I'm so excited to chat with Kristen Hogrefe Parnell today. If you've read the first two books in her Crossroads series, "Take my Hand" and "Hold your Breath" you already know what a talent she has for weaving suspense, faith and romance in a story. Her new book, "Watch Your Back" released March 5 and shines with the same talent! Without further ado, here's Kristen.
First let’s learn a little bit about you. Can you share a few things about yourself that have nothing to do with writing?
Thanks for inviting me to share on your blog! A little about me … My husband and I have been married for almost six years and have a two-year-old. Being a mom is teaching me more about how much I need God’s grace in my life and His wisdom every day. People tend to think I’m an extrovert, but I’m really an extroverted introvert. I love making connections and building community, but at heart, I’m a girl who would like to drink her coffee in a quiet place with a book as her only companion.
That’s a lot like me! I always say I’m a “complicated introvert” haha. What drew you to write?
My brothers, some of our friends, and I wrote chapter books together when I was in middle school. They grew tired of the project after a while, but I kept writing. That’s when I discovered my love for writing, and I’ve been writing ever since.
How cool! What’s your writing process?
James Scott Bells explains that there are three camps of writers: pantsters, plotters, and tweeners. I fall into the “tweeners” camp. I used to start with a detailed outline, but since becoming a mom, I’ve whittled it down to a three-page synopsis that highlights the main crises. However, once I get to the middle of the story, the characters tend to take over, so the ending sometimes surprises even me.
Isn’t it crazy how they do that? It happens to me every time, too! How do you come up with your story ideas?
Many times, I’m inspired by a setting or an experience. In my Crossroads Suspense series, all the stories take the characters to Beech Mountain, North Carolina, a place that is dear to my heart. My husband and I have visited so many times that I felt inspired to craft stories around its seasons.
I love how you have a personal connection there. We all loved “Take My hand” and “Hold Your Breath.” Tell us about your new release.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the first two books in the Crossroads Suspense series! In Watch Your Back, Private Investigator Avery Reynolds gets her own story. She leads the charge to expose Tampa's supposedly “extinct” mob and bring to justice the crime boss responsible for her foster brother’s death. But she hits a wall in the form of Ethan Bridger, a Coast Guard veteran who unknowingly derails her sting operation. When the elusive “Big Eddie” comes out of hiding, he targets their mutual friends about to tie the knot. Avery sets aside her angst toward Ethan to work together, exposing her trust issues and his PTSD stemming from a comrade's tragedy. When Avery goes solo into a prisoner exchange operation, she discovers her vulnerability too late—and must lean on Ethan and the God she thought had abandoned her.
Oooo. We all need a copy of that! Are there certain themes explored in the story?
Avery is fiercely independent due to the barriers she’s built around herself. She acts like everything depends on her to succeed and can’t imagine trusting God to be her Father since her biological parents abandoned her. Although I believe readers will draw their own personal takeaways from the story, one theme is that God didn’t design us to do life alone and that we need Him and other people to thrive. Even if others abandon us, He never will.
I love that! And it’s so true. Do you have any favorite characters in your books?
A secondary character named Miss Martha is one of my favorites. She’s a spunky lady in her early seventies who organizes aid for Cuba through her mission and network of Cuban diaspora. She’s not afraid to “tell it like it is” and shares the Good News as naturally as she breathes.
What are you working on now?
I’m excited to be part of a Christian romantic suspense anthology releasing this summer. My novella follows a young widow who returns to her hometown to start over with her daughter, only to uncover a covert drug ring at her alma mater and cross paths with old classmates harboring scars and secrets of their own. I’ll be sharing more about it in my newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/g8f8x7. I’d love for readers to connect with me there.
When you’re not writing, what do you enjoy doing?
When I’m not writing, I’m spending time with my toddler. I love seeing the world through his eyes. Some of our favorite activities include fruit picking (strawberries and blueberries in the winter and spring), zoo time, play dates with friends, and a midweek story and music time at church. On weekends, we enjoy adventures as a family, biking together, hiking, going to the beach, spending time on the water, or seeing family.
You can’t watch your own back.
Private Investigator Avery Reynolds leads the charge to expose Tampa's supposedly “extinct” mob. The crime boss responsible for her foster brother’s death is within her grasp—until she hits a wall in the form of Ethan Bridger, a Coast Guard veteran who unknowingly derails her sting operation. When the elusive “Big Eddie” comes out of hiding, he targets their mutual friends about to tie the knot.
Avery sets aside her angst toward Ethan to focus on ending the crime boss’s reign of terror. But working together exposes her trust issues and his PTSD stemming from a comrade's tragedy. When Avery goes solo into a prisoner exchange operation, she discovers her vulnerability too late—and must lean on Ethan and the God she thought had abandoned her. But will that help reach her in time?
Watch your back is available for purchase on Amazon and Barnes and Noble and free on Kindle Unlimited!
Want to connect with Kristen? Here's where to find her!
Website: https://kristenhogrefeparnell.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KHogrefeParnell.author
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/khogrefeparnellauthor/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kristen-hogrefe-parnell
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4774818.Kristen_Hogrefe_Parnell
Newsletter Sign Up: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/g8f8x7
