We are delighted to welcome author Terry Lynn Thomas to Omnimystery News today.
Terry's debut novel of suspense is The Spirit of Grace (Black Opal Books; January 2016 trade paperback and ebook formats) and we recently had the opportunity to spend some time with her talking about her work.
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Omnimystery News: Introduce us to the lead character in The Spirit of Grace.
Photo provided courtesy of
Terry Lynn Thomas
Terry Lynn Thomas: Sarah Jane Bennett is a tenacious young woman, who sets out against all odds to prove that she didn't kill her mother. Not only is she proving this to her family, she is also proving this to herself. She doesn't remember the night her mother died, and she sets out to prove her innocence and exonerate herself. In the process, she discovers she has a unique ability — which I won't share here because I don't want to spoil the plot — this ability is a curse and a blessing, and it causes Sarah a lot of grief. Sarah's uniqueness affords me a lot of opportunities to land Sarah in hot water, and I hope my readers will be entertained by her efforts to help herself and others.
OMN: As the first book in a series, how do you see her developing as a character over time.
TLT: I think it is really important for series characters to arc over time. People change in the course of day-to-day living, and if your characters are experiencing dramatic situations — which they should be, so your readers don't fall asleep — it is natural that they will develop and deepen as human beings. I also think it's important the characters' relationships (either good or bad) with other characters in the book change and grow. These shifting relationships can often form a launching pad for story ideas, and sub-plots, especially if your characters are quirky and unusual.
I like giving my characters some internal struggle that they will slowly come to terms with, and this enlightenment, or "coming to terms," if you will, is the basis for the character arcs that can often perpetuate the plot.
OMN: What was one of the more challenging aspects of creating this character?
TLT: I think the most important thing a writer can do for her readers is to write with an authentic voice. Sarah Jane developed over time, and I knew just what kind of a woman she was going to be at the beginning of Grace, and I knew how the events of the story would change her. As Sarah's story unfolds, her voice will change as she grows and changes.
OMN: Suppose Sarah Jane were interviewing you. How would the conversation start?
TLT: Spoilers ahead!
Sarah Jane: Terry, why did you make me a medium? Most people think I'm crazy, and the ones that don't just want me to tell their future or pick the winning horse at Golden Gate Fields. This is a burden to bear at this time. No one understands me. The asylum was awful!
Terry: Sarah Jane, I've always had a love of ghost stories, but I wanted to put a spin on it, and give you an interesting life purpose: to serve the spirits who haven't crossed over. I wanted you to help them clean up their mess, so they can cross over. The funny thing is, Sarah, that the spirits who you are supposed to be helping, often help you. You manage to get yourself into the most ridiculous situations. Oh, and Sarah, you really need to do something with that smart mouth. You're getting quite an attitude!
OMN: Into which genre would you place this book?
TLT: This is a great question, and one that I've been grappling with since Grace released. I realize from a marketing perspective genre classification is a must, but Grace is a hard one to categorize. The series is certainly a mystery series, and there's not much violence, so cozy mystery is probably an appropriate category. I like to think of Grace as a modern gothic, with a strong heroine, who gets herself into and out of trouble because of her insatiable curiosity and her deep seated need to help others.
OMN: Tell us something about the book that isn't mentioned in the publisher's synopsis.
TLT: Zeke, Sarah's love interest, is a world traveler, who works closely with the FBI to thwart subversives and Nazi sympathizers on US soil. He has saved a lot of lives, and will never get credit for it, as he works undercover. He knows what Sarah is capable of, how she can see things (he doesn't use the "G"/ghost word), and he lets her be that, without judging her or interfering. I respect him for that.
OMN: When starting a new book, which comes first: the characters or the storyline?
TLT: I usually come up with the storyline, the opening sentence, and the last sentence, and then the plot starts to gel from there. I will have a loose synopsis, and then I start developing my cast.
OMN: How much of your own personal or professional experience have you included in the book?
TLT: People ask me all the time if Sarah is fashioned after me, and I always respond that Sarah is an amalgam of all the strong women I have known. Other than that, my characters and plots are all the result of my twisted imagination.
OMN: Tell us a little more about your writing process.
