Jodie Leigh Murray

I may kick myself for it, but a not-well-known international magazine contacted me to do an interview on influential authors redefining literature. It immediately screamed scam to me for several reasons. First, they wanted me to pay $250, not the other way around. Second, it was a quick turnaround (five days). And the last reason is I don't consider myself an influential author. Yet. After digging into it further, I found some magazines will ask for payment because they don't rely on ads for income. But I also found information from other authors about being led astray after paying money for interviews, and decided that at this point in my career and how they contacted me, I would rather not take the chance. As the wise old adage states . . . if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I did, however, think it might be a good idea to answer their interview questions and post them in a blog. Based on these questions, it seemed like someone at this magazine had read The Gangster's Daughter. Why the heck not?

 

Your books, "The Gangster's Daughter" and "The Duke's Daughter", fall under romantic suspense novels. What draws you to this genre, blending romance with elements of suspense? I want my readers to keep telling themselves they need to read just one more page, just one more chapter, before putting the book down and, ultimately, they need to keep coming back to the book to find out what happens. This is an engaging genre. Many books have a great story, but no pull. Not mine.

 

In "The Gangster's Daughter", Regan faces peril due to her father's dangerous connections. What inspired you to create a character navigating the complexities of family ties and imminent danger? To be honest, I didn't set out to write it that way. It just happened when I wrote it, and the more I wrote, the more the complexities started popping into my mind. I often tell people at festivals and signings that I couldn't write it fast enough. The ideas were coming at me that fast.

 

Regan's unexpected encounter with Cameron Moretti adds another layer of comlexity to the story. How do you develop the dynamics between your characters to heighten suspense and romance? I put a lot into my characters. That is the one thing I start with and I fully delve into every single character. Regan needed to be strong, as all my heroines are, but she also needed to have a protector–and that was where Cameron came in. And to do that, she needed to be stubborn about it.

 

The book delves into the challenge of balancing love and duty. How do you approach crafting characters who are torn between their heart's desires and obligations? The approach is there has to be something at stake. It would be too easy to for Regan to tell her father that she wasn't sticking to the contract and continue her relationship with Cameron. But the suspense would be gone, the danger would be gone, and I'd have one heck of a boring book.

 

Could you share insights into your writing process when creating tension-filled scenes or moments of emotional depth in your novels? I have to ask myself the what-if question when crafting my scenes that have a lot of tension, or a lot of emotion. Balancing out these scenes takes organization and planning on my part, and I'm good at organization. You can't have too much or the readers will be too overwhelmed. It's all about the balance.

 

Regan's journey seems intertwined with danger and unexpected turns. How do you maintain a sense of unpredictability and keep readers engaged throughout the storyline? I didn't see some of the unexpected turns myself when I outlined the storyline, which is part of the reason I couldn't write it fast enough. They were coming to me like flashes of light, but it had to be realistic in addition, so I had to rely on my balance, too.

 

Both of your titles features strong female protagonists. What do you hope readers take away from Regan's character and her experiences? I hope my readers take away that a woman can still be kind, sensitive and even stubborn, but strong. Be courageous. Regan was willing to walk away from Cameron because of the career she had worked so hard to create for herself and to protect a friend who had tried to protect her. That took courage.

 

You've ventured into both romantic suspense and historical romance. How do you navigate the differences between these genres in your writing approach?

It's difficult, but I love history and it flows just as easily as suspense does. The Duke's Daughter, even defined as a historical romance, has suspense in it. I honestly didn't know The Gangster's Daughter was going to be so popular. It's easy for me to build off that for future storylines.

 

Your technical writing background contrasts with your creating endeavors. How has your professional experience influenced your storytelling techniques or writing discipline? The influence has been huge because technical writing is much more structured. But while storytelling has a bit more flexibility, you still have to have correct grammar, punctuation, clarity, etc. My professional experience has been a big help there. It's helped shape my storytelling to flow better, but I have to watch out so my dialogue doesn't sound robotic.

 

"The Gangster's Daughter" received acclaim with three 5-star reviews from Readers' Favorites. How do you handle feedback, and has it impacted your writing process or future projects? I thrive on feedback. Without it, I wouldn't learn. Receiving such high acclaim in my first book, I was afraid I'd struggle with my future storylines to live up to it. When I received only two 5-star reviews on The Duke's Daughter, I felt a little disappointed, but the third one received 4-stars so still not bad.

