Eileen Thornton's Trojan Project

Eileen Thornton has been writing short stories and articles for magazines since 2001. Two of her stories have appeared in anthologies. Her debut novel, The Trojan Project, an action thriller, was published in May 2008.

She is a member of several writing organisations, including The Society of Authors. She also has a Website where a selection of her published work is displayed http://www.eileenthornton.co.uk/

Eileen, welcome.When did the writing bug bite?
I started writing in 2001 when I began a correspondence course with The Writers Bureau. My first feature was published in June of that same year. Several more of my features were published before I turned to writing short stories.

What goals did you want to accomplish?
When I became a published writer of both features and short stories, I felt I had reached my goal. Truthfully, I never believed that I would actually see my name in the by line in a national magazine. Therefore, you
can imagine my delight when it kept happening at regular intervals. This was it; I had done what I had set out to do. But then, at various writers meetings, I began talking to some ‘wannabe novelists’, who made me realise that I wanted to be a novelist, too. However, I was soon to find out that this goal was going to be more difficult to achieve. Writing The Trojan Project wasn’t easy, but it was nothing compared to the difficulty of finding a publisher. Here in the UK most of the large publishers will only accept submissions presented by an agent. On the other hand, some agents don’t want to know unless you have had a novel published previously. It’s a catch 22 situation. It was only through sheer perseverance that I finally found a publisher to take me on.

Tell us about your latest book.
My novel, The Trojan Project, is an action/thriller. The story begins on a remote farm in the Cheviot Hills in North East England. A young mother is concerned when her husband, Pete doesn’t come home that evening.
While looking down the lane for his truck, she witnesses a bright green light in the sky, followed by a cloud. The next morning, when Pete still hasn’t returned she goes out to find him and makes a terrifying discovery.
Reporting this to the local police station, she finds it difficult to make the officers believe her until a quick-witted young constable sees something to make him reconsider. Thus begins a race to stay alive.
When I wrote The Trojan Project, it was meant to be a stand-alone novel.
However, I have had several people asking me to write a sequel, so you never know. ☺

How do you develop characters and the story?
I try to put myself in the character’s situation and I write what I see and feel at that time. As for the story itself, I didn’t have a plot, notes or have any real idea where I was going. I simply made the whole thing up as I went along. Incidentally, I do the same thing when writing short stories.

Who is the most likeable character?
I think it would have to be Andy, the young police constable. Bright and alert, he joined the force to catch criminals. However, when he passed out of college, he was disappointed at being stationed in the quiet market town of Wooler, under the watchful eye of Sergeant Gilmore. How could he know that his life was suddenly going to be turned upside down? Yet when it is, he rises to the occasion and proves his worth.

Best review for the novel?
I have had several good reviews for The Trojan Project. However, I think one of the best is from Brian L Porter, author of A Study in Red: The Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper. Award Winner of The Predators &Editors Best Thriller Novel of 2008:

"Terrifyingly Real - An Edge of the Seat Thriller from Start to Finish! The Trojan Project is, without a doubt, one of the finest thrillers by a debut novelist I have read in a very long time. This book had me hooked
from page one and the storyline was so terrifyingly plausible that it sent shivers down my spine. Eileen Thornton weaves an ingenious plot and the characters are all too recognisable as normal, everyday people caught up in a horrendously frightening situation, where no one is what they seem and no one knows who to trust. The villains of the piece are all the more villainous because of what, rather then who they are, and I found myself cheering for the heroes of the book as they slowly unravelled the mystery behind the ghastly Trojan Project. The truly chilling part of this tale is that the scenario the author has skillfully created just might happen one day, and as a result, I found my heart beating a little faster at times as the chilling reality of that fact made itself so clearly evident. The bookreminded me very much of the works of one of my own literary
favourites, Robert Goddard and that is probably the highest compliment I can pay to this author. The Trojan Project is without a doubt a beautifully crafted and chillingly superb read and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone with a love for the thriller genre. Bravo, EileenThornton!"

Wow! Outstanding review, and I'm looking forward to asking Brian a few questions later on.
What are your current projects?
I have started a sequel to The Trojan Project. However, I have also begun writing a novel in a different genre. This one is more light and frothy and is to be called “Divorcees.com”. I am also working on a couple
of short stories, as I don’t want to be forgotten in the short story market.

Where to buy?
The Trojan Project can be found on both Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.
It can also be ordered from most bookshops in the UK

ISBN-13: 978-1905609093

ISBN-10: 1905609094

http://www.eileenthornton.co.uk/
 

Mary Deal: Down to the Needle

My guest today is Mary Deal from Hawaii. Aloha, Mary. Please give us a brief bio.

I’m retired and living out a life-long dream of living on the island of Kauai in Hawaii. Most of my time is spent writing, though I do get to the beach now and again. Oil painting and photography are business hobbies in which I take great pleasure and community activities too. Presently, I have four novels published, suspense and thrillers, with two additional thrillers now being written. I also write short stories and poetry which are published in various magazines and anthologies.

