Author Interview: Deborah Sprinkle

Today, we welcome my fellow Scrivenings author, Deborah Sprinkle. I've gotten to know her a bit over the last year through zoom calls, and she's a delight to chat with. I hope you enjoy getting to know her just as much.

Deborah, congratulations on the recent publication of your second novel. As someone who majored in Chemistry and taught for a long time, what made you decide to write murder mysteries?

I've been an avid reader of mysteries since I was young, beginning with Agatha Christie. So when I retired from teaching chemistry and felt the desire to write, I naturally gravitated to the mystery/suspense genre. What's ironic is that my very first book was a patriotic devotional that I co-wrote with a friend! It was published in 2013 and it was another six years before my debut romantic suspense novel came out. 

Are there any people in your past who have inspired or been a big help in your path to publication?

I started going to the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers' Conference in 2011. There I met so many great people who would later become friends. One in particular has mentored me for many years now. That's DiAnn Mills. She's an award winning romantic suspense author who's written over 40 books that have sold over one million copies. Yet she believes in helping other authors, like me, get started and be successful. That's what I love about the Christian writing world. 

I know you've lived several different places. Did you base the town in your books on any town from your past or bits and pieces of several?

Yes. For many years, we lived on a 30 acre lake in northern Indiana much like the one I describe in my first book. It was near a community that was smaller than Pleasant Valley, and not within an hour of a big city like Cincinnati, but the house and the lake are very similar to ours. I'm not sure why I chose southern Ohio as the location. I just knew I wanted Pleasant Valley close enough to a big city to give myself options for future stories. 

With two books in the series published, are you working on the third? Any hints of what's to come you can share?

I am working on the third book in the series. In fact, it's due out in November of this year. I'm bringing back Nate and Madison from the first book. Rafe, owner of the private investigation firm and Madison's boss, will play a big part, and Zoe from the second book is one of the main characters. A friend of Rafe's from the army comes to Pleasant Valley to ask for his help, and ends up putting them all in danger. 

How has your background in chemistry come in to play with your writing?

Well, I always heard write what you know. So the protagonist in my first book, Madison Long, is a chemistry teacher. And, she and her co-workers are implicated through the way the victims are killed. In my second book, I throw in some chemistry using the M.E. to introduce it through evidence. It's fun to find a way to work it into the story. 

One last question I ask all my authors--can you please tell us one thing about you that very few people know?

Gosh, this is a tough one since I tend to be too open about my life. I had a brief career on the stage--very brief. When the school where I was teaching celebrated its 150th anniversary, we put on a play and I was part of the cast. And, even though I'm Presbyterian, for one scene I played a nun--in full habit! I felt like I was in The Sound of Music!

Thank you so much, Amy, for having me on your blog! 


And special thanks to Deborah for joining us today. I hope you keep reading so you can learn more about her and check out her books.

When Deborah Sprinkle retired from teaching chemistry, she wanted to do three things: attend women’s Bible study, join a book club, and write a mystery novel. 
After collaborating with Kendra Armstrong on her non-fiction book entitled Exploring the Faith of America’s Presidents, Deborah turned her hand to fiction. It took many years of honing her craft before Deborah realized her dream. Deadly Guardian debuted in May, 2019, with Mantle Rock Publishers. Deborah’s second book in the series, Death of an Imposter,  came out November 24th, 2020. And the third is under contract for November of 2021. She continues to win awards for her short stories, articles, flash fiction, and novels.
Deborah lives in Memphis with her greatest fan, her husband of 49 years, and describes herself as an ordinary woman serving an extraordinary God. 

Follow Deborah at any of the places listed here:
 
https://authordeborahsprinkle.com/
 
https://www.facebook.com/deborah.sprinkle.5/
 
https://twitter.com/debbiejsprinkle
 
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6860378.Deborah_Sprinkle
 
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/deborah-sprinkle
 
https://www.pinterest.com/deborahs4509/_saved/

After a year of hard work, Bernadette Santos has earned the rank of detective. Her second day on the job, Bernie finds herself investigating a murder, and attracted to Dr. Daniel O’Leary, the new coroner’s nephew—who appears to be involved in her case. But how?
 
Detective Bernadette Santos is the newest ranking detective on the Pleasant Valley Police Force, and she’s determined to do everything by the book. Which becomes her greatest struggle in this case. She’s paired with Detective Jeannie Jansen, who as a seasoned detective, tends to bend the rules at times.
 
And then there’s Daniel. She’s strongly attracted to him, but he’s become the target of some unknown assailant, and can’t—or won’t—tell her why.  He knows things—has skills—that most doctors don’t have. Where did he learn them?
 
Bernie must solve the murder while discovering if Daniel is a victim or a cold blooded killer. Her job demands it, and her heart requires it. 

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