A Strong Intent: Author Interview

I'd like to introduce my readers to author Krista Wagner and her first novel, Intent.

Krista, can you give us a brief summary of your book. When a bored fast food worker loses her parents she finds comfort in an old high school crush, but when people start to die and her former nemesis shows up, she starts to question who she can trust.

What elements of mystery and suspense does the book revolve around? The mysterious deaths of people close to Raylee, the unpredictable behavior of Billy, her high school crush, and the suspicious conduct of her former nemesis, Crystal.

What is the character of your heroine? Raylee Johnson is a bored twenty-one year old who feels like her life is going nowhere. She wants something to happen, anything! She puts almost all of her trust in her high school crush who returns to town after four years.

How long did it take to write the book? I wrote the screenplay version first. Since I already had a basic template, the novel took me two weeks to “fill in”. I completed the narrative on a cross-country road trip. 

Why did you write the screenplay version first? I wrote the screenplay for the final class of my MFA degree. We had to write a full length script within one month. I had never done anything like it before, so it was very challenging working with a lot of "white space" and having to focus on dialogue and action rather than narrative and interior monologue. My thesis was based on the script, the novel itself. 

What is the takeaway that you want your readers to have?

To pay careful attention to their instincts when there’s doubt, to place their trust in God first, and to hold fast to endurance.

An exciting excerpt from the book: 

“She paused at the driver's door of her yellow Honda. The wet keys slipped out of her hands and struck the ground just as a splinter of lightning tore apart the sky. Raylee shook as she picked up the keys and fumbled with the door lock. 

            She just caught the sound of a whispery rustling nearby, but the darkness made it practically impossible to see. There was something about the dark that typically left her unsettled. Not being able to see clearly sent disturbing thoughts through her head. She had felt this way as far back as she could remember. As a child, she used to dread dangling her arms or legs over the side of the bed, believing that sharp teeth would clamp down on them. Or sometimes she’d been quite certain that the monster would fly out of the closet and throw itself upon her bed, trapping her.

            Another shot of lightning hit and illuminated some kind of blurred movement about 10 feet away, between the dumpster and a car parked next to it. Raylee froze. Something felt really wrong. A dim light pole stood next to the sidewalk, adjacent to the dumpster. It towered several feet over the parking lot like a foreboding giant. The whispering grew slightly louder and sounded like it came from the blurry dark behind the dumpster.

Raylee had no intention of playing inspector. She’d seen enough scary movies to know how these things turned out. Nevertheless, she found herself mesmerized. She strained to see through the darkness and the sheets of rain to get a glimpse of what she thought might be there. If she could just figure out what it was, she would feel a little better”.
 Link to purchase Intent

Author's Bio

Krista Wagner is a 70's product of Southern California who lives with her Marine Corp veteran husband, three very entertaining children, and an indispensable faith in Christ. She graduated from National University with an MFA in Creative Writing. Her debut novel Intent, a spiritual dramatic thriller, was published in 2014.

Her psychological thriller, Rian Field, The Gold, a middle-grade fantasy, and her YA

realistic issue-driven novel, Indigo, were published in 2016. She has been an English

Instructor since 2008. She enjoys suspenseful films, reading the Bible, and spending

time with her family.

Links to purchase 
The Gold
Indigo
Rian Field