Spotlight Profile
Fall 2002
Denise Fagerberg Tiller began her career counting dead people for a living and now spends her time plotting murders. A graduate of the University of Nebraska, Denise holds a black belt in Mathematics as a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and co-authored the actuarial best seller, Life, Health, and Annuity Reinsurance with her husband, John. Denise grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska. She launched her actuarial career in Chicago and worked in Detroit, Los Angeles, and Newport Beach California. She has also lived in Texas and New York and currently resides in Kansas.
She chaired the Society of Actuary's Professional Development Committee and served as Secretary of the Society's Reinsurance Section Council. She was on the faculty of the 1988 Society Seminars on Financial Reinsurance and participated in panels and workshops at Society meetings. She served as President of the Los Angeles Actuarial Club and on the board of the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce.
Calculated Risk, her first novel, won the Greater Dallas Writer's Association Most Publishable Novel Award, the Millard Lampell Award, the Betty Heinrich's Award, and the CNW/FFWA Florida State Novel Chapter and Best in Fiction Division. Timberwolf Press published Calculated Risk in 2000 and the audio version was a finalist for the 2001 Violet Crown Audio Book award given by the Texas Writers League.
Welcome, Denise Tiller, to the Spotlight.
IC
What led to your plotting mayhem on paper?
Denise
My fascination with murder stems from the age of two when I
discovered heads in my grandmother's attic. Although I later
realized my grandmother was a beautician and not a serial killer,
my interest in the bizarre continued. When John's job took him to
Dallas, I re-engineered myself into a novelist and took fiction
writing classes through the University of Texas at Dallas and
Collin County Community College. I also took extension courses
through NYU and the New School in 1999.
IC
Liz, your protagonist in Calculated Risk, is an actuary,
as are you. How much of Liz reflects you?
Denise
We also share the same mathematical/logic brain and voice. Mathematicians just think differently than other people. It's almost like being a psychic. We can see the answers to problems without working them. While we think linearly, we're lazy, we want to do things as quickly as possible and we hate showing our work. We don't just skip steps in solving a problem, we leap over them to the answer. It's a great skill for timed tests, but it's a handicap for solving crimes where you need all the boring bits of evidence to take to court.
We do have different backgrounds because Liz had to be more of a risk taker. Normal people don't solve murders. I realized that Liz grew up without a mother. Mothers exist to protect their children so that they survive childhood. They say "no" to things that involve injury, especially to daughters. Liz's dad let her jump out of trees, fight, and play ice hockey with the boys.
As for voice, when you read it, you hear me. The big difference is that Liz is quicker and will actually say things aloud. I usually think of what I should have said five minutes later.
IC
Lazy? I think "efficient" is more accurate. How do you balance
your job, children's activities, the many other commitments and
still find time to write?
Denise
I gave up "real" actuarial work about fourteen years ago and
currently serve as CEO of an international consulting firm with
branches in Stilwell, London, and Honolulu, specializing in
caring for the Tiller family: a husband, three daughters (16, 12, 10),
two stepdaughters (27 and 23), two sons-in-law, two dogs, three cats,
and a ferret. We expect to add grandchildren in the next year or two,
and a puppy.
If that's not enough, I'm past president of the Guppies, president of the Kansas City Sisters in Crime Chapter, and an active member of the KC Writers group. I'm also chairman of our church's education committee and president of the UMW. Of course, I volunteer at the schools (I've got kids in high school, middle school, and elementary school).
If the DMV ever finds out how many miles I put on my car each year (20,000), they'll make me get a chauffeur's license. The girls take guitar, cello, and violin, plus voice lessons and they each participate in at least one sport: volleyball, track, fencing, and swimming. Plus they all have braces and allergy shots. Thank goodness the oldest is 16 and drives herself because the after school driving drives me crazy.
Okay, I'm over-committed and I'm scaling back next year. Now that school is back in session, my schedule is to get the hubby and the oldest girls off by seven o'clock, do half an hour of e-mail, then get the youngest on the bus to the elementary school. The next hour is for exercise and then it's writing time. I coordinate shopping trips with lessons and practices.
