📚 A Bookish Chat with 'Homecoming Chaos' D.W. Brooks | Author Interview | #AuthorInterview #BlogTour #Interview #romanticsuspense
The author lives in Texas with her husband and children. She enjoys trying to stay in shape, sporadically cooking, reading (still), writing, and working on her blog. She is eternally grateful to the woman who donated a kidney to her over 5 years ago and continues to advocate for organ donation as much as she can.
Author Links
On writing:
There are many romantic suspense books out there....what makes yours different?
That’s true. There are a lot of romantic suspense books available on the market. However, there are fewer romantic suspense novels with African American main characters. That’s one way that my book is different. Homecoming Chaos nicely combines romance, family drama, and a murder mystery into one story. It is also going to be part of an ongoing Model MD Series. I feel that these combinations in my book make it different from many of the novels in the romantic suspense category.
Where is your book set and have you ever been there?
Homecoming Chaos is set in Atlanta. I lived there for four years before moving to Texas. I have lived in Texas for 20 years now, but Atlanta still holds a spot in my heart.
Do you have another profession besides writing?
I am a physician and completed a residency in ophthalmology. I practiced for a few years while I got my MBA, then pivoted to medical education. I worked for WebMD and another medical education providers for a few years. In between those positions, I took on projects in medical education as a freelancer. This continued until a hereditary condition caused me to develop kidney failure in the early to mid-2010s. I then had to cut back on my work. During that time, I started working on Homecoming Chaos. After receiving a kidney transplant, I finished the novel and worked on the publishing and marketing.
How long have you been writing?
I started writing as a child. My cousins and I tried to create a series of books about characters that we created and developed. Of course, at 8 and 9, we were not fully prepared to flesh out stories and mysteries like we planned, so our endeavor was unsuccessful. Then we moved on to other projects as we got older. I decided to become a doctor instead, but during a health crisis, I turned back to writing. I started writing Homecoming Chaos while I was in kidney failure from a genetic kidney disease and finally published it in the Fall of 2023.
What is your next project?
I am working on a novella that is a follow-up to Homecoming Chaos and on Book #2 in the Model MD Series for publication in 2024. I also want to have a Christmas novel ready for the holiday season.
How are you similar to or different from your lead character?
My lead character is roughly based on me and has both similarities and differences from me. Jamison is like me in that she’s tall, a doctor, and left her profession after completing her training. She was actually a model in NYC (I did some local modeling for free), did some dramatic things in her teens (I am not giving that away here), and has a challenging relationship with her mother that she has made little effort to fix after years. This relationship causes her to have issues with self-confidence when it doesn’t seem to make sense for a person in her situation. I had to dirty her backstory up to give her more depth. Jamison has way more drama in her life than me!
In one sentence, what was the road to publishing like?
The road to self-publishing my novel was a long and winding road with multiple forks and bumps along the way. Now that my debut novel has been launched and is getting rave reviews, I can say that it was all worth it.
What is something you had to cut from your book that you wish you could have kept?
My book is rather long. The part I cut was turned into a prequel novella called I DO Chaos.
On rituals:
Do you snack while writing? Favorite snack?
Of course! I snack all the time. My favorite snack is popcorn!
Where do you write?
I write wherever I can put my laptop computer. I have written in various rooms in our house, on vacation in Hawaii, or sitting at a coffee shop. I do carry a notebook with me, but that doesn’t work for me regarding actual writing.
Do you write every day?
Writing every day is on the schedule but doesn’t always happen. There are often several chores or tasks that I have to complete before I can sit down to get any writing done. On those days, I try to write something at night before I go to bed. At least, I won’t feel like I completely wasted the writing day!
In today’s tech savvy world, most writers use a computer or laptop. Have you ever written parts of your book on paper?
I did at the beginning, but having to transfer everything to the computer grew frustrating because as I have gotten older, my handwriting has deteriorated! And, when I get an idea, I write faster so, it’s messier. When I go back to transcribe, sometimes I can’t read what I was trying to say. Then I get frustrated because “it was such a great idea and I’ve lost it!” Occasional notes on paper are OK but entire passages are more trouble than they are worth!
