until I’m able to sit down in front of the computer and write again. The summer is actually worse because the kids are out of school and the daily routine is all messed up.
Are you the type of person who likes quiet or music?
Sometimes I’ll listen to certain types of music to put me in the mood to write a specific story, but when I actually sit down to write, I like complete quiet which rarely happens at my house. I have to learn to tune things out. LOL
Since you have written more than one type of story, is there something that you still have not written that you would like to?
There are a couple of ideas I have roaming around in my head. I plan on writing a story set in the future and it will depict what the world becomes after global warming.
Having accomplished your goal of selling all three of your finished books in one year, what are your new goals?
To keep writing good stories that people enjoy and hopefully get to a point where I’ll be able to write full time and quit the day job. : -)
Any final words you would like to share us?
I would like to thank you for doing this interview and giving readers a chance to get to know me and a little bit about how I work. I hope everyone enjoys reading the books as much as I enjoy writing them.
I have truly enjoyed learning a little more about you. I enjoyed Together in Darkness so much. It definitely is worth your time. Thank you so much, Ms. McBride for taking time out to share your thoughts with us.
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