Kate: Tess, I can't tell you how excited I am that you've agreed to join me for Coffee with Kate!
Tess: I'm so impressed by your new site! Congrats for launching it!
Kate: I'm proud that we'll be launching with you! I'm a tremendous admirer of your work. You're incredible!
Tess: It's funny, though, how it all begins with just sitting in a chair and picking up the pen (or keyboard). For writers, the process is universal.
Kate: Agreed! I was so fascinated about your background--your medical background--graduated from Stanford then achieving your medical degree from the
University of California...
Tess: I got to writing rather the long way around!
Kate: So what shifted your interests to writing these incredible novels?
Tess: I always knew I was a writer, even when I was a child. I've also always been interested in science, and that inspired me to study medicine. But I found combining medicine and motherhood was really difficult.
Kate: I can certainly understand that!
Tess: Try finding childcare for a sick toddler. My husband and I finally decided that, for the sake of the family, I should stay at home for awhile. That's when I started writing in earnest.
Kate: I understand. When I decided to get serious about writing, I had two children in diapers--gave up a successful career as a head hunter. So you enjoyed writing throughout your childhood?
Tess: Writing (and reading) has always been one of my pleasures -- especially mystery novels. I think my first work, as a seven year old, was a mystery about my missing cat!
Kate: That's great! I recall my first serious writing--in the sixth grade. We were given an assignment to write an article, and everyone else was writing about their cats and dogs and I was writing obituaries.
Tess: Obits? You were a rather unusual little girl, were you?
Kate: Oh yeah. My ideas were already focused on disaster. So how did you decide to write romantic suspense?
Tess: I've always loved suspense, and I got hooked on romance novels while I was a medical resident. Also, I'd been reading a number of Harlequin Intrigues at the time. So when I sat down to write my first book, it was rather natural to start out with a romantic suspense novel.
Kate: What was your first published work?
Tess: Call After Midnight was my first one -- published H. Intrigue, of course! I went on to write a total of 9 romantic suspense novels.
Kate: What year was that?
Tess: Call After Midnight was in 1987. I've tried to produce a book a year -- not always easy when there were toddlers in the house
Kate: Ah, yes. Wasn't that the title that sold for a Movie of the Week?
Tess: The movie of the week was an original script called Adrift.
Kate: With Kate Jackson, right?
Tess: Right. It aired in 1993 on CBS.
Kate: That must have been thrilling for you! Were you pleased with the production?
Tess: I was happy with how it turned out -- very scary and compelling. But scriptwriting is quite a different process, and I far prefer novels, because I have more control over the finished product.
Kate: Do you feel the movie boosted your books sales?
Tess: Not at all, because it wasn't based on any of my books. But it taught me about how Hollywood works, which is part of any writer's education, I think.
Kate: I agree. I was consultant head writer for a couple of soap operas, and it sure gave me a new insight into the process. That's tough work.
Tess: And it requires so much team-work, so that you feel as if you're part of a committee. Not good for those of us who like to control our fictional universe!
Kate: Right! I was pulled so many directions from so many people I was totally confused and frustrated. Decided my place was back with the novels and haven't regretted it one bit. So, Tess, medical thrillers seem a natural for you, considering your background. At what point did you make the cross over and what prompted it?
Tess: It all started because I got the idea for Harvest. I'd been talking to a cop who'd been traveling in Russia, and he said that orphans were vanishing from the streets of Moscow, and being shipped to the Middle East as organ donors. I'm still not sure as to the truth of that rumor, but it certainly inspired a lot of horror ....and made me think it'd be a great book.
Kate: And your writing instincts just naturally kicked in. I understand that.
Tess: I'd never written a medical thriller, oddly enough -- I didn't think people would be all that interested in the behind-the-scenes look at heart transplantation. My agent certainly set me straight and told me to go for it. She also mentioned that there were no female Robin Cooks writing -- and that there'd definitely be interest in such a story. After she sold the book (based on a 150-page partial) for an astonishing 2-book, 7-figure advance, I realized: yeah, there must be a market in this!