Life was simpler when the girls were young and not in organized sports and music. I wrote in twenty-four minute snatches while they watched Barney and Lamb Chop and then at night when they went to bed. Fortunately, I'm blessed to have someone who cleans once a week, or that wouldn't get done. And I have an AlphaSmart to take with me to all the lessons and appointments. Besides that, I balance the checkbook about three times a year.
IC
Calculated Risk is on audio CD. Many writers with
several published novels do not have their novels in recorded form.
How did you accomplish such a feat?
Denise
I went with Timberwolf because they planned to do the audio book
from the beginning and I liked the concept of the audio dramatization
with different actors playing the characters rather than one person
reading the entire book.
IC
Your tag line lists Writing Exciting, an Audio Book.
Please tell us about it.
Denise
Writing Exciting is series of audiobooks about
"How to break into publishing" developed by my publisher,
Timberwolf Press. I participated in "Writing Exciting #1,"
which covers a number of topics including critique groups,
character development, and finding a publisher and/or agent.
The first two books in the series were Writers Digest Book Club
Alternate Selections in the spring.
IC
A lot of discussion among mystery writers concerns advantages
and disadvantages of small presses vs. large publishing houses.
Please share your experiences and insights.
Denise
Getting published is a fantastic experience. I learned so much
about writing and promoting in the process. I've grown a great
deal and I got paid to do it! A small press is a great starting
point for a career. It's not as intimidating as New York, but I
want New York now. I hope to take what I've learned and move
into the big leagues.
IC
Do your characters talk to you?
Denise
At the risk of sounding schizophrenic, I have conversations
with my characters. Writing gives me the chance to put my
imaginary friends to work. Before anyone sends me a straitjacket,
I know my characters aren't real, but to make them real to the
reader, I have to know as much about them as possible. If I get
"blocked" it's usually because I don't fully understand a
particular character's background and motivation. I'll spend
some quality time with the character interviewing him or her.
I like to call it "channeling," but "role playing" probably
works. One reason I think my dialogue works so well is that I
talk through each scene several times before I put words on paper.
IC
One of the reasons your work sparkles is your interesting,
well-defined characters. Please share some of your thoughts
about character development.
Denise
Readers remember good characters long after they've forgotten
the plot of a book. I think you need to endow your character
with four qualities:
- Humanity
- Humility
- Humor
- Heart
Donald Maass talks about this in his book and I'm sort of doing this from memory. A good protagonist needs some part of him/her that the reader can connect with. Maass said it was important to make certain the character is aware of his flaws and shows some desire to change or at least knows he should change someday.
If he's a real loner, with no friends, then you need to give him some sympathetic trait like feeding the stray cat in the neighborhood or checking on the elderly woman next door. Or else give him a friend, someone who understands him. And likes him.
If he's really full of himself, he's likely to turn off readers.
If he's totally depressed, neurotic, etc., he's going to drag readers down and they'll abandon him.
If he's too weak and can't help himself, the reader will never believe he can solve the crime.
He needs some hope, some spark of life, so that the reader knows he can change.
A person totally devoid of humor, even sardonic humor, is just too bleak.
He has to want to solve the crime. He needs some passion for it, some drive. If he stops caring, the reader stops caring, and that's when they put the book down.
I want a character who sparkles without resorting to slapstick and who changes during the course of the story. I set out to write about a normal person but I discovered a couple of things.
Second, solving a murder takes an extraordinary personality. Besides needing a compelling, personal reason to get involved, I think they need more drive than most people have.
My protagonist, Liz, started out with a normal family background; it was only after the first book (the one that didn't get published) I realized that she didn't have a mother. She would take risks that normal women wouldn't do because they grew up with mothers who said, "No." While I hated to do the "Disney-one parent" thing, it gave her more complexity. Complexity is interesting.
IC
Would you suggest a good source to help write characters?
Denise
A good source for developing entertaining and complex
characters is Dwight SwainÕs, "Creating Story People."
I've also found screenplay books to be invaluable.
Characters need a background and you need to know everything about them you can. If you're into lists, I know there are several on-line resources. Characters are like icebergs and only 10% (at most) of the background hits the printed page.
