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TESS COLLINS, A MOUNTAIN MYSTERY WRITER
Coal miner's granddaughter, Tess Collins, found her muse in the mountains of Kentucky. Raised in the southeastern Kentucky town of Middlesboro, she spent her early years listening to mountain tales of haunted hollows, ghosts, moonshiners and unsolved murders. No doubt they inspired her books The Law of Revenge (Ivy '97) and The Law of the Dead (Ivy '99), thrillers set in Appalachia. She has also penned two plays, Tossing Monte and Barbarians.
Collins also writes articles on writing, which inspired this talk. She focuses on character and place. Challenges arise when working with flawed protagonists and sympathetic villains, though these may be some of the most interesting characters you will work with. Let Collins help you expand your character range and take on the challenge. Another intriguing premise comes from her article, "The Caldron of Place." For many genres, place is almost a character in itself.
Collins is a member of Sisters In Crime and Mystery Writers of America. She received a B.A. from the University of Kentucky and a Ph.D. in Theatre Management, Producing and Writing from The Union Institute. She now lives in San Francisco, where she is manager of The Curran Theatre.
Internet links for Tess Collins:
Her web site
1997 BEATRICE interview - by Ron Hogan
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