This week, Coffee with David is honored to bring
its readers the Nam Noir novel set at the old St. Louis "No Tell
Motel" Coral Court. Yes, we are giving away Claire Applewhite's St.
Louis Hustle.
This
interview and giveaway was originally posted on The Writers' Lens.
"A simple case turns into a web
of lethal deception.
"When sleek Emily Davies begs Elvin Suggs to trail her
philandering husband, Nick, it seems like an easy request. Dimond
"Di" Redding and Elvin are eager to get started on the first case for
their new business, Grapevine Investigations. Along with help from their fellow
Vietnam vet Cobra Glynes, they follow the cheating husband straight to St.
Louis' notorious "no tell motel"-The Coral Court.
"Right from the start Di distrusts Emily, a nurse at
People's Hospital. She can't explain why she's uneasy until they spot the woman
playing doctor with a plastic surgeon at the very same motel.
The mousy desk clerk Waldo E. knows his "regulars" but he refuses to divulge his secrets to the investigators. When one of his regular guests turns up dead, he still won't talk, not even to police detective Reggie Combs. The woman's sleazy landlord is quick to point the finger at Emily's cheating husband.
The mousy desk clerk Waldo E. knows his "regulars" but he refuses to divulge his secrets to the investigators. When one of his regular guests turns up dead, he still won't talk, not even to police detective Reggie Combs. The woman's sleazy landlord is quick to point the finger at Emily's cheating husband.
"After another body turns up, this time at the Coral
Court Motel, Elvin and Di discover there's no escape until they see this
twisted case through to the bitter end..."
Legend John Lutz wrote: "Author
Applewhite has created an engrossing tale that presents the setting almost as
one of the cast of characters. If you like neatly rendered, nicely plotted
fiction, you'll finish St. Louis Hustle in one sitting. For those who know
little or nothing about St. Louis, Applewhite's novel is the perfect gateway to
the Gateway City."
I had the pleasure to have a
conversation with Claire about her writing and why she writes Noir.
David
Alan Lucas: You are a very soft spoken and kind
person. What has drawn you to write about one of the most heinous acts that man
commit--murder?
Claire
Applewhite: I am intrigued by what would
motivate someone to commit such a heinous act.
DL: You have a series of books that are set in St. Louis,
Missouri that have been classified as 'Nam Noir. What is 'Nam Noir?
CA: Noir is a subgenre of mystery fiction. Themes such as
isolation and disillusionment, and motives such as jealousy, greed and lust, as
well as resilience in the face of adversity, all define the noir
tradition. The series set in St. Louis
centers on three Vietnam veterans, and the events in their lives before and
after their reunion, twenty years later. Because the themes of noir influenced
the lives of the ‘Nam veterans, the series was classified as ‘Nam Noir.
DL: When you plot your novels, from whose point of
view do you plot from? The protagonist’s? The antagonist’s? The narrator’s?
Some one else?
CA: I plot from the POV of the character with the most at
stake; that is, the one with the most to lose. This character is usually
involved with the other major characters, and has a reason to care deeply about
attainment of personal goals and desires, and perhaps, the achievements of
other characters.
DL: When you are starting to work on
a novel, what do you find brings the story into focus for you? A Character? A
setting? Something else?
CA: In other words, how do I plan a project? I write the first
page and last page first. Then, I decide
what would be the climax or middle of the plot and write a page for a central
chapter. Remember, the middle cannot sag! From there, using index cards, I
decide what plot points occur between the beginning, middle and end, and fill
in the chapters in between. I have heard this method called “storyboarding”,
a film making technique, but I find it
to be an effective plotting device.
DL: What brings your
writing into focus?
CA: When a major character is put into a crisis, or an unusually stressful
situation, and I am forced to feel with that character, that is, endure the
stress and survive, the story becomes more clearly focused for me. Firsthand, I feel the character’s strengths
and weaknesses, and experience the level of resilience. Many times, a stressful situation will also illustrate
the quality of a plot point, that is, the effectiveness in the execution of a
key scene. In this way, a potential
wrinkle or snag in the plot may be highlighted.
