It’s official. The new book from Jen J. Danna is out, and it’s getting great reviews!

(I’m not surprised, I LOVED the first book!)

Jen agreed to answer a few more questions, too, for me, today on my blog!

To recap, Jen J. Danna (partnered with Ann Vanderlaan) is the author of the Abbott and Lowell Forensic Mysteries. As a mystery lover who somehow discovered Jen’s website one day, I simply had to contact her and request a copy! As it turns out, I’ve been on her street team, beta-reading her books ever since!

You might recall that I interviewed Jen J. Danna last year, when I gave her a review of Dead, Without a Stone to Tell It.

I also provided her with a review for her second book, a novella called No One Sees Me ‘Til I Fall.

Now, I’m pleased to share my review for her latest, A Flame in the Wind of Death, which received this review on Kirkus Reviews and the following review on Goodreads from me:

While I loved the plot and the solving of the case presented in “A Flame in the Wind of Death,” I found some of the writing to be a tad bit too technical for my personal taste. The research scientist side of the authors clearly shines through, and I ended up learning a few new things and adding several new words to my vocabulary. I cannot criticize the authors for this; instead, I have to complement them for expanding my repertoire! The one thing I didn’t really like is that there is a sub-plot that was not resolved. I understand that this is a tactic used my many series writers to get you to keep reading, and so I can’t fault the authors for successfully pulling this off. I’m intrigued and looking forward to the next book in this series already! I’m just the type of person who likes all loose ends to be tied up by the end of the book. The final scene in the book, however, is awesome. Without giving too much away, I will say that it ties together the progress the characters have made thus far, and is a beautiful tribute to the dead. Having read all three books so far (Dead, Without a Stone to Tell It and the novella, No One Sees Me ‘Til I Fall), I have to say that the authors are doing a bang-up job with this series. I’m hooked. I also like seeing the romance between the two main characters develop, and I’m not a romance fan AT ALL. But, given their tenuous backgrounds, it’s nice to learn about their pasts and their issues with their scars. Having had multiple surgeries in my life, I think this is a nice touch, and I’m looking forward to seeing how this sub-plot is developed further. I’d recommend that you catch up on your reading before book four in this series is released!

Some of you might be wondering how many books are going to be in this series. Today you will get answers to this question, and several others, too.

Another Q and A session with  Jen

Let’s give Jen a big Wording Well welcome, shall we?

Me: Welcome, Jen!

Jen: Hi, Lorraine! It’s good to see you again. Hmm. Your site looks different.

Me: (laughing) That’s because it is! I finally got my own hosted site. Jen: I like it. Me: Thanks. I took a survey of what my readers want, to help me plan my blog for 2014, and I was shocked and surprised to learn that they like my author interviews and book reviews.

Jen: YAY! Great news! I’m always up for another interview! Me: I appreciate that, and I’m happy you took the time to join me today, to answer a few more questions. Let’s start by talking a bit about your novella, No One Sees Me ‘Til I Fall. Your daughter is featured on the cover, isn’t she?

Jen: Yes. I was lucky to have a daughter who is a professional photographer with a full studio at her disposal, as well as another daughter who is a good sport. We had quite the photo shoot, too. I kept telling her, “Look subservient. No, no, really subservient.” I think I drove her crazy! But we got it done.

We were also lucky to have professional editorial assistance and got the manuscript properly edited. I was immensely lucky that Ann is a computer wizard and took on all the persnickety formatting of the manuscript and didn’t kill me when I kept saying, “A little to the left, now to the right. Now back again…” (although it was likely deserved!).

Me: It looks good. Why did you write a novella instead of a novel?

Jen: We wanted to give our fans something to read while the second novel was being finished, and so we self-published a novella to keep our fans happy!

Me: How many more books can readers expect, and when?

Jen: Here is a rundown of all books, published and planned:

1) DEAD, WITHOUT A STONE TO TELL IT, June 2013

2) NO ONE SEES ME ‘TIL I FALL (e-novella), November 2013

3) A FLAME IN THE WIND OF DEATH, April 2014

4) TWO PARTS BLOODY MURDER, spring 2015

5) Work-in-progress, projected 2016

6) Planned novel, projected 2017

7) Planned novel, projected 2018 Me: Is it easier to plan for future books once you have one book written? I would think it is, as you can develop the characters more fully, etc. Most authors fare better with a series than with a single book. Has this been your experience, too? Also, do you agree with this statement?

