Interview with mystery author L.X. Cain

Mystery author L.X. Cain joins me today to talk about her thriller/mystery Bloodwalker.

Bio:

L.X. Cain was born in the U.S. but now lives on the Red Sea and busily taps away at a laptop, coming up with stories to thrill and entertain readers.

Please tell us about your current release.

Bloodwalker is a spine-tingling mystery with lots of action and a streak of horror. It’s a genre mash-up that I loved writing, and I hope readers love reading.

Here’s a short teaser:

Children are disappearing. The strangest thing is it happens every time the Zorka Circus leaves one of the Eastern European towns on its tour. Rurik, the circus’s Security Chief, thinks someone in the circus is behind it. But who?

What inspired you to write this book?

I was thinking about how people in some cultures and faiths refuse to question them. They’re almost brainwashed by their family and their society, and follow like lambs. I wanted such a person to finally understand that they could stand up for themselves, and what’s right, and defy their upbringing.

Excerpt from Bloodwalker:

Chapter One

Rurik

Budapest, Hungary

“School is out, no books today.

Boneyard’s where the children play.

Marta’s there and Peter, too,

Silent faces, cold and blue.

Shut the doors. Lock them tight.

Ratman prowls the streets tonight.”

The refrain of the children’s song swelled, and the winds swirled it up to the roof of an old stone church. Perched on its parapet, a line of gargoyle statues stared dead-eyed at the horizon. But one set of eyes stabbed downward. Rurik leaned over the edge, his gaze roving the street two stories below, searching for the source of the Hungarian rhyme.

The retreating sun stained Budapest red. Shadows of tree limbs and buildings bled across lawns and sidewalks. Yellow pansies bowed their heads and furled their faces closed for the night. Sparrows, pigeons, and swifts abandoned the sky.

Rurik scoured the area till he spotted the rhyme’s young singers.

Three kids, probably no older than eight or nine, neared the gate of a train yard at the end of the road—the killer’s hunting ground.

Forbidden things drew children. The grittier and scarier the place, the bigger the thrill. So there they went, two girls and a boy, shoving each other, squealing and laughing in fearful delight.

They didn’t know four children had vanished, one by one, over the past month. Never any sign of struggle. Just schoolbooks found along the road.

Rurik’s rooftop position afforded him a good view of Budapest’s Istvantelek train depot. But as the children squeezed under the loose chain between gate and fence and wove down the path, the shadows grew. Subway cars sitting beneath electric wires seemed to lengthen on their tracks. Inch by inch, murk swallowed the tall grass and bushes that marked the boundary between the newer train warehouses and the rotting old one the children headed for.

Plenty of places for a killer to hide.

-- end of excerpt --

What exciting story are you working on next?

I have a Thriller called Coldest Night that will be published mid-2017. It’s about a tiny Alaskan town where almost all the citizens live in one big apartment building. When a toxic gas fills the area, a wanted man must rescue his estranged wife and daughter from residents who’ve become dangerously affected.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I started writing in 2009—and it was so much harder than I expected! Luckily, I found online writing communities that helped me learn. After a little while, I started getting published in magazines and anthologies. In 2013, I got an offer from an agent and a publisher. That’s when I truly considered myself a writer.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

I write full time since I retired in 2009. I was lucky to retire early, and I really enjoy all the freedom and excitement that comes with being a full-time author.

When I’m not writing, I watch TV, cook, or go out with friends. I’m also on social media a lot. Too much. It’s difficult to find time to write, so I don’t publish as many books as other writers I know. But everyone must be who they are…

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

While many writers believe in daily word goals and aim for a quickly written draft, I don’t. I take long breaks where I don’t write, but instead think about my book and the characters. Sometimes I don’t write for months at a time, not until I’m sure I understand everything about my story, the plot twists, and the characters in it.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

First, I watched Perry Mason a lot and wanted to be a lawyer. Then I watched the first Bob Newhart show and wanted to be a psychologist. Finally, I realized I just wanted to be on TV. LOL! Not really, but I definitely needed to be in a creative field. I’ve worked in commercial film, been a dancer, and a singer. Now I use my experiences to create characters for my books. Writing is the perfect career!

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

I moved to Egypt some years ago to work at resorts. It’s been wonderful living in the land of the Pharaohs—plenty of sun, friendly people, and a laid-back lifestyle!

Links:

Blog | Twitter | Facebook Profile | Facebook Author Page | Amazon Author | Goodreads

Thanks for joining me today, L.X.