Amy Young is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about The Water Tower, the first novel in the Lakeview Mystery series.

Welcome, Amy. Let’s get started, shall we?

Tell us about your novel. Is it part of a series? If so, please tell us about the series too.

My novel, The Water Tower, is a darker cozy mystery that takes place in the fictional town of Lakeview on the shores of Lake Erie in Ohio. Josie Ashbury, a successful actress in Los Angeles, grew up there, and she returns after a public breakdown. She starts teaching at her old high school, but when one of her students dies under suspicious circumstances and the police close the case without answers, she becomes determined to find out the truth.

The Water Tower is book one of a three-book series, and I’m still mapping out the next two books. But I do know that both will center around Josie, and at least one of the next two books will take place in Lakeview. I’m toying with the idea of writing one of the books with Josie working on set again, either in LA or on location for a movie.

Where did the idea for the mystery that is central to the story come from?

Honestly, I don’t remember! I wrote the first chapter first, which I know sounds odd, but sometimes you write a story and then have to figure out the beginning. In this case, I knew I wanted the death that kicks off the mystery to be the girl falling, but it started with her falling off the roof of the high school. Then I started thinking about these guys I knew when I was a teenager who used to climb construction scaffolding, and the water tower idea evolved from there.

Is there a theme or subject that underlies the story? If so, what prompted you to write about it?

There are several themes that appear in the story, friendship being a big one. The friendships that Josie has with her girlfriends are important in her life, and in a way they are mirrored by Amber’s friend group. Of course, life and death comes into play, since the story begins with death. And I think betrayal works its way in there as well. I’m not sure what prompted me to write about those themes, but I do know that I’m particularly drawn to mysteries and thrillers that revolve around friendships.

How do you create your characters? Do you have favourite ones? If so, why are you partial to them?

My character inspiration comes from all over – some characters are inspired by people I know, some are based on people I’ve seen and molded from there, and most are mixes of several different people. Once I start writing and get dialogue going between characters, their inner lives start to take shape. I’ll usually draw up a character sheet for each individual to make sure I’m fleshing them out as much as I can. As far as being partial to any one character, it’s always fun to write villains! Villains allow for behavior and attitudes that most of us wouldn’t act on in real life – but in fiction, they’re fun to write.

How do you bring to life the place you are writing about?

To bring places to life, I begin with a real place and picture it as clearly as I can. My acting training helps, because setting up a scene in your mind before you perform is one of the techniques for crafting a powerful performance. I also usually play music to help set the mood. For The Water Tower, I listened to a lot of Gustavo Santaolalla. His music is haunting and strange and was the perfect backdrop for setting the mood of Lakeview in the autumn.

What research do you do to provide background information to help you write the novel?

I usually do my research as I go along. For The Water Tower, I did research into the fentanyl epidemic, particularly in the Midwest. Then midway through the book, I began looking into social clubs across the United States and how they run. I also researched water towers until I found the perfect sketch in my mind of what the tower should look like. But I don’t have a set process for researching before I begin writing – if there’s something I need to dig into, I’ll stop writing and spend some hours researching the topic before diving back in.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell readers about the book?

I hope you enjoy it! And book two should be out next year 😀

Thanks for answering my questions, Amy, and good luck with The Water Tower, the first book in Lakeview Mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Amy and her writing by visiting her website and her Facebook, Goodreads, Tiktok and Instagram pages. You can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon  Barnes & Noble   Apple    Books-A-Million     Kobo    IndieBound 

About Amy Young: Amy is an author, comedian, and actor based in Cleveland. After spending a decade in Los Angeles working in the entertainment industry and writing her debut novel, The Water Tower, she returned to Ohio to be closer to family. Amy is working on her second book, a thriller, and in her free time she enjoys going to the theatre, bingeing reality TV, and spending time with her husband and many, many cats. She has a B.A. in English from Kenyon College.