Good morning, everyone!
Today, I have a special interview to share with none other than Faye Duncan. Faye has authored two novels so far, as well as several short stories and screenplays.
She is known for her Bungalow Heaven Mystery Series, which consists of the novels Murder on Wilson Street and Canyon of Shame. Most recently, she wrote a short story that was featured in These Haunted Hills: Book 6, Jan-Carol Publishing's annual horror anthology collection.
To purchase both books in Faye's Bungalow Heaven Mystery Series, go here.
To check out Faye's short story, called "Phantom Submission," in These Haunted Hills: Book 6, go here.
Now, without further ado, please enjoy the following interview with Faye, and be sure to listen to JCP's podcast, Bookmarked, on Friday for a more in-depth chat with the author!
BOOKMARKED: When did you first get into writing, and what inspired you to become an author?
FAYE DUNCAN: I first started writing random poems and essays when I was around twelve. My parents had just moved to a new neighborhood, and I didn’t know anybody. So, I wrote down what was on my mind. I also did some random artwork. I really started writing fiction a few years after I graduated university and had a nervous breakdown because I couldn’t figure out how to move on after school. I’ve been writing ever since.
Tell me a bit about your Bungalow Heaven Mystery Series. What would you like readers to know about it?
I would like people to know that it is a reflection on the Black Lives Matter issues, and that it is an act of courage for every cop inside a police station to stand up for what is right, and that, yes, unfortunately, it is more likely that people still won’t do what is right if it is easier. I show this fear to act with my portrayal of a reluctant detective who, in the end, does do the right thing, but more so because his career would have been in jeopardy had he not done the right thing. If his career hadn’t been threatened, he probably would have remained silent. The title Canyon of Shame stands proverbially for the issue of police violence against Black people.
What do you think are the key ingredients to creating a successful mystery novel?
I think having characters that readers can relate to are the most important ingredient. If I cannot relate to the main characters in any way, why would I read the story? The characters don’t have to be likeable (I think the detective in my series could be seen as someone detestable). But they have to arouse the reader’s interest in some way.
What general advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Don’t quit just because you think you’re not good or because you’re getting rejected. Writing is a process, and like with everything else, you get better at it the more you do it. I have to tell myself that every day.
I know you have also written short stories. How do you approach writing a short story versus writing a novel?
I love writing short stories! They’re so short and easy to handle – not like a novel, where you get into complicated file threads each time you correct or rewrite something. If you’re like me, you’ll spend half of your time figuring out which one of the four versions you have saved is the one you are currently working on. Yes, my system definitely needs improvement.
My favorite way to write short stories is by getting prompts. When you get prompts, your ego can’t sabotage you. You have to go with the flow and see what comes out of it. In a way, following prompts is possibly the most natural way to write fiction, because you are just putting on the page what you must to make the story work and not what you want because it’s some idea that’s in your head. Of course, there are also other sources of inspiration, such as nature, places, awkward encounters with other humans... I am a writer who is strongly inspired by place. Nearly every hotel vacation I go on, I feel the desire to write a mystery about that location. I just wish I were faster and could actually make all those ideas happen that always come to me when I travel or discover new places and people.
Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans and supporters?
Yes! Please let me know what you think of my most recent short story, “Phantom Submission,” that I wrote for JCP's anthology, These Haunted Hills: Book 6. This is a typical example of a short story where I followed a prompt (something spooky that happens somewhere in Appalachian territory).
Since I live in California, I had to dig deeper to figure out if I had ever even been on Appalachian territory at all. It turns out, I had; it was a brief visit of a university campus, Seton Hill University in the city of Greensburg, Pennsylvania. The university campus is supposedly haunted. So, I knew that’s what I was going to write about. If you’d like to know how my story turned out, you can find it in the anthology. And yes, please do let me know what you think of it.
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Thank you again to Faye for participating in a great conversation – both here, and on our podcast. Be sure to check out Faye's podcast interview on Friday!
From all of us at JCP, thanks for reading!
Allison Chudina
Editorial Assistant
Jan-Carol Publishing, Inc.
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