Interviews Archives - Page 14 of 30 - Trisha Sugarek, Author, Playwright & Poet

Interview with Childrens Book Author, Rita Avaud Najm (part 2)

Continuing my interview with author, Rita Avaud Najm. ‘Poursuivant mon interview avec l’auteur, Rita Avaud Najm’

Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?

RN. Each situation needs a character that goes with it and fit its plot. I cannot create a character without giving it a role. Just like movies! The scenarios come first and then finding the right actors for every scene you have created.

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?

RN. I never get lost, maybe because I write for children and my stories are usually short.

Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment?

RN. I don’t have a Muse, but I hope my “Petite Rita” stories will become as famous as “Martine,” “Madeline” and “Dora the explorer.” All of my other stories, even the fictional ones, teach children about the importance of virtue, honesty and love. They all have a message and teach life-long lessons while entertaining the readers.

Q. Do you have a new book coming out soon? If so tell us about it.

RN. Publishing my third volume of “La Petite Rita” is my next step, as well as finding an illustrator for my other pictures books that need a lot of colorful, joyful and eye-catching drawings.

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

RN. My first serious book was a guide for teachers and parents to encourage students to read more poetry and non-fiction books. That guide was my graduation project in 2013, while I was working at one of Houston’s public schools libraries. Since then I’ve been seriously writing with a goal of publishing my works.

Q. How long after that were you published?

RN. I’d been looking for a publisher for a year and a half. It’s not easy to make your dream come true.

Q. What makes a writer great?

Creativity, imagination, a unique style make a great writer, as well as knowing their audience’s interest, and expressing their ideas clearly and be passionate about the subject or story they are writing about.

Q. And the all-important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

RN. It’s just time. “No book” is the starting point that needs a push to make the invisible visible, and to put thoughts into sentences. The “keep on” is the key to finally typing the joyful two words of mine, “The End.” It’s not a hard process; it’s a plan or a goal that one should enjoy achieving and seeing it in hand.

Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?

RN. “Memories are special moments that tell our story” My childhood memories are the basic of most of my stories. They flash through my mind and give me ideas to write more and more.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?

RN. I am a Children’s book author who writes fiction and non-fiction stories and I love it.

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

RN. Writing is more than putting sentences on a page; it’s a gift that any reader might have. If you are a good reader, love books, have plenty of feelings that you would like to express, why don’t you let them be heard? I never thought that I would be an author one day and that I would bring my characters to life!

Did you miss Part I of my Interview with this children’s author? Click here.

To purchase Rita’s books: click here
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? September: Dylan Callens. October’s author was Donna Kauffman. In November we say hello to Rita Avaud a Najm. In December we will be saying hello to English mystery writer, J.G. Dow.

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Interview with Children’s Book Author, Rita Avaud Najm

A new author, raised in Lebanon and France, writing children’s chapter books with a quirky twist. Some of her dialogue is in simple French phrases with definitions as a footnote. Introducing youngsters to French. These are charming little stories about Rita coming to America as a child. T.S.

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? Or tell us about your ‘dream’ work space.

RN. I don’t have a specific place. But I always keep a note book next to my living room seat to write any idea that comes to my mind. Once I gather my thoughts, typing and saving them on my laptop will be my next step. I usually keep it on my dining table where the lights are bright.

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)

RN. My note book should always be handy to look through my thoughts or my simple scribbles as a reference. My cup of tea is always there on my right side, yet many times I drink it cold since once I start writing, I don’t stop and keep on until I am tired, or hungry.

Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?

RN. Other than writing Arabic poetry and French stories, writing plays and song lyrics since I was 7 years old, I am a painter. This hobby helped with illustrating my two books. I also do crochet and knitting. All of my storylines have to do with something I’ve been through in my childhood or things I do or did. My memories make my stories alive.

Q. Do you have a set time each day (or night) to write?

RN. I prefer evenings. I know by then that my children did their homework, had dinner and the house is clean and the housework is done, for the day!

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

RN. Some people procrastinate because they are lazy. Others are afraid of change and the heavy success, or they just fear failure and risk. “Someday I will,” keeps those writers who might have plenty of amazing stories to tell and a vivid imagination never known, and always living in the past. Go ahead! Start that project! Celebrate your success and live the moment when your hard work pays off!

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?

RN. Besides my “Petite Rita,” the little French girl who represents me, I was shy when I came to The USA because of my French-Lebanese accent, anything can be my character when I have the story. I can make a story about my cup of tea or my toothbrush… When you are creative with imagination, you can create and make any object or animal talk your talk.

