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Writing is like a good barbecue sauce, if it ain't bold, it ain't worth doing.

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You are here: Home / Author Interviews / Behind the story of No Filter by Heather Day Gilbert

Behind the story of No Filter by Heather Day Gilbert

May 26, 2020 By Terry 6 Comments

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Heather Day Gilbert is an award winning author who writes contemporary mysteries and Viking historicals. Her novels feature small towns, family relationships, and women who aren’t afraid to protect those they love. No Filter is the first in her Barks & Beans Cafe Mystery series.

A new type of cafe

“It was important to me to set No Filter in small-town West Virginia,” Heather said. “It’s actually set in Lewisburg, a well-known town not far from me. West Virginia gets some bad press (ever heard those hillbilly jokes?), so it’s important to me to portray my home state as it truly is. Yes, the drug epidemic is mentioned because it’s literally everywhere in my state, but I tend to focus on the strong family and community bonds you’ll find here, not to mention the beautiful mountainous landscape and unique tourism opportunities, like the Greenbrier Resort.”

Heather loved the idea of a cafe where customers could pet shelter dogs, hopefully leading to pet adoptions. She said, “Lewisburg seemed the ideal quaint town for such a cafe. My husband and I have visited it many times, and we always enjoy researching the locale. I already have quite a few West Virginia readers who enjoy my Christian mystery series (A Murder in the Mountains) that’s set here, and many of them have contacted me to tell me they’ve been to Lewisburg and they’re looking forward to the Barks & Beans Cafe cozy series, too.”

Keeping it clean and unpredictable

Heather said that because she grew up reading Agatha Christie books, she believes it’s important for her to write mysteries with unpredictable twists. She said, “Sometimes, they’re even unpredictable to me! I tend to get reviews saying that readers never saw the killer coming, and those reviews make me feel I’m doing something right. Books that surprise me in some way while portraying realistic family relationships always stick with me, so that’s what I strive to write. I also write clean mysteries, so there’s no swearing or graphic scenes because I want books my kids and teen nieces can read.”

HeatherdaygilbertwoodsThe big dog problem

Heather decided to feature a Great Dane in this series, and that was a challenge. “I definitely had to do my research as far as Great Danes. I’ve talked to Great Dane owners, and I even re-watched The Ugly Dachshund to make sure I was capturing this dog the right way. I’ve had a large dog—she was a 115-pound Shiloh Shepherd—but Great Danes are something else entirely.”

You did what?

Some writers like to do their research online, or talking to people, or other sane things. Heather prefers her research to be more…personal. “I’ve had my daughter close me in the trunk of a car to check how dark it was and if I could see anything. I’ve also had my kids duct tape my hands in front of me to see if I could break the tape (I did, using a method I watched on YouTube). Most enjoyable would be going shooting with my husband for research, as well as staying overnight at the Greenbrier Resort for an anniversary so I could write about it properly.”

Learn more about Heather at heatherdaygilbert.com

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Filed Under: Author Interviews Tagged With: Great Escapes Book Tours, interview

About Terry

I started out as a skip tracer. Just in case you don’t know, that’s the guy who finds the people who don’t want to be found. It was the little things—getting paid to lie—that made skip tracing the fun part of the job.

Those years of chasing deadbeats taught me many valuable life lessons, such as liars come from all walks of life, and always keep your car in the garage.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Wendy says

    May 29, 2020 at 12:40 PM

    That’s some really personal research. Thank you for the giveaway chance.

    Reply
  2. Crystal says

    May 26, 2020 at 11:22 AM

    First let me say, I just love book cover. It’s perfect. It makes me want to read it. It looks and sounds interesting, mysterious and intriguing. My type of book. I love books like this.
    I hope I win because I want to read and review the paperback/print format of this book.
    Interesting that you make your research that personal instead of online.
    Interview was great.
    Look forward to your books.

    Reply
  3. Heather Day Gilbert says

    May 26, 2020 at 9:38 AM

    Thank you for featuring this interview! I really enjoyed your questions.

    Reply
    • Terry says

      May 26, 2020 at 10:21 AM

      You’re welcome, Heather! Good luck with the book.

      Reply
  4. Taylor R Williams says

    May 26, 2020 at 9:28 AM

    Thanks for the great blog and the giveaways.

    Reply
  5. Peggy Clayton says

    May 26, 2020 at 9:14 AM

    I am so excited to read these books and review as I loved pet sitting and lived on a farm when I was growing up my abusive foster parents and kids weren’t there for us. So I loved the pets that they had if they didn’t have them I have no idea how I would of made it. My granddaughter in Ca pet sits all the time and she just loves it. Thank you for giving out print copies as i am battling RSd and it has taken many things including my fingers so ebooks for me are out so are audio can’t concentrate.

    Reply

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