Connie Mann Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.
A: Just like everyone I know, I juggle many roles. I’m a writer, a boat captain, a mom to two fabulous adults, a wife, a daughter and caregiver to aging parents, and because of all that, an expert avoider of housework and frustrated traveler because I’m mostly tied to home these days. I’m working hard to say yes to the most important things, to weed out non-essentials and to remember to laugh and live in the midst of absolute chaos.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
A: As a child, I used to grab a book and curl up in an armchair in the corner of our living room and disappear into a story. Hours later I’d realize the story had transported me to a whole other world—right from our little town. I loved the idea of traveling to another time and place and living someone else’s life for a while. I guess I still do!

Q: What do you write and why this genre?
A: I love romantic suspense and have since I first snuck a copy of Where are the Children? by Mary Higgins Clark into my bedroom as a teenager. I love the tension and worry of suspense, the puzzle of solving a mystery. But more than that, I love seeing two strong people get pushed to their limits while falling in love at the same time. My stories are always about second chances, and I love making sure my heroes and heroines get theirs.

Q: Do you base your characters on people you know or are they totally made up?
A: I totally make up my story people. I’d be too afraid of getting a real person completely wrong or offending them somehow. I may borrow jobs, personality quirks or traits here and there, but that’s about it. Half the fun of writing is creating the story people.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release DEADLY MELODY?
A: This is the 3rd book in the Safe Harbor series (though you don’t have to read them in order). Foster sister Cat has made brief appearances in the other books and left readers wanting to know her story. Here’s the back cover copy:

Home is where the heart is. The danger, too . . .

The Martinellis were the closest thing to family Cat Johnson ever had. That’s why she ran—to protect them from her threatening past. The orphaned child of classical musicians, she’s been lying low in Nashville, and performing at the No Name Café. When Cat reluctantly agrees to attend the wedding of her beloved foster sister, the plan is simple: make a quick appearance at the Martinellis and then disappear again. Instead she’s thrust headlong into a nightmare.

After a wedding guest is murdered, Cat’s past descends with a vengeance. So does handsome and inquisitive Safe Harbor cop, Nick Stanton, who will stop at nothing to uncover the town’s secrets. That means exposing Cat’s as well. The more intimate Nick’s feelings for Cat become, the more driven he is to find out what she’s hiding.

As things in Safe Harbor take a terrifying turn, Cat realizes that the man she’s afraid to trust might be the only one she can turn to.

Q: Where did the idea for this story come from?
A: Music has always been a big part of our family so having a musical heroine wasn’t a huge stretch. My Dad used to play the violin (and harmonica) and hubby and I are involved in a ministry in the Philippines that helps street children stay in school and get an education. The children’s band is one way they do that.

Then one day my boss mentioned a particularly nasty drug that’s out there and after some research, these two ideas became the seeds for Cat’s story and the villains who are after her.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A: I’m currently working on a new romantic suspense series for Sourcebooks about Florida Fish and Wildlife officers. It’s still a small-town, family-oriented cop series, which I love, but with an outdoorsy, nature twist. I can’t wait for you to meet the Tanner family. Beyond Risk (book 1) will be out in January, 2019.

Q: Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
A: Most people are surprised that I’m a boat captain, but it’s an awesome job! I love it. Besides being on the water, my second-favorite place is in an airplane. I love to travel and to me, airplanes are like magic carpets to another world. I hate peas and lima beans. That squishy texture puts me off, quick.

Q: Milk or dark chocolate? Coffee or tea?
A: I’m leaning more and more towards dark chocolate these days, especially the mocha swirl from Dove. Definitely coffee. It’s essential, whereas tea is only for when you’re sick.

Q: Favorite TV show or shows?
A: I absolutely LOVE NCIS, but as a long-time fan, I’m sad and a little unsure about how this will go now that Abby has left the team. I also love DEATH IN PARADISE, which is a cop show set on a Caribbean island. I get a mystery AND a trip to the islands with every episode. What’s not to love?