TLT: I write a detailed outline, including character sketches, and scene sketches, for all my books. After that is finished, I write a detailed synopsis, with the time, date, and location of the scene. I give myself carte blanche to deviate from my outline, but it feels good knowing I have a map, just in case I get lost while writing act two.
OMN: How do you go about researching the plot points of your stories?
TLT: My books are set in the 1940s in the San Francisco Bay Area, so the first thing I do is decide what exact dates the events in the book will take place. After that, I get the newspapers for that time, and I download the articles that I want to read again or keep for reference. Headlines are a good flashpoint, but I pull from the back pages for the day-to-day things that Sarah would be dealing with. I also read novels from that time period — Golden Age detective fiction rocks my world — and I listen to a lot of old radio shows, including the news. I do consult experts when necessary, and I try to keep the historical components of my book as accurate as possible.
OMN: How true are you to the setting?
TLT: My books are set in fictional places that are loosely fashioned after real towns in Northern California, which is where I am originally from. I try my best to be as historically accurate as possible, but it's nice to be able to take literary license where necessary. It's really easy for me to imagine what the City of San Francisco and the fictitious town of Bennett Cove, which some of my readers may recognize as Stinson Beach, would have been like during the war, especially during the first twelve months or so when the threat of Japanese invasion was very real, and the area was flooded with troops ready to ship out, and people seeking work in the shipbuilding and other industries that sprang up in the area to support the war effort.
OMN: If we could send you anywhere in the world to research the setting for a book, where would it be?
TLT: After the Sarah Bennett series, I am going to write a series that takes place in England in the 1930s, during the period leading up to WWII. I would love to go to England, bring my husband, my horse, and my animals and stay long enough to get my research finished. So I would say, a manor house in England, complete with a first class facility for my horse, and plenty of room for all of us to run free.
OMN: What are some of your outside interests?
TLT: I love walking in the woods, hiking, yoga, the beach, fine wine, and music. I have a horse and two dogs, so I'm busy with animals who require attention and exercise. My husband and I like to travel, and discover obscure places to camp. I love visiting historic homes and staying in those that have been converted to a B&B.
One of the characters in the third Sarah Bennett book is a horse trainer, and I'm having so much fun writing the scenes with her horse, Seadrift. Sarah is afraid of horses, so her reaction to this woman's horse, who is very affectionate, has been fun to play with.
OMN: What is the best advice — and harshest criticism — you've received as an author?
TLT: The best advice I've received as an author is to keep writing and working. It takes a long time to learn to write good fiction, and most people give up. The main thing is to stick with it, find a mentor/editor and open yourself up to constructive criticism. This business is not for the weak of heart, and the only thing you can do, I mean the ONLY thing, is to keep writing. Write all the time, and when you're not writing, read, or listen to audio books. It's all about the words. It's all about the story.
I've had some harsh criticism from people who have read my book, who basically told me that I didn't stand a chance in hell. I ignored them. And this is another nugget of advice: find your mentor, your critique group, pay an editor, and find a way to get constructive feedback. This is important, you cannot get enough of this as you make your way towards publication. But don't just show your work to anyone. Keep it close, and only show it to people you trust. The main thing is to keep going, keep writing.
OMN: Complete this sentence for us: "I write gothic fiction and therefore I …".
TLT: I write gothic fiction, and therefore I love old houses, ghost stories, and cemeteries. So when I say, let's have a picnic at the cemetery, you'll either say yes, or you'll take off running.
OMN: How involved were you with the cover design?
TLT: I have a passion for the gothic mysteries and romantic suspense novels from the early- to mid-twentieth century. I love the art work on those books, and knew that I wanted The Spirit of Grace to have a cover fashioned after those novels, even though it is not the most popular type of cover at this point in time. I knew that I wanted the cover to have an abandoned house, and I wanted a hint of the "spirit" component of the story. I got lucky and connected with Melissa Stevens, The Illustrated Author. I told her what I wanted, and she immediately understood my vision and the imagery I wanted to portray on the cover of Grace. I do love the cover of this book, and am now letting my subconscious stew on the cover for the second Sarah Bennett book, which is scheduled to release in July.
