Q and A With Ann Lambert, The Dogs of Winter

The Dogs of Winter (Second Story Press, October 28th 2020) is a compelling story full of hot button Canadian topics pulled from the headlines. Locations in this murder-mystery are personal to author Ann Lambert who taught at Dawson College across the street from where much of the action takes place and saw what went on every day.

Montreal is a key character in the book, flaws and all, from endless road construction to Fairmount bagels to peculiar Québécois idioms to questioning systemic racism. The novel starts with a howling, late January storm, a harbinger of what’s coming our way in a few short months. Then, a murderer with a twisted mission targets the vulnerable living on the frigid streets while scenes unfold revealing how the #MeToo movement has changed the conversation, but not nearly enough… All this done with sensitivity and a soupçon of humour. 

We are delighted to feature this interview with Ann.

When did you decide you wanted to be a writer? 

When I was about 25 years old—when I realized I didn’t want to be a lawyer after all.

What is the best writing advice you’ve ever had, and the worst?

Give yourself permission. Just do it. Don’t look back. You will never be a writer if you don’t actually write.

Do you need a special place to write?

I need a room of my own with a door that locks. That’s all.

What is your experience with social media as a writer? Do you find it distracts you or does it provide inspiration? 

Both !

Who are your favorite authors? What are you reading currently?

 Hilary Mantel’s third book, David Sedaris, for laughing out loud. The Golden Fleece as told by Robert Graves. Oh, and Ann Cleeves—who loved The Dogs of Winter!

Who/what were your influences?

So many! Oedipus Rex by Sophocles and Euripides’ Medea, Ann-Marie MacDonald’s The Way the Crow Flies, because it is a murder mystery and so much more, (and she is a playwright/novelist). Many more complex murder mysteries, particularly the Scandinavian ones (Henning Mankell) and the Brits (Ruth Rendell, P.D. James, Minette Walters). Eve Ensler’s Vagina Monologues and her new book, Apology. 

Why were you drawn to these particular themes in The Dogs of Winter ?

I have always, as a playwright and now novelist tried to weave individual stories into a larger historical, political and cultural backdrop, hopefully in ways that deepen our experience through the juxtaposition of the personal and political. There is also the struggle of aging, especially for women, but men as well, worrying about your grown children navigating the world safely and happily, and larger existential issues, like the effects of climate change. 

What research did you conduct to write The Dogs of Winter?

As always, if anyone got a peek at my search history they would wonder what I am up to! I looked up things like: how long does a body take to freeze to death, what happens when a car hits someone at 4o kph? What martial art does the Israeli army use ? And of course, lots of research into the history of the Inuit in Quebec, homelessness in Montreal, the devastation of sexual violence, and because Marie is a whale specialist, lots of fascinating research into whales.

Any interesting experiences researching it?

I spent a week with the research team at the Mingan Island Cetacean Study in the Cote Nord of Quebec chasing gigantic whales around the gulf of the Saint Lawrence; 10 hours a day in a small boat. It was a bit grueling, but a thrilling, profound experience. To be honest though, that experience was more for my third book in the series which I have just started writing.

I learned a lot in my research about indigenous people in Canada, especially the Inuit in Nunavik, but I have just scratched the surface. But I was really disappointed by how little information there is readily available. 

Every single Canadian should have access to a history primer written by indigenous people and every single Canadian child should be studying this history in depth in every Canadian school.

What excites/scares/inspires you most about writing this second book in the series?

I am excited about continuing the story, and exploring aspects of this extraordinary world through characters who evolve and whom I care deeply about. I love imagining these lives and all the different twists and turns they can take.

What scares me? I guess two things: that no one will buy the book beyond the people who have to (my friends and family).  That people will buy the book and not like it or enjoy it. 

What makes it different from other similarly themed books on the market? 

If by “theme” you mean murder mystery, then I suppose it is similar to other books in that genre, but it is also different in many ways. It is not a police procedural, not a cozy, not just a suspense thriller, although I think it is both suspenseful and at moments, very scary. I think the setting in a very specific part of downtown Montreal makes it unique. Louise Penny’s books are set in the Eastern Townships, and John Farrow’s are set sometimes in Hudson and Montreal, but to my knowledge mine is the only one with this specific setting and these specific concerns. I think the fact that only one of the two “detectives” on the case is an actual cop, and that Marie becomes an inadvertent detective while she is busy with so many other things in her life make it pretty engaging. I think the examination of Quebec political history through the eyes of my Francophone and Anglophone characters makes it quite compelling, and there are several seemingly disparate plotlines that are compellingly interwoven. 

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The Dogs of Winter
Book Two – A Russell and Leduc Mystery
By Ann Lambert

The sequel to The Birds That Stay — hailed by The Globe and Mail as one of “Ten Thrillers That Will Keep You On the Edge of Your Seat Until Summertime” and included on Book Riot’s list of “Highly Anticipated Crime Novels.”A murderer with a twisted mission targets the most vulnerable on the cold streets of Montreal.

The Dogs of Winter begins after a howling snowstorm envelops Montreal, and the body of a young woman is discovered in its wake. The only clue to her identity is the photograph in her pocket, and on it, the phone number of Detective Inspector Romeo Leduc. Meanwhile, Marie and Romeo are busy navigating their deepening relationship, and a student at Marie’s college is the victim of a terrible assault. While Romeo begins to think that the dead woman may be linked to violence against several homeless people in the city, the search for justice in both cases is thwarted by societal apathy and ignorance, even as the killer is stalking the frigid streets of Montreal, preying on and terrorizing its most vulnerable citizens.

Ann Cleeves : “The Dogs of Winter is as much an exploration of a city and its communities as a traditional crime novel. It’s about power and powerlessness in the dead of winter. And more than that, it’s a rollicking good read.”

BUY HERE

Ann Lambert’s first novel, The Birds That Stay was nominated for the Quebec Writers’ Federation’s Concordia First Book Prize. She was recently part of Toronto’s The Word On The Street’s Grand Dames of Crime Fiction panel. Along with her novels, Ann has been writing and directing for the stage for thirty-five years. Several of her plays, including The Wall, Parallel Lines, Very Heaven, The Mary Project and Two Short Women have been performed in theatres in Canada, the United States, Europe and Australia. Ann is the former head of The Playwriting Program at the National Theatre School of Canada.

She taught English literature at Dawson College for almost thirty years in Montreal, Quebec, where she makes her home. Ann is also the co-founder of Theatre Ouest End and vice-president of The Theresa Foundation, dedicated to supporting AIDS-orphaned children and their grandmothers, the education of Malawian girls, and alleviating food insecurity in several villages in Malawi, Africa.
www.annlambertbooks.com  www.facebook.com/Ann-Lambert-532718167239818

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Interviews