FATAL ERROR...the Next Best Thing

I am participating in The Next Best Thing challenge, because I think FATAL ERROR is going to be THE NEXT BIG THING.

This challenge, that is making its way around cyberspace, consists of 10 questions about an author's work-in-progress.  Here are those questions and my honest answers:

What is the working title of your book?

Originally entitled “BackTracker I”, FATAL ERROR was written as the first book in my BackTracker series. It opens with young Katrina being rescued from THE TRAZ biker gang compound and follows her struggle to deal with the legal, social, and emotionally fallout of her year with the gang. 

After writing this book and the follow up one, I found I was insatiably curious about what actually happened during the year  that Katrina, Shrug and Chad were with The Traz. I was so curious that I couldn’t help but pen the prequel—which ended up THE TRAZ and Book I of my series. This meant “BackTracker I” was no longer an appropriate title for the second book. It took some doing and figuring and collaborating with my publisher before we settled on FATAL ERROR.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

The characters dictated their BackTracker stories to me during a very low and lonely time in my life. I truly don’t feel I authored this novel, but since I’ve spent so many hours editing it and promoting it, I don’t feel too guilty about putting my name on the cover.

What genre does your book fall under?

The protagonist, Katrina, was 13-years old in THE TRAZ and I marketed that book to adolescents, at-risk youngsters, and the adults in their lives as an Action/Adventure with Social Issues.


 __________________________________

THE TRAZ SCHOOL EDITION

and 

THE TRAZ reg. edition

   Only $2.99 ON AMAZON!

Amazon.com

Amazon in the UK

 

 

However, little Katrina grows up in FATAL ERROR and the adult characters that were introduced in The Traz play increasingly important roles. Therefore, I’ll market this novel as an Adult/YA  Action/Adventure/Thriller. It qualifies as Crime Fiction as well.

 
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I have to pass on this question. In my head and heart the characters are so real, I can’t imagine them being portrayed by anyone but themselves. Besides, I’m not all that familiar with things Hollywood.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Just one mistake, and someone dies.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I was so lucky with this book. I sold the publishing rights to FATAL ERROR before I’d even finished writing it! Imajin Books, who bought the eRights to THE TRAZ and who also released THE TRAZ School Edition in both ebook and print formats, obviously liked my writing. They offered me a contract for the sequel at the same time as I signed on with them for THE TRAZ. My goodness, this does not happen often! Am I blessed, or what?

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I wrote almost 24 hours a day back then when the characters were dictating their stories to me. The first draft of FATAL ERROR was completed and the next book in the series started in under than a month.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

People often compared this series to The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo. Both are series that involve a young girl engaged with the criminal element.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

I wrote a blog about this, called “She was afraid…” Here’s the opening:

It was a dark and lonely time in my life when she came to me…a tiny girl on a ridge, lying on her belly, watching danger unfold in the valley below. Listening.

Grasped tightly in her fingers were autumn grasses.

Her anticipation was so intense it hurt my lungs. She was barely breathing. Afraid to move.

I saw her there whenever I closed my eyes. She was waiting…

Each night, night after night, as I lay down to sleep, she came to me. Afraid. Excited. Alone. Always on her belly on an autumn ridge. One night I felt the  thump, thump, thump of an approaching helicopter shaking the ground beneath her belly. Once I heard the scream of sirens.

There came a night when I could stand it no longer; I needed to know who that young girl was. Why was she on that ridge? What was happening in the valley below? I flicked on the lights and made my way to my laptop.

The complete article can be found here She was afraid...

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

The one complaint I got  amidst all the 4- and 5-star reviews of THE TRAZ is that the story ended too soon. Well, my fans don't have to wait much longer to find out what happened next. FATAL ERROR will be released by Imajin Books within the next few weeks.

Thank you to Chris Longmuir for inviting me to join the Challenge. Visit her blog to uncover her answers to these questions.

I've conned Luke Murphy, Author of DEAD MAN'S HAND into accepting this challenge. Be sure to visit his blog next Wednesday, 26 September 2012 to discover his secret "Next Best Thing". Thanks, Luke, for being a good sport.

Also thanks to Robin Winter for agreeing to participate. Check her blog on Wednesday, 26 September 2012 as well. Robin's novel, NIGHT MUST WAIT, will be published later this year by Imajin Books. http://robinwinter.wordpress.com/


Eileen Schuh, Author
Schrödinger's Cat
THE TRAZ