Veronica: I’ve known
Diane in the author community for quite a while, and enjoyed her books greatly so it’s my pleasure to welcome
her back to Here Be Magic as our guest today!
Diane: Thank you
so much for inviting me back. I write in three genres: science fiction romance,
cozy mysteries, and romantic suspense. As different as they are, all of them
have their own reader expectations. But one thing that’s the same is a location
where the story takes place.
In contemporary stories (including romantic suspense and
mysteries), we call it a setting. In fantasy and science fiction romance, we
describe it as world-building. Basically, we do the same thing for both. My SFR
stories can take place in a starship or on an alien planet. In order to ground
the reader, I have to establish all the external factors that influence my
characters. The reader doesn’t need to know everything I do, but I’d better figure
it all out—things like the climate/weather, government (or lack of), customs,
food, holidays, religious observances, etc. And, I need to keep track. I keep a
separate file for each book titled “details” (so original, LOL). If I’m writing
a series, I copy the file to the new book and add those details.
My Private Eye mysteries require the same thing. A few
things we can take for granted when writing contemporary stories—the
government, for example. But my stories that take place in a small town on the
west coast of Michigan will have different foods, customs, or events than a
story set in New York City, the Pacific NW, or Japan.
“They” say you should write what you know. Okay. That works
for my contemporary stories, but what about the sci-fi romances? I would love
to experience traveling in a starship at faster than light speed or teleporting
from Michigan to Arizona to visit my granddaughter (well, her parents, too).
Since that’s not possible, I have to do a lot of research. Besides Google, I
love Pinterest for the pictures that give me so many ideas.
I grew up in a rural community where everyone (except us)
was related or had known each other since birth. I’ve lived in medium-size
cities, metropolitan suburbs (Detroit and Chicago), and a small town. Now I
live in a Lake Michigan resort town, though not as small the fictional town of
Far Haven in my Alex O’Hara PI mystery series.
Seasons in Michigan are different from those in Arizona.
Traditional foods, too. Western Michigan was settled by the Dutch. I’d never had,
or even heard of, oliebollen or bankets before living here. Those pastries are
quite yummy, by the way.
During the Tulip Time Festival (early May), visitors and
locals get to sample all kinds of Dutch food, watch klompen dancing (in wooden
shoes), or watch the kinderparade with children from the area schools marching
in Dutch costumes. I had to include those local customs in my stories.
Parts, if not most, of my SFR Outer Rim stories take place
in a desert colony on the frontier of space. I used what I know of the desert
in the American Southwest to make the setting seem familiar. Heat, penetrating
sun, cold nights, grit and sand everywhere and in everything. For my PI
mysteries, I set each story in the same small town but in a different season. To
ground the reader, I mentioned the depressing gray skies and the bone-chilling
damp cold of winter around the Great Lakes as well as “lake effect” snow. Or
the distinct smells of autumn and spring.
As with all descriptions of setting—or world
building—readers will skip info dumps, so we have to weave in the details
subtly. Here’s an excerpt from my newly released Alex O’Hara PI mystery, The Case of the Meddling Mama.
Nick and I ran through Waterfront
Park. Now that he was back again, running together was our only alone time. We
stayed on the jogging path lined with tulip spears poking their leaves through
the ground. If the weather cooperated, we would have a beautiful display in
time for Holland’s Tulip Time Festival. Considering how close Far Haven was to
Holland, we got a lot of spillover from the tourists. I had mixed feelings
about spring. The influx of tourists boosted our economy. It also turned our sleepy,
little town into a tourist haven. Nightmare was more like it, especially
traffic. I liked knowing everyone in town. It made me feel comfortable, secure.
All the strangers made me . . . edgy.
For a while, the only sound came
from the screeching gulls and our shoes slapping the hard-packed sand. We ran
to the Point then turned around. A couple of hardy souls in black wet suits
kite-surfed about a hundred feet out into Lake Michigan. Their brightly-colored
kites danced in the wind while their boards skimmed the water. The sun glinted
off the gentle waves, sparkling like tiny fireworks. In the distance, a
freighter headed south. Fully loaded considering how low it rode in the water.
On our way back, Nick stopped at
the park. “We have to talk.”
Nothing ever good came from a
conversation that started with those words. He pulled me down onto a bench. For
several seconds, he just gazed out at Lake Michigan. In the distance, a
freighter headed south. Fully loaded, considering how low it rode in the water.
I couldn’t stand Nick’s silence any
longer. I was about to ask what he wanted to talk about when he said, “Did you
really mean what you said? After Ma showed up. About not wanting to be married
to me?”
Blurb:
Once again, Alex O’Hara is up to her ears in mysteries. After
surviving an attempted murder, all she wants is R&R time with Nick
Palzetti. But his mother leaving his father (“that horse’s patoot”) and moving
in with Alex puts a crimp in their plans. Then Nick leaves on assignment and
the teen she rescued from an abusive father believes his buddy is doing drugs.
Meanwhile, Alex has two easy cases to take her mind off her shaky relationship
with Nick—a philandering husband and a background check on a client’s
boyfriend. Piece of cake.
Available at:
Amazon: http://a.co/2hk7fYF
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-case-of-the-meddling-mama-an-alex-o-hara-novel
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/718776
About the Author:
Diane Burton combines her love
of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing romantic
fiction. Besides the science fiction romance
Switched and Outer Rim series,
she is the author of One Red Shoe, a
romantic suspense. She is also a contributor to the anthology How I Met My Husband. Diane and her
husband live in Michigan. They have two children and two grandchildren.
For more info and excerpts from her books,
visit Diane’s website: http://www.dianeburton.com
Connect with Diane Burton
online
Twitter: http://twitter.com/dmburton72
Facebook: http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor
Goodreads: Diane Burton
Author
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72/
Amazon author page: http://amzn.com/e/B00683MH5E
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