Binds That Tie by Kate Moretti

Can you tell us a little about your latest book?
BINDS THAT TIE is the story of a troubled marriage that is further tested when they accidentally murder a man and instead of calling the police, they hide the body. This story is about what that secret does to themselves and their relationship.

What inspired you to write it?
Years ago, I read the book A Simple Plan by Scott Smith and I loved this book. I loved the idea of watching two mostly decent, law abiding, tax paying citizens devolve into madness, paying for a decisions they made in the heat of the moment and then clinging to that choice, building all their future choices on that quicksand foundation. I loved what it did to them as individuals and as a couple. I loved how in the end it was all for nothing. I knew I would write a book one day with these themes.

If it was made into a movie, who would you like to play the main characters?
I have a Pinterest board for this! (http://www.pinterest.com/mac6178/binds-that-tie/). I've only firmly casted the supporting role. Maggie and Chris remain elusive to me. I always picture Maggie very Gwyneth Paltrow-ish. Chilly. Beautiful. Maybe misunderstood.

What is it about this genre that appeals to you so much?
I like the page-turnability of thrillers, but I like the internal conflict of women's fiction. I blend them. I think it works.

What made you want to become an author?
I wrote a novel when I was home on maternity leave. I was restless and frustrated and my baby slept all day long. I was lucky, but I was jittery. A friend confessed she wrote a book and it was something I've always wanted to do. I read a ton, and I used to write a lot of short stories in high school. I wrote the first draft of THOUGHT I KNEW YOU in three months, and it was semi-terrible. Two years and double digits drafts later.

How do you come up with character names?
It's so hard! And it's getting harder every time. I actually use the social security website for the year my character was born. And sometimes for minor characters, I have contests on my facebook page and let fans pick a name. That's so much fun. I also have used a random name generator. I don't know how people with, like, twenty books do this.

Name one of your all-time favourite books?
I don't have one. I have about thirty. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Memoirs of a Geisha, Gone Girl, Rebecca, Where I'm Calling From, I love the high-octane thriller writers: Greg Iles, Harlan Coben, Lee Child.

Who, or what, inspires you?
It depends on what I'm struggling with that day. I turn to certain writers for certain skills. Anne Tyler writes fascinating characterization. Dennis Lehane can plot a novel like no one else. Greg Iles is a master at pacing. Gillian Flynn uses language and words in a way that wows me every time I pick up her books.

Where is your favourite place to write?
Wherever I am. My kitchen island, my bedroom, my car. My mind is always writing. I have probably hours of my own recorded voice because I dictate my novels on my commute. I have two little kids and a day job. I don't have an ideal writing space.

What is your favourite movie that was based on a book?
Probably A Simple Plan, by Scott Smith.

Tell us a random fact about yourself.
I have no idea how to cook rice. Even the minute kind. I screw it up, every time, without fail.

Who would play you in the movie about your life?
Someone awkward, accidentally funny, scatterbrained, not stick thin. I always liked Nia Vardalos. I felt a kinship with her.

Tell us an interesting fact about where you live.
I live in Bethlehem, PA, but I went to high school in Easton, PA, home of the boxer Larry Holmes. Bethlehem is home of Duane "The Rock" Johnson.

What are your (writing) plans for the future?
To keep writing stories and constantly seek improvement.

Tell us one thing that's on your bucket list.
Write a novel. Oh, wait... Hmmmmm, travel. I don't want to jump out of an airplane. Really, I just want to write for a living.

Favourite myth / fairytale?
I've always loved the Frog Prince. When I was a kid, I had a very strange version where the frog slept in bed with the princess instead of kissing him. As an adult, that is, admittedly weird. I don't know why I loved that book. It was at my grandmother's, but I remember reading all the Grimm fairytales over and over again. I was so excited when Disney made a movie out of it. It's one of my favorite Disney movies now -- The Princess and the Frog.

Who or what did you want to be when you were a kid?
A teacher. And an astronaut. Then later, a social worker. And a writer. So of course, I majored in chemistry.

Kate Moretti lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, two kids, and a dog. She's worked in the pharmaceutical industry for ten years as a scientist, and has been an avid fiction reader her entire life.
She enjoys traveling and cooking, although with two kids, a day job, and writing, she doesn't get to do those things as much as she'd like.
Her lifelong dream is to buy an old house with a secret passageway.

Binds That Tie on Amazon
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