Author Interview - Colleen Coble - Part II

Welcome back, Colleen! Let's jump right into our Q&A session.

4.  Our readers would be interested in your writing process. Would you share your methodology? Plotter/SOTP?

I'm kind of in between but mostly SOTP. I start off with an interesting premise and some kind of fun conflict between my protagonists. I often don't even know who the murderer is myself though. I've tried plotting, but it takes the fun out of it for me if I know who did it. :) So I throw my characters into harrowing circumstances and see what happens.

5.  Every writer has research secrets. Do you have any tips for our readers on conducting research?

I approach research a little differently. I start with a PLACE. People in Michigan's Upper Peninsula are different from people in Arizona. And the things that are in the news are different. So I figure out where I'd like to set a story, and then I read history and newspapers in that area to get a feel for the kind of people who settled there and the interests they might have. It really gets my creative juices flowing.

6. What new projects are in the pipeline? Will there be a new release in 2011?

There is always something going on! In April the 3rd book in the Mercy Falls series will release. It's called The Lightkeeper's Ball, and the cover is just fabulous. In October my 4th Lonestar book ships. Lonestar Angel is my favorite in that series. I've also done something new and fun with my writing buds, Kristin Billerbeck, Denise Hunter, and Diann Hunt. It's a novel in four parts called Smitten. It's about four friends who decide to save their dying Vermont village by turning it into the romance capital of the world by playing off the town's name. The fun thing is that our characters have our own personalities!

I'm planning a new contemporary series right now too set in an imaginary town in North Carolina called Hope Beach. I'm excited about it too.

Thank you, Colleen, for sharing your great insights and writing tips. I'm writing notes on your SOTP approach and research. No wonder I can't figure out whodunnit as I'm reading! You keep yourself in suspense as well as the reader. :)

Question for Readers:  Have you read any of Colleen's novels? Which one is your favorite?

Question for Writers:  I thought Colleen's SOTP and research approaches were unique. Do you have some unusual research tips? Do you think you might try starting out with finding a setting for your characters before you get into the plot?

Author Interview - Colleen Coble - Part I

Bio: Best-selling author Colleen Coble's novels have won or finaled in awards ranging from the Best Books of Indiana, ACFW Book of the Year, RWA's RITA, the Holt Medallion, the Daphne du Maurier, national REaders' Choice, and the Booksellers Best. She has nearly 2 million books in print and writes romantic mysteries because she loves to see justice prevail. Colleen is CEO of American Christian Fiction Writers and is a member of Romance Writers of America. She lives with her husband, Dave, in Indiana. Visit her website at http://www.colleencoble.com/.

1. Welcome to Christian Writer/Reader Connection, Colleen! How did you select romantic suspense as your genre?

Oh, I love suspense and mystery! I grew up on Nancy Drew and love that element in stories. And I'm also all about relationship. I love watching interactions between men and women.

2.  I noticed your books moved from a contemporary timeframe to a historical period. What influenced this switch?

My early books were prairie romance. I love history, and I asked my editor about doing a historical series that incorporated my love of suspense as well. It's been fun to go back to my roots, but I will likely never do historicals exclusively. I love normal romantic suspense too much to give it up.

3) You are one of the few authors who keeps me guessing about whodunnit. Where do you get your ideas?

The ideas come from everywhere! The Rock Harbor series came from an article in a hunting magazine, of all places! I was in a doctor's office, and there was nothing there to read but several hunting magazines. I was desperate though, so I  picked up one and ran across an article about search and rescue in Yellowstone. I thought it would be an interesting profession for my protagonist, and that series is one of my most popular. The Aloha Reef series came after watching a documentary about how the Navy was using dolphins to search for bombs during the first Iraqi war.

Question for Readers: When your favorite authors change genres, do you stick with them?

Question for Writers:  Colleen brought up interesting professions for her protagonists. How do you decide on your characters' career paths?

Next week, we'll continue with Part II of our interview with Colleen. She has an interesting approach to research.