Philipp Schott DVM on friendship and courage, being a disciplined writer, and picking up all of the threads in the story.
By Zazie Todd PhD
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Eleven Huskies is the latest in the Dr. Bannerman Vet Mystery series from real-life veterinarian Philipp Schott DVM. When veterinarian (and amateur detective) Dr. Bannerman and his champion
sniffer dog Pippin go on holiday near a remote lake, he has to try to save
some poisoned sled dogs and figure out why a float plane crashed. With evocative descriptions of northern Canada, this is an unputdownable mystery.
You can hear Philipp Schott talk about the book at Bark! Fest, the book festival for animal lovers. He’s on a panel called Canine Crime and Mystery with Antony Johnston, Louisa Scarr, and Philipp Schott DVM.
Eleven Huskies is available from all good bookstores, including via Bookshop (and Bookshop UK) which support independent bookstores, as well as my Amazon store.
Below, Philipp tells me about the book.
Why did you write this book?
I had always planned for this to be a series, so with the success of Fifty-Four Pigs and Six Ostriches, Eleven Huskies was a given! More specifically though, I felt it was time to put dogs in the title and to take my protagonist, Dr. Peter Bannerman, offsite, lest his small town become the murder capital of Canada. This also gave me the opportunity to showcase the Canadian Shield wilderness of northern Manitoba.
What are the main themes of your book?
Peter is on the autism spectrum, so neurodiversity is always an important theme in these books. However, I wouldn’t consider it a “main” theme as it’s often subtle and in the background. I suppose a main theme is the beauty of the north, and also the fragility of that beauty as a forest fire dominates the second half of the story. Friendship and courage are big themes as well, relating both to humans and animals!
What surprised you while you were writing the book?
I’m always surprised by how the characters begin to take charge. I generally only have the main plot elements and the opening and closing scenes in mind when I start. I worry that I’m not going to know what to write next, but I always forget that I don’t need to as the characters seem to somehow drive things forward themselves. As a solidly science based person without any sympathy for superstition, I find this pretty weird.
Tell me something about your writing process and how it shaped this book.
I’m very disciplined. I have a writing day every week, plus a back-up day, and I set a goal of 3000 words per week. I usually manage to hit this. I do a lot of composing in my head first while out on long walks, so it comes out pretty quick and pretty clean. The tricky bit with mysteries is making sure that every thread I drop along the way gets picked up eventually, and that I’ve got the hints and clues for the readers dialed in right. The editors help a lot with this! Consequently there is a little more finessing and rewriting than I’m used to.
Who will especially enjoy this book?
I’ve been told that my mysteries are “cozy”, although that was not my conscious intent. I just didn’t want them to be gritty, grim, or gory. There’s probably a tiny bit more violence and strong language than in a true cozy, so let’s say “cozy adjacent”, but suitable for cozy readers! Animal lovers will also enjoy this book, as will people interested in veterinary medicine, although the vet aspect is mostly tangential. And finally, anybody interested in the wilds of Canada.
What are you working on right now?
The fourth Bannerman Vet Mystery, of course! It’s called Three Bengal Kittens, and a teaser chapter is included at the end of Eleven Huskies. I am also working on organizing my family’s correspondence going back to the mid 1800s. Most of it is in Germany, and there is some fascinating stuff in there. I can already see at least one book emerging, if not more…
“There’s probably a tiny bit more violence and strong language than in a
true cozy, so let’s say it’s “cozy adjacent”, but suitable for cozy readers!”
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