A Good Thriller discussion

Hello Members, friends, readers

H N Wake, a regular member here has offered her book free for this two day read along...

FBI Agent Dom Walker in

Sounds of a Furious Sky..

Please do join in...

How do we access the book?

Contact H .N Wake

Is this a read along, Sean, or a Q&A?

Domino Walker. Love the name. Love this character and the way she evolves during the course of this book.

Hi HN, I have read all your books and have loved everyone of them. Your writing really impresses me. How did you “learn” to write novels? Did you take instructional courses or read books on how to write or is it all “instinct” for you? I was also delighted to see that bit of poetry in Sounds of a Furious Sky. Is that something you have dabbled with your whole life or is a new endeavor?

Great question, Chris. I loved the poetry too!

Both Christine

I love poetry and have written some of my own. I started the book last night. I plan to read it through the weekend as well for the 24/48. I am looking forward to the poetry in the book. Happy reading everyone!!

Thanks Susanne

Hi all! I'm so excited about this!!

Drop me a note if you need a free review copy. [email protected]

I'm a long time group member and love these Q and As so I hope I do a decent job. :) Thanks Sean for the opportunity! Here we go...

Christine wrote: "Hi HN, I have read all your books and have loved everyone of them. Your writing really impresses me. How did you “learn” to write novels? Did you take instructional courses or read books on how to ..."

Chris, I knew you'd ask some great tough ones. :)

First, thanks for being such an amazing support and friend. I am lucky, lucky to have found you here.

My first foray into writing was in screenplays, if you believe it. I have background in overseas US government work (where I wrote and edited memos and reports almost every day) and had two tragic stories I really needed to get off my chest. So I studied scripts and learned what was expected and then got some writing software. That first script took me about a year. I timidly sent it to a good friend who is a director, and she wrote back the next day, "You are a solid writer. I couldn't put it down." Gulp. I cried. I wrote the next one and felt a great deal of relief. I tried an agent, but only half heartedly, and got rejected. :) Then I put them in a drawer.

Because, I had decided I wanted to write a novel. Boy, did I do some serious research online. I spent hours looking up writing advice. I read books about writing and structures and story arcs. I read a ton. I also joined some forums. I read a lot of thrillers, looking for the basics.

Then, I dunno, I just one day walked into the small back room in our house, set up a desk, shut the door and started pounding away. I knew I needed that safety. I didn't tell anyone except my husband. That first book took me about two years.

Since then I spend time between writing, learning about writing. I read quite a lot still about the craft of writing. I've also learned a ton from the editors I've been fortunate to have.

Short answer: mostly self taught with some stern guidance from some tough editors -- who knew there was a royal order of adjectives?? :) And I continue to read a ton of thrillers and suspense, from which I learn every day.

H.N., I’m in the middle of the book and wondered how you settled on Eskimo Curlew. Did you do a lot of research into that species?

Brenda wrote: "H.N., I’m in the middle of the book and wondered how you settled on Eskimo Curlew. Did you do a lot of research into that species?"

Hi Brenda and great question!

I stumbled across a New York Times book review of Last of the Curlews by Fred Bodsworth (1955) and dug deeper. I went on Amazon and bought an old hard copy. Loved the story about the last of an about-to-be extinct bird, so melancholy and tragic and fated. That of course sent me off on research. Hettie as a character developed from that.

I really enjoy random research and I end up doing a lot for my novels. I am constantly racing down some alley on the internet, digging into a new topic, packing info into the brain, then going on a walk with the dog and twisting this new stuff into the story line. The Eskimo Curlew was a doozy and ended up being a real foundation for Sound of a Furious Sky. (For my first novel I dug into US lobbyists that went to jail. Talk about hair raising! And I used that for a whole story arc.)

Thanks, Brenda!

HN

Can you name your favourite top ten authors.

Your favourite places in the world.

Sean,

Wow, what a question! How long is a piece of string? :)

For thrilling reads:
Stieg Larsson
Micheal Connelly
John Grisham
early James Patterson
early Lee Child
select Ken Follett
Jeffrey Deaver
Thomas Harris

For the pure talent:
Gabriel García Márquez
Hemingway
William Gibson

For creativity:
JRR Tolkien
Neal Stephenson
Ian M Banks
Micheal Crichton

I CANNOT believe I have no women on that list. Eeks. I better go research and start reading!

Favorite places:
Cape Town, South Africa
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
New York, NY
Sydney, Australia
Tulum, Mexico
Rome, Italy
and pretty much any beach with white sand

So why no Hawaii... LOL

HA HA. I loved Hawaii! Good catch! :)

I'm getting requests for free review copies, and am happy to provide!

Ping me at [email protected] or you can download here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/8qp4dug0km

Thanks!

H.N.. My question to you is why do authors like yourself make your main character an FBI agent but portray them as bad actors of the law or rules by them coming off of suspensions. My assessment is that FBI is suppose to be the best of the best not to say they are not perfect but with errors in their work I would think that they would rid themselves of agents who do not uphold that image in the work they do. I think that it makes people think that the FBI is not the good guys they are just like any other law enforcement officer. FBI lives by a code and like i said they are not perfect but authors have a way of always portraying them as tainted when in fact they do a lot of good for a lot of people not just in this country but all over the world.

Susanne wrote: "H.N.. My question to you is why do authors like yourself make your main character an FBI agent but portray them as bad actors of the law or rules by them coming off of suspensions. My assessment is..."

