Naleighna Kai's Literary Cafe Magazine April Issue - Heaven & Hell | Page 80

J. D. Mason Naleighna Kai’s Chocolate Chats featuring hosted by Shannan Harper Shannan Harper: This particular book is listed under contemporary suspense. Was that a genre you always wanted to write under? J.D. Mason I didn’t always choose to write suspense on purpose. My writing style has changed through the years and I’ve come to incorporate more suspense into my work because it’s an element that I enjoy when reading other books. I’ve learned that suspense doesn’t necessarily equate to missing persons or dead bodies. It can be subtle in the form of romantic relationships, like will or won’t they get together, or more direct as in the case of this book and the question “What happened to Edward Price?”. Keshia La’Shawn: A lot of authors say that they started writing at a young age. Is this true for you as well? If not, when did you know that you wanted to be a writer? J.D. Mason: Oh, yeah. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t make up stories. I was about eight or nine when my teacher, Mrs. Hickman encouraged me to start writing them down. She published my first book, in fact, using duct tape, staples, and poster board. My first reading was to Mrs. Brown’s first grade class. I felt so proud. Venise Jacobs: How did the idea of bigamy come about when writing this novel? J.D. Mason: Through the title, which I came up with first. I think the original title was something