Roz Nay Won't Be a Secret for Long!

INGRID THOFT

A quick note before today's guest:  Our very own Jenn McKinlay just won "RT Magazine's" Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Love and Laughter for her book, "About a Dog."  Congrats, Jenn!

Back to our regularly scheduled program...

It's a thrill to welcome today's guest, Roz Nay, to the blog.  Roz is the author of the debut novel, "Our Little Secret," a book garnering awards and accolades across the globe.  Released in Canada last year and now available in the U.S., "Our Little Secret" won the Douglas Kennedy Prize for Best Foreign Thriller in France last May, and it's been nominated for the Arthur Ellis Best First Crime Novel, a national Canadian award.  Featured on "Entertainment Weekly’s" Must List, the novel also earned a rave from "The Washington Post" and starred reviews from "Library Journal" and "Booklist."

The book is a twisty, suspenseful tale of high school love and what happens to sweethearts as they grow older and embark on new lives.  It's a page-turner that will keep you guessing until the end.  

INGRID THOFT:  The seeds of "Our Little Secret” are planted in the high school romance of the two main characters, Angela and HP.  What made you decide to use that as the jumping off point for the story?

ROZ NAY:  I think because of the years I spent working as a high school English teacher. I used to watch the clever girls graduate and wonder what their lives would become. They had so much potential – everything was in front of them. It’s a powerful time. Then, in my twisted little mind, I wondered what would happen if a gifted girl ended up in a life she didn’t feel she deserved. How would she use her cleverness then?

IPT:  The book centers on the complicated relationship between Angela, HP, and his eventual wife, Saskia.  Did you prefer writing one character’s arc more than the others?  Inhabiting one character more than another?

RN:  I tried to make all the characters different – and differently flawed. HP was fun to write because he was so easygoing, and a lot of his lines are things that have come directly out of my own husband’s mouth. Saskia was fun because I wanted to make her the kind of woman to whom readers would react in really distinct ways. Some readers can’t stand her; others champion her. But ultimately, Angela’s arc was the most enjoyable to write. Hers was the first voice I heard, and that voice is the reason I wrote the novel. It all began with her. I found her kind of delicious to inhabit, which is perhaps something I should be more worried about.

IPT:  Don't be worried!  Enjoying the dark side is the hallmark of a good mystery/suspense writer!  I’ve heard from our mutual friend, Chevy Stevens, that you don’t write your scenes in order.  Can you tell us more about that?

RN:  I think with this book, I was writing scraps of scenes in total chaos, grabbing time when I could. I wrote "Our Little Secret" at a time when both my children were very young, and the writing was patch worked in among all the demands of new motherhood. I was always sure of Angela’s arc and wrote pieces of that first because she was driving the narrative. Now that I’m working on my second (and third) book, I’ve developed a more structured schedule and I tend to write more chronologically to the plot. But with "Our Little Secret" it was a gong show. It’s amazing it ever got finished.

IPT:  What has surprised you most about being a published author?

RN:  Mostly the fact that I’m a published author! That fact alone is astonishing. It’s been a big, fast year full of book adventure. I was surprised that I got to go to Paris alone for a week, which felt like an entirely different planet. These days I’m surprised every time someone stops me in the street to say they’ve liked the book. Strangers reading my work! That’s a really big deal when you think about it. And to get such a groundswell of support, too, from well-known writers (yourself and Chevy Stevens included) who want to help the book along is quite the lovely surprise.   

IPT:  Is there a wannabe book lurking in the back of your brain, something you would write if you didn’t have to consider agents, editors, and fans?  A romance?  Non-fiction?

RN:  I’d like to write a kind of Bridget Jones-y romantic comedy. I always thought if I ever got a book together, it’d be humour I wrote, but I seem to have strayed early to the dark side. I’m also quite interested in YA… I enjoyed writing the first half of "Our Little Secret" where everything was teenaged and idyllic: I wouldn’t mind spending a little more time in that world again. Mind you, Chevy Stevens is hoping I’ll write a sequel to OLS starring only HP. She has her reasons.

IPT:  I bet she does!

Roz will be here today answering your questions and is giving away two copies of "Our Little Secret."  Just comment to enter the giveaway!

"Our Little Secret"

They say you never forget your first love. What they don’t say though, is that sometimes your first love won’t forget you…

Angela Petitjean sits in a cold, dull room. The police have been interrogating her for hours, asking about Saskia Parker. She’s the wife of Angela’s high school sweetheart, HP, and the mother of his child. She has vanished. Homicide Detective J. Novak believes Angela knows what happened to Saskia. He wants the truth, and he wants it now.

But Angela has a different story to tell. It began more than a decade ago when she and HP met in high school in Cove, Vermont. She was an awkward, shy teenager. He was a popular athlete. They became friends, fell in love, and dated senior year. Everything changed when Angela went to college. When time and distance separated them. When Saskia entered the picture.

That was eight years ago. HP foolishly married a drama queen and Angela moved on with her life. Whatever marital rift caused Saskia to leave her husband has nothing to do with Angela. Nothing at all. Detective Novak needs to stop asking questions and listen to what Angela is telling him. And once he understands everything, he’ll have the truth he so desperately wants…

Roz Nay grew up in England and studied at Oxford University. She has been published in The Antigonish Review and the anthology Refuge. Roz has worked as an underwater fish counter in Africa, a snowboard videographer in Vermont, and a high school teacher in both the UK and Australia. She now lives in British Columbia, Canada, with her husband and two children. "Our Little Secret" is her first novel. Follow her on Twitter @roznay1 and on Facebook.com/roznay1.

