CITY SUSPENSE Vs. ISLAND SUSPENSE
Hi all,
As this is my first blog on Not Your Usual Suspects, let me
introduce myself. I’m Laura Carter (*waves*) and I write sexy romantic suspense
novels. My debut series, Vengeful Love, follows Scarlett Heath, a high-flying
London lawyer, as she pitches to work for devastatingly attractive billionaire,
Gregory Ryans. She wins the work, only to find out that the takeover Gregory is
about to embark on is hostile. Cue a dark and twisted thriller, underpinning a passionate
romance that sees Scarlett and Gregory mingling with high society in the glossy
skyscrapers of London and Dubai.
I started writing Vengeful Love as a business lawyer living
and working in the heart of London. It seemed like the perfect setting for an
erotic, white-collar thriller. I had the backdrop of glitz and glamour—champagne,
cocktails, sky views, limousines and black tie dinners—mixed with the ominous streets of the city. My hangouts looked something like this…
(View from the Shard, London)
Here’s the thing, six weeks ago, I changed my life by moving
to a small island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea. And as I sat down to my
laptop in my new surroundings for the first time, I thought, Oh Crap! What have I done?
I went from dry martinis and the hustle and bustle of the
city, to bottled beer and a sleepy, small-town beach life. My new style…
(Sunset British Virgin Islands)
Don’t get me wrong, the serenity of the island is wonderful.
Being able to read and write in a hammock is pretty great. But I write CITY suspense novels. How am I supposed to make a beautiful sandy
beach grave and threatening? I thought.
I worried about this for a couple of weeks, no kidding! Then
I had that ‘lightbulb’ moment we all know so well. It came one day as I was
driving past the island’s prison. It’s kind of idyllic for a prisoner—a low
security compound with a garden and, from what I hear, pretty relaxed rules,
with an outstanding view out to sea. I mean, this place would make the Count of
Monte Cristo giddy!
So, I started wondering, what
could a person possibly do to wind up in prison on this peaceful rock? And a
few things dawned on me…we’re in the middle of the sea, accessible from all
angles by boats and private planes…in other words, perfect for trafficking
people and drugs—erm, hello gang crime and cartels! Then I thought, if you’re
on the run, this is actually the PERFECT place to hide. It’s so small it barely
gets a spot on the world map! And, given the fine waters for sailing, the low
taxes and little regulation compared to, say, London or Manhattan, this is a
billionaire’s paradise! Put all of that together and you get dark and
(potentially) glamorous with no rules (*excited dance*).
It took some time and it was unexpected, but I started to
see the small-town, island setting as having endless possibilities for crime
and suspense novels. As an author, I think it is incredibly important to be
able to draw inspiration from just about anything, to conjure a story from
nothing. It’s what makes us a quirky (?) breed of species and, in my opinion,
what makes our job one of the best in the world.
So, I ask you, authors, what is the most unexpected source
of inspiration you have had? And to you, readers, do you prefer the backdrop of
the dark and dangerous city, or the unsuspecting, kind of eerie, sleepy town?
If you’re interested in the Amazon bestselling Vengeful Love series you can check it out here:
Amazon US: amzn.to/1Tle3O3
Amazon UK: amzn.to/1M2lfqT
Barnes & Noble: bit.ly/1pd17Nm
Kobo: bit.ly/21mwLnN
iBooks: apple.co/1WeIGD2
GooglePlay: bit.ly/1RceZxQ
Come hang out with me:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lauracarterauthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lcarterauthor
Instagram: www.instagram.com/lauracarterauthor
Website: www.lauracarterauthor.com
