Sisters in Crime/Hawaii meets on the third Wednesday of the
month at
Makiki Community Library from 6-8 pm. Meetings are open to the public.
Annual membership is $10.00. This year, our blog site is focusing on members of
SinC/Hawaii and their writing progress as published and as-yet unpublished
authors. As a group, we support each other’s work, and offer friendship and encouragement
in new projects. Several events throughout the year help to spotlight our
interests, including book fairs/festivals and panel discussions or book
readings. Check out the Meetings/Events page for upcoming events (and directly below
for the February, 2016 meeting.)
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| Author Laurie Hanan |
Today’s spotlight shines on long-time SinC/Hawaii member,
author Laurie Hanan. Laurie is the successful author of the Louise Golden series, mysteries
set in Hawaii. After publishing her fourth Louise Golden mystery, Stairway to Heaven, Laurie wrote a
novella for a Kindle World, the Lei Crime World of author Toby Neal. Laurie’s
novella is entitled Hoaka Moonshine.
Laurie’s synopsis of the story:
When Dee Maltin bought the little beach cottage on Maui, all she wanted
was to leave her memories behind. Now, fifteen years later, things are starting
to go awry. Why does everyone else deny hearing the feral cats that keep Dee
awake all night? What’s the smell that permeates her house no matter how much
she scrubs? Why does her strange neighbor, who hasn’t spoken to her in all
these years, choose this moment to strike up a conversation? A woman shows up
at Dee’s door looking for her birth mother. Is she a con artist, or just
deluded? Dee searches for answers and is soon over her head in one big
Hawaiian-kine mystery.
A 5-Star review of
the novella, Hoaka
Moonshine
(Moonshine, Hawaiian Style):
A
novella is often a fast read with a bit of a punch at the end. Laurie Hanan’s
novella, Hoaka Moonshine, was a fast
read but far more than a lead-in to a quick-punch climax.
The
story captured my interest with the suspenseful opening lines. The characters
immediately triggered reactions from me. Several times, I wanted to thrash the
ears of the grown son, although I admit to having given more than a little
leeway to “grown” children in my own family. Hearing that Dee, the protagonist,
was “too old” to suck in her belly for appearance sake endeared me to her from
the start. She is someone I would enjoy spending a day with in comfort.
It was a
pleasure to “visit” a quaint area of Maui that I know little about, Pā‘ia. The
plot of Hoaka Moonshine (I love this
title) held enough twists and complications to keep me reading, but never
became improbable. I especially liked the satisfying conclusion.
SinC/Hawaii: Aloha, Laurie. We are pleased to have you as our spotlight guest
today; and we look forward to having you as our Guest Speaker at the February,
2016 SinC/Hawaii meeting. At the February meeting, you will discuss Amazon’s Kindle Worlds
and your submission of the novella, Hoaka Moonshine, to The Lei Crime
World.
When you
wrote Hoaka Moonshine,
did you find any difference between writing this novella and your Louise Golden
novels?
Laurie Hanan: There was a very big difference in
writing Hoaka Moonshine. Since it wasn't part of my series, I took a lot
of liberty in creating the characters and developing the plot. With Louise
Golden, I keep more or less within the bounds of a traditional mystery style:
Mail carrier Louise discovers a crime has been committed on her mail route,
there is a villain who needs to be found out, Louise eventually solves the
crime when the police could not. Though there are mysterious events and
questions that demand answers in Hoaka Moonshine, the story doesn't fall
into the typical mystery genre. I never explain whether the events are
paranormal, figments of the character's imagination, or bizarre coincidences. I
leave that for the reader to decide. There is no crime to be solved, no villain
to be discovered and caught. It was a new kind of story for me and I had a lot
of fun with it.
SinC/Hawaii: You submitted Hoaka Moonshine to The Lei Crime World. This
is the Kindle World of Toby Neal, author of the Lei Crime Series that currently
includes 11 novels (and counting.) During the writing process, did the author
have any involvement in or offer you support during this new venture?
Laurie Hanan: Once I'd completed Hoaka Moonshine to
my satisfaction, I asked Toby to look it over. Involving the author is not a
necessary--or even a usual--part of the Kindle Worlds process, but I wanted to
be sure Toby was okay with my use of her characters. Toby graciously took the
time to look over my story. She was very encouraging, which I totally
appreciated, coming from such a successful author as her. After hearing Toby's
comments, I wrote some additional scenes. Her advice greatly enhanced the final
story.
SinC/Hawaii: Thank you, Laurie, for taking time to share this informative
information about writing novellas and about Kindle Worlds. We look forward to
having you as our Guest Speaker on February 17, 2016 and hearing even more in
depth information about the world of writing novellas.
SinC/Hawaii Meeting February 17, 2016
Makiki Community Library 6-8pm
Guest Speaker: Laurie Hanan
Skype Interview arranged by member/author
Kent Reinker
featuring:
Toby Neal, bestselling Maui author of the Lei Crime Series
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| Louise Golden mystery novels by Laurie Hanan |
Laurie Hanan's Amazon Author page:
