Today I'm talking with thriller author Michael Lorde about BLIND VEIL, a conspiracy thriller with sci-fi elements.
BLIND VEIL begins as a story about a mild mannered rancher in the West, in the 1960s. While the plot of this story is not about civil rights, the turmoil of the times is mentioned in the first few set-up chapters. The social stress that occurred in those times is the reason why this man decides NOT to report a violent rape and murder that occur on his land… but that’s just the beginning. The murder ultimately affects the rancher’s nephew forty years in the future. We fast track to the present, where we find his nephew Simms (now a grown man in his forties working as an Officer for the New York City Police Department). Simms is a Patrol officer and very well respected. He works hard, cares about people, protects the citizens of the city and brings home a paycheck. All of that, changes in one day when he takes his new boat onto the water for a well deserved break. He ends up on board two other boats, and neither by his choice. As Simms world spins on its end and out of control, the reader is dragged through every crazy event right along with him. This officer of the law breaks many rules as he tries to keep alive, in an effort to make sense of things that his mind cannot believe. This psychological thriller is the first in a series. The second book is due out in December.
What inspired this book?
The idea came to me all at once. There were very few gaps to fill in. My stories generally find me rather than the opposite. I don’t sit down trying to think of a story line. Before I can finish one book, two others pop into my head. It feels like a gift when I get them.
I’ve started and written books before, but this one just screamed out for me to publish it. I’d just left a job that required I work mad hours, and so the timing was perfect for me to pursue publishing. That decision has changed a multitude of things in my life, all for the better.
Tell us about your lead.
Lamont Simms is a really cool guy. He’d decent, and he respects people. He’s the epitome of a great cop. He was raised by his aunt and uncle on a ranch, but never really wanted to live out his life surrounded by nothing but land and sky. He joins the U.S. Marines and then the New York City Police Department as an officer. The guilt for having made his decision to leave home and abandon his uncle never really leaves him. The one thing he clings to above all else is his job. He loves being a cop. So what happens to a man who loses, through a single event, what identifies him most and what always will? He doesn’t have it easy. That’s for sure.
You have a background as an investigator. Did that influence any aspect of this novel?
It did. I was able to pull a whole lot from it and to bring the authenticity of my experience in police work and conducting investigations into the book. I hope when readers get to know Lamont, they’ll be thinking about their local law enforcement officers more in terms of the cops being men and women an that’s is a job. It doesn’t completely define who they are (though cops are almost all protective by nature). I think sometimes people forget that because of all of the media, television and big screen hype.
Why did you choose to write a suspense novel with science fiction elements rather than something a bit more straight-forward?
The story came to me all at once, as they usually do. I rarely try to change plots as I’m writing them. I knew the whole book before I even started typing, so the sci-fi element was already in it. What separates this novel from some of the sci-fi novels I’ve read is that Zork Bwork isn’t living on the Star Millenium with the Globulas in a world that I need to learn about in order to understand the plotline. I like science fiction. I’m a fan and I read it, but I don’t read the ultra detailed types of sci-fi books. They are way beyond my level of writing or my level of reading for that matter because when I read, I read to escape into the plot and not to decipher it. Some sci-fi readers flourish with their heads in those detailed pages. I don’t. I like it best when elements of science fiction are brought into our world.
In BLIND VEIL, this guy is in our world, and… WTF is suddenly going on? It’s not a typical sci-fi novel; it’s a thriller novel with sci-fi elements. To me there’s a huge difference. I hope I will continue to receive messages and mail from readers who don’t necessarily read, and still loved BLIND VEIL. The novel offers a lot of excitement. People have written to me telling me how believable it is, and I love getting those messages. Those readers make me feel like I did it right and hit the target I was aiming for, and I’m glad they’ve enjoyed it.
Dark conspiracy-laden plots really seem to resonate with readers regardless of genre. Why do you think people find reading about these shadow webs so interesting?
I think everyone on this planet wants to believe there is more than what we can see in front of us. That’s why people study science and religion as well.
Do you have particular literary influences?
That’s a tough question. I read every day as a kid. Now, between writing and squeezing my reading in between edits, I don’t have the opportunity to read as much as I used to. I think probably everything I’ve read has influenced me. I don’t think it’s changed my writing style, though. I think we all have our own voice, no matter how much music we listen to. I’ve always liked Stephen King, Tolkien, wow… there are too many to name, but mainly I enjoy the works of authors who have a dark element or two to their plots. My storylines always have a dark element lurking somewhere.
Please tell us about your other planned works.
I currently have three books in edits. I’m working on the sequel to BLIND VEIL (due out in December). I’m halfway through another, a book that pertains to the dark sides of each of us. This one has my focus a great deal right now. The main character is quite a trip, and more arrogant than most folks can imagine. He’s nothing at all like level headed Simms. All my books are fiction. That’s what I have planned for this year.
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Thanks, Michael.
About Michael Lorde:
Michael was raised in a rural town in upstate New York and has two sons and two daughters. After living in a warmer climate for nearly thirty years, Michael has since moved back north with the youngest daughter of the four. They are dog lovers and have two. BLIND VEIL is Michael’s debut novel.
Purchase links:
AMAZON: http://ow.ly/aQWPe
BARNES AND NOBLES: http://ow.ly/aQXj7
AMAZON UK: http://ow.ly/aQYiS
SMASHWORDS: http://ow.ly/aQYdA
BARNES AND NOBLES: http://ow.ly/aQXj7
AMAZON UK: http://ow.ly/aQYiS
SMASHWORDS: http://ow.ly/aQYdA
You can connect with Michael at:
His webpage
TWITTER: @BlindVeil
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorMichaelLorde
BLOG: http://ow.ly/aQYDk
GOODREADS: http://ow.ly/aQXxE
