Imagine, if you will, a child on their birthday with all their little friends, hyped up on E-numbers. Are you seeing it? :
Excited, frenzied, unstoppable!
Now imagine me when I had a return email from Ms Higgins Clark’s PA saying “Mary says yes”.
The images are one and the same!
For anyone who knows me by now, you know what a huge fan of Mary Higgins Clark I am. I only discovered her last year (not quite even a year ago) quite by accident as, to be honest, I had never really considered picking up one of her books before for some reason. The first book I read was No Place Like Home and I was hooked! Since then I have got through fifteen of her books and I have loved every single one of them! And the best part is that I have another 14 to look forward to. They are my ultimate comfort books, as I always know that I’m going to enjoy the book and they never let me down.
I was recently sent her latest brand new book, The Shadow of Your Smile, by Simon & Schuster (after pestering an extremely patient and friendly Sue for several months ;)) which I have recently reviewed here and at the same time I contacted Mary directly to see if she would be willing to be interviewed for my blog. I honestly never expected to hear from her so I was over the moon when I heard that she had agreed.
So here we go. The answers and short and to the point, but frankly that’s fine by me as a) I still can’t believe that the Queen of Suspense agreed to be interviewed for my blog and b) the shorter her answers, the more time for writing her next book!
Boof: Your new book Shadow of Your Smile is out soon (which I can’t wait to get my hands on) – can you tell us one interesting fact that you found out while writing this book that you didn’t know before?
MHC: Steps to canonization as a saint in the Catholic Church
Boof: How do you keep coming up with new ideas all the time? What do you use as inspiration?
MHC: Newspaper articles or as in this one – attending the Beatification ceremony.
Boof:I love the fact that the heroines in your books are all around my age (38) and usually have successful careers but live very ordinary lives still; I find them easy to identify with. They also all have a huge resilience and self-sufficiency: where do your characters get this trait from?
MHC: From women I have known starting with my mother.
Boof: I discovered your books by accident only a year ago. I had seen them in shops before but never picked one up. Once I had read one I was hooked and have devoured as many as possible since. I hardly know anyone else my age who reads them (although I am on a one-woman campaign to rectify this at the moment) as people tell me they see them as books that little old ladies would read. Why do you think this is?
MHC: I’m rather surprised by that because I am on the readers list for people from 12 years of age and up – three generations in front of me – all generations reading my books.
Boof:You are known as “The Queen of Suspense” in the book world. Personally, I call you “My Queen of Comfort Reads” as your books are my perfect read for when I want to curl up with a coffee and a page-turner and I know that they will never let me down. What is the nicest thing that you have ever heard anyone say about how your books affect them?
MHC: It gets them through an illness or a death in the family and helped them at a bad time.
Boof: Which is your favourite book out of every one you have written and why?
MHC: I honestly don’t have one. It’s like asking me to name my favourite child. Of course, ‘Where Are the Children’ launched my career and that was the beginning.
Boof: Do you think you will ever stop writing new books? (Please say no!)
MHC: NO!
Boof: What is your top ingredient for writing a successful suspense novel?
MHC: To hook the readers on page 1.
Boof: Do you have any famous fans?
MHC: Barbara Bush, Laura Bush
Boof: And finally the quick-fire round:
Favourite colour: red
Favourite animal: dog
Favourite food: pasta
Favourite song: The Shadow of Your Smile – pro tem
Favourite author: myself and Carol Higgins Clark
Favourite book: Jane Eyre
Favourite holiday destination: Cape Cod; Spring Lake, NJ
Favourite memory: The day ‘Where Are the Children’ sold
Hurray, MHC’s favourite book is Jane Eyre (just like mine! :))
Have you read any Mary Higgins Clark books? Which are your favourites?
