Robin Patchen Interview

Q: How long have you been writing and what other careers or jobs have you had?
A. I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was a little girl, but I lacked the self-confidence to pursue it. I studied journalism in college and then worked in marketing and public relations after I graduated. When we started having kids, I quit my job to be home with them. I was in the midst of homeschooling when my husband gave me a laptop for my fortieth birthday. I’d had a story bouncing around in my brain for years, so I decided to write it down. Mind you, I had no intention of ever letting anybody read it. I just thought it might be fun to see if I could get it on paper. Mostly, I wanted to get it out of my head. That first novel was a 700-page disaster. Trying to make that book into something worth reading was akin to taking a master’s class on how to write a novel. When I finally gave up, the book was still terrible. But I’d learned a whole lot about writing a novel, and more importantly, I’d found my passion. I’ve been writing novels ever since.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release, TIDES OF DUPLICITY?
A: I love a protective hero, and Fitz McCaffrey is definitely that. His parents were killed in a car accident when Fitz was only twenty-one, and he became the sole guardian of his eight-year-old sister. For eight years, he’s dedicated himself to caring for Shelby. But when they’re on a working vacation—work for him, vacation for her—in Belize, Fitz meets a woman. They spend two weeks together, and though Tabitha Eaton is trying to keep their relationship in the friend-zone, Fitz falls hard. And despite Tabby’s reluctance to admit it, he believes she’s fallen for him too. He’s determined to bridge the distance between them—both emotional and physical, since she lives a couple of hours from his home in Rhode Island—until he gets a call just moments after her flight takes off. A New England mob boss summons Fitz to his room, tells him Tabby stole jewels worth a half million dollars from the hotel safe, and he expects Fitz to get them back.

The mob boss has kidnapped Shelby to make sure he does.

I won’t ruin the story for you. Take a little vacation and enjoy a whole bunch of unexpected twists and turns in this whodunit plot. I think you’re going to love it.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for this story?
A: Do you remember Party of Five, that TV show back in the 90s? I didn’t see very many episodes, but I loved the premise—an older brother becoming the guardian for his younger siblings. I always wanted to write a story with a brother-turned-guardian, so that’s where Fitz came from. And to show his protective side, I needed to get his little sister in trouble, so that was the seed that eventually bloomed into this story.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?
A: TIDES OF DUPLICITY is a story about love, not just romantic love, though that’s in there, but familial love. Three families are represented in this book, with three different family dynamics—two of which aren’t particularly healthy. I hope readers recognize and remember the difference between true, healthy love and codependency and manipulation.

Q: How do you choose your settings for your books?
A. Most of my books take place in New Hampshire, where I grew up. However, a good portion of this book takes place in resorts, starting in Belize and ending in another beachy vacation spot. (I don’t want to give the ending away, though the cover does offer a little clue.) In 2020, the year of COVID, I was longing for a vacation, an escape from normal life. The jungle of Belize seemed a good place to start.

Q: Do you base your characters on people you know or are they totally made up?
A: They’re totally made up. Of course, their character traits might come from people I know. Only the good character traits, though. All that bad stuff is fictional. (Can you hear me winking?)

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. Though I’m eager to begin the next Coventry Saga novel (and by the time this posts, I hope I’ll be writing it), right now, I’m working on a nonfiction project about the trials my family has faced over the last six years. I’m not sure if this is something I’m writing for publication, for my family, or just for me. I just know this is where the Lord wants me focused right now.

Q: If money were no object what vacation would you like to take and why?
A. I’ve been dreaming for years about going on a Mediterranean cruise. I’m not really a cruise person, but I do like the idea of sleeping in a luxury cabin while I travel from port to port. If money were no object, then this cruise would visit ports in Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Turkey, Israel, and Egypt, and it would give me plenty of time to explore each spot. I don’t know if such a cruise exists, but if money were no object, I suppose I could simply commission a yacht large enough for myself and all my loved ones.

Q: What is the silliest thing you have ever done?
A. When I was seventeen and my sister was nineteen, we went on vacation to St. Thomas together, just the two of us. (My father was an airline pilot, so the flights cost next to nothing, and he got us a great deal on the hotel.) Though people have questioned the wisdom of two teenage girls headed to the Caribbean alone, that didn’t seem silly to me. We were well traveled. We knew how to stay out of trouble. Or so I thought. But then Jennifer decided we should rent a sailboat. Sounds like a fabulous idea, right? Except neither of us had the slightest idea how to sail. We climbed aboard, and the wind carried us straight out to sea. She was facing the open ocean. I was watching the people on the shore grow smaller and smaller. She was having a blast. I was having a panic attack. We tried to turn our little sailboat around and ended up flipping it over. Fortunately, it righted itself easily. Unfortunately, sailboats don’t come with instructions. We couldn’t figure out how to turn around—or how to stop our express trip to Africa. And then along came this little dinghy and two guys about our age. They gave us a tow. And then they took us to dinner that night. Silly? Probably. Fun? Definitely. Would I sail in a tiny boat in the Caribbean again? Sure. Just not with my sister at the helm.

Q: What is the hardest thing you have ever done?
A. True confession: the hardest thing I’ve ever done is get my three kids through their teen years without killing them or letting their own foolishness do the job for me. Don’t misunderstand me—I loved having teenagers, most of the time. But those times when it wasn’t easy, it was indescribably hard. Even though my youngest has been the easiest to raise (not easy, mind you, but a breeze compared with the others), I won’t mourn his teen years when they end. Only 140 days to go…