Please welcome Robin Mahle author of Landslide.
Robin will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour, and a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn host.
Please leave a comment for a chance to win. Use the rafflecopter code below.
Landslide
by Robin Mahle
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INTERVIEW:
1.
What or who inspired you to start writing?
A: I’m
not sure this would be considered inspiration, but it was certainly the
catalyst that propelled me to where I am today. It was the economy, or lack
thereof. I’d had a very successful career in construction for many years,
twenty, to be exact, but that all changed when the recession began. It was then
that a part of me I thought long gone began to resurface. I was a creative kid;
involved in theater arts and things of that nature. And so when I no longer had
a job, I began to dabble in short stories and essays, eventually penning my
first novel, which happened to take me about a year and a half, but I got there
in the end. I’m now lucky enough to call myself a full-time writer and I’m a
much happier person for it.
2.
How did you come up with your idea for your novel?
A: This
latest book, Landslide, has evolved
considerably since its inception. It sat on a flash drive for about a year,
only partially even started. It has been rewritten more times than I care to
think about, but the original idea came from my own struggles in the corporate
world. Of course, I never faced a dangerous conspiracy, but it sure was fun to
write about!
3.
What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be
in your bio?
A: Well,
I am a deeply private person. I’m shy to a fault and I have difficulty trying
to expand my small circle of friends. Most people would never guess that about
me, especially those I have worked with on a professional level. I struggled to
overcome the simple task of speaking in meetings or participating in
brainstorming sessions. I think that’s why I preferred the theater when I was
young. I could be someone else and that was easier for me. I would say that I
am much more suited to writing novels than I ever was as a business woman. It’s
something that I am working on, however, and not a trait I wish to pass along
to my children.
4.
As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?
A: I
am excited to say that I have signed on to attend a few public events where I
will get to meet readers and promote my latest book, Landslide. I’m attempting to get out there more and truly develop a
brand for myself because I can tell you that I intend on writing a great many
more books. And in order to do that, I must also continue selling them. I’m also
wrapping up the third book in my Redwood Violet series entitled Law of Five and it is due to be released
on December 1st.
5.
Can you give us a sneak peek into this book?
A: Absolutely!
Here’s a little snippet you won’t get with Amazon’s book sample!
“Claire had
grown up knowing that she had above average looks. Girls discover that at an
early age. Her thick, dark hair rested against the nape of her neck as she
tucked it behind her ear and began making coffee. Hair that she’d been blessed
with from her Spanish mother. Her father, a professor of science who traveled
the world as a guest lecturer, was handsome in his own right. The two had met
at a conference in Barcelona when her mother was still a student.
As luck would have it, Claire had
been handed down her father’s big blue Scandinavian eyes and her mother’s olive
skin. During the course of her life, she had often been on the receiving end of
lingering looks as a result of the unusual combination.
So when Evan Winters reacted in a
manner with which she was familiar, she didn’t think too much of it at the
time. Now, standing in her kitchen, the smell of the blooming flowers filling
the room, she wondered if he might be considering her as someone beyond simply
an employee. Time would tell, but it was something she would have to keep on
her radar. Those types of misunderstandings could get out of hand quickly and,
with everything else that was happening, that was the last thing she needed.”
6.
Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or
hinder your writing?
A: I
don’t, actually. It’s something I’ve thought about a great deal, but haven’t
pulled the trigger on. It may be because I haven’t met very many writers and
then the ones I have met, I just don’t know well enough that I would dare ask
for their opinion of my work. I do, however, have a few people with non-writing
backgrounds, beta readers, that I trust to give me honest opinions prior to
putting my work out on the public stage. I would like to continue probing the
idea though.
7.
Do you outline your books or just start writing?
A: I
do create a rough outline and I’ve tried many different techniques, including
the ‘snowflake’ method, which I actually employed during the development of
this latest novel. It was so detailed and I really got a sense of the story and
while I believed it to be useful, I still ended up with a product so completely
different from where I started, I’m sure I’ll remain on the lookout for other
methods that might be of better use. It’s never easy starting out, but once I’m
into the story, I find that my characters take their own route.
8.
How do you maintain your creativity?
A: That’s
a very good question and a tough one to answer. So far, the stories I’ve
written to date have all been ideas that I’ve had floating around in my head
for a number of years. They’ve come from my dreams, or are loosely based on
personal experience. Only now, as I embark on my sixth novel, will I be
venturing into ideas that just recently surfaced. I believe that the more I
write, the more the stories and characters present themselves to me. I just
hope they keep coming!