Q. What first inspired you to write your stories?

RN. French Dual immersion programs in many public and private schools are the reason behind my main character to be a French girl, as well as the love of students to learn a foreign language. I decided to publish those two volumes first, before any of my other stories, because of their passion to read and to learn some common French words.

Join us for Part 2 of this interview. ‘Rejoignez-nous pour la partie 2 de cette interview.’ November 24th.

To Purchase Rita’s books: click here
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? September: Dylan Callens. October’s author was Donna Kauffman. In November we say hello to Rita Avaud a Najm.

Check out more Motivational Moments…for Writers!

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Interview with author, Donna Kauffman (part 2)

Q. Do you get lost in your writing? (con’t.)

DK. Always. It might take some time to sink into fiction world, but when I do, I’m gone until I surface again. Could be an hour, could be all day. One of the things I do to help “sink in” is re-read what I wrote the day before. It’s an easy way to start, as you’re not asking yourself to come up with anything new quite yet, but simply to review the work from the day before, get back into the scene you were working on, edit now that you’ve had the chance to get some distance from it and can be more objective, and by the time I get to the end of that I find the writing is flowing and I’m in without even realizing it.

Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment?

DK. No muses for me. Other than the story and my characters and being compelled to find out what happens next.

Q. Do you have a new book coming out soon? If so tell us about it.

DK. I launched a new series this summer with the release of Blue Hollow Falls. It’s set here in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and is very special to me, finally getting to write about this place I love so much. The second in the series is a holiday e-novella, The Inn at Blue Hollow Falls, which will be out on October 31st.

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

DK. I started when I was pregnant with my first son. I was twenty-eight at the time, and in my fourth trimester (do that math) so I was just desperate enough at that point to try anything as a distraction. Writing a book seemed like a perfectly normal thing to do. Then I (finally!) had my son, and the writing got put aside. I picked it up again when pregnant with my second son. I was twenty-nine at the time (do that math, too) and just desperate enough at the time to try anything as a means to get a little me time. I put that aside when son number two arrived, but along with him came the decision to stay home and raise my kids, and I decided to give writing more seriously a try. I did join that writer’s group then and I finished that first book.

Q. How long after that were you published?

DK. My youngest was two when I sold that first book and I’ve been continually published ever since. (My sons are 29 and 27 now and have been my biggest champions all along the way.)

Q. What makes a writer great?

DK. Gosh, I don’t know if I can sum that up. It’s such a personal relationship between reader and writer, each one unique. I guess, if I had to summarize, I’d say it’s a writer who tells the story he or she most wants to read, stays true to that ideal, and puts absolutely everything into each moment. If you’ve done the very best you can do, told the story to the best of your ability, it might not make you “great” in the eyes of others, but it does make you the best you can be, and I’ll take that.

Q. and the all-important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

DK. Anguish, self loathing, and doubt? Kidding. Kinda. It’s having all the optimism in the world that your new book idea is just the best idea ever, then finding a way to maintain that enthusiasm though all the ups and downs (and downs, and downs) of pulling that story out of yourself, one word, sentence, and paragraph at a time. Then editing all those words and sentences and paragraphs, tossing out chunks, rewriting chunks, tossing more, and writing some more, and then finally accepting that this is the very best you can tell that wonderful story you had in your head, and even though you’re relieved, proud, thankful, you still promise yourself that next time you’ll find even better words to tell that next fantastic story idea. But, for this time at least, you’ve done it, and it’s the very best you could do, and it’s time to put it out there.

Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?

DK. I don’t write about, or include, specific life events or experiences into my fiction. However, life experiences, world views, the personal circle of life that swirls around you at all times, all inform who you are, and how you think, and what you know about life, and therefore how you imbue your characters with their world views and how they think, etc. I’m not sure how you would ever write a story that wasn’t influenced in some way by what you see, know, learn, explore, absorb, even though it’s mostly in the abstract. I don’t create characters to give voice to my opinions, but since I am creating my characters, I am the one giving them their opinions. So, even if they aren’t me, or aren’t anything like me, they still come from me, so it’s my ideas/thoughts/opinions on what a person like them would be like, that creates them. If that makes sense.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?

DK. The great thing about writing romance is that it lends itself to combining with pretty much any other genre. I’ve written suspense, mystery, paranormal, time travel, etcetera, but always with the relationship at the core of the story. That’s what drives my storytelling, so I don’t know that I’d want to explore a genre that didn’t have that at the center of it.

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

DK. I love hearing from readers and hanging out with them. You can find me online at www.donnakauffman.com and on social media at:

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/donna.kauffman1/
Twitter: @DonnaKauffman
Instagram: @donnakauffman

Drop by, drop in, hang out, and laugh along!

