Fresh off a major case, Edie Firebaugh and her team are contracted to investigate the fall-out from an office shooting, leaving four Nova Life leaders dead. While a manhunt ensues, the Hatchet Women must determine who the killer’s next victim will be, while uncovering a sickening web of office politics and diseased corporate culture.
What will the Hatchet Women find within the web of politics and cultural disease? Nick Sconce, has kindly set a little time aside today to guide us through the delicate political and corporate environment that the Hatchet Women find themselves in ‘Hatchet Women: Back Bay Slayings’. Nick, what sparked your interest to go and explore the world found in ‘Back Bay Slayings’
Hatchet Women: Back Bay Slayings is a sequel to Hatchet Women. It’s based on personal experiences in the financial services industry.
Are these personal experiences what you have in mind when you write or are you picturing something or someone else? And if it’s someone else, can you tell us about them?
My main characters. I try to have conversations with them in my mind and ask them what they need to have happen.
It sounds like both the characters and yourself know where the plot is going when you are in the starting stages? Is that correct?
Yes, I know my ending before I begin.
I always find that having a solid ending in mind at the beginning makes it much easier to hit your target. How do you go about hitting that goal of getting to that ending?
I try to write every day with a goal of 100 pages/ month.
That’s a pretty substantial effort and output each month. Are these 100 pages edited as well?
I usually put some time and distance between the rough draft and the editing process so I’m not as emotionally connected to the text.
Do you feel that practices like setting a little distance between your work and editing have allowed your voice as an author to improve?
Yes, I feel my voice has matured from my earlier projects.
I’m glad you’ve touched on your earlier projects ‘Pewter, Murder, and Loaded Dice’ and ‘Structured Chaos’. Now, ‘Back Bay Slayings’ is the second in the Hatchet Women series. Is this the last we’ll see of these women, or can we expect to see them pop-up in another corporate mystery in the future?
I’m currently working on the third and fourth books in a 5-book series for Hatchet Women.
These two books will bring your count of published up to six. What is it about the process of writing that you love so much to bring six novels to the world?
I believe I find stories that deserved to be told.
There are always new stories that deserve to be told, so I’m sure you’ll have many more new projects to tackle after the completion of the Hatchet Women series. Some of the stories and tidbits that I always feel that need to be told are around the seemingly mundane preferences of life that layer themselves together paint the personality of a person. As we have a few minutes to spare, let’s paint a little of your personality with some mundane and quirky questions that I have left in today’s set, starting with:
What is your zodiac sign?
Sagittarius
Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavour, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?
Lemons don’t taste as good as they smell.
I’m not sure about that, I’ve always like the taste of lemons. It certainly clears out the sinuses! If you invented a monster what would it look like and what would you call it?
Steve Jobs. It would also be called Steve Jobs.
Is that true invention? I’ll give you it anyway as I think it could be pretty scary! Are you left or right-handed?
Right-handed.
And to round out our painting of Nick Sconce, if you had to put your right-hand into a barrel and pick out a word, what do you hope it would be?
Crepuscular.
Nice choice! I think that’s a good word for a word of the day challenge. Nick, thanks again for sharing a little of your day with myself and the readers and I hope you continue to enjoy the suspense of the Hatchet Women.
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Excited to read the book we discussed today? Find it here on Amazon: ‘Hatchet Women: Back Bay Slayings ( ASIN: B01N7J5AMB )‘.
Want to find out more about Nick Sconce? Connect here!