The most valuable thing I've picked up is to write a character sketch as if I were writing directions for the actor portraying the character. I describe characters in ways that are actable. I've got one sexy guy who is "so spoiled, he never learned to button his shirts." And another who "wears his Y-chromosomes like epaulettes."
It's vital to know the emotional turning points of their lives. My current killer saw his father kill his mother because his father thought the mother was a tramp. My protagonist was abandoned by her mother when she was two, and her father never said anything about it. When she was in kindergarten, she asked him about her, and he got so angry, he told her never to ask that again and he walked out of the house to cool off. She thought he'd abandoned her, too, so she crawled under her bed and made a pact with God. She promised to be the perfect daughter if her Dad came back. Of course, he was back about two minutes later, but she kept the promise. She still gives 200% whenever she does something, but she had another turning point in high school, when she realized she needed get physical distance from Dad if she wanted to live her own life. That's why she lives 2000 miles home.
Likeable is a big issue. The first time I wrote about Liz, people either liked her or hated her. There is a fine line for a woman between being strong and independent and being a bitch. It really helps to have a character people like.
IC
What did you do to make Liz likeable?
Denise
I finally figured out I was starting her in the wrong spot. The
story began when a cop got her out of bed in the middle of the
night to discuss a murder. She's upset when she finds out she's
a suspect, and she was too "screechy" for some people. No one
cared that she was a murder suspect because no one knew her.
The next book began with her rescuing a rape victim--instant likeability. In my new book, I give her some pages to sparkle before her world turns upside down.
All you need to do is think about what draws you to your character. Why do you like the character? Why are you compelled to write about him or her?
Some hints--likeable people have friends. They have pets. They help other people. They care about things. They don't whine all the time. They're not terribly neurotic.
Vain, selfish, spoiled, bitches are hard to like.
So why in the world is Scarlet O'Hara one of the most famous protagonists in the world?
Because she cares passionately about Tara. She kills to protect Tara, she works in the field to save Tara, she marries Frank Kennedy to save Tara, and she marries Rhett to save Tara. (We all know Ashley is a game. We know she'd be bored with him six months after the wedding.)
I was just rereading Sol Stein's Stein on Writing, and he says your protagonist must want something and want it badly. It needs to be something important enough to hook the reader and make the reader want the protagonist to succeed.
IC
What are you writing now and when will we see it published?
Denise
I'm actually working on the "prequel," or the first book in the
series where Liz and Jack meet and I've discovered there's another
story in between the two books. I hope to have the finished book
to my agent this fall.
I love Liz, but as an amateur sleuth, I'm not certain just how many murders she can justify solving. I'd like to do four or five books with her. My agent wants me to start a new series. I plan to keep the good parts of Liz, but make her more New Age.
IC
Do you outline your novels?
Denise
The first time I wrote a novel, I had the beginning and end and
the two plot points, but it grew like Topsy. I ended up doing four
major rewrites. I discovered that writing a synopsis, as bad as it
was, helped me find the holes in the plot.
This time, I did a short synopsis first and it truly helped develop the basic story line. I definitely have a stronger plot.
I envy people who are so organized that they can do the whole plot on index cards scene by scene before they write a word. I'm usually so eager to get started, I can't do that. I also depend on the evolution of the characters to fill in the gaps. As I write, I get to know my characters better. Sometimes they won't do what I originally planned--usually because what I planned wasn't right for them.
IC
You attend many conventions. What are some of the most valuable
things you get from them?
Denise
I get revitalized at conferences. It recharges my creativity. I always
come home bubbling with ideas. It's also great to see old friends and
make new contacts. It's all about networking. And yes, I do learn
things at the sessions. The most valuable thing I got from a conference,
was my agent.
IC
Is there a question you would like me to ask?
Denise
I'd ask: What's been the biggest thrill of your writing career?
I'd say inspiring my kids and other people. It was so great to hold my first book, but after a while, the thrill fades. The things that last are the things I've done for other people. I'm very proud that my kids enjoy writing and want to be writers when they grow up. And I'm happy that I've helped other people get started and get published.
IC
Thank you, Denise, for your valuable observations and insights.
This interview was conducted by e-mail during the months of July, August
and September 2002 for SinC-IC
by Janet B. Fudala.
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Visit Janet B. Fudala
on the web.
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