Heather Day Gilbert Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.
A. I’m a West Virginia girl, born and bred. While I’ve lived several other places, I’m now back home in my lovely mountain state. I’ve been married for twenty-one years to my husband and we have four children—three teens and a four-year old. I’m an ENTJ on the Myers-Briggs—unlike most of my author friends, who are largely introverts! I have nine books out so far and I’ve been writing novels for more than ten years.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
A. I have loved reading from the time I was four years old. I won a few writing contests along the way, and I took a lot of writing classes in college (at Bob Jones University). I did some freelance newspaper writing before I was married, but it wasn’t until many years later that I actually completed a book—for a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) challenge a couple of writer friends were doing. I was so pleased when I was able to complete a 50,000 word novel in a month—it showed me I could do it, if I put my mind to it.

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?
A. I signed with my first agent quite early in the game, after completing that 50,000 word NaNo book. Then I wrote another book and found another agent. After having that book out for over a year and a half on submission to publishers, God made it clear that I was supposed to self-publish (independently publish) it. That book was the Viking historical novel God’s Daughter, and I was so excited about the way it performed, I decided to independently publish my next book, which was a contemporary mystery titled Miranda Warning (the first in the Murder in the Mountains series).

Some highlights of my career were having God’s Daughter carried in the Royal BC Museum in Canada for its Vikings exhibit, winning the Grace award for mystery/suspense with Trial by Twelve, and receiving a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly for Forest Child. I have never regretted indie publishing my books before I became traditionally published (The Message in a Bottle Romance Collection by Barbour was my first traditional contract).

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release GUILT BY ASSOCIATION?
A: I’d be happy to. Guilt by Association is book 3 in the Murder in the Mountains mystery series that is set in West Virginia. It features Tess Spencer, a married amateur sleuth, and her family and friends. Readers tell me they enjoy the dynamic between Tess and her husband, Thomas, and I’m so glad, because I loosely modeled this series off the Tommy and Tuppence mysteries by Agatha Christie.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for GUILT BY ASSOCIATION?
A: In the first two books, Tess’ mom was in prison for dealing drugs in the trailer park. I wanted to explore the past that had forged Tess into the brave woman she is, and I also wanted to delve into the opioid epidemic that’s wreaked havoc in West Virginia, so I tied those themes together for Guilt by Association. The mystery also has a theme of foster care/adoption that will play out more in the next book in the series, because that is a huge reality in the area where I live (we were actually fostering when I wrote this book, and have now adopted).

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?
A: That sometimes, you have to draw boundaries, even with your family. That there is hope for foster children. That drugs are not something to be toyed with, because once they get their hooks in, it’s nearly impossible to get them out. That you can have a thriving married relationship despite difficulty, and that it is possible to have a great relationship with your in-laws. 🙂

Q: What inspires you to write?
A. At this point, it’s definitely my readers. They encourage me to write more books even when I start questioning why I’m writing anymore! And they pray for me. It always comes back to this: as long as God wants me to write, I’ll write.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. I’m working on a three-book cozy mystery series that will be published by Kensington books. The first will release in June 2019 and I cannot wait to be able to share the details on it! Be sure to follow my Facebook page or newsletter for updates/cover art reveal, etc!

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?
A. Plant perennials, read outside, and play video games. Or go on dates with my husband—that’s my fave. 🙂