Discussion with Rose Senehi

Are all your main characters
women? "Yes. My main characters are
women who are their own heroes. In
fact, all four of my books have the same
premise: A woman can achieve her
dream through strength and
perseverance."
What motivated you to write from the
perspective?
"I experienced coming of age during a
time when a lot of women's issues were
starting to surface. When I entered the
corporate world in the 70s, I was struck
by the struggles women go through trying
to make a place for themselves as they
look for their own meaningful work and
try to get control of where their life is
going.
Shadows in the Grass takes place on
a farm in Central New York. How
familiar are you with this area?
"I owned a 100-acre farm just outside
Cazenovia, NY, for almost thirty years,
and writing this book gave me an
opportunity to express my deep
reverence for the way of life of the
people who live in the uplands of Central
New York. The isolaltion of country life
along with the backbreaking work of
farming and gardening bind these
communities in a uniquely close network
that you rarely find in metropolitan areas."
We see that you spent 20 years in the
mall development industry. How
much of WINDFALL is based on your
experience?
"All the character in my book are
factitious, however, I drew from my
years in the industry. Of course, in order
to make an interesting plot, I had to create
conflict which would keep the reader
turning the pages."
In your years in the industry, you
must have seen a lot of conflict.
"Of course. There's mainly the
environmental issues, whether it's
pollution from automobiles or the
destruction of natural habitat. In the early
years of mall development, there was the
devastation to the central business
districts in towns all across America.
When a mall got built in

the suburbs, the stores downtown had to
either go in or go under. Now we see
newer malls coming into a market and the
older ones abandoned the same way we
did the downtowns in the 70s."
Your third novel, PELICAN WATCH,
has a strong environmental message
woven through the romance and
suspense.
Yes. Natives of South Carolina, as well as
transplants from the North, are more and
more aware of the value of our
environment and the endangered animals
such as the loggerhead turtle. Writing
Pelican Watch gave me a wonderful
opportunity to express my love of the
South and iits unique charm, and tell the
story of the folks who are working to
preserve it.
Tell us about IN THE SHADOWS OF
CHIMNEY ROCK.
Ever since I bought a vacation home in the
mountains of Western North Carolina, I've
become aware of the raging battle
between developers who are ravaging the
mountains and those who are fighting to
save its beauty for the generations to
come. Being a Realtor, I am extremely
sensitive to the two opposing desires: one,
of people wanting to live and enjoy this
wonderful piece of the earth, and those
who are streaming into the mountains to
over-develop for sheer profit. Somewhere
in the middle is a place that will preserve
these mountains, so in the years ahead
we won't have to tell children "how
spectacular these mountains used to be."

Ever since the tumultuous 60s and 70s,
we've been awakened to the importance
of saving the places we love, and more
and more of us are articulating our
concerns in a way that will bring this
about. In my books, I want to applaud
those who champion this cause.

THE BLUE RIDGE SERIES...
The Wind in the Woods is my second book in
the Blue Ridge Series. Woven through this
story is the 100-year-old history of summer
youth camps in the Hendersonville/Brevard
section of Western North Carolina--which has
the highest concentration of summer camps in
the United States. Hundreds of thousands have
had the most unforgettable summers of their
lives there. The 15 camps in this area comprise
over 10,000 acres, and therefore make up a
considerable section of unspoiled, undeveloped
mountain forests. Loosely modeled on The
Green River Preserve in the Green River
Valley. The Wind in the Woods tells the story
of one camp owner's struggle to preserve his
3000-acre youth camp with the help of the
Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy and The
Nature Cosnervancy.

One of the major plot lines traces the
murderous rampage of 61-year-old alleged
serial killer, Gary Michael Hilton, who
confessed to the murder of 24-year-old
Meredith Emerson who went hiking with her
dog in the Northern Georgia mountains on New
Year's Day 2008 and never returned. I used his
confession to create, in my novel, his stalking
of a young camp employee and the abduction
of Katie Warlick, the 41-year-old camp cook.
Hilton is also the sole suspect in the killing of
John and Irene Bryant, a couple in their
eighties, who were murdered in October 2007
while hiking in North Carolina's Pisgah National
Forest. In deference to the Bryant family, I have
changed them to two widows in their seventies
and put the scene in neighboring Rutherford
County. The book opens with their
disappearance and traces an exact timeline
sequence of the Bryants' disappearance and
subsequent murder investigation.