 

As an author working on multiple novels simultaneously, what challenges and advantages do you encounter in managing and balancing different storylines? The challenge is to keep organized enough to keep track of where I am with each novel. I keep a checklist for every novel so I know where I am, and I also have my planner. The advantage is I keep moving when I get writer's block. I take a break and move to something else in the meantime.

 

Can you offer a sneak peek or hints about your upcoming novels or any themes or characters readers can anticipate in your next works? Subscribers to my monthly email got the first sneak peek at The Gangster's Mistake, coming out in April. I followed it up with a Facebook and Instagram post at the end of the year to those who follow me on social media. I can promise you will not see the last of Regan and Cameron.

How do you juggle a writing career with a full-time job? I wish I had the answer! It takes a big planner and dedication to stay on task. It's not for the faint of heart. Knowing that I am naturally organized, I understood the importance of being even more organized when I made the commitment to publish my work seriously. I've also learned along the way, and that means learning from mistakes, too.

 

Planning

When I worked for the local newspaper, I purchased a planner from Blue Sky. It was  8x11 and had a full 2-page calendar of each month and each week with enough space to write important information. I could write appointments along with keeping track of my assignments for the newspapers using this type of planner.

 

After I stopped working for the newspaper, I wasn't sure what to do with the planner until I realized I would need it to keep track of when I should have things done for my book (i.e. edits from the editors, reviews were due back, order author copies by, etc.). The need to have a planner only increased the more activities that came up throughout the year, such as arts and crafts fairs, signings, as well as having another book in the works. Now, I'm not sure what I would do without it! It's my crutch! If you are a writer, or if you are planning on publishing, whether self-publishing or going to traditional publishing, I recommend getting a planner like this or similar. Like I said, I use Blue Sky planners www.bluesky.com, which are durable and cost-effective at $20. In addition, they have a pocket inside to tuck important information and recycling instructions.

 

Timing

Obviously, I can't have my writing infiltrate my full-time job. I work from home, which many people do. It wouldn't be fair to my employer if I used the company's paid time to work on writing, so I have to be conscious of when I work on my writing career versus when I'm logged into my day job. To do this, I get up early enough to use the time before work to take care of or writing business like finances, orders that have come in overnight and posting or updating website or social media. Sometimes I run out of time that I have to do my updating or posting during a work break. That's okay, as long as that's all I do and not getting sucked into doing other writing career tasks. Once I'm logged out for the day, I take care of personal things and then I get into my writing career tasks that need to be done. Writing my bi-weekly blog, research, working on writing a current book or editing a current book, working on my newsletter, etc. It all takes an extreme amount of time that I have to use my time in the evenings and weekends the best I can. I have to work around art and craft shows that are typically booked on weekends. Again–that's where the planner comes in handy, too! Scheduling my time to do tasks is a must!

 

I've been working on my writing career for over a year, having started writing my first published novel, The Gangster's Daughter, in September 2022. Not only do I have to juggle my writing career with my full-time job, but I also have to juggle a personal life. That has not been easy to juggle all three. Luckily for me, and not so lucky for others, my children are adults, leaving me more available than some mothers who have young children with appointments, school happenings, sports, etc. But I have a husband, who also has a teenager that I lend a hand with. I never hesitate to help where I'm needed there, but sadly I have neglected my own personal life and that I very much need to work on. Now that my writing career is on the move, I can schedule in personal time as a much deserved reward!

Two years ago, I might have disagreed that I would write romance. When I was younger, it seemed all I read were romance novels. But in the last five to ten years, I've read mostly general fiction and fantasy, not so much romance, although in the last year I have read quite a few Colleen Hoover books. So . . . why do I write romantic suspense and historical romance?

 

Let's start with romantic suspense. I definitely didn't set out to write The Gangster's Daughter since I gravitate toward history naturally because I love history. I love learning about it, and I'll get to that later. But let's talk about romantic suspense and current day stories. I didn't seek to write a romantic suspense. You might have even heard me say I tried to get The Gangster's Daughter to be a historical romance, but it just wouldn't have worked out that way. Regan was too progressive to be a historical woman. If I think about it, I could have pulled it off, but I LOVE the way it turned out. I couldn't be prouder.

 

It started with an idea of a modern day betrothal. That wouldn't have worked with a historical because people were getting arranged into marriage until the 18th century, depending on which country. I believe most countries ceased within the 18th century. Not everyone has read The Gangster's Daughter, so I won't give away anything, but I knew what I wanted to do with that and it just seemed to work better in current day. I didn't realize when I started my search for an editor exactly what genre I had just written. It crossed over so many genres. I finally had one editor read my general synopsis and tell me it sounded like romantic suspense. That put that to bed.

