SUSPENSE SISTERS: Interview with Mystery Author April Hayman

I'm so delighted to be chatting today with the fabulous April Hayman. Her latest book, When the Pilot Falls, is a mystery set in the 1920s based on a fairy tale and part of the new Ever After Mysteries by Celebrate Lit Publishing. AND she's giving away a copy of it! Woohoo!

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So I have to ask, April. Where do your mysteries come from. How do you formulate the clues and all of the twists?

A mystery is a question that you don’t want your audience to know the answer to until the end of the book and that, hopefully, keeps them in suspense and guessing all that time. So, I just ask myself a question and build from there. Clues and twists come in two ways. While I’m plotting, I work backwards from the “final reveal” and determine how they got there and what the characters need along the way to figure it out and twists come while I’m writing, usually, and trying to make life as painful as possible for the characters and surprising for the audience. A good twist can be hard to write but when it happens, it’s always a fist pump in air moment.

Working backwards - that's a concept! I've never tried that, but I did find writing a mystery in a historical setting was a lot of fun. Did you find it easier or more difficult than writing a contemporary mystery?

In short, I think writing a contemporary novel is more difficult. The longer answer is, that when reading, I will take a historical over contemporary only because the past is like a dream and I can think about it in fuzzy terms. It’s almost fantastical, in that I don’t have a clear memory of what it was like to live during that time.

Oh, I totally get what you mean by that. Like a little vacay into a time period that isn't all that familiar.

Yes. Books closer to our time period make me more suspicious and I tend to nitpick on jargon, events, fashion, etc. Writing-wise, I like that a historical setting is fairly set in stone and I have to be clever to write around them or weave them into the story, like how I included George Remus, the famous bootlegger of Cincinnati. And I’m forced to research more diligently because I know that the history police are always watching for a mistake. I tend to forget to do that with a more contemporary novel because I’m more familiar with it.

How fun that you were able to incorporate a real person into your story. And incorporate a fairy tale, right? Which one is your story based on and how did you fit it in?

The fairy tale that inspired this book is "East of the Sun, West of the Moon," an old Norwegian fairy tale found in the Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang. I loved how the female protagonist has agency to make her own decisions, even the really bad ones, and learns from them even while humbling herself. I think we could all learn from her actions, honestly.

I'll give an amen there, but quietly because I'm mostly talking to myself! LOL! So tell me about your life as an author. how does it impact your "real life"?

Real life? Is that a thing? Just kidding! Now that my children are older, writing is just another part of mom’s day job. I still have to maintain certain writing or author hours in which the boys are not allowed to interrupt me. As a matter of fact, I have a small sign I post on my office door that states: IN A MEETING. Text if an emergency (I.e. fever, vomiting, broken bones, burglar, aliens). And, yes, writing time falls under “meetings.”

Of course, it does! You're meeting with your characters!

Right. But all joking aside, finding that balance is hard because I am home all day long. Making writing a priority, and convincing myself of that, is a never ending struggle. One that I’m sure many mothers, whether they work from home or not, can understand. It’s not all bad though. My kids and husband are my biggest fans, all of whom are always letting me know it’s just a matter of time before I’m just as famous as JK Rowling. That always makes me smile.

It's such a blessing to have built-in cheerleaders, isn't it? And what's on the horizon for you?

On the horizon is a new 3-book series set on an island chain in the South Pacific. It’s being published by Celebrate Lit as well. I also have a cozy mystery series, The Crawford and Crawford Detective Agency, in the works. The first book of the series is nearing its first draft (finally) and I hope to get that out as soon as I can. I know quite a few of my fans have been waiting for it anxiously.

Sounds intriguing! And I LOVE intrigue! Thanks so much for visiting with us today! Readers, if you want to learn more about April, visit her website, HERE.

And here's a little bit about April's book, When the Pilot Falls:

In 1923, there aren’t many pilots, but Willie Labeau didn’t let that stop… her.

A bear of a man, Hugh Taylor, needs a stunt plane pilot, and despite their rocky introduction, Willie sets off for golden California and a new life as his pilot. There’s just one little thing she has to do in addition to flying.

Leave his past alone. Period.

When the flame of her own curiosity becomes fanned by encouragement from Willie’s sister, the feisty pilot can’t help but do just a little investigating.

And Hugh vanishes.

Friends rally around her, and with all the information she can find in hand, Willie sets off to rescue Hugh and battle the evil family holding him hostage.

A fierce air race, a sincere act of humility—are they enough to free Hugh and give Willie a chance to be with him… forever?

Find out in this next book in the Ever After Mysteries, combining beloved fairy tales and mysteries. When the Pilot Falls offers a retelling of “East of the Sun, West of the Moon” that will keep you gripped to the edge of your seat as you watch hearts soar and daring dos.

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You can purchase When the Pilot Falls by clicking this LINK or clicking the cover. And if you want to win her copy, share the most recent (or current) mystery that you've read! We'd love to know what's on your bedside table!