Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Robin Carroll | DEAD SILENCE
Author Guest / May 18, 2020

Hi, there. . . Robin here. I’m getting so excited for the release of my thirty-fourth novel, DEAD SILENCE. I have to say, I love this book. The heroine is strong, yet flawed in how she perceives some of what is going on around her. She’s kicked into action when her son is threatened. Her love for her son–willing to do anything to protect him is a mother’s instinct I relate to so well, having three daughters and two grandsons. The love of a mother for her child is so ingrained in me that I forewent any romance in the story, allowing the love between mother and child to take the forefront emotion. I’ve been asked why I opted for a heroine who is an ASL translator and who has a deaf son. Many years ago, I became friends with someone who is deaf. She shared with me some of her frustrations, but also how her way of life is in comparison to mine. It got me to thinking that being deaf could be thought of as a disability, but could also be used as an advantage. . . it was all in how you looked at it. My friend…

Robin Caroll | Story Ideas
Author Guest / August 8, 2014

I’m often asked how I get ideas for my books. I always want to answer, “Where don’t I get ideas?” I get character ideas by people watching. I travel quite often, and while I really detest the whole traveling experience, I use my time wisely—I watch people. I study them. Yes, even been known to snap a picture of one with my cell phone because of a certain hairstyle, or quirk, or expression. All of this information filters down and finds its way into a character. Some of my favorite character traits used have been gleaned from strangers in an airport. Newspapers, television, and yes, even those true-crime shows all provide fodder for my plots. No, I don’t see something or read about it and then just change minor events for my story. I play a game called what-if. For example, I’ll hear a story about a woman who shot her husband for having an affair. My mind starts the game: What if the woman had hired a private detective to get the “goods” on her husband? What if the private detective had a grudge against the husband for some wrong years ago? What if the man wasn’t having an…