Looking Out the Window: Interview with Anne Patrick

FOR THOSE WHO LIKE

SUSPENSE

MEET ANNE PATRICK

Anne will give away a free download to one commenter, so be sure to leave your email address, spelling out [at] and [dot] to keep away spammers. I'll choose on Sunday night, May 16th, and announce the winner on my blog!

Hi Pat, it's so good to have you. First, tell us a little about yourself. I’m a suspense junkie with a bad habit of mixing chocolate and diet colas when writing which can, and often does, lead to mayhem. The proof being almost a dozen romantic suspense novels that are either published or under contract at this time. I do have a lighter side in the form of an alter ego named Kinzie Monroe who writes inspirational romance. When I’m not killing off people or falling in love with dashing heroes, I enjoy spending time with family and friends and traveling to foreign countries to experience new cultures.

Why do you write? Simple answer, because I have to. I get all of these story ideas bouncing around in my head, along with the voices of my characters, so I have to write or I’d go insane. It not only gives me an escape, but hopefully the reader too.

Tell us about your latest book. Ties That Bind is a paranormal romantic suspense about a FBI profiler with a very unique and, often times, dangerous gift. Here’s a blurb: Sheriff Austin Garrett enlists the help of FBI profiler, Jo McDaniels, to help him solve a string of murders plaguing his community. Unlike most profilers Jo has an unusual gift that allows her to get to know the victims better than anyone else. She not only feels their emotions; she feels their pain. But the last time she relied on her physic ability it almost cost her career as well as her sanity. As the case progresses and the body count rises they soon realize that Jo’s sanity isn’t all that is at risk.

What inspired you to write this particular book? Well, I was a huge fan of the old Profiler series and I love The Medium. I thought humm…wouldn’t it be interesting to combine the two. So I did. Jo, however, can’t communicate with the spirits she can only sense their feelings and emotions just prior to death.

How do you get to know your characters? Sometimes they visit my dreams, other times I do character profiles. I’ll have a picture in my head of what they might look like so I’ll write out a description of them; I then add their characteristics and personality traits etc. I keep all of this in a character file that I can refer to as I’m writing their story.

What themes do you write about? Murder and mayhem of course :-). I also add romance and usually an inspirational message or two.

What is your writing schedule and where do you write? Since I still have a day job, I write in the evenings and on weekends. And I can write just about anywhere. I’m never without a pad and pen. My most comfortable spot is a rocking chair. Bet you don’t know too many authors that rock and write at the same time :-). No, but it sounds relaxing and entertaining.

Are you a plotter or a pantzer? I’m a pantzer and I love it! I’ve tried plotting out my stories in detail but it never worked for me. I’ll write a brief outline of how I think the story should go, but once my characters come to life I turn the wheel over to them and just hang on for dear life.

Does your faith affect your writing? How? Most of the time. Almost all of my books have an inspirational theme or sub plot to them. I love tossing a non believer into the plot and watching them grow spiritually through the course of the story.

Do you put yourself in your books? I think every writer offers a piece of themselves in everything they write. For instance, say you’re writing a scene where the character is hurting emotionally. In order to make the scene as believable as possible, a writer must draw on personal experience. Some dark valley that they’ve gone through, in order to express the feelings the character is going through at that moment.

What is the coolest, wackiest, most risk-taking thing you’ve ever done? The coolest and most risk-taking thing I’ve done was my first mission trip to El Salvador. I’d never been outside of the country before, nor did I know the people I would be traveling with. Talk about a leap of faith! Since then we’ve traveled to other parts of the world and we’re all very good friends.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us? I would like to thank you, Gail, for having me on your blog. You’re a wonderful lady and a very talented author! I’d also like to invite people to visit my website to learn more about me and my books. Here’s the link: www.annepatrick.weebly.com