 

Now, historical romance. Like I said, I love history. I love learning about it. All historical information. It's fascinating to learn about times before we lived. What they wore, what they ate, how they talked. When I research things, like The Duke's Daughter and the treatment of women in the eleventh century, I knew I had to create a strong heroine. Evie had to fight back. There were very few women, Matilda the wife of William the Conqueror, being one of them, who gained the respect of men during those times.

 

It's not just medieval times that hold my fascination, though. My next historical with be post-civil war. I would have done, and eventually will do, civil war or pre-civil war, but this story-line worked best with after the civil war ended. I'm not sure how many people know the facts about the civil war, but it  was the deadliest war in American History with the loss of over 600,000 men. In my previous blog, I talk about interesting research. I could write dozens of blogs on interesting research I've come across. My next historical romance has a lot of interesting research, such as how many women tried to get away with posing as men and fought in the civil war. Or did you know that in the nineteenth century, a husband could sell his wife instead of going through the scandal of a divorce? Fascinating, and makes for some good story materials if you write it right. The possibilities are endless if you're in my head.

 

My thing is, I could write so many genres but I'm already taking a risk of writing in two genres. Maybe someday I'll dabble in fantasy. Most authors write one genre, but there are some that write in two. Nora Roberts writes in more than one genre, but she has a pen name for her other genre. She is best known for her contemporary romance with her romantic suspense under the pen name J.D. Robb. She also has two other pen names, one for a magazine story she wrote and another for a series in the UK. Stephen King is well-known for writing horror, but he also engages in non-fiction and realism writing. Lisa Kleypas writes historical and contemporary romance, which is most similar to me because I don't write in a pen name for either genre. I can only hope it works for me!

Did you know that only fifteen states have stolen dogs laws? In researching information for my third book, I found some really interesting information around 'dognapping'. Kidnapping a person is a severe criminal offense, but the law doesn't see it the same way with kidnapped dogs.

 

As of 2023, these fifteen states have theft of dogs in their criminal codes:

1. California
2. Connecticut
3. Delaware
4. Louisiana
5. Michigan
6. Mississippi
7. New Hampshire
8. New York
9. North Carolina
10. Oklahoma
11. Rhode Island
12. Virginia
13. Texas
14. Washington
15. West Virginia

 

While most states consider the theft of a pet a misdemeanor, penalties in these states include relatively small fines and little to no jail time. There are five states that have the best laws regarding dog laws.

• Virginia has a Class 5 Felony punishable by up to 10 years in jail regardless of the dog's value.
• Louisiana law states if the dog's value exceeds $500, it can result in jail time of up to 10 years or a fine of up to $3,000 (or both). If the dog's value is less, a fine and imprisonment can still be imposed but less.
• Oklahoma has a felony conviction with imprisonment in the state jail of not less than six months or up to three years. The sentence can also impose a fine equal to three times the value of the dog, with a maximum of $500,000.
• New York has a Class E Felony with up to six months in jail and a fine of $1,000 (up from $200 in 2014).
• Mississippi has a felony conviction punishable by a fine of not more than $500, imprisonment in the county jail for up to six months, or both.

 

According to caninejournal.com, an estimated two million domestic animals are victims of dog theft each year in the United States and only 10% of owners recover their dogs. The majority of breeds taken are purebreds such as German Shepherds, Chihuahuas, French Bulldogs, Pomeranians, and American Pit Bull Terrier's.

 

Money is the driving force behind stealing dogs. Dog flippers are people who realize the high monetary value of specific breads and can resell them for a profit. Thieves will steal these breeds for sometimes more than $2,000 of their resale value, with the exception of Pit Bulls, which are typically taken for illegal fighting.

 

There are ways you can protect your dog. Proof of ownership (licensing documents, adoption papers, veterinarian records, identifying photographs, etc.), keeping tags updated, having your dog micro-chipped, and buying pet insurance (if available) are all viable ways. Some people may not know that some pet insurance policies cover some costs that are associated with stolen pets. Figo has an Extra Care Pack add-on (for an extra fee) that includes advertising, a reward and $150 toward the loss of your pet. Fetch offers it as additional coverage will all policies of a $15,000 annual limit or more. It includes advertising costs, a reward for stolen or lost pets, and reimbursement for what you paid for your pet if they're stolen or get lost.

 

What do you do if someone steals your dog (or if you lost your dog)? First, file a police report, although it will probably be a low priority. Don't stop there, though. Post your dog's microchip number, canvas the area and don't be afraid to recruit help! Distribute flyers, search for sale ads, contact your local animal shelters, and contact the media. All of these are ways you can recover your dog, regardless of whether stolen or lost.