Kate: I'm glad you did! You really give us an up close and personal look into that genre and your knowledge gives us terrific insight. Your books are absolutely chilling!
Tess: There's always a balance to find, though, between giving too much technical info and not giving enough. I struggle with that in each and every book. What do I need to give it authenticity, and what just makes it boring?
Kate: So which, to date, is your pride and joy?
Tess: My absolute pride and joy of all my books? Oddly enough, it's Gravity, which sold the fewest copies of all!
Kate: What was it about that book that you continue to appreciate more so than the others?
Tess: I think it turned into the most stomach-churning suspense ride. It also was about a subject I get quite emotional about, and that's the space program. Technically, it was the most difficult feat of all to pull, simply because it had to pass muster with aerospace engineers.
Tess: But because of the topic (which it turns out not a huge number of people are interested in) it pulled in a readership of mostly male tech - types. Not that that's a bad thing! But if you lose your female readership, you lose big time.
Kate: I hear you. I don't think readers really respect just to what lengths the authors go to get their research right.
Tess: No, I think a lot of readers think we just make all this stuff up, because we write fiction.
Kate: That's the truth. Being close to the space program, I'm sure you were severely affected by the latest shuttle disaster, as we all were.
Tess: I was devastated. Just a week before, I'd received an email from a friend at Johnson Space Center, telling me they were having a "Gravity" moment. Laurel Clark was doing biological experiments in orbit, and her husband was manning the Surgeon console down in JSC, and they thought it was amusing because it was a situation in Gravity. Then a week later, Laurel was gone.
Kate: I'm so sorry.
Tess: I knew, better than most, how risky each launch is. I'd been told, confidentially, that the risk is about 1/50 launches, there'll be a disaster. That turned out to be eerily correct. But that's one of the things that I bless about being a writer -- learning things I'd never otherwise get the chance to learn. Inhabiting characters who do things that we always dreamed of doing.
Kate: So were you interested in the space program before you wrote Gravity, or did that come during your research of the program?
Tess: I wanted to be an astronaut when I was younger, and writing Gravity gave me that vicarious thrill.
Kate: Wow! I can totally understand that! I understand that you just returned from London?
Tess: I was there on my UK book tour for The Surgeon and The Apprentice. It's very fascinating to talk to booksellers there, and learn that the markets are quite different. Crime fiction is huge in the UK. Romance is just not that big a seller.
Kate: So how did the tour go?
Tess: Great! I love my publisher there (Transworld), and I arrived just as they'd finished plastering Surgeon posters all over the subway system. The Surgeon hit the London Times list at #9 in its first week on sale in paperback.
Kate: The research into these books boggles the mind. Do you have certain police officials who are ready and eager to help with your research?
Tess: I have a friend who's a retired Boston PD cop. I've been down to BPD a few times just to get the atmosphere of the place. And I have a whole wall of forensic pathology textbooks so my autopsies work out right. Also, I've attended a number of autopsies myself, so I try to incorporate that into my scenes.
Kate: Oh wow! I tried to convince my local medical examiner to allow me in to an autopsy and he thought I was nuts.
Tess: I find autopsies really disturbing, and don't much like to see them. But I guess my M.D. allows me access that other writers don't have.
Kate: I'm fortunate to have some terrific friends in the medical profession who have been there and done it, so I rely on them.
Tess: You can learn so much from people who've been there and done that. And they usually love to share their experiences with writers. The hard part, of course, is getting the sensual details just right. Sometimes those just have to be experienced, and sometimes professionals don't really want to share things they're ashamed of.
Kate: Exactly! Most of them feel very excited to help. Thank goodness. Of all things that have happened to you since you started writing, what has had the most impact on your career?
