"It's just so important to keep stepping back and asking: Is there enough suspense, enough intrigue?"
New York Times bestselling author Kate White on turning thriller tropes on their head, creating characters as real as IRL friends, and her head-spinning new whodunit, THE LAST TIME SHE SAW HIM
Check out the collection of past Words With (Author) Friends, wherein I g-chat with an author and you get to read over my shoulder, and order Kate’s up-all-night thriller, out now!
Me: Thank you so much for chatting with me, and congrats on THE LAST TIME SHE SAW HIM! How are you feeling a little over a week post-launch?
Kate: I'm good! I don't know about you, but after spending so many months writing and NOT doing a ton of public things, at first it's always an adjustment for me when I start a tour. But then I get back into the swing. I did an event last night at B&N UWS NYC, interviewed by the amazing Chris Pavone, and Wendy Walker and Lee Child came so that was fantastic.
Amazing!! I know what you mean about getting back into the public side of author-ing, though. We spend so much time alone with our words and thoughts, and then suddenly...the spotlight blares!
I know! But once I'm in the groove again, I always enjoy it. And it's amazing to meet READERS, isn't it? I'm so grateful to them.
YES! Readers are the ones who make it possible for us to be authors. I know some writers dread doing events, but I really love it—you get to celebrate and feel like a part of the book community!
What's funny for me is that when I wrote my first mystery, all I was thinking about was: "I am yearning to do this and write a mystery and fulfill this goal for myself and get it done and have my editor like it." I forgot there would be readers!!
Oh, it's always SO strange when a stranger says something about a character or plot the first time. I'm always like, "Wait...how do YOU know about Kelly? She exists in my imagination."
Ha, yes! Do you find that you even think about your characters as you fall asleep, that they are oddly alive for you?
Yes! When I'm in the writing stage and they're coming into focus for me, I start to think about them the way you can't stop thinking about (and bringing up in conversation) a crush. My friends used to call it "mentionitis" when you can't stop namechecking the new person you're dating, lol. I get that way about my characters for a bit! (But only in my head.)
Okay, we could wax poetic about our readers and imaginary friends all day, but I'd also love to talk about your brilliant new thriller. Can you share a little about TLTSSH?
Ha, thank you for that Andrea! It's the story of a woman named Kiki Reed, who runs into her ex-fiancé at a party in the CT countryside and minutes later, after he's gone to his car, he dies of a gunshot wound. Though it seems the police think otherwise, she becomes convinced he's been murdered and wants to prove it. But the extra challenge she faces is that she has no skin in the game, no agency. Because she dumped him not long before the wedding. People want her to butt out.
I love this premise! Many thrillers and domestic suspense novels explore the question of "How well do you really know your husband?", so I love that this turns it on its head—what if he's your ex and everyone wants you to stay away?
Thanks, I loved the idea of someone not having any clout. In all my books, someone dies and someone else-- the friend, the daughter in law, the sister, etc.-- is trying to find out who did it. But I was curious to explore the challenges for someone who wanted answers but had no "right" to.
So smart! Where did the idea come from?
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