DL: What drives your
novels: Theme, Character, Plot, the Mystery?
CA: What drives the novel are the needs/desires/goals of the
protagonist/antagonist. Their story arcs, each necessitating a transformation
by the end of the story, drive the novel.
DL: Do you work on multiple projects at once? If
so, how many?
CA: I complete one manuscript at a time, and let each one sit
for at least a month to attain some distance from it. During that 30 day “rest”
I start a new project.
DL: How easy was it to take the leap of faith to
become a serious writer and chase this career? What did you find that you had
to do to take the step?
CA: I have always written creatively as a hobby, but it was not
until I was a little past forty that I came across a short story that I wrote
as a senior at St. Louis University entitled, “On Call.” At the time I wrote
it, the instructor and other students encouraged me to expand it into a
novel---but I didn’t do it. Almost
twenty years later, that story became my first published novel, The Wrong Side
of Memphis. My point is, that I wasn’t
ready to expose the feelings in that short story until I felt comfortable doing
so—and for me, that meant waiting awhile. For a writer to decide to go for it,
I believe, isn’t always a matter of faith or whether it is easy or hard to do
the writing. A writer can do the writing
without anxiety, if they are ready. Sometimes, it’s a matter of if or when
you’re ready to let go of an issue or expose feelings that have been sitting on
an emotional shelf. That’s the tough part.
DL: A lot of marketing
falls on to the writer. How do you market your novels? How do you manage to
juggle everything you do?
CA: I have to admit that right away, I realized that marketing
the novel was going to be just as time consuming and vital as writing it. I felt a little panicked, and then, decided
that this was too important to try and do by myself. My mind was open to
consulting when a friend told me that his friend had just been laid off and was
looking for work. We met, and though neither of us had much experience in
marketing books, we decided to work on a book together. So, I have a publicist to help with book
signings and photography, and a computer specialist to monitor my website. I
also got approval to stock my books at Barnes & Noble in the Midwest region
and scheduled book signings locally. Kirkus has reviewed my books and I post
the reviews on Goodreads and Twitter. I lecture, visit libraries, and serve as
a board member for the Midwest Chapter, Mystery Writers of America, and am an
Active member, Mystery Writers of America.
However, I had a literary agent tell me recently that nothing is as
powerful as “word of mouth” recommendations.
As far as juggling, I do something
on the marketing front everyday. It cannot be a sporadic effort, it should be
consistent and steady.
DL: What is your writing schedule like?
CA: I get up at 6 am and start writing, and usually stop around
10:30 to 11 am. If it is an unusual day
and that is not possible, the time must be made up from 10 pm to 1 or 2
am. Either way, there is a ten page quota
per day.
DL: If you could have coffee (or drink of your
choice) with four other authors from any time period, who would you choose and
why?
CA: Ed McBain, Agatha Christie, Ruth Rendell, Cornell Woolrich.
These authors have unique perspectives on the essential elements of a murder
mystery: motive, opportunity and means. Rendell and Woolrich in particular,
focus on psychological suspense, while Mc Bain and Christie have plots that I
find intriguing.
DL: How could my readers learn more about you?
CA: Readers may visit my website at www.claireapplewhite.com, or view television interviews and book
trailers on YouTube, Claire Applewhite.
Thank you Claire!
How do you win a free copy of this book? To enter the contest,
simply leave a comment or question on Coffee with David blog between now (July 28th)
and midnight August 3rd, 2012. Please include your email so we can reach
you if you win. The more comments you leave, the greater your chance of winning
the contest. If you refer others to Coffee with David who mention your
name in their comments, I'll enter your name again in our random number
generator along with theirs, also increasing your chances at winning! The
winner will be chosen after midnight on Friday, August 2nd and the announcement
made on Saturday, August 3rd. Good luck and comment often.
Thank you for reading and please visit www.davidalanlucas.com and www.thewriterslens.com.
You can also follow me on twitter @Owlkenpowriter and the Writer’s Lens
@TheWritersLens. Fiction is the world where the philosopher is the most free in
our society to explore the human condition as he chooses.
