Life & Work with Harper McDavid

Today we’d like to introduce you to Harper McDavid. 

Hi Harper, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My whole life I’ve been a booklover and someone who imagined someday writing a novel myself. My inspiration for my first novel came unexpectedly when I was working as a hydrogeologist along the Texas/Mexico border… My role was to determine why crude oil was disappearing from an oil and gas facility in Zapata, Texas. Typically, the cause is a line leak or engineering issue. However, in Zapata, the crude oil was being stolen by a drug cartel. When a second cartel also attempted to also crude oil from the facility an employee caught between the two cartels was murdered. 

I used the unfathomable actual events from my project work to create a romantic suspense novel. The protagonist, Avery, like me, is a woman working in STEM facing many of the challenges that I have faced in my own career. Unlike Avery, there was no romantic hero in the real story. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Writing Zapata came easily. Writing subsequent books has proven to be a little more challenging. Unfortunately, I learned what writers’ block was all about. Hands-on research has become more difficult during the pandemic as well. While writing Zapata, I was able to visit Mexico City on a whim. Obviously, that has not been an option in recent months. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As I said in an earlier question, Zapata was my debut novel and it’s what I’m known for. Zapata won the Colorado Book Award as well as the Colorado Authors League Award in 2020. It was an honor to win both of these awards. My proudest moment was receiving a letter of congratulations from my U.S. Congressman, Joe Neguse for winning. 

I am currently finishing up two more books with female protagonists working in STEM. The old adage ‘write what you know’ has worked well for me. Like Zapata, both books are romantic suspense novels set along the Texas/Mexico border. 

What was your favorite childhood memory?
Some of my best memories were growing up in Singapore. At the time, there were still remnants of World War II on some of the surrounding islands. One memory that sticks with me was playing kick the can in the abandoned tunnels created as hideouts by the Singaporean military to guard against the Japanese. 

Contact Info:

• Email: harpermcdavidauthor@gmail.com
• Website: www.harpermcdavid.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harpermcdavidauthor
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HarperMcDavidAuthor
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/HarperMcDavid