In the Book Nook with … D. MacNeill Parker

Author D. (Donna) MacNeill Parker has retired from a long career in the Alaska fishing industry in Lakewood, WA. Now she gets to use “all the color of commercial fishing and Alaska to paint an authentic backdrop” where her fictional characters thrive. Donna belongs to the Pacific Northwest Writers Association and the Author’s Guild. When she is not writing, she loves to ski, hike, canoe and garden. But dancing to music by the Rolling Stones is a passion too – “It’s generally my go-to sound while cleaning the house.”

Which Genre do you cover?
D. MacNeill Parker: Crime Mystery.

Which is the latest book you had published, and what is it about?
D. MacNeill Parker: Death in Dutch Harbor is my first book. It is intended as the first in a three-part series. I am writing the second book now. It’s a whodunit where commercial fishing and murder meet in the remote Alaska outpost of Dutch Harbor. When two murders strain the local police force, veterinarian Maureen McMurtry is tapped by the police chief for forensic assistance. The doctor’s got a past she’d rather not discuss, a gun in her closet, and a retired police dog that hasn’t lost her chops. All come in handy as she deciphers the time and cause of death of a body washed ashore with dead sea lions and another corpse found in a crab pot hauled from the sea in the net of a fishing vessel.

At which book events can readers find you?
D. MacNeill Parker: I just returned from Anchorage, Alaska, where I was invited to help host with other Alaska mystery writers, a fundraiser for the Anchorage Public Library. While I was there, I did a book signing at Mosquito Books in the airport. What fun! Unfortunately, I’ve not been able to line up anything locally. But I’d love to because it’s a thrill for me to interact with my readers.

Which book event connecting you with readers is your favorite and why?
D. MacNeill Parker: I have been interviewed by an Alaskan radio station and newspaper which I thoroughly enjoyed. But I love to interact directly with readers, so book readings and signings are my favorite. Because the book uses commercial fishing in Alaska as a backdrop, it’s been embraced by the fishing industry where I’ve been invited to read and sign books at annual meetings or holiday celebrations. I launched the book at the Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle last November and sold one hundred books in a day while exchanging fishing stories with those in the industry. I look forward to doing it again this year. Again, pure fun!

Does your book have any specific messages to your readers and, if so, which are they?
D. MacNeill Parker: I’d say, there are two messages. One is that strong women characters surrounded by intriguing men make for a great story. The other message is subtly woven into the plot and allows the reader to learn a lot about Alaska and the sustainable management of commercial fishing.

Which writers keep inspiring you and why?
D. MacNeill Parker: All kinds of writers inspire me these days. Now that I’m writing myself, I find I pay close attention to detail, sometimes letting the book fall on my chest as I allow myself to absorb a spectacular piece of prose. The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig is such a book. I’m reading it now and often stop to admire the prose. But when I was a teenager, long, long ago, it was John Barth’s Sot Weed Factor and anything by Kurt Vonnegut that set my sights to writing a book one day. Their books taught me that boundless imagination was a wonderful garden in which to hatch a plot.

Do you have any specific writing habits?
D. MacNeill Parker: You know, for most of my life I was a night person. But when I settled into writing, it didn’t take long to discover writing in the morning was best for me. I think that’s the time when you’re creatively connected to your subconscious and your mind is not yet encumbered with the banal practicalities of daily life. I have a wonderful studio in my back yard. Once a shed, it’s now outfitted as my writing sanctuary, including a big window that looks out on Clover Creek where I can look up from my writing and watch the mallard and wood ducks swim in great groups or as a mating couple. Lovely.

What are you currently working on?
D. MacNeill Parker: I’m writing the second book in a three-part mystery series. So, Doc McMurtry will be untangling another murder in the remote fishing port of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Only this time, she’ll get in deeper than she intended.

Which book are you currently reading simply for entertainment?
D. MacNeill Parker: Women Artists by Margaret Barlow. I come from a family of artists and writers on my mother’s side of the family. My mother was an award-winning pastel artist. I inherited her many art books, and this was one of them. I find painting is a lot like writing. All the layers of paint, each one with more detail, add expression to the portrait or landscape just as layers of words build a scene. Both the painter and writer want to sweep you off your feet!

What advice would you give any aspiring author?
D. MacNeill Parker: I think this is my favorite question! On my website (dmparkerauthor.com), I devote a lot of space to this topic as my way of giving back. There are so many folks who harbor a desire to write a book but find it hard to start because it seems an overwhelming task. So, my first bit of advice is, just do it! Take an online or community college course on story structure (check out Story Grid, Stephen King, Kurt Vonnegut and many others on YouTube) and use it as hands-on-learning while you’re crafting your first book or story. Keep it simple, use your imagination, don’t be intimidated by the written word, and have fun! Finally, don’t let writing a complex plot outline and character backstories stop you. Start with a simple plot and then fill it in as you go, making it an adventure.

You can find D. MacNeill Parker’s book, Death in Dutch Harbor, at most online locations such at Amazon.