Lisa Jackson
Interviewed by: Lauretta Pierce
Actually, my editor said he had a fabulous idea for me. I was all ears.
When he said "I want you to write a story about a killer who only kills in
winter?" I asked, "And????" thinking there was more to the plot. "That's
it," he said and I thought. "Great? Now what?" But the more I considered it,
the more I liked it. I thought I could bring the story back to the Pacific
Northwest, specifically the incredible Columbia Gorge and the heroine (who
would be a fish out of water from sunny LA) would face the worst storm of the century
along with a killer with a fatal obsession for her.
Actually my editor came up with the title; we like working with
titles/books that are connected yet opposing, (such as HOT BLOODED & COLD BLOODED, or
THE NIGHT BEFORE and THE MORNING AFTER), so he came up with DEEP FREEZE, and
the book I'm working on now, FATAL BURN.
I wanted someone to be obsessed with her, someone famous, and as I said, I
wanted her to come from a totally different environment, hence
LA/Hollywood. It seemed natural that she would be in the film industry.
I grew up in Oregon and it's a fascinating state with so many different
faces. Cities, rural towns, rocky beaches, high mountains and the
incredible Columbia Gorge, a deep, chasm with a roaring river that divides the state
of Washington from Oregon. It becomes bitter cold in winter. It was
perfect.
Shane Carter evolved, just as Jenna Hughes did. As I sat down at the
keyboard I envisioned him, a long, tall, suspicious lawman who would be
the least likely to fall for a woman entrapped in what he sees as Hollywood glitter,
yet a man who is fascinated by her nonetheless.
The idea was being batted around for a few years. I wrote the synopsis
very quickly--a couple of weeks because I'd been thinking about it for so long.
The synopsis is 60 pages. From that it probably took three to four months
to actually write. It was pretty solid.
It depends on what's going on in my life. Between two and four.
I'm working on the sequel to DEEP FREEZE. The synopsis is complete, I'm
now writing the book.
Okay, the next book that's coming out is FINAL SCREAM. It's will be in
the bookstores July 26th and it's the story of Cassidy Buchanan who, again,
lives in Oregon. She's torn between two brothers, Brig and Chase McKenzie and
all of their lives are entwined by the deadly fire that took the life of her
beautiful older sister Angie, and devasted her family. The fire was
seventeen years past and now, whoever set it, is back. Old passions simmer, old secrets
come to light. Worse yet, the killer is more vicious than ever and the ultimate
target is now Cassidy.
You know I don't keep count, but I can count 'em . . . . Okay, the last
six Zebra Romantic Suspense novels, starting with COLD BLOODED, have hit the
New York Times Bestseller print list (the top 15) and two more were on the
extended list (the top 35).
"Deep Freeze"
July 16, 2005
Q. How did you come about the idea for the novel Deep
Freeze?
Q. How did you come about the title?
Q. How did you come about the idea for Jenna's
character to be an actor?
Q. Why did you choose Oregon for Jenna's resident?
Q. How did you come about Shane's character?
Q. How long did it take you to write Deep Freeze?
Q. How many novels do you write a year?
Q. What are you currently working on?
Q. Can you give the reader a brief synopsis of your
next book and title?
Q. How many times were your novels listed on the New
Times Bestseller list?
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Lisa Jackson
DEEP FREEZE, Zebra Books, March 2005
FINAL SCREAM, Zebra Books, August 2005
Website
Mystery Mansion