Jen: I think it depends on the author. Series are certainly easier on the author – you don’t have to come up with fascinating characters every time because you’ve already created them. You’ve created the world they live in and the type of story you’re going to tell. Whether authors fare better would depend on the series they create.

Me: Do you have any other series’ planned?

Jen: No other series planned at this point. Not to say that there won’t be others in the future, but I’m too into this one and it still feels fresh to me. Since I’m only able to write one book a year because of my day job, I want to keep the regular releases going in this series so I’ll concentrate on it. At this point, we’re planned out to book 7, but don’t have a set number of books planned for the series.

Me: So there might be a book #8 (and maybe #9), too?

Jen: Yes. Ann and I are good long term planners.  For instance, the seed for book 7’s plot was sewn into book 1.

Me: Can you talk a bit about your writing process and series development? When you first started this series, did you know it was going to be a series, or did it just evolve into one?

Jen: We wrote it as a series and pitched it to agents as such. As I said, right from the start we set up Juka Petrović as an open door to a particular plot, so we knew we were in it for the long haul (although at the time, we didn’t know that payoff wouldn’t come until book 7). Another character is introduced in concept in book 3 and in person in book 4 to support that same storyline and book. But to an extent, some storylines evolve as we go. There’s a character that is mentioned in name only in chapter 1 of book 1 that may be a focal point in book 5 if we can figure out some potential jurisdictional issues.

Me: Did you plan to write x number of books when you first started writing, or did they just evolve?

Jen: We don’t have any set number of books in mind. As long as the series can stay fresh, we’d like to keep writing it. When we started, we knew we were setting up a series, but that’s about as specific as we were until we got going.

Me: Are you going to write another series?

Jen: I’m not going to say “no” to that, but I will say “not right now.” I’m having too much fun writing this one and the ideas are still coming fast and furious. And, truthfully, when you’re trying to generate momentum on a series, it’s best to keep the installments coming at a regular pace. As a reader myself, I know how much I love getting onto a series and picking up the newest book the moment it comes out. And as I still work full-time in the lab, I wouldn’t be able to manage more than one series at a time for proper pacing.

Me: Have you had much success with your “filler” novella? Do you think it’s crucial to the series? (I know it can be read as a stand-alone, having read it.)

Jen: I’ve been quite happy with the novella. It’s done exactly what we wanted it to do – filled the gap for our readers during the long 11 months between DEAD and FLAME, and introduced us to new readers who’d never heard of Matt and Leigh in a nice, risk-free way. And while it’s not crucial to the series, I do think it’s a nice addition and tackles a real and disturbing issue.

Me: How have your views about publishing changed as a result of publishing both ways (traditionally and self-published)?

Jen: I always knew I wanted to go with traditional publishing and that hasn’t changed at all.

Me: Before we wrap this up, is there anything else you would like to add? Maybe something about Pinterest, perhaps?

Jen: Yes! You can see a Pinterest board for A Flame in the Wind of Death here and one for the upcoming book, Two Parts Bloody Murder here.

I’d also like to add that A Flame in the Wind of Death, in Canada, is being carried by Chapters/Indigo. And it’s available online through North America via Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Chapters. Indigo.ca. Of course, all books are featured on my website, too, with links to places where they can be purchased.

Me: I want to wish you a lot of continued success, Jen, and thank you for being here today to answer questions. If any of my readers have more questions, can they ask them in the comments?

Jen: Sure! I’ll reply to anyone who asks me something!

Me: Thanks again, Jen. And congratulations on your latest publication!

Jen: Thank you, Lorraine. See you in the comment section!

Readers: You can learn more about Jen’s books – and read sample chapters – on her website, and you can also connect with Jen J. Danna on Facebook , Twitter and Pinterest.

*I also want to remind you that you can still grab a copy of my free ebook, 20 Blog Post Must-Haves too! 😉

YOUR TURN:

Do you have any questions or comments for Jen (or me)?

If so, please voice them; don’t be shy!

And DO pick up a copy of Jen’s book, A Flame in the Wind of Death, from Amazon!