Escape with a Writer Sunday welcomes Award Winning Novelist Linda Watkins!
Linda, I'm in love with your dogs!!
USA Today
bestselling
author, Linda Watkins, who resides in Sedona, Arizona, is the author
of the multi-award winning Mateguas Island Series and the critically acclaimed, award-winning,
Kate Pomeroy Gothic Mystery Series.
In
addition to these novels, she has also penned the award-winning contemporary
romance, Summer Girl, A Novel and
three novellas (Sarah & Zoey, A Story
About the Power of Unconditional Love, The
Night of the Sciurus, A Western Michigan Tale of Terror, and The Witches of Storm Island: Book I, The
Turning), all of which have received excellent editorial and customer
reviews.
Linda
is a voting member of the Horror Writers
Association, The Authors Guild, The International Association of Crime
Writers (N.A.) and The Great Lakes
Association of Horror Writers.
The
adopter of three rescue dogs, Linda is serious about animal welfare and, all
profits from The Mateguas Island Series
are donated to her charitable trust, The
Raison d’Etre Fund for Dogs, Dedicated to Rescue and Research which is administered
through Schwab Charitable.
To
find out more about Linda and her works, please visit her book website http://www.lindawatkins-author.com/, her blog, http://www.lindawatkins.biz/ where she posts book reviews and other items of interest,
or her website dedicated to the Mateguas Island Series, http://www.mateguasisland.com/.
Tell us about your life outside of writing.
I’m a single woman who lives with three dogs – Chelsea, Chomps,
and The Bear. Prior to COVID-19, I volunteered several days a week at the local
humane society, walking and socializing dogs. Obviously, I’m a dog person. I
also enjoy hiking in the red rocks of Sedona where I live.
Do you have a work in progress?
Yes, I do. I am currently working on the 4th book in
the Kate Pomeroy Gothic Mystery Series. The WIP doesn’t have a title yet!
What was the most difficult section/piece you ever wrote? What
made it difficult?
The most difficult piece I’ve ever written was in my novel, Summer Girl. The section I refer to
involved the graphic description of the sexual abuse of a child. I knew when I
was writing this that I had to walk a very fine line between conveying the absolute
horror of the act and, at the same time keep it from going so far overboard
that I turned my readers off. I started off by writing the episode in as much
graphic detail as I could. Once that was done, I re-wrote and re-wrote it,
softening some parts and emphasizing others until I had what I wanted. Most of
the time when I was editing, I was crying. While not a victim of sexual abuse
myself, I did suffer physical and emotional abuse as a child and young woman.
The trauma experienced by my heroine (Andie), brought my childhood experiences
back and, in a sense, that was cathartic for me.
What sort of research do you do for your work?
All kinds. The first two novels in the Kate Pomeroy Series jump
back and forth in time – from present day to the 1600s and back again. I had to
do historical research regarding the City of New York, modes of transportation,
clothing, etc. for the 17th century segments. In the 3rd
novel in the Kate Pomeroy series, Abducted, I had to do research into drug
addiction and geographical research into the country of Turkey.
The Mateguas Island series was easier. That series is set on an
island off the coast of Maine and, at the time I wrote the 1st
novel, I lived on such an island. Therefore, I had first-hand knowledge of what
island life is like.
Which books and authors do you read for pleasure? Is there an
author that inspires you?
Stephen King, of course. He’s been one of my favorite authors for
decades. As a member of the Horror Writers Association, I am privileged to
receive works being promoted for Bram Stoker Awards. Thus, I get to read many
new and established writers in the genre. My favorite novel, however, is The
Magus by John Fowles. No matter how many times I read it, I always learn
something new. I also loved The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein – best
dog book ever – and The Lightkeepers by Abby Geni.
SUMMER GIRL, A Novel
Does First Love,
True Love, Ever Really Die?
Andi Martin asks
herself that question as she sits on the porch of the Sloane Cottage, her mind
flooded with memories of the summer of '65 and a boy, once loved, but never
forgotten.
Jake Chambers is also on a collision course with the past as he returns
to Cutter Island for the first time in more than a decade. And, as the ferry
approaches the wharf, he finds his mind filled with thoughts of a summer long
forgotten and a girl destined to haunt him forever.
Summer Girl is the story of Andi and Jake - a story of
love, loss, survival, and - most of all - HOPE…
A body found
hanging from the ceiling fan in the tower room of the old manor house on Storm
Island.
For nineteen years, Kate Pomeroy has suppressed that memory. A
second-year-resident in surgery, she thinks she has her life under control. But
a curious conversation overheard while taking a catnap launches her on a
descent into a world filled with nightmarish visions that cause her to doubt
her own sanity.
Sent to Storm
Island to rest and recuperate from an apparent breakdown, Kate is forced to
come to grips with memories of the summer her mother died as well as new
terrors that plague her mind. Even the blossoming of an unexpected romance with
islander, Jeremy Bradshaw, cannot keep her fears at bay for long.
The
discovery of a strange little silo, hidden deep in the woods, spurs Kate to
action as she tries to unravel its mysteries. But is the silo real or just
another illusion created by her tortured mind?
Storm Island, A Kate Pomeroy Mystery, is the first book in a series of mysteries involving the young doctor. The second book in the series, The Tao of the Viper, A Kate Pomeroy Mystery, was published in October 2019 and the third book, Abducted, A Kate Pomeroy Mystery, was published in March 2020.
My three websites are mentioned, with links, in the
bio, but I’ll include them here, too.
http://www.lindawatkins-author.com - main book
website (thru Author’s Guild)
https://lindawatkins.biz - (book reviews,
thoughts, etc.)
http://mateguasisland.com - (website for the M.I.
series).
Social Media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Splatland
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/
Amazon Author Page:
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HQOY94Q
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