TS Millheim

For the last few years, I'd been mulling over a thriller. After I decided to actually start the project, I worked on a concept with Becky Silverberg as the main character and narrator. Then I came up with the basic plot and some themes and began working on the opening scenes at the airport. As I was roughing-in those sections, I had a conversation with my mother about what she was reading. She loves good exciting stories, but at the time she'd been disappointed by some of the books she'd read at that time. A lot of the thrillers she'd been reading around that time had become predictable. She could see the twists and turns of the plot a mile away, which was annoying to her.

That's when I decided to put in the unconventional elements I'd been mulling over. Once I figured how I was going to incorporate those ideas, the book started to flow very nicely. Becky's distinctive voice, the mystery elements and the off-kilter plot really gelled. When that happened, and it happened fairly early in the process, I felt very confident in the kind of story I was trying to tell.

Well, that's a funny thing. I knew I wanted to try my hand at a thriller. I had an idea that it should have both mystery elements and action scenes. At the same time, Becky Silverberg was already roughly sketched out in my mind. Once I started writing "Night Breaks Into Day" I couldn't imagine putting anyone else, male or female, into that story. She's the key to the tale. Becky's combination of strength, snark and vulnerability makes her an interesting lead character.