Q: Your On Pointe series is set in the world of professional ballet. What inspired you to set bring murder and ballet together?
Lori: I’m a former professional dancer, and it’s a world I know well, one that’s filled with intense drama and conflict. A ballerina’s professional life is brutally short, even without a fictional murder thrown into the mix, and that makes dancers extremely vulnerable to all kinds of pressure. An added element of tension is embedded in the fact that dancers aren’t simply in competition with each other. They’re also in competition with themselves: their own bodies and their own frailties. I’ve read and watched many stories that take place in the dance world. It bothers me when the details aren’t true to life, and it was really important to me to get things right.
Q: How has your series been received by people you know in the ballet world?
Lori: Almost all responses have been really positive. The one negative response came from a thirty-something ballerina, who said she found my book too painful to read. She’s going through the same fraught time in her life as my protagonist is in hers. She still looks about fifteen years old, but that doesn’t matter. The pandemic has cut short the career of this incredibly gifted dancer.
Q: Do you have a favorite scene or character in your latest release, Murder in Second Position?
Lori: My favorite scenes take place at Studio Dance. It’s a fictionalized amalgam of two dance studios in NYC: Steps and Ballet Arts. I’ve taken class at both places many times, and several older dancers I met there were the inspiration for three characters.
Q: How long have you been writing and how have you pulled it off with six children and a full-time job?
Lori: I was about ten years old when I wrote my first book. It was a sequel to 101 Dalmatians, which I creatively titled 102 Dalmatians. In later years, I thought the idea was silly, but Disney ended up doing pretty well with the concept. When my kids were young, I scratched out two books that, objectively speaking, were total garbage but great practice. It’s almost as if I had to get them off my chest and out of my head in order to begin writing with an eye to getting published. As for the six-kids/full-time job situation, as a teacher I had the summer to get the bulk of my writing done. Even so, it wasn’t until my youngest kid graduated from high school that I was able to focus on that long-deferred dream.
Q: Can you tell us more about your future writing projects and what you are working on now?
Lori: In June 2022, Level Best Books is republishing my first mystery, Lesson Plan for Murder. It features an English teacher who solves crimes using clues from her favorite books. Having taught English for many years in a public high school, inspiration for murder isn’t hard to find. I’ve experienced enough craziness to provide fodder for many more books, which is lucky, because there will be at least two more in this Master Class series. I’m also working on Murder in Third Position, which will be released in November 2022. I’m really excited about that book, because I’ve got a very creative method of murder in it. That’s always a challenge for me. I love the idea of poison, but that gets complicated. Sometimes it’s easier to toss the victim off a rooftop and be done with it.
In 2021, I had two short stories accepted for publication, and I’m working on several more. In the past, I was very intimidated by the art of writing short stories, but my editor encouraged me to give it a try. I’m glad I did. Writing short stories has made my novel-writing sharper and better-paced. It’s also fun to live with new characters without having to commit to a long-term relationship.
Q: How important have writing organizations been to your success?
Lori: I can’t overstate my debt to Sisters in Crime, in particular the New York/Tri-State chapter. I was so nervous at the first meeting and so worried I didn’t belong. They welcomed me with unparalleled generosity and kindness. I’m grateful to have had the benefit of their expertise. And their friendship.
Q: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Lori: See above! Writers, at least the ones I’ve met in the mystery writing community, have been an invaluable resource for information and inspiration. When all I had was a few chapters of the book that would eventually become my first novel, I joined a critique group through Sisters in Crime. I still meet weekly with one of the original members to exchange pages and discuss writing. Writing doesn’t only get done when you’re by yourself.
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