New York Times seller Dianna Love started writing suspense while working over a hundred feet in the air creating spectacular marketing projects for Fortune 500 companies. Her first book won the prestigious RITA award and second one debuted on the New York Times list. She writes thrillers and urban fantasy, also co-writing a thriller series with #1 New York Times bestseller Sherrilyn Kenyon - next release is WHISPERED LIES (Pocket/5/09). An international speaker, Dianna also teaches the highly-successful Break Into Fiction® Character-Driven Power Plotting program across the US.Tell us what it's like working with a co-author.
It's actually entertaining. <grin> I never planned to collaborate on anything and neither did Sherrilyn Kenyon. We'd been traveling and touring together for several years when late one night while on a trip the subject of her suspense series came up. She has a massive bestselling paranormal series with St. Martin's Press (six #1 NYTs in just over a year) and writes historical + fantasy for Avon. The suspense series with Pocket was fairly new and she didn't feel the initial books were quite up to the level she wanted. When she mentioned the current one due I started brainstorming the story for her, suggesting a much bigger premise, which she liked. She asked me to co-writer the series. My answer? My mama drowned the dumb kids. I teach classes on plotting and on building higher concept stories so I said if we were going to do this I'd like to take it up to a thriller level. Pocket and Sherri both liked that idea. The response from fans has been great so I'm thrilled.
What was your biggest challenge in writing WHISPERED LIES?
All the books now have a larger premise for the overarcing series and include Black Ops missions. I have great technical resources of homicide detectives, Special Force operative, people from FBI and DEA plus a former CIA assassin. But the research was much more extensive than that. Whispered Lies is an international thriller so we needed good resources for different countries, Interpol and languages. We found those, plus a electronic forensic expert and a former NBC anchor who helped with details on a major political event. As far as working with Sherri - I'm a plotter, Sherri's a pantser (writes by seat of pants), I'm up at 4am, she writes until 4am - but we're used to that by now. We have one rule - the story is most important and everyone's words can be edited.
How does teaching writing help you with your own craft?
Actually, I have to credit all the work Mary Buckham and I have done for several years to develop the Break Into Fiction® Character-Driven Plotting program (www.BreakIntoFiction.com) for taking my writing up to a thriller level. We've taught Power Plotting classes for new writers, multi-published mass market authors and even a Pulitzer prize winner. In doing that, we constantly see the key elements that writers miss in building their story. It's eye opening to work so many talented people and find a pattern in constant weak plotting spots. That makes you look very hard at your own writing. I also find working with other writers invigorating. I'm sincerely excited about their stories and anxious for them to move closer to publishing. Four of our 2008 students have received publishing contracts.
What's the most interesting bit of research you uncovered while working on this book?
The electronic forensics was very interesting as was researching the HAHO jump (story opens with a Black Ops mission in the French Alps where the team has to make a HAHO jump in a blizzard). We had a great resource on France, someone who lives in the Atlanta area that goes home every year to see his family.
If you could throw any two fictional characters together, who would you pick and why?
James Bond and Laura Croft - just to see who would win the alpha battle.
For more info, visit www.AuthorDiannaLove.com and www.BreakIntoFiction.com
Contributing editor Tasha Alexander
attended the University of Notre Dame, where she signed on as an
English major in order to have a legitimate excuse for spending all her
time reading. Following graduation, she played nomad for several years,
eventually settling with her family in Tennessee. When not reading, she
can be found hard at work on her next book.
All the books now have a larger premise for the overarcing series and include Black Ops missions. I have great technical resources of homicide detectives, Special Force operative, people from FBI and DEA plus a former CIA assassin. But the research was much more extensive than that. Whispered Lies is an international thriller so we needed good resources for different countries, Interpol and languages. We found those, plus a electronic forensic expert and a former NBC anchor who helped with details on a major political event. As far as working with Sherri - I'm a plotter, Sherri's a pantser (writes by seat of pants), I'm up at 4am, she writes until 4am - but we're used to that by now. We have one rule - the story is most important and everyone's words can be edited. How does teaching writing help you with your own craft?
Actually, I have to credit all the work Mary Buckham and I have done for several years to develop the Break Into Fiction® Character-Driven Plotting program (www.BreakIntoFiction.com) for taking my writing up to a thriller level. We've taught Power Plotting classes for new writers, multi-published mass market authors and even a Pulitzer prize winner. In doing that, we constantly see the key elements that writers miss in building their story. It's eye opening to work so many talented people and find a pattern in constant weak plotting spots. That makes you look very hard at your own writing. I also find working with other writers invigorating. I'm sincerely excited about their stories and anxious for them to move closer to publishing. Four of our 2008 students have received publishing contracts.
What's the most interesting bit of research you uncovered while working on this book?
The electronic forensics was very interesting as was researching the HAHO jump (story opens with a Black Ops mission in the French Alps where the team has to make a HAHO jump in a blizzard). We had a great resource on France, someone who lives in the Atlanta area that goes home every year to see his family.
If you could throw any two fictional characters together, who would you pick and why?
James Bond and Laura Croft - just to see who would win the alpha battle.
For more info, visit www.AuthorDiannaLove.com and www.BreakIntoFiction.com
Contributing editor Tasha Alexander
attended the University of Notre Dame, where she signed on as an
English major in order to have a legitimate excuse for spending all her
time reading. Following graduation, she played nomad for several years,
eventually settling with her family in Tennessee. When not reading, she
can be found hard at work on her next book.