 

Curious what the most expensive breeds are? Here are the top ten:

#10 - The Akita is a Japanese dog breed of large size. They were used for guarding and the hunting of bears. These dogs can be worth between $1,000 and $4,000.

#9 - The Saluki breed are powerful sight hound hunters who must be kept on a leash or in a fenced yard. They can be worth between $2,000 and $4,000.

#8 - Rottweilers are domestic dogs, which can be worth between $2,000 and $7,000. Their main use was to herd livestock, but they are also known to be used as search and rescue dogs, guard dogs, and police dogs.

#7 - Pharaoh Hounds are hunting dogs with a willingness to please and are easy to train. They can be worth between $2,500 and $6,000. The Pharaoh Hound is easy to lure.

#6 - The Chow Chow is a spitz-type of dog breed that originally hails from Northern China. They're known for their very dense double coat that is not smooth or rough. They can be worth between $3,000 and $8,000.

#5 - The English Bulldog, also known as the British Bulldog, have large heads with thick folds of skin around face and shoulders with a flat face and protruding jaw. Bulldogs are generally friendly, amiable dogs and can be worth between $3,000 and $9,000. They are energetic, but may overheat quickly.

#4 - The Samoyed is a herding dog with thick, white, double-layer coats. They are spitz-type dogs which get their name from the Samoyedic people of Siberia. Domesticated, they assist in herding, hunting, protecting, and sled-pulling. They can be worth between $4,000 and $11,000.

#3 - The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a British breed named after King Charles II and is generally a lap dog. They can be worth between $2,000 and $14,000.

#2 - German Shepherds, also known in Britain as Alsatian's are working dogs, originally bred as a herding dog for herding sheep. Since then, they're used in many types of work, including disability assistance, search-and rescue, police work, and warfare. They can be worth between $3,000 and $24,000.

#1 - The Tibetan Mastiff  is a large size Tibetan dog breed and is prized for being a nocturnal sentry, keeping predators and intruders at bay. They are extremely independent and intelligent and can be worth between $2,000 and  $1.9 million. Yes, 1.9 million dollars!!

I love starting a new writing project. But I have a hard time finishing what I'm doing before starting in; I get so excited. A fresh new idea, wide open to possibilities that are positively endless, a blank page to create whatever I want. It's awesome!

 

But . . . back to starting a new project and how I do it. I have a notebook (and a folder with random papers that I'm currently trying to get into this notebook) with ideas I've written. It's usually a character with a problem; a scene that's played out in my head to start. That's the beauty of creating. It can go anywhere from there BUT it has to be entertaining, well-thought out, and flow smoothly. It takes a lot to get there.

 

To have a story, you need the parts. This is where I have a notebook, a flash drive, and a 3-ring binder for each book to keep everything organized. I start with the notebook and I write my idea in it. The character has no name and there are no other characters. Typically, this is where I flesh it out.

 

A story should include characters, setting, plot, conflict, resolution, themes, morals, symbolism, point of view, perspective, and an ending. The main parts of a story are characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. Of those, there are three that are fundamental elements: character, setting and plot.

 

Usually, the theme, moral, symbolism, and perspective of the story make sense to me once I finish the other parts. If you've read my books, you know I put a lot into my characters. Every single one of them. Not every detail will go into the book, but I know the details of them. A character's actions, goals, and problems can inspire a whole new book.

 

I like to plan, so I outline everything before I write the book. As I gather my characters, I also determine the fundamental conflict and decide on a setting that will complement it. It's not as easy as you might think. Sometimes things change while I'm mapping it all out. While I have ideas for characters, settings, and the main plot, I start imagining scenes that can move the story forward, create more conflicts, and ultimately shape the ending.

 

You might ask yourself how I keep this all straight. That's where my notebook, my flash drive and my 3-ring binder come in. I have worksheets for my character development, my outline, my scenes, settings, research, etc. I categorize these in my flash drive and I fill them out as I settle on concrete details, and I print out the most important ones and put them in my binder. Oh, and I have a checklist for every project. My checklist goes through the entire process, from starting a project to the receipt of my copyright registration certificate. It doesn't go through my entire outlining process, although that might be a good idea. That is when I consider my project, and checklist, done.

 

With my third book done and in editing and my fourth book already partially written, I expect I'll be starting my fifth project in the spring. What I'm not sure of yet is whether that will be another romantic suspense or another historical romance. I have several ideas for both genres!