Tess: What has had the most impact on my career? Getting the right agent. Absolutely. Finding someone who really believed in me, and was willing to push hard for me. I'm happy to share her name, too: It's Meg Ruley of the Jane Rotrosen Agency.
Kate: I agree with that, and I've heard great things about Meg! Did you start out with Meg as your agent?
Tess: No, Meg is my third agent. My first, I had to fire because of his shady ethics. My second retired because of poor health. Sometimes you just need to move around until you find the right match. It's as important as marrying the right man.
Kate: I understand the shady agent. There are far too many of them out there. I got shafted myself with my first so called agent. Any good advice for the aspiring writer looking for an agent?
Tess: Poor writers. We start off knowing so little, and being so grateful for every scrap of attention. Only as we learn more do we realize that WE'RE the indispensable part of publishing!
Kate: Oh yeah. I think that's one of the hardest aspects of this business. We're all a commodity and we can never take this career for granted.
Tess: Good advice? Ask writers whom they recommend and whom they'd avoid. Talk to as many writers as you can. Make sure they don't charge reading fees. Try to stick with NYC -- I think that's really where you need to be.
Kate: I agree. So who was your first publisher and are you still with them?
Tess: I've been around the block! My first publisher was Harlequin. I've also been with Harper, Pocket Books, and now I'm with Ballantine. I have to say this about each and every publisher though -- I've had superb editors at every house.
Kate: Ah editors. You pray for the right one. They will make you or break you. Are you planning on turning any of your books into screenplays?
Tess: They can give you a nervous breakdown! So far, I've trusted their instincts, and I think they've been right every time. I don't plan to write any more screenplays. I think that, financially speaking, I'm much better off just writing the novels and selling the film rights. I've sold the rights to Harvest, Gravity, and now The Surgeon.
But I haven't really been interested in doing much more than that with the movies.
Kate: So how long does it take you to write a book, from conception to actually finishing the manuscript?
Tess: How long it takes depends on when my deadline hits! Generally, about a year. I would love to have two years for a book, but that's just not realistic, if you want to build a career. Publishers hunger for writers who can turn out at least one book a year.
Kate: I would love to hear about your upcoming books and when they will be released!
Tess: I have one that'll be published in September called The Sinner. I'm doing the final polish on it now. It's giving me conniptions -- just like every other book I've written.
Kate: I hear that! I generally don't have a hair left on my head by the time I finish a book! Care to give us a little hint of what The Sinner is about?
Tess: It's another crime novel, concerning the murders of two cloistered nuns. And at the heart of the mystery is the disease leprosy, something that's always fascinated me.
Kate: WOW! That sounds great! Any chance we'll get a peak at the cover anytime soon? You've had great covers, by the way!
Tess: I think Amazon.com already has it up on their site, even though I haven't delivered the manuscript yet! Yep, I've loved my covers, especially the latest ones from Ballantine. They've been very sexy.
Kate: Do they ever ask your advice on what you would like to see on your covers?
Tess: They do consult with me. Unfortunately, I never have anything intelligent to say about my covers!
Kate: I totally understand THAT! They ask advice then ignore it. So I imagine you're doing a great deal of research on the leprosy topic. How did you get interested in that?
Tess: I took care of several leprosy patients while I was living in Hawaii. They had a leper colony on the island of Molokai, and when that colony closed, due to medical advances in treatment, some of the patients moved to Honolulu. It's such an ancient disease, with undertones of medieval fear. I think the mutilating effects is what scares people. And then, of course, the disease is famous because of the movie Ben-Hur!
Kate: Sounds fascinating, and I can't wait to read it!
Tess: Yep, now I just have to finish the darn thing!
Kate: So tell me, when you first became published, was the business of publishing all that you imagined it would be?
Tess: I was such a babe in the woods when I started off. I didn't realize how hard and long a road it is to building a career. It's only after all this time that I really begin to understand the industry, and how important every little cog is to making a book a bestseller. Even the best book in the world needs a lot of luck and a lot of personal support to do well.
