Interview with Mystery Author Mar Preston Posted by Nicole Weaver on June 27, 2012 at 8:47amView Blog Mystery author
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Mar Preston talks about her latest novel, Rip-Off, the second installment in her Dave Mason series. Let me introduce you to mystery author Mar Preston! Mar’s second novel was just published and she’s here to tell us all about it, from her inspiration, to her creative process, to writer’s block, among other things. Thanks for being here today, Mar! Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story. I grew fascinated with how close to the surface organized crime operates, and how it intrudes into ordinary beach city life in Santa Monica. This is fiction, mind you, but it’s out there. Here’s what it’s about: “High-tech burglary and murder are bad for business in the upscale, tourist-destination beach city of Santa Monica with its leftist politics, rich homeowners, its entertainment mega-businesses, and huge homeless population. Bad for Detective Dave Mason of the Santa Monica Police Department. “A deadbeat burglar is found in the beach condo of a playboy studio exec. The dead body must link up with a string of high-tech burglaries, and the Chechens Mason keeps meeting must link up with each other somehow, but how? “The investigation involves Mason in the dark world of embezzlement and an explosion that almost kills him. The stakes rise when the investigation leads him to the Hollywood Russian community where he ignores a warning by the FBI and Homeland Security. “Bringing an international whodunit to an end, Mason restores his own and the Department’s reputation, finding his relationship with his community activist girlfriend teetering on the edge.” (blurb provided by the author) How would you describe your creative process while writing this book? Was it stream-of-consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline? No outline. I’m a hunchy kind of writer. The psyche always provides the direction on where to go next. What type of writer are you—the one who experiences before writing, like Hemingway, or the one who mostly daydreams and fantasizes? Fantasy? Snort! Learning police procedure, in this novel the protocols of the Santa Monica Police Department, FBI, and Homeland Security, is plain hard work. I read an English-language Chechen newspaper for years. That’s why these books ring true. From the moment you conceived the idea for the story, to the published book, how long did it take? Years. Life intrudes. I work on several manuscripts at once. Do you write non-stop until you have a first draft, or do you edit as you move along? I can’t stop editing and that’s a major flaw in bringing a project to completion. I have an editor, Jodie Renner, who immeasurably improves my books. They say authors have immensely fragile egos… How would you handle negative criticism or a negative review? Consider the source, toughen up, and cry when nobody’s watching. As a writer, what scares you the most? Enormous success. When writing, what themes do you feel passionate about? Social justice, the difficulty of loving relationships, realtor and land developer skullduggery, bankers, and kindness to animals. Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? What seems to work for unleashing your creativity? No to writer’s block. My creativity is released when I apply bum to seat of chair and fingers to keyboard. How was your experience in looking for a publisher? What words of advice would you offer those novice authors who are in search of one? I broke my heart looking for an agent, and tried small presses though not very hard. New authors should look at the options very closely and not jump into untried relationships. Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work? I’d be delighted to have people check me out at my website. Tell me about you. I’m curious about people. As an author, what is your greatest reward? Entertaining people. Some people find my books funny. Odd!