Welcome to fellow Crime Writer of Canada, Hyacinthe M. Miller!
I have read this book and am really excited to get to share it with you all. Kenora Reinvented was fresh and funny and I could totally related to Kenora, a woman who has to rebuild her life after it all goes sideways. She's a kickass heroine that I can't wait to read more about!
Hyacinthe
M. Miller is an award-winning author of short stories, magazine and newspaper
articles, contemporary women's fiction and non-fiction. She's been published in Borealis magazine and in Herotica
7, Whispered Words, and Allucinor, The Elements of Romance
anthologies.
Her
debut novel, Kenora Reinvented, (Investigations, Mystery and Seasoned
Romance) was published in 2019. Her current
works-in-progress include The Fifth Man, book
two of the Kenora & Jake series and a general interest text based on
interviews with over seventy current and retired police officers around the
world about challenges, rewards and leadership
in their chosen profession.
Hyacinthe is a founding member and
Past President of the Writers Community of York Region. She belongs to
professional organizations including Crime Writers of Canada, Sisters in Crime.
The Writers Union of Canada, the Alliance of Independent Authors, Romance
Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.
She blogs at https://hyacinthemillerbooks.com. Follow
her on social media: Twitter - @sassyscribbler, Instagram - Between.the.Book.Sheets and her
author page on Facebook.
You
can purchase e-books and print copies from major online retailers: getbook.at/kenorareinvented and https://books2read.com/u/bw2rK0
What would
you say are your strengths as an author?
My strengths are imagination,
curiosity and persistence. My family jokes that we've inherited a writing gene
– my dad was a poet and my mother, a tireless correspondent. Writing has never
been difficult. That's not to say what I put down on the page is always good,
but once the creative juices begin to flow, the words come quickly.
I'm an inveterate eavesdropper. In
the days before Covid shutdowns limited our ability to mix and mingle in
public, I actually enjoyed taking public transit because it was a goldmine for
characters and stories that I could use as jumping-off points in my writing.
Despite the fact there might be dozens of folks in the same confined space,
people's conversations tend to be personal (humorous/sad/mundane/shocking) and often
quite loud. I've overheard chats about hookups, breakups, new jobs, lottery
wins, intimate medical issues – you name it.
I'm also a voracious reader of daily
newspapers, magazines, blogs, audio and print books because they are all
sources of inspiration. Going down the rabbit-hole of links in an off-beat
article often surfaces useful tidbits.
How often do
you write, and do you write using a strict routine?
I've spent my professional career
writing – legal documents, briefing notes, technical manuals, position papers –
so I'm using words every day, usually to convey information in other people's
voices.
As much as I understand the concept
of planning out a novel, I've always been a pantser. An article in a newspaper,
a photograph or an unusual name can spark my imagination and I'll stop whatever
I'm doing to scribble a scene into the spiral notebook I always carry. (I've
collected several dozen that I flip through periodically. Finding usable
literary nuggets that I've forgotten about is a treat!)
Strict routine? I wish. Until
recently, I wasn't at all disciplined. Now, because I know how labour-intensive
completing a 95,000-word novel can be, every Saturday I spend a few hours at my
computer, writing and editing in Scrivener. I can dash off a scene then
re-arrange the contents of the project binder and write chapter transitions so
that the story unfolds organically. Because my protagonist, Kenora, and her
friends and lovers have lived in my head for more than a decade, it's not
difficult to pick up from where I left off.
Five years
from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?
Well, my ultimate goal is to have all
three of Kenora & Jake books in the series published. Along the way, I want
to engage more with my readers to hear how they've enjoyed the people and
situations I've created. Maybe they'll inspire me to write book four.
If you could
offer once piece of advice to a novice writer, what would it be?
One piece of advice? Sorry, that's
not possible. Besides, I'm a rebel.
Learn the technical aspects of
writing – grammar, sentence construction, language, editing. Write. Read a lot
of fiction and non-fiction as well as books on the writing craft. Write some
more. Polish it, then put your work away to 'cool' for a while. Take classes
from respected authors but don't beggar yourself enrolling in expensive
programs. Review your work, keep the parts you like, edit lightly then save the
parts that don't quite fit in a catch-all document with a date and distinctive
name.
Don't be too hard on yourself – we
all write dreck. That's part of the process of getting better. Attend reputable
online writing conferences that suit your interests and genres. Find a group of
like-minded writers to safely share your work with but focus on writing and
don't get distracted by the refreshments. You'll develop your skills by reading aloud
and accepting feedback. Step out of your comfort zone and try poetry or fantasy
or historical romance.
Submit to contests that are
moderately priced (or free) and that offer constructive critiques of your
writing. Be prepared for rejection but revel in the joy of positive feedback or
wins. Be realistic – indie publishing has opened up new markets for our work,
but the competition is fierce.
Don't stagnate because you can't
stop editing – good enough is good enough. Ditch the fear of being judged –
that can be a crippling impediment for writers (ask me how I know!). And
remember, writing – good writing – is hard work sometimes. But the end results
will be worth your commitment!
What would you consider to be the best compliment a reader could give your book?
The best compliment? Resonance. That my novel kept them engaged from start to finish because the characters were relatable, the plot was interesting and the outcomes satisfying. Or that one of my poems or short stories touched their heart or brought back a pleasant memory.
What
are you working on now?
I'm working on The Fifth
Man, book two in the Kenora & Jake trilogy. It's another riff on the
heroine's journey, where Kenora is forced to unravel shocking family secrets,
navigate more skullduggery and of course, nurture her seasoned romance with
Jake Barclay.
Most of the chapters are written (out of order, of course) and awaiting polishing and organization into a story that sizzles with energy, romance and mystery, and plotlines that flow smoothly to a happy conclusion.
KENORA REINVENTED
At forty-two years of age, Kenora Tedesco is starting over. Dumped for a younger woman. Fired for insubordination. Stuck with a rusting sedan, dwindling savings and a lakefront fixer-upper in the country, she's worried, restless and frustrated with part-time work.
When an eleventh-hour interview lands her a job as a private investigator, the former library manager figures her financial and career troubles are finally over. What she didn't bargain for was having to abide by rules.
Rookie blunders put her second-chance romance with Jake Barclay, a retired cop—and her new boss—at risk. She has her identity stolen. A lovesick embezzler traps her in a storage locker. Danger threatens her family, her friends and her life. But fortune favours the bold. And the tenacious. Kenora fights back, ditching the fear, trusting her judgment, and solving cases.
With
witty dialogue, plot twists and turns, Kenora Reinvented propels readers
into a binge-worthy whodunit with enough action to keep them engaged until the
last page.