Did you miss Part I of this Interview? To Purchase Donna’s books
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? September: Dylan Callens. October’s author is Donna Kauffman. In November we say hello to Rita Avaud a Najm.

Check out more Motivational Moments…for Writers!

Purchase here

Interview with author, Donna Kauffman

TS. Fairly recently I discovered Donna. I ordered one book (Blue Hollow Falls) and quickly ordered the rest of her books. That’s always a good sign from this Blogger! Beautifully crafted stories!

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? (please provide a photo/s of your shed, room, closet, barn….) Or tell us about your ‘dream’ work space.

DK. I work any and everywhere. Have laptop, will travel! And I often do. I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains in southern Virginia, and though I do have dedicated office space in my house, I don’t think I’ve ever actually gone in there to write. Working where you live can, at times, provide a wealth of distractions to help procrastinate getting any writing done. At least a few times a week, I hop in my car and head up to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is minutes from where I live, and find a quiet overlook, trail, picnic area, and work there. It’s inspiring and has the added benefit of no internet/cell/email/other distractions. I’ve written large portions of many books up there.

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)

DK. No rituals for me. I prefer it quiet (no tv, music, chatter) but I’ve written sitting in busy airport terminals and during my kids sports practices. I think sometimes you can get bogged down by placing too many “I have to have this in order to write” requirements. I’ve always been a “plant your backside somewhere and fall into the story already” type, mostly because I know if I started down the “I must have” path, I’d never get another book written.

Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?

DK. I volunteer for a local wildlife center and a local wildlife sanctuary. I’m a dedicated hiker/outdoors person and photographer who loves animals, so it’s been a fascinating adjunct to that and I’ve learned so much about all the critters I’ve lived amongst for years. If I had the time, I’d love to get my wildlife rehabilitators’ license. Someday!

Q. Do you have a set time each day (or night) to write?

DK. No set time. My schedule and other obligations often create the blocks of time I write. Given a whole day with nothing else on the docket, I tend to get up and dive in before the world wakes up and gets in the way, and often times write all day until dinner. Then I’d likely sink back in again after the world goes to sleep. I’m both morning person and night owl, so that comes in handy!

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

DK. That’s the single biggest obstacle to all writers. I think I can safely say we all do it. (And if you don’t, please share your trick with me!) I guess I’ve learned how to remove temptation from my immediate surroundings (hence the my mobile office pod, as I call it, aka my car.) If I can’t stop myself from getting up and doing laundry instead of tackling the next scene, or from scrolling through social media, then I take myself off somewhere where I can’t do either of those things. It’s an ongoing battle. Deadlines and knowing you’ve got bills to pay also help immensely.

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?

DK. I don’t know if I can pinpoint that. Story evolution is such an ephemeral thing for me. It comes at me from all sides, in all manners of unfolding. Some characters are part of the initial, ooh, this is a story I want to tell! And some come along as the story develops.

Q. What first inspired you to write your stories?

DK. Wanting there to be more books in the world that I wanted to read. I have broad interests in fiction and I’m very picky all at the same time. I like what I like. I have my favorite authors and am always on the prowl for new ones. (The library is a wonderful treasure trove for finding new authors. No investment risk other than a little time to see if they can pull you into their worlds…) I was having a hard time finding more of what I loved and kept imagining what story I would want to read, and one thing led to another, and I started putting thoughts to paper. I’d always been a writer of some kind or other, so it was a natural combination of putting my thoughts down in writing, then steering those thoughts into the fictional realm. When I got serious about it, I joined a local writer’s organization and immersed myself in learning more about the craft of writing as well as the business of writing. I knew immediately I’d found my people. (Fictional and non.)

Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?

DK. Could be either one. It really depends on the story. The trigger could be location, occupation, setting, conflict, or any combination of those. I’ve been writing small town fiction for a while now and so location is often the first thing that intrigues me. I want to set my fictional world in this place or that, and then occupations, conflicts, plot ideas start to percolate, and along with them the perfect people to tell that story, both main characters and secondary. Research begins, story begins, and folks just up and introduce themselves in the process.

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?

Join us for Part II, October 27th of this fascinating Interview

To purchase Donna Kauffman’s books ~ Click here
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Interview with author, Dylan Callens (conclusion)

Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?

DC. In Interpretation, the situation came first. That wasn’t the case in previous stories, but for this novel it was. I was on a bus listening to students talk about science fiction movies and I began to word-doodle a dystopian world. After that, I started reading about weird psychological experiments and came across the work of Dr. Jose Delgado. He did a great deal of research on mind control devices. From there, I started to wonder about the extreme ends of such an experiment. And that is the central situation in the novel.

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?

