Hello! And welcome to my website. Whether you stumbled here, were looking me up, or landed here in a random search, I’m glad you are here. I’m an author, and if you stick around for a moment and I’ll tell you what kind of novels I write. Don’t want to? No hard feelings. Perhaps you’ll stop back again when you have more time.

Fiction I Love

Love of writing and love of reading go together.  That is, I don’t know any fiction author who did not read avidly, at least as a child, and wasn’t swept away by some aspect of those books.  I’m not any different in that regard, but until I learned the skills that go into structuring a novel, I had a hard time characterizing the books I liked to read.  That is, what does J.K. Rowling’s Prisoner of Azkaban have in common with Michael Crichton’s A Case of Need, or David Baldacci’s The Collectors,  or Dean Koontz’s Strangers, or John C. Brewer’s Multiplayer to name just a few. And what do any of these rather thrilling adventurous novels have to do with the Agatha Christie mysteries I consumed like popcorn as a kid?

Chase the Why as well as the What.

Any good book should keep you turning pages to find out what happens to the characters, but these books dangle another question in front of the reader: why it is happening? That doesn’t mean they are mysteries; with the exception of Agatha Christie they aren’t. The genre doesn’t particularly matter to me, nor does the perspective. What does matter is that the writing doesn’t interfere with immersing myself in the story and characters, and the author has dangled the question of why events are happening until near the end of the book when it all falls together and I can look back and see the string of clues had been there all along.

Thrillers that Keep You Guessing

I write the kind of books I enjoy. My first novel, Foreseen, is frequently put on readers’ “mystery” shelf on Goodreads, and reviews have positively commented that it keeps them thinking all the way through.  That is probably the defining characteristic of what I write – there is some puzzle or question to be solved and all the clues are there.  But like most of the books mentioned above, my novels aren’t mysteries. They tend to be cross-genre: well-paced thrillers drawing on aspects from science fiction and fantasy.

Being an Author

 The best part of being an author is talking to people who enjoy books. I love it and gets me away from my computer. Frankly, it doesn’t even have to be my books.  I love serving on panels or talking to small groups or individuals about just about any topic pertaining to novels and writing. Aside from talking about my own books and writing, some of my favorite topics are “What Makes a Thriller,” “Writing as Passion vs. Writing for an Audience,” and “The Effects of the eBook Revolution.”

If you’re interested in having me speak to your group, whether large or very small, send me an email at terri (at) plotforge . com.