Briefly tell us about your latest book.
It’s a thriller called Down to the Needle. (ISBN 978-1-4401-9820-5)

The story is about a woman’s decades-long search for her abducted daughter. Her search leads her to a young woman on Death Row facing lethal injection for a crime she didn’t commit.

All of my books are available from online book stores as well as from the publisher, iUniverse.com. Just do a search for my name and all my books should come up on the same page.

How do you determine that all-important first sentence?
The first sentence, even the first word, must grab attention. Try never to start your first sentence with “I” or “The” or “There” and similar words. Actually they say nothing so it’s a lost chance to get the reader’s eyes riveted to the page. Some of my first words or phrases were “Blood red letters…” or “‘Witch!’ Randy Osborne said…” Should you find it necessary to use “the” as your first work, the next one or two words should be grabbers, as in “The jagged scar…” Or, as in my latest book, “‘The perp torched himself.’” My advice is to shoot for an attention-grabbing first word or phrase, not just the sentence overall..

How do you develop characters? Setting?
Usually with me, and with both novels and long shorts stories, I have an idea for the story and where it might take place. I see the character in my mind. One of the first things I do is to make a character sketch. That’s as simple as listing each character’s physical features, habits, traits, quirks and even disposition. I’ve written an article about setting up characters. Making a thorough list enables the writer to get into the mind of the character. Guaranteed, by the time you make this list for each of your characters, you will know them and how they will act out your plot.

Do you have specific techniques you use to develop the plot and stay on track?
I make notes anytime I think of some bit of information I can use in a story. I may not use it all in my present story, but if something comes to mind that’s way too good, I must write it down and save it. When I’m starting a story, I gather anything that may be usable in that story into one file to refer back to.

The way I write is not a way I can recommend to anyone else, unless it is their habit to begin with. When I begin a story, all of it is jumping around inside my mind begging to get out. I write what seems to be the most important scenes that I cannot afford to let get away. That means I may write the ending even before I begin the first chapter. Of course it will change later, but at least I have captured the idea while it contained the original spark of creativity. Too, I may write different scenes knowing, of course, the general order in which they should appear. Later I go back and join them together, maybe by adding more scenes, more story. I’ve also written an article about this subject. I write about anything I experience in order to clarify points for others.

Many people start a story at the beginning and that’s what I usually recommend others do. I can write like that, but invariably while I’m writing one chapter, it will trigger something that needs to happen much later in the story. So I write that part as soon as I can and then store it till I can work it in. However, especially for fledgling writers, know your plot. Make an outline or usable list of scenes. Start at the beginning.

How do you promote yourself online and off?
More promotion today is done online. Join as many sites as is feasibly possible to maintain a presence. A writer MUST have a website and, hopefully, one with PayPal buttons or other means of payment. Readers love autographed books.

I travel a bit so I always try to line up book signings even a year ahead of time. However, book signings don’t sell books. In rare cases it does, but appearances mostly help to come in contact with readers so they get to know you.

Other ways to promote is to make your book available as an ebook and downloadable for Kindle and other hand-helds. The publisher should do this for you. Too, if there are charity drives in your area, donate books. I am in charge of the Silent Auction for the local annual Kauai Coconut Festival. We love books! We have tourists coming here and they read books. Find locations in your area where you can make yourself and your books known. The ultimate goal anywhere is to build readership.

Enter your books into the best, the biggest contests. Even just making Honorable Mention gets your book publicized beyond what you might be able to do.

And finally, send your book out to reviewers. Reviews sell books.

What are your current projects?
My third novel, River Bones, a thriller, won a huge award in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards competition. I’m told by my readers that they loved the characters. So I am already in the process of writing two sequels to this book. River Bones has a subplot of a man traveling back and forth to Viet Nam searching for his MIA brother. Since he and the protagonist, Sara Mason, have fallen in love, the first sequel will begin deep in the Vietnam jungle. Most of the book, however, will take place on Kauai where Sara solves another cold case of a missing child. The second sequel will take place both on Kauai and in the jungles of Borneo, where Sara finds answers to an international cold case.

I read River Bones. It was great.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?
My mega-website, WriteAnyGenre.com offers my books for sale, and is also meant to be a resource for writers. All information on the site is free for the reading. I keep adding to the number of pages so there is a great deal on information available. The site covers creative writing of all kinds – fiction, nonfiction, poetry, etc. - and business writing. Chapters from my books are analyzed. We discuss how to choose character names. Aspects of how my books are put together, and how writers can get help with their books, are to be found on WriteAnyGenre.com.

For those wishing an autographed copy of any of my books, PayPal Shopping Cart buttons are available on all the book pages. Notices about my book signings are also posted on the book pages when I have confirmed travel arrangements.

Thanks for the interview, Mary, but I think next time I really should do this in person. LOL.