Even Secret Service agents sometimes have to go home, but working a case amidst your childhood haunts is something no one should have to do. Maybe that's why Agent Jo Harper seems so irritated since being drawn into a search for a missing teenager in her hometown of Black Falls, Vermont. That's Elijah Cameron's theory anyway--and he's known (and been at odds with) Jo since they were kids. All Elijah's military and mountain-rescue training, however, tell him that somewhere in these rugged Green Mountains a young girl isn't just lost . . . she's on the run.With more than 10 million books in print worldwide, Carla Neggers has penned 54 novels, including 12 that have scored on the New York Times list since 2000. With her trademark blend of pulse-pounding action, romantic suspense and adventure, Carla's thrillers have been translated into 22 languages, including Russian and Japanese. In between radio interviews, she took time to sit down and answer a few questions for contributing editor, Christine Goff.
I know you started writing at a young age. Have you always written "fast-paced romantic suspense" or did you migrate there after some trial and error in other genres? Tell us a little bit about how you went from notebooks and pencils in a tree to the New York Times list.
I've always loved to write. I come from a family of great storytellers! I began my career as a journalist specializing in arts and entertainment stories, but I always had a novel or short story I was working on--having fun with, really.
Cold Pursuit is the first in a "new series." Your other books are grouped according to theme--the BPD/FBI series, the US Marshall series and the Texas Ranger series--all stand alones with different protagonists. Does "series" mean Cold Pursuit will follow Secret Service Agent Jo Harper, or is this a Secret Service series?
I have two "collections" of connected books. The Widow, The Angel, and The Mist (June 2009) are anchored in Boston with a touch of Maine and Ireland. Cold Pursuit creates what I think of as a new "universe" anchored in fictional Black Falls, Vermont, a small town in the Green Mountains with a lot happening. Jo Harper and her Secret Service friends will definitely play a role in future books. So will Charlie Neal, the vice president's genius 16-year-old son (who gets Jo in trouble).
Relationships play a large role in your stories, so what does a continuing character do to the romance?
My novels have strong female protagonists, and Jo Harper is no exception. She and Elijah Cameron grew up together--I love the scene where he remembers pushing her out of a tree into a pile of leaves as kids. My brothers, sisters and I used to do stuff like that. They're intriguing characters, and their relationship with each other, their families, their colleagues and the town of Black Falls itself are at the heart of Cold Pursuit and this "universe" of characters.
So often, Romantic Suspense or Romantic Thrillers are heavy on one side of the equation or the other. You seem to have found a perfect blend, appealing to audiences who favor both sides. How do you think you accomplish that?
For me, the key is to focus on the story that's in my head and not to get bogged down into external definitions. I have what I think of as an organic, non-linear approach to writing. I remember when an editor said she wanted a story that's 60-percent romance and 40-percent
suspense, and I just don't think that way. The romance and the suspense are integrated. I can't tweezer one out of the story. I don't think of them as separate entities.
I know the setting of Cold Pursuit is inspired by where you live. Is that what inspired you to write this story, or did the idea of a young girl on the run come from somewhere else?
I'm fascinated by search-and-rescue, which is very much a reality where I live. My two youngest brothers ran into a sudden snowstorm a couple of weeks ago hiking in the Adirondacks and were concerned they'd have to be rescued! Of course, I took notes when they told me their story. People go off-trail or get in over their heads with weather all the time. Fortunately, volunteers as well as professional search-and-rescuers are ready, willing and able to help at a moment's notice. I sat down with the head of the Vermont State Police search-and-rescue team when I researched Cold Pursuit. These people do incredible work. They're experienced, careful and dedicated. I've had a few close calls in the woods myself!
What do you hope your readers walk away with when the set down one of your books?
Whether it is the Irish neighborhoods of Boston, the bed-and-breakfasts owners of Vermont or the streets of Washington, D.C., place is important in my novels--almost a character in and of itself. It's not accidental. It influences who the characters are and the choices they face. In Cold Pursuit, Jo Harper and Elijah Cameron both are facing difficult choices and dealing with past decisions and mistakes that I think readers can identify with.
Your books have been/are book club selections, New York Times bestsellers. Do you have any loftier goals--a big award, or something that you would just die to win?
My biggest goal is to create books that readers want to read. It makes my day to receive a note from a reader who just finished one of my books and had to write and tell me how much he or she enjoyed it. We writers celebrate bestseller lists and awards -- and we should! -- but they're possible because of readers connecting with the stories we create.
I know you serve on the ITW board as Vice President-Special Projects. Is there a reason you choose to volunteer?
Writing is a solitary profession, and my work with ITW lets me interact with other writers while also doing something for the thriller community. I've had so many experts help me with research at no charge--doctors, lawyers, detectives, search-and-rescue experts, a USAF pararescueman, just to name some--that I feel I can give back by volunteering in the writing community. I can't help a pararescueman jump out of a helicopter, but I can repay his generosity by serving on the ITW board and answering new-writer questions (the most common is no surprise: "How do I get an agent?").
