Interview: Nike Chillemi

Welcome to My Book Bag, Nike. Please tell us a little about yourself. Who is Nike Chillemi, the gal next door?

Many writers have called me a crime fictionista because of my passion for crime fiction. I love to read murder mysteries, detective novels, thrillers, and romantic suspense. I love to talk about them and write reviews of them. I even give them as gifts at Christmas and on birthdays. This Christmas my pastor got HOUSE by Ted Dekker and Frank Peretti and my pastor's wife got THICKER THAN BLOOD by CJ Darlington.

How long have you been writing? Was there an "aha" moment when you knew that's what you wanted to do?

I did the usual teen thing many writers do, writing bad poetry filled with angst. And sometimes I would even trap my friends or parents and make them listen while I read stanza after awful stanza. I've always been comfortable expressing myself In writing. However, about five years ago I started to feel an inner prompting to write fiction…novels to be exact. I began to follow that inner niggling and got a jolt. Crafting a story wasn't anywhere near the same as writing a college term paper. So, then I set about learning the craft of writing fiction and here I am.

Congratulations on your new release, Burning Hearts. I know you're excited! Is this a debut novel, and what inspired you to write this particular story?

I wish I had some exotic tale to tell about the origins of Burning Hearts. Unfortunately, I don't. Actually, I keep a file of possible plotlines. I've got about fifty storylines in that file right now, most of them will never see the light of day. They're that bad. But it's kind of a plotting brain storming file. I add potential stories as they come to me. Then one of them will grab hold of me. The characters start to take over and demand their story be told. That's what happened with Burning Hearts. I could see Erica and Lorne vividly and I had to write their story.

What's your favorite scene from Burning Hearts? Can you share it with us?

There are quite a few scenes I really love. Lorne's rescue of the arson victim is one. Erica conducting her own investigation of the crime is another. But I'd like to present a scene that they're both in. I think a great one would be when Erica is in the hospital after being knocked on the head by a mystery attacker, perhaps the arsonist/murder.



Lorne held his breath. Pain shot through his stomach. Couldn't have hurt more if he'd been kicked in the gut. He gripped the railing at the sides of Erica's bed.Her lips moved, but no sound escaped them. Anger flashed across her eyes, and she sank back into the pillows. In a matter of minutes, she'd fallen into fitful sleep.Katrina shot Argus a look, and the Scot left the small examining room.Lorne stayed a moment longer then walked out, his head hanging. Erica had called for Alfred Snoddy.The hackneyed saying was true. He didn't know how much he cared until he'd all but lost her. Erica spoke of nothing but her old beau. The boy she should've gone to the prom with. The one with great prospects.The antiseptic smell of the place choked him. He was beginning to hate hospitals. A hand slapped him on the shoulder. "Laddie, buck up. Erica will be fine. She'll pull out of this conundrum."Katrina, immaculate in her nurse's uniform, closed the door to Erica's room. "She's confused is all. Disoriented from the concussion.""I know." Lorne ran the palm of his hand over his head. "I only want her to be a hundred percent well." He could handle Erica forgetting who he was. It's what he wanted anyway, wasn't it?Erica's mother burst through the emergency room's outer door with Erica's father in tow. Her handbag, crooked at her elbow, jerked back and forth, as she rushed across the room. "Milachku. Oyi, my milachku.""Mr. and Mrs. B." Katrina stepped forward. "Erica has a concussion, but all her vital signs are strong."Mrs. B took Katrina's arm and nodded her head. A long gray strand loosened from her bun. "So, she will be fine?""I'll page Dr. McCloud and have him speak to you. He can give you a much better picture of her condition." Katrina patted the older woman's hand. Mr. B wrapped his big arms around his wife and pulled her to him. He tilted his head toward Lorne. "Do you know anything more?""Sir, she's a bit fuzzy now." Lorne bit his lip then cleared his throat. This bear of a guy was the most important man in Erica's life. The man who was there when she was born. "I don't think disoriented is so unusual for a serious concussion.""Serious?" Mrs. B grasped the collar of her dress and her fingers worried the material. "Oh, my Lord, help us."Lorne stepped toward the terrified woman. "I didn't mean to alarm you. What I meant is she's not making any sense right now. But that's to be expected after being clunked on the head.""Aye, but the thing is she might have amnesia. She's talking about Alfred Snoddy." Argus placed a hand on the big man's shoulder.Mr. B's face turned dark. His eyes went flat. "Did he do this to her?"

The rest of the story...