A woman is disappearing into the mind of a killer. In Dawn Hosmer’s debut novel, readers get a nostalgic feel of the movie Identity but through the eyes of the woman at the root of it all.
Today we’re stepping into the mind of psychological suspense author Dawn Hosmer as we talk about her upcoming novel Bits & Pieces.
Your debut novel is hitting shelves soon. Will you tell us about it?
My debut novel, Bits & Pieces will be released November 2018. Here is the official back cover copy for it.
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A chance encounter with a stranger traps Tessa within the mind of a madman.
Tessa was born with a gift. Through a simple touch she picks up pieces of others. A “flash” of color devours her—the only indication that she’s gained something new from another person. Red equals pain; purple, a talent; yellow, a premonition; orange, a painful memory; and blue, a pleasant one. Each flash blurs the lines between her inherent traits and those she’s acquired from others. Whenever she gains bits of something new, she loses more pieces of herself. |
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While assisting in search efforts for a local missing college student, Tessa is paralyzed by a flash that rips through her like a lightning bolt, slicing apart her soul. A blinding light takes away her vision. A buzzing louder than any noise she’s ever heard overwhelms her, penetrates her mind. As the bolt works its way through her body, images and feelings from someone else take over. Women’s dead eyes stare at her as her hands encircle their throats. Their screams consume her mind. Memories of the brutal murders of five women invade her.
Will she be able to find the killer and help save the next victim? Can she do so without completely losing herself? |
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What sparked the idea for Bits & Pieces?
Actually, a conversation with my husband. I was trying to decide what to write next while I was querying my first completed novel. He said he thought a cool premise would be a woman who could pick up pieces of others through touch and he also suggested the flashes of color. Even though I hadn’t written a Psychological Suspense before, I thought the premise was great so I decided to go for it.
As all of my novels are, it was also inspired by an element of truth. At the time, my oldest son was a freshman in college and a female student had gone missing and was later found dead. As a result of her disappearance and murder, many other murdered/missing women cases in the area started receiving media coverage. Eventually, several of the cases in real life were linked to the same perpetrator which inspired me to write about the hunt for a killer aspect in the novel.
Are there any literary pilgrimages you took to draw inspiration for this story? Or any which impacted this story?
I naturally am drawn to reading Psychological Thrillers/Suspense so my guess is subconsciously I drew from many of the books I’ve read over the years. I tend to read outside the genre I’m writing in so as not to mimic someone else’s style. So, while writing Bits & Pieces, I took a break from Psychological Thrillers and read more literary or commercial fiction.
What is the strangest activity you’ve done to help you understand and connect with an element of your character’s lives?
I did internet searches on auras and their meanings and how to conduct missing person searches. I also watched a lot of true crime TV during this time (okay, I’ll admit it – I watch true crime TV most of the time) to help draw inspiration for the antagonist in the novel.
Did you hide any secrets in your book intended for close friends and family to find?
I don’t know about secrets but I definitely put in a couple of things that people will recognize like names or sandwich concoctions.
Are there any deleted scenes or short stories from Tessa’s world where readers might get a taste of what’s to come?
Here is part of a deleted scene that was a bit of an info-dump so I cut it out.
Normal has never been one of the labels assigned to me over the years by anyone that knows me beyond skin deep. There have been lots of other words: crazy, freak, special, touched, possessed, cuckoo, psychotic. Normal has never made it to the list though and I doubt it ever will despite my efforts. The list of diagnoses I’ve gotten in my parent’s attempts at understanding and fixing me is about as long as the list of labels that have been assigned. Let’s see, there’s multiple personality disorder (no medication for this one just intense therapy), schizophrenic (heavy medication for this one but to no avail), depression (who wouldn’t be depressed living my life – this was a no brainer and the medication helped a bit but not the way “they” wanted it to), anxiety (amen to that one and lots of it), borderline personality disorder (the presumption that I just wanted attention – umm, no, attention is the LAST thing I want). I’m sure there’s more but none that come to mind right now.
I’m sure at some point in my life, my parents believed I was normal and maybe I was. Up until the age of three when I started describing things for them that they couldn’t explain away as an active imagination or something I picked up from the television or my older brothers. Of course I don’t remember any of those early days, the memories from then absorbed so deeply they became a part of me. I only know what someone has bothered to tell me…usually my mother in some type of professional’s office as she sits crying, tearing apart a tissue and expressing her hopelessness at not knowing what to do about me, how to fix me. In my family, nothing was discussed without someone neutral to mediate, make sense of, diagnose, counsel or flat out intervene if needed. My brothers said that it wasn’t always like this, not until I came along and started acting like a lunatic (oh, there’s another label for the list). That’s when the whole family had to adjust to a new “normal” where I always lingered right outside the edge.
I am Tessa. I’m thirty one years old and I am not normal. I’m probably none of the things I’ve been diagnosed and labeled, yet all of them at the same time. I’m still trying to figure it all out. It’s hard for me to tell where you begin and I end. We are intermingled, you and I. Once we’ve connected, I am redefined. I become parts of you. I am me (whoever that is) with bits and pieces of you woven into my soul.
Can readers expect a sequel?
I started writing a sequel shortly after finishing Bits & Pieces but set it aside. After re-writes, edits and reading the same words for what felt like the 8 millionth time, I needed a break from the story line. My husband really wants me to write a sequel so perhaps there will be one someday.
Order Bits & Pieces
Digital/Kindle – Preorder, delivered by 30 November 2018
Paperback
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Dawn Hosmer is a lifelong resident of Ohio. She and her husband have been married for 18 years and they have 4 children, although 3 of them are now adults. She has spent her career in social work and has a passion for helping others. She was diagnosed with Crohns disease 15 years ago which has been both a blessing and a curse. Her illness has prevented her from continuing to work (the curse) which allows her to pursue her passion for writing with many less time-restrictions and focus her energy on being a wife and mother (the blessing). |
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Dawn’s writing is often sparked by a true story which creates a cast of fictional characters/situations in her mind. In addition, Dawn sprinkles pieces of people’s true -life stories they’ve shared with her throughout the years into her fiction as a way to honor many of the tragedies and joys that people live through.
In addition to God, her family and writing, Dawn loves coffee, traveling, reading, HGTV and naps. Dawn believes that a story lives in all of us and that it’s important to share ours with others, never knowing who will benefit from what each of us has to say. Sharing our stories not only helps others, it changes us as well. |
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