We sat down with NY Times Best Selling Author, Susan Wilson. With (11) books in the rear view mirror and a new book in the works, we decided to go outside the box and have some fun. As you know, on Dogthority, we celebrate the splendor of dogs and since Susan is certainly no stranger to the power of dogs, we thought it would be interesting to explore, who she finds easier to decode, people or dogs?
With people, the spark often starts with that certain look, that look that sets the mind off silently saying, “this could be that friendship or love, I have been searching for.” With dogs, is that first encounter the same? Many of us typically start out by looking for a family dog thinking, it is something to amuse and occupy the kids perhaps, and along the way we seem to discover that dog magic. As the days turn into months and years, we realize the dog becomes much more than the family pet. Who, better than Susan Wilson to provide insight on what comes to mind first when she masterfully intertwines the “relationship of people and dogs”?
I found Susan’s remark, about her most recent book “The Dog I Loved,” very insightful. Susan notes, “It was a tough book to write, with fairly dark subject matter. At the heart of it is the healing power of dogs, and in this novel, there are two amazing dogs who intersect with two amazing women. The book’s prime characters, Rosie and Meghan, have to learn to trust and to love after the traumas that they have endured.” Susan closes by saying “The dogs are the key.”
We asked Susan about her perspective on dogs and people. Here is what she had to say, we hope you enjoy….
DOGTHORITY: When you begin the creative process for a new book, do you start with the people or dog character(s) in mind?
SUSAN WILSON: Probably I envision the human characters first, and what sort of situation they might be in that will create the need/desire for a dog in their lives. For instance, I knew that Adam March, of ONE GOOD DOG was going to start off as a fairly awful person, but one who would evolve with the help of, well, a good dog. These are, after all, stories about humans, told within the context of their relationships with dogs.
DOGTHORITY: Who is more complicated to figure out, teenagers, men, woman, or dogs (Lol!)?
SUSAN WILSON: Well, dogs are actually pretty simple to figure out. They have no ulterior motivation, no egos. Teenagers are a challenge to write well because it is so easy to turn them into caricatures of what adults think teens are like, plus it’s hard to make a teenage character sound like a real teenager when their cultural references change almost daily. You simply can’t catch up with whether “dope” is a good thing or a bad thing when it’s suddenly no longer in the adolescent lexicon and you’ve instantly taken the cool out of the character.
DOGTHORITY: Which one of your books presented the biggest challenge for you to draw in how the dog “saved the day”?
SUSAN WILSON: I’m not sure that it’s accurate to say that the dogs are the heroes in these books. Above all, they are guides, provide emotional support, and act as sounding boards. The heroics are in how the humans find their own strength, with the help of the dogs, of course. I haven’t yet written a “Timmy’s in the well” scenario, but having the companionship of Shadow in Rosie’s very traumatized life helped her regain her confidence. That’s what a good dog does.
DOGTHORITY: How many dogs have you had in your life and how did you decide what dog was right for you?
SUSAN WILSON: All told, I’m now on my fourth dog as an adult, but my eighth overall. Some came to us in a random fashion, others I’ve sought out purposely to fulfill a need at that time, for example, our beloved collie, Callie when the kids were little. Last year we chose to get a Cavalier King Charles spaniel to fit the lifestyle of two mature adults. Our previous dog, Bonnie, was a rescue mutt who made us fit into her lifestyle.
DOGTHORITY: When you write your books, how much thought do you give to type of dog. Did you have a a specific dog in mind for each book?
SUSAN WILSON: I do usually go into the story knowing what sort of dog I’m going to feature. With my first ‘dog book’ I went in knowing that the dog couldn’t be some cute little thing. I needed a dog that would spark a little fear, be a little bit unlovable and then, of course, let the reader fall in love with him. For A MAN OF HIS OWN, I was going with the whole war dog story, so a German shepherd was a given. In THE DOG WHO DANCED, I needed a dog that would be incredibly smart, loyal and highly trainable, a Sheltie was an obvious choice.
DOGTHORITY: Tell us what you can about your next book.
SUSAN WILSON: WHAT A DOG KNOWS is about Ruby Heartwood, fortune-teller. seer and psychic, and her sudden and inexplicable ability to communicate with animals. Ruby has spent her whole life not knowing who she really is or why her mother abandoned her. With the help of her canine companion, The Hitchhiker, Ruby finally begins to unravel the mystery.
DOGTHORITY: Please tell us what characteristic in dogs you wish that humans would model most in their everyday life.
SUSAN WILSON: I’m not sure that dogs are models for human behavior, I think that a lot of humans model dog behavior; fear aggression, meaningless barking, territoriality. Truthfully, if humans could just learn to nap more frequently, be satisfied with a car ride or a walk and not think so much, we’d all be happier.
DOGTHORITY: This has been a great conversation. Please tell us about your passions in general and of late.
SUSAN WILSON: Susan Wilson: So many of my ‘passions’ have been put on hold during the past six months that I sometimes wonder if I’ll ever get back to choral singing, or Bonsai club, or live exercise class. I still have my horse, and the social distancing at a barn is pretty easy. My greatest passion is for my grandkids and their parents, my extended family, my friends and nature. And, of course, Cora, our latest dog.
Closing Remarks
Thank you so much for these great, thoughtful questions. If anyone has anything else they’d like to ask, shoot me a message through this website.
About Susan Wilson
Susan is the author of 11 well-received novels including her 2010 novel, ONE GOOD DOG, which enjoyed six weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and THE DOG WHO DANCED received the coveted Maxwell Medal for Fiction from the Dog Writer's Association of America in 2012. Her newest novel, THE DOG I LOVED, was released in November 2019. Her 1996 novel BEAUTY was made into a CBS Sunday Night Movie starring Jamey Sheridan and Janine Turner and can still be seen occasionally on the Lifetime network. Susan's 2013 novel, A MAN OF HIS OWN, has been named as the One Book One Independence 2020 selection by the Independence Public Library in Iowa. Susan is working on her 12th novel, another work featuring the complicated relationship between humans and the dogs they love. She lives on Martha's Vineyard with her husband, a retired school teacher, and their spoiled Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Cora. She has two grown daughters and three grandchildren. Susan is also a horse lover with a Quarter horse
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