Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
The Lake Templeton Murders is my first book. But I’ve always longed to be an author. I did a Creative Writing degree at Lafayette College fifteen years ago and then promptly stopped writing once I entered the corporate world. I’ve had a lot of success in my banking career but my heart still wants to tell stories that entertain people and keep them guessing. A couple of years ago, I rekindled my creative spark when I started blogging on Medium.com. Once the spark was lit, I couldn’t stop writing, and it culminated into my debut book. It will not be the last!
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Lake Templeton Murders. It’s a murder mystery set in an idyllic fictional town on Vancouver Island. It’s inspired by the detective stories I have always loved to read and the TV shows I cannot stop watching. It brings the analytical, problem-solving side of my brain together with the creative side of my brain.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Because I have a busy day job, I write first thing in the morning at 5:30 a.m. This is when I am at my sharpest. And in the home stretch of finishing my book, I often took afternoons off from work to write.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Growing up, I used to read the epics of Sidney Sheldon. I was riveted by the quick-moving tales and how once I cracked a book, I had to stay up the whole night to finish it. I also loved how Sidney Sheldon was ahead of his time in building strong, central female characters that were powerful, determined, and flawed. Most of his books were written in the 1980s and 1990s.
More recently, Harlan Coben is one of my favorite authors. I will pick up any new book he releases. I am also discovering more indie crime thriller authors such as LJ Ross. Ever since I started reading on Kindle, it’s made it much easier for me to incorporate reading into my daily routine.
What are you working on now?
My next book. It’s a new tangled case Private Detective Fati Rizvi has become embroiled in. The case of the missing twins who disappeared on their nineteenth birthday.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I will admit that marketing and promotion is something I am still learning! But I am putting most of my focus on my email list. You can join my email list here:
https://mailchi.mp/d6b48197e368/hsburneyemaillist
Do you have any advice for new authors?
A book seems like a gigantic undertaking when you sit down to start writing it. But as you keep chipping away at it over weeks and months, you’d be shocked when you wake up one day and have 100,000 words. So my advice is to not be overwhelmed by the scale of the project. Just keep writing!
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When it comes to becoming a writer, consistency is everything. When I first decided to write a book, I started and abandoned many projects. I would start with a rush of excitement and then get to the messy middle where things get hard, and then I would give up and chase after the next shiny object. When I started The Lake Templeton Murders, I determined that I will see it through. I gave myself permission to write badly, taking comfort in the fact that I can simply fix what I don’t like in the editing process.
What are you reading now?
The West London Murders by Biba Pearce, a new mystery author I have just discovered.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Keep writing! I’ve found my passion in the murder mystery genre and I have enough ideas to last me 20 more books!
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The latest Harlan Coben novel, my favorite epic from Sidney Sheldon (maybe Master of the Game) and Stephen King (maybe The Shining), and one inspirational non-fiction book (e.g. Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning)
Author Websites and Profiles
HS Burney Amazon Profile