Behind the Twist: A Conversation with Lisa Unger
Novel Suspects: What aspects of your life or the world around you do you pull inspiration from that readers might be surprised by?
Lisa Unger: To some extent all of life is research. I think of my existence as a continuum: reading, researching, living, writing, repeat. Inspiration can come at any time, from anything. A photograph, a snippet of overheard conversation, a news story, in one case a piece of junk mail. Writers are first and foremost observers. We’re paying attention when others are not. And it’s in this place of curiosity, and chasing thoughts and ideas, where creativity ignites.
NS: When writing, are there criteria you need to focus on or get in the headspace to write?
LU: I am an early morning writer. My golden creative hours are from 5 AM to noon. This is when I’m closest to my dream brain, and those morning hours are a space in the world before the business of being an author ramps up. So, I try to honor this as much as possible. Creativity comes first.
But I try not to be precious about it. If we set up too many criteria—like I need this or that to write, conditions have to be exactly this or that—it’s counterproductive. Things don’t have to be perfect for me to write. Because life is rarely perfect, and there’s always a gauntlet to run.
One thing, though, that I share with my aspiring writers when I talk about creativity, is to make sure that when you sit down to write that you’ve set your intention and then honor that intention. Block out distractions. If you’ve come to your desk to work on your novel and instead you’re Facebook-stalking your ex or watching baby animal videos, the truth is that you just didn’t care enough to devote yourself to the work.
NS: What type of research do you do before you begin writing? Do you ever find that your research can shift the direction you previously thought a book was going to go?
LU: Research is a huge part of my process—mainly because I’m an information junkie, always curious, chasing ideas and interests. So, it’s often that the research comes first, then it usually collides with something else, and then there’s a character voice. When all those conditions exist, there’s a novel brewing. I’m not sure it’s linear. Writing or life, or reading, or travel or just experience can inspire a novel. Likewise, in the writing I’ll stumble on something that I know too little about, and that will lead to some more research. Research is powerful influence, both for inspiration, and in the writing process. But I’ll never let the truth get in the way of a good story!
NS: You’ve written 23 novels. Which of your characters has stuck with you the most?
LU: I love that question! My fictional town The Hollows is very much a character, and it stays with me, conspiring to get itself into every book. I haven’t set a book there in a while, but there’s almost always a cameo. Jones Cooper, my disgraced police chief turned private investigator, also tends to turn up when I need someone old school to take down the temperature and set things right. Eloise and Finley Montgomery, my reluctant psychic and her even more reluctant granddaughter, are very much with me—so stay tuned for more on that. Ridley Jones from Beautiful Lies has another story to tell; I’m just not sure when. And there are others, of course. If someone is present enough, she or he will get another book!
NS: As a thriller author, have you ever found yourself secretly rooting for a character in this book—or in any of your other books—even if they maybe shouldn’t be rooted for?
LU: I have love and empathy for all of my characters, even and maybe especially the most twisted and damaged among them. Bring me your trauma, your mental illness, your addiction; I am here for it. The character that immediately comes to mind is Priss from Crazy Love You. She is bad luck, trouble, and female rage all in one unpredictable fire ball. And I was absolutely rooting for her, even though maybe I should not have been. And, yes, there are some difficult personalities in SERVED HIM RIGHT that I loved spending time with, even though they were running some terribly dark agendas.
NS: Your novel SERVED HIM RIGHT begins with a brunch celebrating a breakup before descending into murder and suspicion. What was the impetus for starting the story in such a seemingly lighthearted setting that quickly turns dark?
LU: I stumbled across a news story about a woman who held a brunch for her family, and several days later two of her guests were dead. And it wasn’t the first such incident in her life.
So, it got me to thinking about how the traditional role of women in our culture is to nurture and nourish. And what a woman with a deep knowledge of plants that can harm and heal might do with it, how her role in society might allow her to hide her dark intentions in plain sight.
And that’s when I started hearing the voice of Ana Blacksmith. She’s wild and unpredictable; she has a dark side. She has a sacred knowledge of plants and their properties, handed down to her from her herbalist aunt. And she has a very bad temper.
In SERVED HIM RIGHT, Ana’s brunch doesn’t exactly start out as just mimosas and flowers. It’s an ex-orcism, where Ana has gathered all her friends to force them to eradicate her cheating ex Paul from their social media feeds. So, it has a bit of dark tinge at the outset, and things only get darker from there.
NS: As a follow-up, is there a go-to brunch restaurant that you love?
LU: My all-time favorite brunch place in the universe is Balthazar in NYC. This iconic French brasserie on Spring Street is elegant, charming, and yet still somehow cozy and down to earth. I love the food, the atmosphere, and the neighborhood. It’s perfect.
NS: Vera and Ana share a deep sisterly bond that drives much of the book’s emotional core. How much of your own experience with family relationships informed their dynamic?
LU: I don’t have a biological sister. But I’m deeply inspired by some of the powerful female figures in my family and among my close friends who I consider the sisters of my heart. I think the idea of female devotion often takes a second place to the myth that women can’t trust each other and don’t support each other. I consider this just another misogynistic concept in our culture. The biggest supporters in my life and in my career have been women. There’s a devotion there that can be more powerful than in romantic relationships—and more enduring. Men may come and go; but the strong, loving women in your life cheer you through the good days and carry you through the bad. That’s the idea behind Ana and Vera’s unbreakable bond. They’re each capable of literally anything if it means protecting the other.
NS: After so many bestselling thrillers, what still excites you about writing psychological suspense?
LU: I am always in a state of awe and joy when I come to the page. What excites me about what I do is exploring character, diving deep into the human psyche, and examining the different elements that make us who we are. Every novel I have written is driven by my ferocious curiosity about biology, psychology, the psychospiritual, family identities and how these drive our actions. What makes someone a hero? Or a psychopath? What is the line between justice and revenge? Any question to which there isn’t an easy answer excites me because it hints at the mysterious nature of the universe and the human mind. And I can’t think of a better place to delve into those questions than in crime fiction.
Discover the Book
But Ana is not the only one who had a score to settle with Paul. As the investigation unfolds, rumors of a secret network that uses ancient methods to obtain justice begin to emerge. Vengeance is sweet, but it can also be deadly. Ana and Vera are determined to find the truth before Ana takes the fall and their own long-buried history comes to light.
