Welcome back to my series, #AuthorInterview. This time around, I am interviewing Elaine Williams Crockett.
To start this interview, instead of a question I’m going to request you introduce yourself! And to make it a little more interesting, add a unique fact about you that readers might not be aware of!
I’m Elaine Williams Crockett. I use my full name because there are so many Elaine Crockett’s out there. Who knew? I’m also a genealogist. While researching my family tree, I became fascinated with the theory that specific memories can be passed down through DNA. There is some science to back up this general idea, and that’s one of the theories I explore in Do Not Ask.
My first question for this interview, how did you decide to write your series (Warren Alexander) and in thriller/mystery genre?
I’ve always wanted to write, that’s why I went to law school. However, law is not as exciting as it appears on TV. So, writing my Warren Alexander (“Do Not”) series was a delightful diversion from my career as an attorney. And the great thing is that my background prepared me for writing mysteries because law taught me how to make someone think one thing is happening when it’s actually something else!
According to your Goodreads Author Page, you had a career in law! If you had to do anything other than writing or working in law, what would you do?
I would probably be an archaeologist because they are in the business of uncovering secrets. And that’s what I love about writing mysteries. I love constructing plots to give the reader the same sense of discovery an archaeologist experiences.
Now for a little bit more about yourself: What authors inspired you to write? And, if any, what authors or books did you not enjoy (that could have steered you away if you stuck to only those books/genres)?
I don’t have favorite authors but I do have favorite books. In other words, I loved Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects (I read it five times), but I wasn’t crazy about Gone Girl. Similarly, I loved Daphne DuMaurier’s Rebecca (I read it too many times to count), but I wasn’t crazy about Frenchman’s Creek. I also loved Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House and Dominick Dunne’s The Two Mrs. Grenvilles. You can probably see the underlying theme here among all these books – a storied family history, a fascinating mansion, a peek into the rarified world of the wealthy, and, of course, a murder mystery to be solved. And that encapsulates what I also write about.
As far as the books that would steer me away from writing, there probably aren’t any. Unfortunately, though, I think there are books that steer readers away from buying books altogether and I think the reason is that many authors are under pressure to publish a book per year. That’s hard to do and still offer a quality product.
What do you find you struggle the most with as an author?
My biggest struggle was just how different each book “felt” while I was writing it. I initially worried that meant one was better than another, but I realized they felt different because the stories were different.
This year, I read your novel “Do Not Ask” which is the second in the Warren Alexander series. Did you originally plan to write a standalone or a series? If so, did you pre-plan how your series would continue?
I originally thought my “Do Not” series – Do Not Assume, Do Not Ask, and my next book, Do Not Answer – would be a trilogy, but then realized that would be like writing a 1,000 page novel. Who wants to read a 1,000 page novel? I don’t. So, I gave up that idea, and each book in the series is stand alone.
If you had to market this book, “Do Not Ask”, using only three words, what three words would you use?
The President’s daughters are missing. Sorry, I know that’s not three words, but it was the best I could do!
What do you want readers to know about any of your books or yourself?
I want readers to know that I will entertain them. If a book is boring, why read it? Time is a precious commodity, there are a lot of books out there, and my goal is to make readers glad they chose my work to read.
For my second last question, if you had to jump genres what type of book would you write? And what would it (potentially) be about? Would you co-author with any specific authors in that genre?
If I had to jump genres, I would probably write true crime. I’d love to explore the 1966 unsolved murder of Senator Percy’s 21 year-old daughter at their Kenilworth mansion on Lake Michigan. True story: Senator Percy heard glass shattering, his daughter screaming, and sound of the killer running off down the beach, never to be found. Tragic but fascinating.
I’m afraid that I couldn’t co-author anything. I like to be in control too much. Just ask my husband!
My last question is – what question have you been dying to answer but haven’t been asked?
I am dying to talk about my next book, Do Not Answer! I hope that readers buy it and love it. The publication date is Summer 2019.
The back blurb: A serial killer is stalking Washington, DC, targeting wealthy women alone in their homes, rushing in, raping and killing them. Women have been warned, but they keep answering their doors. When the FBI determines the crime scenes match the fifteen-year-old unsolved murder of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Warren Alexander’s first wife, they ask Alexander for a DNA sample. He’s anxious to comply and catch his wife’s killer, but it’s not as easy as it sounds because the suspect is a member of his own family.
Briar, I thank you for reviewing my book, for giving me this terrific opportunity to reach readers and give them an idea of who I am and what I write!
~~~
Thank you to Elaine Williams Crockett for this wonderful opportunity to interview her! Do Not Ask was an incredible mystery/thriller that kept me hooked at every turn! You can check out my review here.
To find out more about Elaine, visit her website: http://www.elainewilliamscrockett.com/ or on Goodreads.
Check out, Do Not Assume, the first novel in the Warren Alexander series on Goodreads. Or visit the page for the sequel, Do Not Ask.
You can purchase these books on Amazon:
Photo from Elaine Williams Crockett.
Briar's Reviews 
1 thought on “#AuthorInterview Elaine Williams Crockett, author of the Warren Alexander series”