Written Author Interview
1. Tell me about yourself. What do you like to do outside of writing. What is a day in the life like for you?
I’m Jill, mom, wife, pet lover, and recently published murder mystery author. I am a very low-key person. I stay at home with my toddler and write when she’s asleep. I love reading other thriller/mystery books and doing yoga at home 2-3 times a day when I’m not playing with my daughter. Every morning we begin our day getting an energy tea, do our daily errands, and sometimes go to the library for story-time. Been happily married to my husband for going on 5 years now. We are truly meant for each other. We like to have date nights with each other, sometimes that’s just us staying up and playing Rummy together after the toddler is asleep or staying overnight with my brother.
2. What inspired your first novel? What was the thing that got you into writing in the first place?
Before I wrote my first murder mystery book, I worked as a veterinary radiology nurse for an emergency specialty vet hospital taking radiographs and holding pets for ultrasound scans. I ended up quitting my job when my baby was born to WFH for my husband’s company. One day, I was at the NC Museum of Life and Science with my family walking down the reptile exhibit. We saw some cool reptiles, poisonous snakes and such. Thought that would be a cool way for someone to get killed in a murder mystery. And then I wrote one with people dying in unique, mysterious ways.
When I was 6-7 years old, I would draw pictures of our family pets and write stories about them going on adventures on yellow computer paper. Then I would staple them together like a book.
3. How do you come up with characters? Are they spontaneous or meticulously planned?
A lot of my character names stem from the first names of family, friends, pets or neighbors. Most are spontaneous, but some are planned.
4. What are some of your favorite genres to read? Are there any books you’d recommend to first time readers or people looking for something new?
Thriller, Horror, Fantasy Fiction, Murder Mysteries
For an entertaining FF book series, I liked reading the Sookie Stackhouse series that developed into the TV show, True Blood. Big Harry Potter fan.
Recent thriller books I have read and loved; Jar of Hearts, No Exit, and I just started reading Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica
5. What’s the most difficult thing about being a writer?
The many distractions that occur in every day life. I am a murder mystery author, developing plots and scenes is challenging enough, especially when I have to come up with something different every night to cook for dinner.
Guilt-I get a lot of mom guilt from wanting to hole myself up in the office to finish writing my novel.
6. What is your process to completing a novel from outline to final product?
Start with a notebook and pen, developing an outline for my story.
Then begin typing on my laptop while jotting down notes, edits, ideas, changes to my chapters as I move along through them.
Spend maybe 6mo of editing, re-reading and changing my story.
Get to the last 5-6 chapters and then have to write the ending, how I want my book to play out. Does the killer get away?
7. What’s the most unhinged thing you’ve written in your novel? Don’t worry, we don’t judge here.
My first book was described as “light crime”. I did have an eye-gouging scene in the book. I tried to come up with murders and books that I would be terrified of myself. In the book I’m currently writing about kidnappers, a child’s finger is found. Being trapped in a box with a scorpion would be pretty horrifying to me.
8. What’s one thing about being a writer that absolutely drives you up the wall?
I hate when I get everything done, baby down for her nap, house chores done, and finally sit down to write and I realize I’m hungry and haven’t eaten lunch yet.
The overflow of Scammers that bother you in the author world. It’s like you get something published and online for people to read and then you get all these continuous voicemails/emails of scammers trying to get you to buy their book marketing package, etc.
9. What does being a successful writer look like for you? What type of life do you want to live as a writer?
Being a murder mystery writer, I find success if people tell me they didn’t predict the killer or ending of my book. That’s a big compliment and in my mind a successful writer’s trait.
I’d enjoy a rich and famous writing career, to become the next James Patterson or Karin Slaughter. But at the same time, I’d selfishly like a peaceful life. A quiet, cozy enormous beautiful lake house overlooking the water to look up at while I continue writing more novels to be read by millions of people.
10. Describe your writing journey. If you had to write a story centered around it, do you think you could pull it off?
One year ago, I wrote a book. It was another murder mystery book, but it was about an arsonist. I stopped writing it, then decided I had time to write again, I went back and read what I wrote 6mo later and HATED IT.
One day, my family and I were visiting the Museum of Life and Science, walking through all the exhibits. As we walked down the reptile exhibit, I thought to myself wouldn’t that be a unique way to die in a murder mystery book, by a poisonous reptile.
So I started writing another murder mystery, this time about a murders inside a museum. Quit my job in Vet Med when my baby was born to work from home for my husband’s electrical company. As our daughter got older and I continued writing, I talked him into letting me quit my job to focus on mothering and writing books. I finally published my first murder mystery on Amazon last month. My book is now featured on Barnes & Noble Press, AppleBooks, Lulu and Kobo book platforms.
Could I write a book centered around my writing journey? Sure, but it’d probably be a boring one unless I become a rich and famous author, get a stalker and then write another book about it.
Follow and Connect with Jill Danielle Nelson
Jill’s Book
Murders Inside the Museum: https://a.co/d/78m3n0m
Social Media
Instagram: character_slayer
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