Christie Craig

Hi Christie, we are so excited about getting to know you better. Thanks for agreeing to chat with Enchanting Reviews about your books.

1. What do you like best about writing the mix of mystery and romance?
I like to write what I like to read. And to me, a mystery/romance blend just makes for a great mix. It’s like peanut butter and chocolate or strawberries and whipped cream. They compliment each other. Both of them make your heart race and get your pulse going. The mystery/suspense thread to a book just adds that sense of emergency that keeps me turning pages. Sure, I want to know if the boy will get the girl, if this will be the scene where someone gets lucky, but throw in a whacky serial killer or a nutcase with a gun and I’m glued to the pages-forget dinner, forget deadlines, forget that it’s two in the morning, I can’t put the book down. And that’s what I hope to give my readers: a story that yanks them by the ear like my Aunt Evelyn used to do whenever you said a bad word, and won’t let you go-a story that pulls you in and entertains you until you turn that last page.

2. What sparked the idea for WEDDINGS CAN BE MURDER?
My daughter was getting married and after dealing with all the wedding people: the photographer, the cake maker, the florist, the wedding planner, and the DJ, I wanted to kill somebody. And when I do it in fiction, the repercussions are less life-altering than when I do it for real. (smile) So I just put all my pent-up emotions into the plot.

3. Describe the story in three words.
“Quirky meets gripping” or maybe, “Sexy, Suspenseful, and Seriously Funny.” Which is my logo, but wait that’s four . . . no five words. Oh well, I never was good at math.

4. What's one quality of Katie's you wished you had?
Her height. I’m 4’11” and I’d really like about six inches. Okay, on a serious note, I really admired her ability to overcome grief. My family means the world to me, and I’m not sure I could keep my chin up and my sense of humor intact if I lost my entire family as Katie did. I think every time I write a character, I give them strengths that I wish I had. I hope I’m learning from them.

5. What do you like best about Carl?
Hmm, his wide shoulders and he also had a very nice backside. (Smile.) For real, I think the thing that attracted me to Carl was his devotion to his family. Oh, he complained a bit, but I don’t think there was anything he wouldn’t have done for his dad, brother, sister-in-law or nephew. And the love he held for his mother and care he gave her during her cancer and before she died still tugs at my heartstrings. They always say, look how a man treats his mother and you’ll know how he’ll treat his wife. Katie is a lucky gal!

6. What was your favorite scene to write?
I think it was the scene when Carl went to his dad’s house and found Katie and her ex-fiancé on the back patio. I loved the way Carl’s dad played his son to get a reaction out of him. And, okay I’ll admit it, I also liked the “throw-up scenes.” I knew I was pushing the envelope when I wrote those, but when the idea hit to use that theme in the book (a nervous puker meets a sympathetic puker) I laughed myself silly. And if something makes me laugh, it usually means other people will think it’s funny.

7. Did Katie and Carl do anything to surprise you during the course of the story?
Oh, yes. My characters are always surprising me. I think my biggest surprise in WEDDINGS CAN BE MURDER was the dishwashing scene. I wanted Katie and Carl’s first love scene to be different, to stand out, but I didn’t have a clue what was going to happen and then while I was writing it, Katie just jerked her shirt off and started the dishwashing strip tease game. I was laughing the whole time I wrote the scene. These kind of surprises are generally character motivated and they end up not only being my favorite scenes but the readers as well.

8. What’s next for you?
Actually, what’s next is already out on the stands. My book DIVORCED, DESPERATE AND DATING was released Nov. 25th. This is the second book of the Divorced & Desperate Series. This is Sue and Jason’s story, secondary characters who appeared in the first D&D book. It was so much fun to write. You can read about it and watch a video on my website: www.christie-craig.com. My fourth book GOTCHA! is already complete and will be released in June 09. (You can peek at that book cover and blurb on my website.) Right now I’m working on the December 09 book which is the third D&D book. And I’m tinkering with a couple of new ideas, too. Then there is the quirky relationship/self help/humor book that I’m doing with my non-fiction writing partner, Faye Hughes. It will be released around Valentine’s Day of 2010. I also just found out that one of my Chicken Soup stories is being re-released in a new book highlighting some of their best stories published over the past fifteen years. I guess you could say I’m staying busy. And I’m loving it. Nothing…absolutely nothing beats doing what you love and getting paid to do it.

Thanks for the interview Christie! You are so much fun. Enchanting Reviews wishes you the very best!

Happy Holidays and thank you so much for having me.
Christie Craig
www.christie-craig.com

interviewed by Lisa
December 2008