Before we get to the interview, here's a little bit more about The Buried Life and Carrie. There's also an extract from the book at the end of this post, so be sure to take a look and read a little bit of The Buried Life before it's published!
About the Book
Title: The Buried Life (Buried Life #1)
Author: Carrie Patel
Publication Date: July 29, 2014 (US/Can)
7 August 2014 (UK)
Synopsis: The gaslight and shadows of the underground city of Recoletta hide secrets and lies. When Inspector Liesl Malone investigates the murder of a renowned historian, she finds herself stonewalled by the all-powerful Directorate of Preservation – Ricoletta’s top-secret historical research facility.
When a second high-profile murder threatens the very fabric of city society, Malone and her rookie partner Rafe Sundar must tread carefully, lest they fall victim to not only the criminals they seek, but the government which purports to protect them. Knowledge is power, and power must be preserved at all costs…
UK Print & Ebook
Amazon.co.uk | Book Depository | Waterstones | WHSmith
North American Print & Ebook
Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | BarnesandNoble.com | IndieBound.org
About the Author
She completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Texas A&M University and worked in transfer pricing at Ernst & Young for two years.
She now works as a narrative designer at Obsidian Entertainment in Irvine, California, where the only season is Always Perfect.
You can find Carrie online at www.electronicinkblog.comand @Carrie_Patel on Twitter.
The Interview!
If you could spend time with any Inspector, real or fiction, who would it be and why?
I’d enjoy a glass of wine and some high culture with Agent Aloysius Pendergast of the Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child novels. He’s a renaissance man, and so I’d end up learning something new and insightful from him.
How would you describe The Buried Life in 140 characters or less?
Two inspectors chase a murderer, dodge politicians, and unearth a conspiracy in an underground city.
How does your writing routine usually go?
I wake up early and write for a couple hours before work. Sometimes I work from my desk at home, and sometimes I walk to a nearby coffee shop--whatever feels right. I'm generally a morning person, and it's easiest to set aside time before I've gotten my day started with anything else. I like to make time after work, too, and on weekends, when I can get out and enjoy the incredible SoCal weather.
What was the last book you read and loved?
I recently finished Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer. It's a brief but gorgeous story about exploration and the unknown. It's speculative fiction with some literary leanings, and it's definitely one I'd hand to anyone who's on the fence about science fiction. The exploration of character is incredible—they’re deep and nuanced and lifelike enough that they still surprise you.
Why did you decide to set The Buried Life in an underground city?
Subterranean spaces--both natural and manmade--have always fascinated me. I'm not entirely sure why. I suppose part of it lies in the knowledge that there are these vast, amazing spaces under the earth that are so removed from the things we typically consider beautiful--they're dark, filled with rocks, and generally barren of plant life--and yet they're breathtaking. There's also something naturally intriguing about underground spaces in that you can only ever see as far as the next curve up ahead. You don't have the kind of visibility you have in a regular city, where streets are laid out, buildings rise in the distance, and you can generally get a sense of what's around you. Underground, you're stuck with whatever's immediately around you, which makes each step an act of discovery. I wanted to bring that sensibility into the story.
What are some of your all-time favorite books?
Snow Crash, The Name of the Rose, and Smilla’s Sense of Snow. Those three books are rather different from one another, but they each have it all—incredible characters, rich writing, and fantastic plots.
Has your experience in writing games affected how you write books?
I'm relatively new to the industry, but in writing characters in games, you often have to get the characterization across quickly. You don't have as much text to spend working up to this, so the "flavor" of the character--disposition, mannerisms, goals, etc.--should be clear quickly. This sense of economy is a great lesson for any kind of writing, and I try to apply it to my story- and novel-length fiction, as well.
Which city (or country) would you most like to visit?
Iceland. I’ve never been, and it seems so unlike any place I have.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
A lot of reading, writing, and gaming (and I'm still convincing my family that the latter is a legitimate work-related activity for me now). My husband and I love to travel together, so we try to visit someplace new every year.
Do you currently have any books on your nightstand?
I just started George Wright Padgett’s Spindown. It’s a hard sci-fi novel about clones escaping from a mining outpost on Ganymede.
Read an Extract!
Thanks for stopping by!
--Ashley & Paul
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