by Earl Staggs
Alan Cupp loves to create and entertain, whether it’s with a
captivating mystery novel or a funny promotional video for his church, he’s
always anticipating his next creative endeavor. In addition to writing fiction,
Alan enjoys acting, music, travel, and playing sports. His life’s motto is,
“It’s better to wear out than rust out.” Alan places a high value on time spent
with his beautiful wife and their two sons. He lives his life according to his 4F philosophy: Faith, Family, Friends, and
Fun.
WRITING MALICIOUS MASQUERADE
by
Alan Cupp
I began writing Malicious
Masquerade the same way I begin most stories, with a “what if” scenario
that pops in my head. I take a particular circumstance and explore its
potential to become a great story, asking myself if I’m going to be able to
take it from start to finish. Once I’ve determined that I have something to
pursue, that’s when I start developing my characters. Usually, by the time I
actually begin typing something out I have an idea of how it all begins and
ends. Then it becomes a matter of connecting the two points. That’s the fun
part for me; creating characters, designing their personalities and deciding
the best way to have them interact.
It’s kind of like building a house, going through the
process of making selections regarding materials and design, fitting the pieces
together to build something that’s functional, comfortable and fits into the
overall feel of the home. There may be aspects of other homes that I really
admire and look awesome in other homes, but they don’t quite fit into what I’m
building.
One of the more difficult things about writing is going back
and evaluating the story and realizing that the direction I took three or four
chapters ago has lead me off track from where I originally wanted to go. That
forces me into making a hard decision. Do I delete these chapters that I so
diligently labored over or should I consider changing the way the story ends?
It comes down to which way makes for a better story?
Malicious Masquerade
took me about a year and a half to complete, give or take a month. I really
don’t keep track too closely. And that doesn’t count the edits I made after
signing with Henery Press. Their guidance and input greatly improved the
quality of the story.
Originally, I had a different title for Malicious Masquerade. However, between the time I completed the
story and when I signed with my publisher, another author came out with a book
with the same title. So I elected to change it to avoid potential confusion.
It’s very gratifying to see something that I worked on so
long, come to life and be well received. One of the best things I can hear from
a reader is that they lost sleep because they couldn’t put my book down the
night before. I love robbing my readers of their sleep!
Chicago PI Carter Mays is thrust into a perilous masquerade
when local rich girl Cindy
Bedford hires him. Turns out her fiancé failed to show up on their wedding day,
the same day millions of dollars are stolen from her father’s company. While
Carter takes the case, Cindy’s father tries to find him his own way. With nasty
secrets, hidden finances, and a trail of revenge, it’s soon apparent no one is
who they say they are.
Carter searches for the truth, but the situation grows more
volatile as panic collides with vulnerability. Broken relationships and blurred
loyalties turn deadly, fueled by past offenses and present vendettas in a quest
to reveal the truth behind the masks before no one, including Carter, gets out
alive.
$15.95
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