Introducing Crime Writers of Canada, a guest post by Vicki Delany

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Vicki Delany is one of our favourite (note the Canadian spelling!) writers here at JRW. So much a favorite, that we, uh, invited her twice this summer. Oops. But we're glad, because Vicki's using her soapbox to do one of the things she does best: represent Canada.

Thanks to Julia for inviting me to do a guest spot on my favourite writer’s blog, Jungle Reds.  I am such a fan of the blog, and the Reds themselves, I kinda like to think of myself as an honourary Red. (Note the ‘u’ in honourary.)

Because I am not famous for my organizing skills, I forgot that I had arranged with Rosemary to visit the blog in August to talk about my new book, A Cold White Sun, the 6^th in the Constable Molly Smith series from Poisoned Pen Press. 

So there I was, with an embarrassment of riches, having the opportunity to guest at Jungle Reds twice in two months. As gracious as ever, Julia suggested I take the chance to promote the organization of which I am National Vice President, Crime Writers of Canada.

What a great idea!

 

Let me introduce the CWC to those of you who might not be familiar with it.  As its name suggests the Crime Writers of Canada is an organization of… Canadian crime writers. No brainer there.

We exist to promote Canadian crime writing and Canadian crime writers not only in Canada (where, sadly, we need a lot of promotion) but around the world. You don’t even have to be Canadian to be a member. You just have to be Canadian Friendly.

And you all are, right?

The group was established in 1982 and has grown steadily to its current 315.  In 1994, the CWC established the Arthur Ellis Awards (AKA the Arthurs) for Excellence in Crime Writing. The Arthurs are open only to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, although the books can be published and set anywhere in the world. Or outside of it.  Arthur Ellis, incidentally, was the nom de travail of Canada’s official executioner. A job that was finally eliminated in 1976.

Canada is a mighty big country (second largest land mass after Russia) with a relatively small population.  We can’t exactly all gather at the neighbourhood pub one Sunday afternoon to talk writing.  Nevertheless, one of the goals I have set myself in my term as National VP is to encourage a spirit of cohesion and community. 

Last month I went on a three week book tour to the North West Territories and the Yukon (with a quick pop across the border to Skagway, Alaska) with my friend Barbara Fradkin.  We were overwhelmed by the support of the Yukon CWC members, in particularly Jessica Simon, who organized two events for us in the capital city, Whitehorse. That’s two events in a city with a population of 27,000.  Jessica peppered the town with posters advertising our visit, and drummed the woods to gather eager readers.  In one case, quite literally.  We were giving a reading in a parking lot outside a bookstore. Jessica provided a tent, camping chairs, and blankets in case of cold (which it wasn’t) and then she trotted over to the neighbouring WalMart parking lot and went from RV to RV suggesting people join us. (Why do RVers park outside WalMart when there is about a kazillion acres of wilderness a couple of kilometres down the road?)  So many people came, Barbara and I gave up our seats and sat on the sidewalk.

In the Yukon, I began thinking about what the organization can do to make our members feel part of the whole Canadian crime writing community, just like Jessica did for us. 

Next June, the Canadian mystery conference, Bloody Words, will be held in Toronto.  As well as our not very exciting AGM, the CWC is planning a networking event. Something at which we can meet each other in person, and hopefully get to know more about the state of crime writing (and reading!) in further-flung parts of this enormous country. 

Now, a word from our sponsor:  Bloody Words is a fabulous small conference.  Why don’t you consider coming?  The theme this year is Danse Macabre: Historical Mysteries and the Dance of Death, but all types of mysteries, and mystery authors, from anywhere in the world will be featured. You might recognize the name of the Canadian Guest of Honour.  Who is planning to wear a costume suitable for the event to the banquet. Click here to check it out (the conference, not the costume).  

Perhaps the most important thing, aside from the Arthurs, that the CWC does is its quarterly catalogue of upcoming members’ books, Cool Canadian Crime.  The summer 2013 issue is just out, so I’d like to invite everyone to have a look at what’s new and exciting in the world of Canadian Crime Writing. 

If that whets your appetite, CCC backlists are always available on the web page, crimewriterscanada.com. You don’t even have to remember to look for CCC every quarter, use the subscription link on the web page (under the Books tab) to have CCC delivered straight to your e-mail box.

Want still more? Why not Like us on Facebook?  

   

To welcome you to the world of Canadian crime writing, I’d like to give away a copy of the book Barbara was touring the North for, Whisper of Legends, set in the incredible Nahanni National Park in the North West Territories.  Leave a comment telling us who YOUR favourite Canadian crime writer is, and we will choose one lucky winner. Haven’t read Canadians yet? Then let us know of a book you’re looking forward to reading, and you’ll be entered in the draw too.  Can’t think of just one? Heck, say Hi and that’ll be good enough.

Vicki Delany is not only the NVP of the CWC, she is one of Canada’s most varied and prolific crime writers.   A Cold White Sun, the sixth book in the popular Constable Molly Smith series from Poisoned Pen Press, will be released in August. She is also the author of standalone novels of psychological suspense, and the light-hearted Klondike Gold Rush books from Canada’s Dundurn Press. 

 

Her Rapid Reads book, A Winter Kill, was shortlisted for the 2012 Arthur Ellis Award for best novella. 

Vicki is a member of the Capital Crime Writers, The Writers Union of Canada, and is on the board of the Crime Writers of Canada and the Wolfe Island Scene of the Crime Festival. She is proud to have been chosen as Canadian guest of honour for Bloody Words, the Canadian mystery conference, in 2014. 

Having taken early retirement from her job as a systems analyst in the high-pressure financial world, Vicki enjoys the rural life in bucolic Prince Edward County, Ontario. 

Visit Vicki at www.vickidelany.com, www.facebook.com/vicki.delany, and twitter: @vickidelany.