Thank you for joining us for part two of our interview with author Traci Hunter Abramson. If you missed part one, click here.
Traci, when we left off yesterday, you were telling us about your published books. What projects are you working on now?
Believe it or not, I have several novels I’m working on right now. “Freefall” is due out in the spring of 2008 from Covenant Communications. For people who have read “Undercurrents,” they might remember Matt’s younger sister, Amy Whitmore, who is the main character. Amy is taken hostage in the fictional country of Abolstan and Brent Miller is a member of the Navy SEAL team sent in to rescue her. When Brent and Amy are left behind in Abolstan, they have to make their way through hostile terrain to escape the terrorists and the civil war that is breaking out. It is a really fun book with strong-willed characters. I personally enjoy both the romance and suspense that ended up on the pages.
I also have a novel that I recently submitted to Covenant, tentatively titled “Royal Hearts.” It is about Janessa Rogers who is basically an operative for the Central Intelligency Agency. She tends to get into trouble, usually when she stands up for her religious beliefs in cultures that don’t always agree with her standards. When she is assigned to work undercover posing as the fiance to Prince Garrett Fortier of Meridia, she gets more than she bargains for and finds she has feelings for him. The two of them have an interesting time trying to balance their developing attraction with their responsibility to keep Garrett’s family safe from the threats that continue to arrive. Like my other books, this is a pretty quick read with lots of adventure and some fun romance.
The working title of my other work-in-progress is “Lockdown.” It is a parallel novel to “Freefall” and features another Navy SEAL, Tristan Crowther. This book was actually written in the aftermath of the Virginia Tech tragedy last spring. Since I live in Virginia, the day of the massacre was especially traumatic. I know a lot of people that attend there and my phone rang constantly that first day as news poured in that everyone I knew was okay. The next day I started writing this novel as a kind of therapy to sort out the horrible events at Tech, especially after realizing how much everyone was affected, not just people who had friends and family attending there. Four weeks later I had a completed manuscript on my desk.
What kinds of books do you enjoy reading, and who are your favorite authors?
My favorite types of books are romance and suspense. As for my favorite authors, that’s a tough question to answer. There are so many good ones out there! For the classics, my favorite is probably Jane Austen, although one of my favorite books is Booker T. Washington’s autobiography, “Up From Slavery.” As for LDS fiction, I don’t typically get the chance to read any particular author consistently. (The closest LDS bookstore to me is over an hour away.) Rather, I try to pick up whatever book sounds interesting to me at the time. Right now I’m looking forward to finishing my current project so that I can read the book I purchased on my last trip to Utah, “Counting Stars” by Michele Paige Holmes.
What is your favorite part of being a published author?
Reading the finished product! I know it may sound odd, but the reason I started writing was because I get these stories in my head that just won’t go away until they make it into print. I love being able to pick up the book when it’s finished and see how it really turned out.
I also love hearing from people who have read my books. Getting mail or e-mail from readers absolutely makes my day. In fact, two weeks ago my new website came online so that readers can find me a bit easier.
Traci, thank you so much for this insightful look into your writing. We appreciate your time.
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