Death Legacy

Multiple award-winning author Jacqueline Seewald has taught creative, expository and technical writing at the university level as well as high school English. She also worked as an academic librarian and an educational media specialist. Twelve of her books of fiction have been published, including books for adults, teens and children. Her short stories, poems, essays, reviews and articles have appeared in hundreds of diverse publications. She enjoys spending time with family and friends when she isn’t writing. In addition, she is a playwright, a landscape artist and loves many types of music most particularly blue grass. Somehow she manages to support so many other authors and their blogs. I'm lucky to have her as a cyber-friend and colleague. 

Welcome back to the blog, Jacquie. Please tell us more about yourself.
Where do you live, and how has your environment affected your writing?

I’m a Jersey girl, born and bred. I’ve lived my entire life in the state.

Most, but not all of my books, take place in NJ. My Kim Reynolds librarian sleuth series takes place in my home state. My next Five Star/Gale mystery novel, THE THIRD EYE which will be published in August/September, takes place in the Pine Barrens of NJ and depends heavily on setting.

How many books have you written?

I’ve written twenty books, twelve of which have been published so far. At this time, I have the fourth Kim Reynolds mystery under submission as well as a brand new mystery.

Give a short synop of your most recently published book.   

My most recently published novel is DEATH LEGACY which is a romantic suspense mystery thriller published by Five Star/Gale in hardcover and Thorndike Press in large print hardcover. Since the novels are expensive, I encourage readers to request the novel at their local library. Here’s a brief synopsis:

DEATH LEGACY features an Englishwoman, Michelle Hallam, whose deceased uncle, a former British intelligence agent, operated a "consulting firm" which she now runs. Michelle meets a young, handsome American psychiatrist on the French Riviera under mysterious circumstances. There is a strong physical attraction but Michelle remains wary of him. Daniel appears to have a friendly, warm personality, and urban wit in contrast to Michelle’s outward façade of cool cynicism. In New York, Michelle sends Dr. Reiner a patient who has asked her to look into the disappearance and/or death of the woman's husband, a CIA agent, in Washington D.C. The case involves both Michelle and Daniel in espionage, international intrigue, romance and murder, changing their lives irrevocably. The novel combines elements of suspense thriller, mystery and romance. 

It sounds wonderful, Jacquie and the cover is awesome!

How much of yourself is hidden in the characters your books?

Well, like Kim Reynolds, I’ve worked as an academic librarian, an English teacher and an educational media specialist. But I definitely have no psychic abilities, nor do I have dark family secrets. Michelle Hallam and I have nothing in common, but Daniel Reiner and Mike Gardner share some of my husband’s character traits.

Do your characters take on a life of their own? If so, which is your favorite?

Kim and her sometime boyfriend, Detective Mike Gardner, especially take on lives of their own. They are first introduced in THE INFERNO COLLECTION which Harlequin Worldwide Mystery brought out this month as an inexpensive paperback reprint.

Their relationship develops further in THE DROWNING POOL in which they investigate a new set of murder mysteries. In THE TRUTH SLEUTH, third novel in this series, their relationship undergoes some serious changes and they solve yet a new set of murder mysteries.

What do you think is the greatest lesson you’ve learned about writing so far? What advice can you give new writers?

If you really want to be a writer, you have to write and you also have to read. We learn how to be good writers from reading the works of other writers and consistently writing each day. You need to find a time to write that’s good for you. For me, it’s early morning. That’s when I’m most productive. But everyone is different.

Develop self-discipline. Write, put work away, come back to it at a later time, and put on your editor’s hat. Above all, do not give up! Be pit bull persistent. Don’t let rejections deter you. We all get them! Keep at it. Keep improving at your chosen craft.

Wonderful advice, indeed.

We all know how important promoting our work has become. How do you get the word out both off and online?

I’m not that great at promoting my work but I hope to reach as many readers as possible. Being published by Harlequin Worldwide Mystery will be helpful I believe since the novels are in print and very inexpensive. I also like being published in e-book formats.

Online I blog when I have time. Once a month I do a blog for Author Expressions which I enjoy. I appreciate your help, Susan, in reaching more of an audience.

Can you tell us your future writing goals/projects? 

I would like to see more of my novels published. That, of course, is not up to me. I want to continue the Kim Reynolds mystery series, for instance. I enjoy writing romance fiction as well, and all of my mystery novels have elements of romance in them.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?    

 

I’m working on putting up a new website as we speak.  But I have a web page on the L&L Dreamspell site:

http://www.lldreamspell.com/JacquelineSeewald.htm

Many of my novels and short stories have been published by L&L Dreamspell.

Are your books available in print and ebook formats?

Quite a few of my novels are available both in print and as e-books:

The newest listing is from Harlequin Worldwide Mystery:

http://www.harlequin.com/author.html?authorid=2189

Amazon listing:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=jacqueline+seewald

B&N listing:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/seewald-jacqueline?store=allproducts&keyword=seewald,+jacqueline

It's always a pleasure to have you on the blog and I'll be picking up this book right away. Continued success, Jacquie!