C. F. Dunn Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.  

A: Spending a happy but nomadic childhood, I entertained myself by making up countless stories, and reading and watching those devised by others in books and films. Living in the world of the imagination, I longed to be an author. Despite struggling with dyslexia – or perhaps because of it – my determination to write continued as I took a degree in history and followed a career in literacy development.

On leaving university and marrying my historian husband (whom I had rather romantically met on the very first day there), we set up a school for children with dyslexia and language-related difficulties such as Autism.

With two daughters of our own and a dog, I now divide my time between running the school in Kent and spending increasing amounts of time writing in Cornwall.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I have wanted to tell stories that would entertain and enthrall for as long as I can remember and, even before I could read or spell, made up stories my mother wrote down for me.

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?  

A. The events leading up to getting published were a bit of a mystery in themselves. Mortal Fire had not long been completed when the Icelandic volcanic eruptions halved the number of visitors to the London Book Fair in April 2010. A friend gave me a couple of tickets and I tottered along more out of curiosity than anything else. Through some quirk of fate or divine intervention, as I walked through the door I bumped into someone whose badge stated she also came from Kent. Being immensely inquisitive I declared a common interest and we started chatting. ‘Give Tony Collins a ring,’ she suggested, scribbling his name on the back of her business card and pointing me in the direction of the stand. Cutting a long story short, I ended up phoning Tony, the Commissioning Editor for Monarch Books, who invited me to send him my manuscript. And that was it.

There are a lot of ‘firsts’ in writing and publishing a book, such as the moment when my editor e-mailed to say he was reading Mortal Fire on his Kindle on the way to Chicago, and loved it. When the contract arrived on my doormat. Seeing the artwork for the cover and holding the first copy in my hand.  The book launch, held in the old library of a suitably atmospheric venue – historic Cobham Hall. Meeting the renowned author, Colin Dexter, whose ongoing generosity of advice and time have been a constant inspiration.

And the best bits of all? Working with a dynamic and dedicated bunch of people, the unbounded enthusiasm of strangers, and the limitless support of family and friends.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release Mortal Fire?  

A: Twenty-nine-year-old independent and self-assured history professor, Emma D’Eresby has one obsession in life: the curious journal of a seventeenth-century Englishman, a portion of which was left to her by her late grandfather.

When an unexpected opportunity to study the journal in its entirety presents itself, Emma leaves Cambridge to take up a year-long position at a prestigious university in Maine, but finds more than she bargained.  

Faced with the single-minded attentions of seductive Sam Wiesner, and the bewildering mystery of Matthew Lynes, if Emma thought that she could escape the complications of romance which dogged her past, she is gravely mistaken. Despite her attempts to concentrate on her work as an academic tutor, Emma finds the distractions of her colleagues beguiling, with her effervescent Russian friend, Elena, determined to match-make. Furthermore the attentions of Professor Kort Staahl become disturbingly sinister.

The unfurling romance and a deepening mystery develop amidst the backdrop of a stunning Maine autumn. Faced with stark choices, Emma struggles with her past and the growing attraction to the man whose own history seems bound to it. Emma’s future hangs on a knife-edge. What is the link between him and the journal? And what is he trying to hide?

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for Mortal Fire?

A: As a historian, I often ask myself ‘what if?’ and ‘why?’ On one of my many ‘rubble-hunts’ I came across the tomb of a knight in a small medieval church in a quiet village tucked away in the shires. The monument had been deliberately defaced, and I asked myself why this man had been targeted, and what motive could the attacker have had that drove him to defy the conventions of his time and in such a sacred place? From this grew the germ of an idea from which Mortal Fire developed.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?

A: Its sense of mystery, tension, suspense – and a desire to find out what Emma discovers in the next book.

Q: What is your favorite scene/chapter from the book?

A: That’s a tricky question. I like the developing relationship between Emma and Matthew, Matias is like a big brother and Elena makes me laugh. I like the picnic scene with Emma and Sam – he just can’t help himself, can he? And Staahl makes my skin crawl. And then there’s the bear….

Q: What inspires you to write?  

A. I have to confess to having spent rather a lot of my youth in a semi-dream world where I devised stories I would have liked to read. Not much has changed and, with so many ideas buzzing around my head, I want people to be able to lose themselves in my books. I enjoy creating layers in the story to add interest and depth as the tale evolves, adding twists and turns that beguile.  I also like planting clues throughout the text – some of which won’t be revealed until later in the serial. I think that writing definitely brings out the imp in me.

Q: How has being a published novelist differed from your expectations of the profession?  

A: I had no expectations of being in print or of the published life until it happened. Writing can be by its very nature a solitary occupation. Bringing out a book, on the other hand, is a collaborative effort involving a wide variety of people with different strands in the publishing game. Gone are the days when publishers handled all the publicity, and authors have to be very hands-on in promoting their own books. You have to be a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde creature and be able to cope with months of isolation when writing, and the frenetic and very public world of book-promotion. And I really relish hearing from readers who contact me on Facebook or Twitter to tell me how much they’ve enjoyed Mortal Fire; that means I’ve done my job. Thanks, you guys, it’s good to hear from you.

Q: What advice or tips do you have for writers who are just getting started?

A: You can do it. If you have a story, sit down and write because books don’t write themselves. Write until you get to the end and then edit, edit, edit. Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up until you’ve finished, and don’t finish until every word has a place in driving your story and your characters forward. Above all, enjoy what you write

Colin Dexter, creator of Inspector Morse, said: ‘All you need in order to be successful is to have a good story and be able to tell it well.’

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?  

A. At the moment I’m really enjoying editing the second book in the Secret of the Journal serial: Death Be Not Proud.

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?  

A. Apart from running the school, family life is very important to me. Otherwise I love to read a range of classic and contemporary fiction, historical non-fiction, walk Stig, our Pembroke Corgi, listen to an eclectic range of music, and garden. My husband and I are intrepid rubble-cruisers and, on a number of occasions have found ourselves in peculiar predicaments in stony ruins in the middle of nowhere. I would like to claim that I compose epic novels whilst bungee-jumping, but that would be pushing credibility a little too far.

Q: Where can readers find you on the internet? 

My website is: cfdunn.co.uk

Facebook: My author page: Claire Dunn or Mortal Fire’s own page, and on

Twitter

Q: Anything else you’d like to tell or share with us?  

A.. I get a kick out of every aspect of writing a novel – from its inception through the publishing process and then getting feedback. So you want to write a book? It’s never too late to start. Get writing!