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Thursday, September 19, 2024

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Darlene Turner!

Talkshow Thursday: 
Welcome Darlene Turner!

I'm pleased to welcome Love Inspired author Darlene Turner to my blog today.

What was your inspiration for the story?

My childhood friend kept joking with me about including a malamute in a book since I’ve used other dogs previously. That got me thinking about a storyline, and I thought what better place to include a malamute but on a ranch set in the Rocky Mountains in the winter time! That’s how it all began. I like to create strong heroines and after watching the show Unforgettable, I came up with the idea of my police officer having hyperthymesia but with a twist. And who doesn’t like a hunky rancher/k-9 handler?

What sort of research did you do for your story, and was there an exceptionally interesting tidbit you knew you had to include?

Lots of fun stuff! First…my heroine, Constable Isabelle Tremblay, has something called “hyperthymesia” and that is an ability for someone to remember almost every event of their life in great detail. Izzy has used this “gift” in her police work, but at the beginning of the book something happens, and she’s lost a 3-hour window of time. This totally frustrates her.

I had fun researching different dogs for my K-9 ranch. The “star” of the book is an Alaskan Malamute and she is modeled after a childhood friend’s malamute. Plus, my friend even let me use her name—Névé which means “snow” in Latin. Did you know that malamutes can lift 3,000 pounds when working in groups? WOW! These dogs are amazing.

I also researched electric fences, ciphers (loved writing in that Nancy Drew angle), towns in British Columbia to model my “fictional” town after, etc.

Tell us about your road to publication.

My love of writing began with reading Nancy Drew as a girl, but even though I continued to read, the
writing spark faded, and life happened. I started working, got married, and eventually moved to a different city. I didn’t have time to write…or at least, I didn’t think I had the gift, so I put it out of my mind.

Years flew by, and then the unspeakable happened. I went through some rough times and through my journey, I decided to take a creative writing course. This triggered the idea for the very first book I wrote. That’s when my love of writing re-surfaced and grew. So, God does use ALL circumstances in life to grow us, right?

If you were to write a spin-off book about one of your secondary characters, which one would you choose and why?

Actually, I am! The first book in my new series features my heroine’s sister, Blaire Tremblay. Also, my hero’s brother, Maverick Shaw, Sawyer King, and two of the dogs from the Murray K-9 Ranch will be included in other books. It’s always fun to put secondary characters in other books.

Why do you write in your particular genre?

I fell in love with mysteries from the time I picked up my first Nancy Drew book. That blossomed into reading the Hardy Boys and watching shows like Charlie’s Angels, Cagney and Lacey, then years later, Alias, Castle, Bones, CSI, etc. Writing romantic suspense was a nature fit for me!

What is your process for writing? (do you outline, have a special place or time of day you write, etc.) What is your favorite part of the process?

Every writer’s process is different. I’ll share a bit about mine. I’m definitely a pantser! I come up with a basic storyline and pick the occupations for my characters. Then I take my hero, heroine, and villain through a character sketch to get to know them. This is my favorite part. It’s fun to create their likes, dislikes, fears, quirks, etc. I choose actors/actresses to base their physical descriptions on. I’m a visual person and need to “see” them! After I finish this, I begin chapter one. My first draft sometimes runs over the LIS 55K limit, so I normally have to cut words. I usually go through three to four rounds of editing before I do a read-through and send it off to my beta readers. Once I hear back from them, I finalize the manuscript and read it once more before sending to my LIS editor.

How do you celebrate when you finish a manuscript?

After pressing send, I treat myself! Sometimes to a movie, or sometimes to my favorite latte!!

PIxabay/Robert Sloma
What is your advice to fledgling writers?

Keep at it! I totally understand. My road to publication took 10+ years. There were times I wanted to give up, but then I’d get encouraging words from someone who read one of my blogs. It was like God whispered in my ear, “Don’t give up.” Please, please…don’t give up. God really has the best journey in store for you!
 
What writers or books have influenced you?

DiAnn Mills was a huge influence in my writing journey. I met her while taking a Jerry Jenkins course and she became my mentor. She’s amazing!

What is your next project?

My first ever trade book (published through Love Inspired Trade) is currently with my editor. It’s called Echoes of Darkness and releases in June of 2025. I’m so excited about this story, but it’s a bit grittier (okay more than a bit) than my LIS books.

I also just passed in book one of a brand new LIS series. This is a six-book series centering around the Hoyt family. You met Jayla and Dekker in Alaskan Avalanche Escape and Hazel in Mountain Abduction Rescue. Book 1 in the new series is Dekker’s story. I’m loving writing these stories. You’ll meet new Hoyt siblings, and previous ones will make appearances!

I’ve also collaborated with three amazing Canadian authors on a Christmas Anthology called I’ll Be Home. Each story centers around going home and has a train in there somewhere. My story is called Mystery and Mayhem in the Rockies. It’s my first cozy mystery and has a Hallmarky (is that a word?) vibe to it.

K-9 Ranch Protection
A killer on the loose. A K-9 keeping watch.

Police constable Izzy Tremblay knows her father’s death was no accident, so when she finally discovers a lead and is immediately attacked, her suspicions are confirmed. The ambush leaves her in the hospital with three hours of crucial memory missing, which she knows holds the key to finding her father’s murderer. For protection, she takes refuge with her ex-partner, Austin Murray, on his K-9 ranch while she races to uncover the truth. But with danger still lurking, can they stay alive long enough to take down a killer?

About Darlene:

Darlene L. Turner is an award-winning and a Publishers Weekly best-selling author and lives with her husband, Jeff in Ontario, Canada. Her love of suspense began when she read her first Nancy Drew book. She’s turned that passion into her writing and believes readers will be captured by her plots, inspired by her strong characters, and moved by her inspirational message. You can connect with Darlene at www.darlenelturner.com where there’s suspense beyond borders.

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