Fun stuff:
Favorite travel spot?
Anywhere with a beautiful beach, especially Hawaii.
Favorite dessert?
That’s tough. I used to say that I would die with a chocolate chip cookie in my hand, but key lime pie and vanilla bean cheesecake are all right there now as favorites.
Any hobbies?
I enjoy reading, but I don’t get to do that much of that right now. I also enjoy cooking recipes out of my many cookbooks and cooking magazines. Again, it’s been a really busy time, so I have done little cooking like that lately. I am looking forward to getting back to that soon.
What song is currently playing on a loop in your head?
It’s Christmas season right now, so Mariah Carey and All I Want for Christmas is the earworm right now.
What is something that made you laugh recently?
An Instagram post where a woman said, “God, I am not rushing you for my husband, but could you send me his tracking number?” I got a good laugh out of that one.
What is your go-to breakfast item?
Waffles. When I lived in Atlanta, it was waffles from the Waffle House. I know it’s not the greatest cuisine, but I ate some of the best waffles of my life at a Waffle House at 2:00 am!
What is the oldest item of clothing you own?
Does it have to be my clothing? I have my mother’s wedding dress. I couldn’t wear it when I got married because I’m significantly taller than she was. However, I am hanging on to it; maybe someone in the next generation will want to wear it.
Tell us about your longest friendship.
I have several friends that I went to high school or college with, but we only really talk when we get together on rare occasions—most communications are through Facebook. However, the longest friendship that I have with regular, non-social media contact is my friend, Toi.
We met in an odd fashion. In 1994, two guys who were playing for the Green Bay Packers introduced us (long story!). I had known one guy for several years from our time at Vanderbilt; he was playing for the Packers then. I was doing my residency in Milwaukee, so we kept in contact. Toi was dating his road trip roommate. There was a game in Milwaukee, and the two young men thought that since Toi and I were from the South that we might get along, so they got our tickets next to each other. We did hit it off. So much so that she and I ended up being roommates for a while, and she was a bridesmaid in my wedding in 2001. I had just had a baby when she got married so I wasn’t able to be in the wedding party. I did attend though. We always joke about how the guys put us together thinking that we would just hang out for the game, but we are still talking now and not talking to either of them anymore!
What’s your favorite romantic suspense movie?
The Bodyguard with Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner. Happily ever afters are important in most romance stories. But the lack of a HEA here made sense. I think it would have rung false to have the leads end up together. It is one movie that I can watch repeatedly.
Title: Homecoming Chaos
Author: D.W. Brooks
Publication Date: November 21, 2023
Pages: 448
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Jamie Scott’s life fell apart four years ago when she broke off her engagement, turned down a dream job, and went overseas to run away from her life. Now she’s back, but the reunion is not without problems. She arrives home just in time to attend the soiree her mother planned, but she’s not prepared for what she finds—a dead employee in the parking lot.
Detective Nick Marshall is assigned to the murder case at the forensics lab owned by Jamie’s family. He meets the headstrong Jamie, but he has a job to do. And his attraction to her… well, he’s a professional.
Jamie knows the stakes are high. She has to face the past and save her parents’ business while dealing with her family drama and an uncertain future. She also has to deal with Nick, who wants her out of the way of his investigation. But fate keeps throwing them in one another’s paths… and into chaos that they both want to avoid, but neither can seem to escape.
Buy Links:
The Writer’s Life
Thank you for visiting and reading!
Feel inspired? Have you read this book? Let us know your thoughts!
Thank you for this! The interview was fun!
ReplyDeleteI have read several excellent stuff here. Keep on writing great, thanks
ReplyDeleteWow, superb blog layout! Magnificent, let alone the content Fantastic
ReplyDeleteMagnificent put up, very informative blog. You must continue to do this.
ReplyDeleteVery great post. I just stumbled upon this blog and its excellent point.
ReplyDelete