9.
Who is your favorite character in the book. Can you tell us why?
A: To
be honest, Charlie Monroe is my favorite character and I suppose you could say
he’s sort of an amalgam of several of my previous mentors. You want to like
him, but he makes it hard because of what he does in the story. I understand
why he does what he does, especially after so many years in the same job, a bit
like my former self, actually. It’s so easy to become jaded over time, which is
what has happened to Charlie. He’s a complex man and I think I have a love-hate
relationship with him.
10. Are your plotting
bunnies angels or demons?
A: Always
angles and demons! I love writing
mystery and suspense. This genre gives me free reign to pit good versus evil;
the law versus thieves and murderers. I find it so very exciting and I love the
idea that there can also be shades of gray. I think those who read Landslide will find out that everything
isn’t as cut and dry as one might hope. But I’ll forever love the dynamic of
right and wrong and so I will continue to plot my angels and demons!
11. Anything else you
might want to add?
A: I
would just like to thank you for hosting me and I really enjoyed answering your
questions. There were insightful and some actually very difficult to answer. I
love that! I hope your readers have been
given an opportunity to get to know me a little and that they will give me a
chance to entertain them with my stories.
BLURB:
Author Robin Mahle is pleased to bring you her latest novel,
Landslide. A corporate suspense/thriller that will pull you in fast and keep
you holding on tight until the very end!
In the sprawling suburbs of Seattle, Claire McKenna finds solace
in her perfectly ordinary life. With the daily struggles of raising a family
and climbing out of debt, she and her husband Colin, work hard to hang on to
what they’ve got.
So when Claire is offered an incredible opportunity to rise in the
ranks of her firm, she jumps at the chance. Her joy, however, is short lived at
the discovery that her close friend and colleague, Beth Graves has just been
accused of embezzlement.
Compelled to see Beth’s name cleared, Claire soon stumbles on a
larger, more dangerous conspiracy at the firm. One that involves people she
once trusted. One that threatens to
destroy her ordinary life.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
THE SHEETING RAIN clouded her view of the blazing
taillights ahead, but the image soon sharpened beneath the rhythmic swish of
the wiper blades. Office buildings, parted by the road on which Claire was now
wedged among the other commuters, had emptied out for the night. Downtown
Seattle was in full rush-hour mode.
The radio proved helpful in subduing the dissonant
clamor of drivers pressing down on their horns and of the rain thumping on her
car roof. A man in a BMW next to Claire appeared aggravated, as evidenced by
the pounding of his fists on the steering wheel, having missed the stop light
she was now approaching. He caught her momentary glance and raised the
one-finger salute in her direction.
“Nice.” Claire turned back, glancing at the clock
on her dashboard; 5:15, and prepared for the long drive back to Bellevue. The
upscale gated community that was home to Claire and the rest of the McKennas
was a stretch financially, but, like many, they had banked on the continuing
upswing in the housing market during the boom. Now, they only hoped to climb
their way out from beneath the crushing weight of that speculative conclusion.
If she were a betting woman, Claire would wager an
hour, at best, before arriving home. Colin would probably beat her there by a
small margin, but she knew there was little chance he’d do anything to begin
preparations for the evening meal. A good father and husband, he sometimes fell
short in forward-thinking ability, opting for more traditional gender roles.
This was something she hadn’t noticed in him until after the children were
born.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and
Links:
Robin
Mahle lives with her husband and two children in Arizona. She found her passion
for writing, which later became her second career, after spending 20 years in
the construction industry.
Having
always been a lover of books, Robin attributes her creativity to the wonderful
overseas adventures she has shared with her husband of 15 years. Traveling
throughout Europe and having lived in England, opened her mind and with that
came a steady stream of story ideas inspired by her author-idols in the
suspense/thriller genre.
Robin
published her debut mystery/suspense novel, Redwood Violet in March of 2013.
And in September 2013, the much-anticipated sequel, All the Shiny Things
(Redwood Violet II), was released. Both have become Amazon Bestsellers! Now,
Beyond the Clearing has also joined the list!
Her latest novel, Landslide, was released in July, 2014. This exciting
corporate thriller reveals Robin’s unique voice yet again.
Links:
Facebook:
Use the code below to enter the contest.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f394/