Kate: Agreed. I was a babe too, and had so many idealistic expectations of what I perceived this industry to be. Boy, was I in for a surprise.
Tess: You think, "if I just write a good book, it'll find an audience." And that's not always true. It takes a great cover, great distribution, a good laydown, and a big sell-in -- things first-time authors don't really think about.
Kate: Exactly. When I give talks at conferences, I try to explain exactly what they are getting into. I think if writers are going to succeed, they have to understand just exactly what is happening with their books. Although I do try to do it in a way so they don't run screaming from the room.
Tess: I'm reminded of all those principles with my recent UK release. My first four books that hit the bestseller list here in the U.S. did poorly over there - but now, my new UK publisher is doing everything right, and suddenly I'm on the UK bestseller list.
Kate: Congratulations! Is this because you were able to do more self promotion over here?
Tess: No, I think it was cover design and publisher enthusiasm. They got advance copies into the hands of every bookseller. They supported the book with discounts, and they put money into publicity. By the time I arrived in London the book was already making the charts.
Kate: That's wonderful. Amazing what these pubs can do when they want to. Right?
Tess: It's frustrating, as an author, to hear these sorts of realities, because too often we're really powerless about it. Perhaps the best thing we can do is hope to place our books with an editor who really loves the book. That's what did it for The Surgeon in the UK -- my editor there is my cheerleader.
Kate: Totally powerless. I learned real quick the importance of self promotion. If the pub isn't going to do it, the writers have to.
Tess: Yes. And advance galleys are really important. That's one thing we can do, if our publishers don't do it -- print up our own galleys and get them into the hands of people who matter. And agents are really important too, because they push for more, more, more in the way of support.
Kate: So besides the September release, what do you have in store for the readers? Will you be doing tours around the country? Any upcoming book signings, appearances you would like to tell your fans about?
Tess: August/September is going to be really busy. I'm going to Maui Writers Conference, and have just been invited to Australia for a mystery festival. I'll probably fit in a book tour in early September, plus I teach a course with Michael Palmer for doctors who want to write, in mid-September. But at the moment, I'm just trying to meet this nagging deadline!
Kate: Is there anything in particular you would like to say to your legions of fans who will be reading this?
Tess: I'd like to shout an enormous THANK YOU for supporting me. There are two indispensable partners when it comes to publishing: the writer AND the reader, and we need each other!
Kate: Beautifully said. Is there anything else you would care to share with us before we bring this to a close?
Tess: Just a big thank you to YOU for this terrific chat. I hope your
site really takes off!
Kate: Let me say, Tess, that you have so honored me and ReadersRoom.com for allowing us to launch with such a terrific talent. Thank you for taking this time out to share with us! Oh, and I have to ask you something personal, if that's okay.
Tess: Sure.
Kate: I just gotta know. I see where Stephen King loves your books. He, too, is my idol. Do you know him personally?
Tess: I got the chance to play with his band, the Rock Bottom Remainders for a charity concert. That was a blast. Not only is he a nice guy, he's truly brilliant. I haven't seen him much since the accident, but every so often I get a note from him.
Kate: Well, now I AM a total puddle. I hope he's doing okay.
Tess: He's doing great. I'm not sure he ever will retire, even though he says he will, because the last time I heard from him, he was writing like a madman.
Kate: I have a book autographed by him. To Katherine, from Your number
one fan!
Tess: Oh, that's great! Isn't he a sweetie?
Kate: Yes. My dream is to one day stand in the same room with him - with you both!
Tess: Well, he's really REALLY tall. Him, you won't miss!
Kate: Just breathe the same air kind of thing.
Tess: I don't think he breathes the same air we do anyway.
Kate: Well, Tess, I'll let you get back to your deadline, and thank you so much again. Keep in touch!
Tess: Thank YOU. Stay warm, and I'll keep in touch!
Kate: You're a great lady.
Kate: I will. Bye for now!
Tess: Bye!