This is a really intriguing observation, Susanne! Thanks for this.

My first thought is that the agents of the FBI, like many in law enforcement, are at the coal face of the fight between good and evil. These agents regularly face bad actors and situations fraught with drama. In fiction, this makes them especially exciting protagonists.

Second, for me, and as you suggested, for many writers, this drama is heightened when a nuanced moral dilemma is added. I believe most of the great stories of our time center around our hero facing a moral test. When I’m writing, I will layer in a backstory that has this kind of dilemma so that the reader can watch how the heroine comes to make their decision. This evolution of thought is often based on their core beliefs and ethics. Ideally, as a writer, I want the reader to root for my heroine to make the right decision when faced with a very difficult situation.

I would suggest (dare I say hint?) that in many novels, not all internal investigations and leave of absences mean the agent did the wrong thing. (Grin, grin.) It just means they did something that had to be further investigated by the Bureau. And how intriguing and unusual are those characters, the ones that faced a test and in response, stepped outside the box? (Grin.)

On a personal note, I have an enormous amount of respect and appreciation for all the agencies of law enforcement and the branches of the military! They work in tremendously stressful situations to keep us safe. I have friends and colleagues across a number of agencies/branches and appreciate all that they do.

Thanks for the question, Susanne! You had my brain firing on all cylinders this morning!

Ann M. Martin
Ruth Ware
Laura Marshall
Kate Hamer
James Patterson
Lisa Jewell
Sue Fortin
Courtney Summers
Riley Sager



New York

sorry this posted so many times. idk how to delete them. I don't see the option for it. my apologies

H.N. wrote: "Sean,

Wow, what a question! How long is a piece of string? :)

For thrilling reads:
Stieg Larsson
Micheal Connelly
John Grisham
early James Patterson
early Lee Child
select Ken Follett
Jeffrey Dea..."
Your novel sounds intriguing H.N.! I will put it on my TBR list. Regarding women authors, I am also guilty of housing a library of novels written primarily by male writers. Reading more works by women authors will be my New Year's resolution!

D.B. wrote: "H.N. wrote: "Sean,

Wow, what a question! How long is a piece of string? :)

For thrilling reads:
Stieg Larsson
Micheal Connelly
John Grisham
early James Patterson
early Lee Child
select Ken Follet..."

Riiight? Clearly I need to close that gap! :)

Kayla wrote: "sorry this posted so many times. idk how to delete them. I don't see the option for it. my apologies"

on the bottom of the post on the right side it says reply/edit/delete just click delete to remove posts.

I have deleted. The extras

H.N., Thank you for allowing me to read your book. I will write my review in the morning. How did you come up with the name of your characters they all seem sort of unique? Dom was up for review for a previous case about sex trafficking. Did you do work with trafficked children before becoming an author? Your descriptions where clearly spot on in how a ring of sex traffickers would respond if they found out they they where going to be raided. I spent four years in the Air Force as a security specialist and I have a Masters Degree in social work specializing in youth and young adults my main interest is sex trafficking victims especially young African American girls who are forced in sex trafficking by pimps.

Thanks Susanne and wow - security specialist in the Air Force and a Masters in Social Work is really something! And I am indeed impressed by your speciality: that is not an easy subject matter in policy work or in the field. Sincerely, thank you for the work you do. The world is a better place for it.

Names. When I'm writing a draft I'll 'try out' names. Hettie stuck immediately. I went back and forth on Dom a bit but in the end wanted something that stood out. I also have a good friend named Domini and she has all the traits I wanted my Dom to have. (A few friends have said they would have preferred a different name, but I heard an urban legend about Apple deciding on it's name not by consensus because that would water it down, rather they chose one a few loved and others hated because then it clearly popped. Maybe an urban legend but I like it. Grin.) Beecher just dropped on the screen and stuck. Mila is a name I've always loved. Lea Peck just seemed right. :) Funny enough, when I'm struggling for a name I'll check out journalists names and mash them together. :)

In my former life I did human rights and democracy work. I did not specialize in trafficking but know more than most about it, tragically, particularly in Asia. Insidious and rampant and soul + culture destroying. I have shed many a tear for victims. I applaud anyone involved in the work to end trafficking in all forms. You and they are much stronger than most and we are lucky that you are.

A note: I've seen some pretty grim stuff overseas. Writing has helped me expunge some of the residual, but will never truly clean my soul. That's why I'm pretty sure every one of my novels will have some realistic examination of humanity's weaknesses. Not sure that's good or bad, but it sure gets me up in the morning and banging on that keyboard. :)

Thanks for taking the time with my story, Susanne. I truly appreciate every single reader.

Thanks HN

@susanne I dont have that on my phone

@Sean thanks!

I know it’s past the deadline for the Q&A, but I just want to say how much I enjoy ALL of your books, and I hope you’ll honor me by letting me continue beta reading as long as you keep writing. I’m so intrigued by your background and have many, many questions running around in my head. To be continued, I hope!

Jean wrote: "I know it’s past the deadline for the Q&A, but I just want to say how much I enjoy ALL of your books, and I hope you’ll honor me by letting me continue beta reading as long as you keep writing. I’m..."

Jean, I couldn't do it without you!!! Thank you for everything you do!

Thanks all for a lively discussion. Just know I appreciate every single reader.

Have a great week!