Hannah Mary McKinnon - Domestic Suspense/Drama About Neighbors with Unfinished Business

Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. After a long and successful career in recruitment, she quit the corporate world in favor of writing. McKinnon's first novel, Time After Time (a lighthearted rom-com) was published in June 2016. Her second, the domestic suspense story The Neighbors, arrived March 2018. As our author of the day, McKinnon tells us all about this book and what inspired it.

Please give us a short introduction to what The Neighbors is about.

The Neighbors is a domestic suspense/drama novel about two families and the tale of what happens when Abby’s ex-boyfriend, Liam, moves in next door to her with his wife and son. Despite the fact they haven’t seen each other in almost two decades, there’s a lot of unfinished business between them, and far too many things they’re hiding. Together, Abby and Liam decide not to tell their respective partners anything about their shared past. Of course, no good can come of this (it is suspense, after all), and when all the secrets and lies emerge, they wreak havoc on everyone involved.

What inspired you to write a domestic suspense about an ex-boyfriend from 20 years back?

Two houses on the court we live on went up for sale within a week of each other. I remember standing by the window with a cup of tea, looking at the “For Sale” signs, wondering who might move in. “What if it’s an ex-boyfriend?” I thought, pulling a face because, frankly, that might be a little awkward. But that “what if” question made me curious. I started sketching Abby and Liam’s characters in my mind, and that got me wondering what secrets they were hiding, what lies they were telling one another, and themselves. That was it – I had to write the book to find out!

Tell us more about Abby. What makes her tick?

Abby is complex, complicated and damaged. Her father walked out on the family when she was a kid. She was in a car accident in her early 20s, in which her beloved brother Tom died. It’s something she’s never forgiven herself for. Her mother won’t let her forget it, either, and that relationship is more than strained. Abby doesn’t believe she deserves happiness because of what she did. It’s exactly why she pushed Liam away after the accident, why she didn’t believe she could stay with him. She has this hard exterior shell because of her past, and never lets anyone close, not even her husband, Nate, who saved her life, or their daughter, Sarah.

Is there an underlying message you wish to relay about basic human nature through your characters?

One thing people have commented on is the way The Neighbors explores how certain behavioral traits can be passed down from one generation to the next, unless there’s a concerted effort to stop it from happening. It wasn’t my intention from the outset, but there’s no denying Abby, her mother and her daughter are very similar to one another, despite them all trying not to be.

When did you decide to become a writer?

I’d always had a vague notion I’d like to write a book one day, but it wasn’t until we moved to Canada in 2010 that it actually happened. I’d had a long and successful career in IT recruitment, and when we came here I started my own business. It failed, and it hurt! After a lot of soul-searching I decided to try something else, something new and exciting, and turned to writing. When inspiration for my first book (rom-com Time After Time) hit, I sat down and wrote the first draft in a matter of weeks. That was it, I was hooked! Now I can’t imagine doing anything else. I adore creating characters and the worlds they live in, and the writing community is a truly wonderful place to be.

Besides writing, what other secret skills do you have?

I can’t read music, play an instrument, sing or draw, but I can speak four languages. English, French, German and Swiss-German. I also love to bake, and have an appreciative audience at home in my husband and our three teenage sons (who eat a LOT!). My favourite desserts always include chocolate (that’s the Swiss side of me). I couldn’t live without chocolate (or books – please don’t make me choose).

Which of your characters has been the most challenging to write for?

Without question, in The Neighbors it was Nate, as it meant writing from a male perspective, which I hadn’t done before. While drafting and editing, I read passages to my husband asking, “Does this sound like a guy?” to ensure authenticity, and had a male beta-reader go through the manuscript, too. I loved writing Nate’s voice, and he ended up being one of my favourite characters. My next book Her Secret Son (out May 28, 2019) is exclusively from a man’s point of view, which stretched me further as an author, and I had so much fun writing the story.

Your first book was a lighthearted rom-com. Why did you move on to domestic suspense?

While I enjoyed writing Time After Time very much, I found myself drawn to the darker side. I wanted to explore messed up families, relationships and individuals by putting characters in difficult situations, and see how they manage them. I find it fascinating how people react differently when facing the same challenges, and it gives us the opportunity to explore why that’s so in a safe, fictional setting.

The Neighbors contains some twists. Did you plan them all out before you started writing or did some of it just "happen" along the way?

Some of them were planned, but a few snuck up on me. I had a different ending in mind, but the closer I got to writing the final pages of the first draft, the darker they became. My characters took over and went off in a different direction to the one I’d intended, and I let them lead. Our subconscious has a funny way of taking over at times, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing when writing a novel.

How do you think you’ve evolved creatively as an author?

Four books in I’ve learned to trust myself, and the process. If I’m stuck on a particular scene I’ll skip ahead, knowing that when I come back to it, I’ll have figured it out. I also take more risks, I think, and I’ve become bolder in my choices. I knew certain things in The Neighbors might be considered controversial, and I’m okay with that because I believe they worked for the story, and the characters I created. I also plot far more than I did when writing my first book because…deadlines! Nothing like a deadline to get your butt in the chair and your fingers on the keyboard.

Many of your characters suffer from ghosts from the past. Why did you create them this way?

Our past has such a huge impact on our present, and our future. That can be a good thing (ensuring history doesn’t repeat itself, for example). However, I’ve found carrying around unfinished business can truly get in the way of happiness, it can stop us from moving on. Experience has taught me it’s best to either confront the demons and sort them out, or cut them loose. All of the characters in The Neighbors could have heeded that advice.

Do you have any interesting writing habits? What is an average writing day like for you?

The more I write the more structured I become. First of all, I work backwards from my given deadline, assigning myself mini-milestones to reach. I tend to work towards a daily word count when writing my first draft, which I churn out as quickly as possible because that’s the most painful stage for me. My first “skeleton draft” is around two thirds of the final word count, and I’d never show it to anyone, it’s that bad. Once the skeleton is done, I go back to the beginning and layer. That’s the fun part when I get to build characters, descriptions and setting. It’s when I transform two-dimensional characters into “real” people, and I get more and more invested in, and excited about, the story. I love the editing stage. It’s the most creative part for me!

What are you working on right now?

A number of things!

Her Secret Son publishes May 28, so I’m busy with the promotion of that upcoming release. Her Secret Son another domestic suspense/drama about a man called Josh, whose partner of 5 years dies in an accident, leaving her 7-year-old son Logan behind. Josh wants to organize legal guardianship for Logan, but when he looks for the birth certificate, he can’t find it – and that’s only the first secret he uncovers, and mystery he has to decide to solve, or ignore. The clues ultimately lead him to facing some impossible decisions. I’m excited to introduce the world to Josh and Logan, who I hold very close to my heart (watch the book trailer here).

I’ve handed in my fourth book to my editor, and it’s slated for publication in 2020. This one is about half-sisters who don’t know the existence of one another. When one of the sisters finds out she has a sibling, she decides to go after her glamorous life because she sees it as rightfully her. Chaos ensues, naturally!

I’m now working on the plot for book 5 – but it’s a little too early to share the details about that one.

Where can our readers discover more of your work or interact with you

On social media. I’m on Facebook www.facebook.com/hannahmarymckinnon, Instagram @HannahMaryMcKinnon, Twitter @HannahMMcKinnon and of course my website www.hannahmarymckinnon.com