Inside the Novels of Author Charlotte Baker: Creating the Valor Diamond Team
Intro from the editor: With the publication of Valor Diamond: Let the Dust Fall approaching, we sat down with author Charlotte Baker for an inside look into the Valor Diamond series. Keep reading to find out more about Charlotte’s story and character inspiration.
Valor Diamond, as cliched as it sounds, was the book I wanted to read: violent vampires in a paranoid whodunnit that has a plot which slowly works its way closer to the team involved. Valor, the team’s house and base, is where I’d love to live, without all the bloodshed, obviously. The characters came to me first; their names formed the narrative paths and construction of their personalities.
“REVENGE, JUSTICE, STRENGTH, COMPASSION, DEATH, LIFE.” Ultio, Aequitas, Vis, Clementia, Nex and Vita, respectively, had Latin names which reflected their powers.” - Valor Diamond: The Rhyme and Retribution Killer
While their names were influential in who they became, to reduce them to just a name is simplistic. The team are formed from a mixture of traits of people I know or have met who have made a particular impact on me. They always say, ‘write what you know,’ and I can tell you, I’ve met a few vampires in my time.
It’s been ten years since I originally wrote the story down on paper and while there have been many evolutions to Diamond and their story, yet I still find myself thinking, “That’s something Vis would say, write that down.” And they tell me where the story is going. They always have; for example the scene in Valor Diamond The Rhyme and Retribution Killer (TRARK) where Aqua is attacked by Clem was actually planned to be the opposite way around. But Clem’s empathetic vulnerability and general kindness that she exudes almost hid the nature of her vampiric tendencies and it was as if she told me, “Show the readers what I can do. Show them what I’m really capable of when I need to.” And so, I changed it. Equally, the friction that emerges between Vis and Ultio was developed over time. It occurred to me that it was unrealistic that two alpha males would consistently see eye to eye; yes, it was that which occurred to me as unrealistic, she says writing a vampire novel. Haha!
I really hope you enjoy the new book, Valor Diamond: Let the Dust Fall.
About Valor Diamond: Let the Dust Fall
With no time to rest or reflect on the fallout from their last case, the Valor Diamond team are once again on the trail of a brutal killer. In Valor Diamond: The Rhyme and Retribution Killer, the team of vampires traced the rhyming clues left by a demon on the bodies of his victims. But the team failed to stop him from killing Alex, a forensic criminologist, or from escaping after killing the body he'd possessed. Now, as bodies continue to pile up, the team must regroup and try to catch him once again. But that's not easy with the team dynamic shattered. Especially since there's a mole in Diamond. Is it one of their own members, or someone close to them? Plus, what do old rivalries with werewolf packs have to do with the recent string of killings? Can the team figure out who to trust in time to stop someone else close to them from falling victim to the demon? Find out in Valor Diamond: Let the Dust Fall.