Interview with J.L. Doucette

December 2, 2021 | By Women Writers Women Books | Reply More

UNKNOWN ASSAILANT (November 23, She Writes Press) is J.L. Doucette’s third installment in the Dr. Pepper Hunt book series that features a small-town mystery, intergenerational trauma, questionable suspects, and unforeseen twists. You covered her last book, so I am hopeful you will want to continue the journey.

When a murder/suicide takes place in a prominent family’s ranch in small town Farson, Wyoming, Dr. Pepper Hunt and Detective Beau Antelope are called on the case. As they find more clues, their findings lead them to a family touched by a legacy of trauma.

“Filled with shocking twists and turns, J.L. Doucette, masterfully weaves a gripping, suspenseful tale of duplicity, secrecy, and murder.”

—Glede Brown Kabongo, Amazon #1 best-selling author of the Fearless Series

We are delighted to feature this Q and A with J.L Doucette!

What is the book about?

Unknown Assailant is a psychological mystery which opens with the violent deaths of a husband and wife, an apparent murder/suicide, on a ranch in rural Wyoming. The novel explores themes of betrayal, trauma, and unresolved grief within three generations of a family. Alongside these heavy themes, several unlikely love stories are entangled in the mystery.
When did you start writing the book?

In 2015 I completed a 50K Nanowrimo first draft and left it to complete other work. The first two books in the Dr. Pepper Hunt Mystery Series were published by She Writes Press in 2017 and 2019. It wasn’t until November, 2019, that I began revising the earlier work and adding to the first draft, completing the manuscript in March, 2021. I used this same process for the first two books in the series as well.

How long did it take you to write it?

Total time elapsed from the time I wrote the first word until I typed The End was 5 years and 4 months. But there was a long period of time, 4 years, when I let the manuscript sit and wrote and published the first two books in the Dr. Pepper Hunt Mystery Series—Last Seen (2017) and On a Quiet Street (2019). So actual writing time was 1 year and 4 months.

Where did you get the idea from?

As with all of my books, the idea for the story starts years before the actual writing and arises from learning about an actual event through the news or other sources. I become intrigued with the circumstances and start to explore various storylines that could emerge. I began thinking about the characters in Unknown Assailant over 20 years ago when I first moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

For me, the beginning and ending parts of the book are always the easiest to write because it’s clear to me what the purpose and goals of these sections are. It’s the middle where I struggle when the plot begins to seem unwieldy and some of the characters are not yet as full as they need to be. It’s a challenge to stick with it when the work feels hard or boring and I don’t yet see the way out. Eventually, I’m able to get to a deeper understanding of the characters and they lead the way.

What came easily?

Writing the characters is always fun for me in part because they write themselves. I’ve been a psychologist for over 30 years so I’ve spent most of my time listening to people tell their stories. I don’t do any research when I’m creating characters. It’s more like they show up and I put them on the page.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

The characters the reader meets on the page are fictional, though parts of
them mannerisms, patterns of speech, the way they see the world, some physical
characteristics may be influenced by real people I’ve observed, but I think that’s true for
most fictional characters.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

My first influence was Jonathan Kellerman, a psychologist, whose best-selling series features Dr. Alex Delaware, a psychologist who works with homicide detective to solve murder cases. I followed his example in creating a main character, Dr. Pepper Hunt, whose expertise in forensic psychology makes her a valuable consultant to a small town sheriff’s department.

I’m a great fan of Tana French who writes the Dublin Murder Series. Her characters are fascinating and satisfyingly complex. I also admire the fullness of the language, the precise details in description.

Do you have a target reader?

That’s something I’m still in the process of getting clear on. In general, from the social media analytics I’ve seen and the turnout at book events, my readers seem to be more female than male, ranging in age from mid-twenties-fifties predominantly. I write for discerning readers who are interested more in the internal world of characters and their motivations and who enjoy literary fiction more than plot-dominated stories.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I use the Nanowrimo process which involves free-writing the first draft with no attention to editorial correctness, just get the story down first and rewrite and revise as many times as needed. I tend to write first thing in the morning before anything else can interfere.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

Nothing that would be recognizable as a real outline. I can’t seem to corral my thoughts into that kind of organization. I think a lot about the story as I go through the day and it kind of pulls itself together by the time I sit down to write. I might think about and jot down what I want to happen in a chapter, but that is as far as it goes.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

I save editing for when I have a manuscript with a story arc that is complete. That might be after 2, 3 or 4 working drafts.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

I love music and might listen before writing, but when I’m writing I need silence.

BUY UNKOWN ASSAILANT HERE

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The stark and haunting landscape of Wyoming’s high desert is the inspiration for JL Doucette’s mystery novels, which focus on human experience at the intersection of psychology and law.