Before we wrap up, is there anything more that you'd like readers to know about Cold Pursuit?
Vermont was experiencing its third snowiest winter on record as I was writing Cold Pursuit, so if readers can fell the chill, now they'll know why!
Contributing editor Christine Goff is the award-winning author of the bestselling "Birdwatcher's Mystery" series. She began her career writing non-fiction for local, regional and national publication. Chosen Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' 2002 Writer of the Year, two of her novels were named finalists for the prestigious Willa Literary Award for Best Original Paperback Fiction; and her latest novel, DEATH SHOOTS A BIRDIE, was a named finalist for the Colorado Authors League 2008 Best Genre Fiction Award. Her novels focus on environmental concerns through bird-related issues. Currently, she is working on a new book; a thriller set in Israel.
I have two "collections" of connected books. The Widow, The Angel, and The Mist (June 2009) are anchored in Boston with a touch of Maine and Ireland. Cold Pursuit creates what I think of as a new "universe" anchored in fictional Black Falls, Vermont, a small town in the Green Mountains with a lot happening. Jo Harper and her Secret Service friends will definitely play a role in future books. So will Charlie Neal, the vice president's genius 16-year-old son (who gets Jo in trouble).Relationships play a large role in your stories, so what does a continuing character do to the romance?
My novels have strong female protagonists, and Jo Harper is no exception. She and Elijah Cameron grew up together--I love the scene where he remembers pushing her out of a tree into a pile of leaves as kids. My brothers, sisters and I used to do stuff like that. They're intriguing characters, and their relationship with each other, their families, their colleagues and the town of Black Falls itself are at the heart of Cold Pursuit and this "universe" of characters.
So often, Romantic Suspense or Romantic Thrillers are heavy on one side of the equation or the other. You seem to have found a perfect blend, appealing to audiences who favor both sides. How do you think you accomplish that?
For me, the key is to focus on the story that's in my head and not to get bogged down into external definitions. I have what I think of as an organic, non-linear approach to writing. I remember when an editor said she wanted a story that's 60-percent romance and 40-percent
suspense, and I just don't think that way. The romance and the suspense are integrated. I can't tweezer one out of the story. I don't think of them as separate entities.
I know the setting of Cold Pursuit is inspired by where you live. Is that what inspired you to write this story, or did the idea of a young girl on the run come from somewhere else?
I'm fascinated by search-and-rescue, which is very much a reality where I live. My two youngest brothers ran into a sudden snowstorm a couple of weeks ago hiking in the Adirondacks and were concerned they'd have to be rescued! Of course, I took notes when they told me their story. People go off-trail or get in over their heads with weather all the time. Fortunately, volunteers as well as professional search-and-rescuers are ready, willing and able to help at a moment's notice. I sat down with the head of the Vermont State Police search-and-rescue team when I researched Cold Pursuit. These people do incredible work. They're experienced, careful and dedicated. I've had a few close calls in the woods myself!
What do you hope your readers walk away with when the set down one of your books?
Whether it is the Irish neighborhoods of Boston, the bed-and-breakfasts owners of Vermont or the streets of Washington, D.C., place is important in my novels--almost a character in and of itself. It's not accidental. It influences who the characters are and the choices they face. In Cold Pursuit, Jo Harper and Elijah Cameron both are facing difficult choices and dealing with past decisions and mistakes that I think readers can identify with.
Your books have been/are book club selections, New York Times bestsellers. Do you have any loftier goals--a big award, or something that you would just die to win?
My biggest goal is to create books that readers want to read. It makes my day to receive a note from a reader who just finished one of my books and had to write and tell me how much he or she enjoyed it. We writers celebrate bestseller lists and awards -- and we should! -- but they're possible because of readers connecting with the stories we create.
I know you serve on the ITW board as Vice President-Special Projects. Is there a reason you choose to volunteer?
Writing is a solitary profession, and my work with ITW lets me interact with other writers while also doing something for the thriller community. I've had so many experts help me with research at no charge--doctors, lawyers, detectives, search-and-rescue experts, a USAF pararescueman, just to name some--that I feel I can give back by volunteering in the writing community. I can't help a pararescueman jump out of a helicopter, but I can repay his generosity by serving on the ITW board and answering new-writer questions (the most common is no surprise: "How do I get an agent?").
Before we wrap up, is there anything more that you'd like readers to know about Cold Pursuit?
Vermont was experiencing its third snowiest winter on record as I was writing Cold Pursuit, so if readers can fell the chill, now they'll know why!
Contributing editor Christine Goff is the award-winning author of the bestselling "Birdwatcher's Mystery" series. She began her career writing non-fiction for local, regional and national publication. Chosen Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' 2002 Writer of the Year, two of her novels were named finalists for the prestigious Willa Literary Award for Best Original Paperback Fiction; and her latest novel, DEATH SHOOTS A BIRDIE, was a named finalist for the Colorado Authors League 2008 Best Genre Fiction Award. Her novels focus on environmental concerns through bird-related issues. Currently, she is working on a new book; a thriller set in Israel.
