And our Sue's Clues Mystery Author is:

Meet our Mystery Author—APRIL STAR. She's the author of several mystery novels that are anything but run of the mill. Below is the interview I had the pleasure of doing with her. When you are done, check out April's website: http://www.authoraprilstar.com/

1. How did you get started writing? Is this something you've always wanted to do?

If you were to ask my Mom that question, she'd tell you, "It all happened when I was nine months old!" I had been placed on a youth bed and rolled off—smacking my head dead center into the carriage of a metal toy typewriter. When my dad rushed me to the hospital (typewriter embedded in my forehead), to get stitched up he told me, "When the doctor handed you back to me, he said, 'Well, she'll either grow up loving writing or hating it!' But in all seriousness, yes, writing has always been a part of me. My greatest happiness, peace, and contentment comes when I'm writing.

2. Why mystery/suspense?

It wasn't always mystery and suspense. I stumbled along a number of genres before finding my niche and love with mysteries. I started out in junior high school writing plays. I just loved creating whatever scenarios I wanted and making them come alive with a wonderful array of characters. I continued "play writing" through high school and then began to feel as though children's writing was my calling. But when I found myself creating witches and goblins that would attack trick or treaters, and children started to run away crying when I'd read my stories aloud, I knew I was obviously doing something wrong. I then thought it was the age I was writing for and moved to writing for teenagers and young adults. I wrote one novella titled, "Prom Night Was Murder," upon completion, I knew that mystery and suspense writing was indeed my true calling.

3. How did you decide to pair up Laura and David in your novels?

Somewhere in mid stream of TROPICAL WARNINGS, David and Laura came alive. They took over the story completely and when I reached the end of the journey with them, it was my characters who indeed told ME they had so much more adventure, mystery and mayhem to share with readers.

Was this just a natural progression from book to book or something you planned?

David and Laura were planned characters in the beginning. I knew I wanted a romance as well as a mystery and these two just would not leave me alone as they started to grow and flourish within my writer's eye and mind.

4. I found a bit that mentioned you were a residential community manager. Is this something you are still doing? What type of community is this?

Funny you should ask about this, I turned in my resignation today! A residential community is a mobile home park. The one I managed also had an RV section. Never should these two entities be mixed in one community! It becomes the Hatfield's and McCoy's environment.

5. And you've managed a camping resort? That has got to be one of those jobs that you can't go wrong with—camping and getting paid for it?

Hmmm, it was while managing the camping resort that a lot of the characters and plots began to develop. Truth truly is, in EVERY sense of the word, so much stranger than fiction. I love the RV lifestyle and RVers are some of the most fun and friendly groups of people I've ever met. I've been on both sides of the fence—having traveled for 16 years in an RV across America and Canada, and then managing a campground for ten years.

6. From what I've read, your books have just taken off like crazy. How does it feel for you as an author?

That all the previous pains of rejections, tears of frustrations, and endless sleepless nights were all worth it and needed to feel and appreciate the enormous fulfillment I now feel.

7. Who or what have been your influences as an author?

My greatest influence and inspiration has come from the ongoing love and support of my husband. He is the one who has always been there riding the crests of my joys and lifting me from the many defeats.

8. Can you tell us about your family? I'm not sure how old the article was, but I know you have been married for at least 35 yrs. Congrats—that's quite a feat these days.

This past April was our 35th anniversary. I met my husband, Jerry, at age sixteen. My first date—a blind date. He had called and told me to pick the movie I'd like to see. At the time the two top movies were (and this is giving my age away) Love Story and Bonnie & Clyde. I, of course, chose Bonnie & Clyde. I think the main ingredient in any happy and lasting relationship is true friendship and the knowledge that it's not always 50/50. Many times through the years it has been 90/10 with the majority of support and giving from one or the other at any given time. It's being able to laugh together, share, and just have fun. It's being brave and bold enough to take the remote away, turn the TV off, and saying, "It's talk time!"

9. Reading the bio at your website, and you can only imagine some of the questions that makes me want to ask, I'll just ask the simple one—where do you see your path taking you as a writer?

In the words of Judy Garland, "Somewhere over the rainbow."