OMN: What kind of feedback have you received from readers?
TLT: I am getting good reviews, and am finding my readers!
OMN: What kinds of books did you read when you were young?
TLT: Mysteries, and ghost stories, no doubt. I loved Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, and started reading Agatha Christie when I was in sixth grade. I used to stuff an Agatha inside my textbook, and completely ignore the teacher … I was horrid.
OMN: And today, when you select a book to read for pleasure, what do you look for?
TLT: Every now and then I go through an historical biography phase, but I really love a good mystery, especially those written in the 1930s and 1940s. Right now I am really into audio books, and have been binge listening to Patricia Wentworth. I think my current love of audio books is due to all the writing I've been doing these past few years. It is a treat to be read to, and the words are fed to me in a different way that is really lovely. I like mysteries, and I can tell within the first page if I like the book or not. I'm looking for a protagonist to whom I can relate, and I really like a lush setting, and a plucky damsel in distress who becomes stronger during the story and triumphs in the end. I don't read many modern authors. I mostly read the books that Sarah would read. This helps to keep my language appropriate for the series.
Having said that, I have a giant to-be-read pile that I will consume after I've written the five books I have planned for this series.
OMN: What kinds of films or television shows do you enjoy watching?
TLT: I don't have a television, but my husband and I watch our shows on Netflix. We just finished Seinfeld and Frasier. I watch a lot of British mysteries, and — true confession — I love Columbo! The stories are good, the cameo appearances are a treat, and the setting — 1970s Los Angeles — appeals to the eye.
OMN: Suppose your books were to be adapted for television or film? Who do you see playing the lead roles?
TLT: I'm so glad you asked me this because I'm very particular about the visuals of my characters, and even have pictures cut out of the actors who would play the various people who inhabit my story. Okay, here goes: Sarah would be played by Amy Adams; Zeke would be played by Scott Foley.
I would love the opportunity to be involved with the screenwriters, should Grace be adapted for a movie. I don't know that I would want to drive the boat per se, but would definitely welcome the experience of being involved with the adaption. I have written several screenplays, and would love a shot at adapting Grace. Hmmmm …
OMN: What's next for you?
TLT: Well, book two of the Sarah Bennett series is scheduled to release in July. I'm working on book three now, and hope to get that turned into my publisher by June. I have two more Sarah Bennett books loosely outlined, to wit, I have the premise and the main conflict, and the titles! So I'll write those, and then see what happens. I could write Sarah stories for a long time. I have had so much fun writing her character, and watching her develop. Now, thanks to your previous question, I may have to adapt Grace into a screenplay.
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Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Terry Lynn Thomas married the love of her life, who promised to buy her a horse if she relocated to Mississippi with him. Now that she has relocated, she has discovered that she can be happy anywhere as long as she has her man, her horse and time to write. Terry Lynn read Mary Stewart, Victoria Holt, and Daphne Du Maurier as a child. These gothic mysteries captured her imagination, never let go, and influence her writing today. When she is not writing or riding her horse, she visits historical houses and cemeteries, hunting for story ideas.
For more information about the author, please visit her website at TerryLynnThomas.com and her author page on Goodreads, or find her on Facebook and Twitter.
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The Spirit of Grace by Terry Lynn Thomas
A Novel of Suspense
Publisher: Black Opal Books
Sarah Bennett doesn't remember the night her mother tumbled down the stairs at Bennett House, despite allegedly witnessing the fatal fall. There was talk of foul play, dark whispers, and sidelong glances, all aimed at Sarah, prompting her family to send her to The Laurels, an exclusive asylum in San Francisco, under a cloud of suspicion. Now, on the one-year anniversary of her mother's murder, Sarah has been summoned home. Convinced of her innocence, she returns to Bennett House, hoping to put the broken pieces of her life back together. But when another murder occurs shortly after her arrival, Sarah once again finds herself a suspect, as she is drawn into a web of suspicion and lies.
In order to clear her name, Sarah must remember what happened the fateful night her mother died. But as she works to regain her memory, the real murderer watches, ready to kill again to protect a dark family secret.
— The Spirit of Grace by Terry Lynn Thomas. Click here to take a Look Inside the book.
