Saturday, March 4, 2017

Author Lynn Cahoon Talks Character Development



Author Lynn Cahoon is here to talk about how she approaches development of certain characters in her mystery novels, specifically characters in her most recent novel, Fatality by Firelight. Take it away...Lynn...



So how do you write a character in a murder mystery that is too stupid to live?
Okay, so maybe that wasn’t the nicest way to describe one of Cat’s writing retreat guests, but sometimes the truth hurts.  When I started writing the second book in the Cat Latimer series, I knew it would start with a trip to the Little Ski Hill. But I didn’t realize what would happen once I got Cat and Seth and the four guests on the mountain.
Christina is a romance writer who believes in true love. Even though she’s been bothered by a stalker for over a year, she still wants to find her soul mate. And, like a lot of people, she believes she finds it in a ski lodge bar.
Great story to tell your grand kids, not so easy to make the happy ever after come true. And with Christina, she believes too easily. Cat’s put in the position of being a good host and telling the young woman to guard her heart. Of course, Christina can’t hear the wisdom in the words, not until she’s burned.
Cat’s going through her own issues of dealing with the men, past and present, in her life. Why she fell in love with one who hurt her, and why she fell out of love with Seth in the first place. Christina’s willingness to believe a falsehood makes Cat wonder if she was as blind in her marriage when it came to Michael.
As someone who is in her second marriage, I understand both Cat and Christina’s dilemma. Do you trust someone with all your heart? Or do you hold back, let time tell you if your decisions are right? And how much do you give up in the pursuit of a relationship?
These were lessons I had to learn the hard way, but I’m glad I’m on a healthier track now with my relationships.
Figuring out this love stuff is sometimes as hard as finding out who killed the dead guy in the hot tub. Luckily, Cat’s great with mysteries, those of the head and the heart.


Lynn is here courtesy of Escape with Dollycas Book Tours.
You can see the rest of the tour stops here:
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
February 28 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW  
February 28 – A Blue Million Books – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
March 1 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – SPOTLIGHT
March 1 – I Wish I Lived in a Library – REVIEW
March 2 – Classy Cheapskate – REVIEW
March 2 – Author Annette Drake’s Blog – INTERVIEW
March 3 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
March 3 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
March 4 – Book Babble – REVIEW
March 4 – Mystery Playground – GUEST POST
March 5 – Shelley’s Book Case – REVIEW
March 6 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
March 7 – The Book’s the Thing – REVIEW, GUEST POST
March 8 – Books, Dreams, Life – SPOTLIGHT
March 8 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW
March 9 – Bea’s Book Nook – REVIEW
March 10 – A Holland Reader – SPOTLIGHT
March 10 – The Bookwyrm’s Hoard – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
March 12 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – REVIEW
March 12 – Brooke Blogs – CHARACTER GUEST POST, SPOTLIGHT
March 13 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW


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