author interview – Miriam Drori, Author

I’m thrilled to be part of the blog tour for the new book by friend and prolific author, Val Penny. I have an interview to share with you. But first, some information.

By the way, the blog tour is organised by Reading Between the Lines.

About the Author

Val Penny has an Llb degree from the University of Edinburgh and her MSc from Napier University. She has had many jobs including hairdresser, waitress, banker, azalea farmer and lecturer but has not yet achieved either of her childhood dreams of being a ballerina or owning a candy store.

Until those dreams come true, she has turned her hand to writing poetry, short stories, nonfiction books, and novels. Her novels are published by SpellBound Books Ltd.

Val is an American author living in SW Scotland. She has two adult daughters of whom she is justly proud and lives with her husband and their cat.

Links to Val Penny

About the Book

In the second Jane Renwick Thriller by Val Penny, drug cartels collide as crime boss Connor O’Grady returns to Scotland to protect his turf from rival Peggy Cheney, newly released from prison.

DS Jane Renwick and DC Brian Harris are sent to Stirling, where Jane discovers two tragic deaths—a young man and a girl—raising suspicions of a single killer.

O’Grady denies involvement, but can a drug lord be trusted?
Set in Stirling and Gartcosh, this tense police procedural thrusts Jane into the heart of a deadly turf war.

Links to Buy

Paperback | Ebook

An Interview with Val Penny

Welcome back to my blog, Val, and thank you for agreeing to answer my questions.

Firstly, congratulations on your latest release, A Fighting Chance. This is the second book in a series. As a writer, what would you say are the advantages of a series as opposed to a stand-alone novel? What are the disadvantages?

Thanks for hosting me Miriam. Yes, A Fighting Chance is the second book in my series of Jane Renwick Thrillers. I am excited to share it with readers.

I suppose the main advantage of writing a series is that I know my characters and know what to expect of them and how they will react in any given situation. The biggest disadvantage is probably the flip side of that; the characters become too predictable for my readers therefore it is my job as the author to invent new stories and circumstances that challenge the characters, the readers and me.

The central character in this series is Jane Renwick. What can you tell us about her?

Jane Renwick was originally a character in my series of DI Hunter Wilson Crime Thrillers, and I liked her so much that I gave her a series of books of her own. The big difference between the settings in the two series is that the Hunter stories are based in Edinburgh, however Jane has joined the Major Incident Team based in Gartcosh and her stories will take place all over Scotland. A Fighting Chance is set in and around Stirling in the Central belt of Scotland. (The narrow part of the country between Edinburgh and Glasgow.)

Jane likes to keep fit, running and jogging daily. In that she and I are nothing alike!

Although Jane grew up in care, she is now happily married to her wife, Rachael. Nevertheless, A Fighting Chance shows them having disagreements and some jealousy creeps in too. I like to show my readers rounded characters in my books.

In your other crime series, the main character is a man, Hunter Wilson. In what ways does Jane’s gender make a difference to the stories?

I don’t think Jane’s gender affects the type of cases I put to her because, like Hunter, she is a police detective. I also hope the stories are no less exciting for my readers. However, her gender can cause her problems when suspects choose to disrespect her. But her sharp tongue and physical fitness put an end to any misconceptions they may have about dealing with a woman.

However, it is not only Jane’s gender but also her sexuality which causes her issues in my books. And it is not just suspects and villains that give her grief, but some of her colleagues too. Although police forces tend to be male dominated and thus banter and misogyny can be apparent, Jane never tolerates this and deals with it swiftly both personally at the time and through the proper channels.

What’s your secret to being so prolific?

I enjoy telling stories. I always have and writing books and short stories is how I do that now.

What do you enjoy about marketing? What do you not enjoy about marketing?

Marketing is a continual duty. So many books are published every hour that if I do not tell readers about my books, how will they know they are there? So, I market daily through social media, blog tours and by appearing personally at author/reader events. I enjoy the interaction this brings.

Unfortunately, marketing takes up what could otherwise be writing time, and that is a source of irritation to me.

Lastly, which song or piece of music would you choose as the theme tune for the film of A Fighting Chance?

I would have to choose “All I Want Is A Fighting Chance” the song by Millie Jackson. After all, that’s what the victims in the book needed, A Fighting Chance.

The perfect choice.

Thank you for inviting me to your blog today and I do hope your readers enjoy my new book.

A pleasure, as always.

I hadn’t thought of that momentous day for ages, but when Lorraine Mace included this in her interview of me: “Tell me something about yourself your readers might not know”, I was reminded of something good that happened to me when I was twelve.

I won a bicycle!

There was a competition in my girls’ magazine. I had to answer questions on the rules of riding on roads. I even asked my mother whether she thought I should send in my answers and she said yes, never expecting me to win, but I did.

I had asked for a bike before. My parents hadn’t agreed. They said it was too dangerous. Yet my brother had always ridden a bike. I remembered the story of how my dad had taught him, running with him. I never saw my dad run and he didn’t teach me. (I learned to ride on the bike of a friend’s little brother. It was so low to the ground that I wasn’t afraid of falling off.)

“That was different,” they said in answer to my pleas. “We lived in the country, then.”

It was always different for him. The country, the boarding school, being a boy.

But I won a bicycle and so my parents couldn’t stop me from getting one. I remember we ordered a bike suitable for my height, but the one that arrived was adult-sized and so it lasted for years.

I don’t have a bike in hilly Jerusalem, but I’ve enjoyed some good times riding, over the years.