DC. Oh yes, absolutely. I get so lost, in fact, that if I read my work a day later, it’s like reading someone else’s work. I can only recall the ideas that I put on the page and to see what I’ve written, the specific words that I’ve strung together, it’s like I was never there. Sometimes that’s a good thing but sometimes I’m mystified at what I was trying to get at. That’s why I have a great editor.

Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment?

DC. Right now, you’re my muse, Trish. These are great questions.

Q. Do you have a new book coming out soon? If so tell us about it.

DC. Yes, my new novel, Interpretation, was just released on August 1st. It’s about hope in the most desperate of times. It’s my ode to dystopian classics like Nineteen Eighty-Four and Brave New World with a very modern take. I’ve used Ray Kurzweil’s predictions about our technological progress, as well as Dr. Jose Delgado’s psychological experiments to create a world that I think forces us to consider our own humanity.

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

DC. I think I started to take it seriously three years ago. After making slow progress on my first novel, I started to see that it could be finished. I only had a few chapters left so I pushed forward to finish it. After another year of editing, it was released.

Q. How long after that were you published?

DC. I self-published that novel in December 2015. Since then, I’ve written a collection of Fairy Tales, been in two anthologies, and I’m releasing my second novel. I’ve also started a small publishing company in that time as well. So, the last two years have been very busy.

Q. What makes a writer great?

DC. That’s difficult to answer. I think there are so many ways for a writer to be great. It could be something like the imagery Joseph Ferguson uses to tell his stories. Or the beautiful complexity found in David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest. There are so many things that can make a writer great.

Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

DC. Wow – to answer that question fully would require several pages of explanation. And I don’t think there’s a normal process for me. While I have certain rituals in terms of when and where I write, I don’t really have a straight forward process. I might research some stuff then outline. And then write a chapter, then outline some more. And do more research in the middle of writing a chapter. Then I might toy with a cover idea for a little while. I really wish I had a better answer but I’m not organized enough to have a definite process.

Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?

DC. I’m heavily influenced by my education in philosophy more than anything. My life experiences work their way into my writing in various ways but my imagination plays a bigger role. I’ve always been someone that sits around and thinks so I think that drives my storytelling more than any real experiences.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?

DC. I have written satire and parody in the past. Interpretation is dystopian science fiction, which isn’t something that I thought that I would do. If I continue the current project that I have in mind for my next novel, I will get into literary fiction. I know that career-wise, it would be smart to stay within one genre but I don’t have the focus to do that. My stories aren’t genre specific.

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

DC. In Interpretation, there are inkblots at the top of each chapter. My kids made those inkblots specifically for the novel. We had a blast making them and I’d just like readers to know that. So, if you something strange in the blot, just remember: my kids did that to you.

Did you miss Part I?

Available www.amazon.com and other fine book stores
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? In August we say ‘hello’ to Cheryl Hollon. September: Dylan Callens and October’s author is Donna Kauffman.

Check out more Motivational Moments…for Writers!

Interview with author, Dylan Callens

TS. A quirky, relatively new author who takes us into a sci-fi, dystopian world, with his new book, Interpretation

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? (please provide a photo/s of your shed, room, closet, barn….)
Or tell us about your ‘dream’ work space.

DC. I have a spot in basement. There is this lumpy old couch where I need to sit. It wrecks my back but I can’t help it – the words just flow there. It’s the center of calm for me, even if there is chaos all around. I’ve used the same space for so long that I’ve ruined the cushion but I just can’t give it up.

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)

DC I typically need half an hour to look at dumb things on the internet. I might play a Twitter hashtag game or stare at Goodreads for a while. It doesn’t really matter what but I have to have that time to settle into the words.

Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?

DC. I am really good with a yo-yo. There was a time when I considered focusing on that instead of writing. I thought about entering the world of competitive yo-yoing. I know that sounds like a joke, but there is such a thing. Ultimately, I think I made the right choice to continue writing.

Q. Do you have a set time each day (or night) to write?

DC. Most of my new ideas are generated in the morning. When I’m working on a new project, I tend to get up between 4 and 4:30 AM to write. However, I can’t edit in the morning so that usually happens either sporadically throughout the day or in the evening, after about 7:30.

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

DC. When I first started writing I procrastinated a lot. When I reflect on why, I don’t think it was because I was lazy but because I was afraid that in the end, what I wrote wouldn’t be good enough. So, I put it off. When I finally finished my first project, Operation Cosmic Teapot, I discovered a few things. First, I spent about six years on a project that should have been done in less than one because I procrastinated. Second, I had a lot to learn about writing and marketing a book. Third, that despite the mistakes in the book, I’m pretty good at it. And fourth – most importantly – the only way I could have failed was not to finish it. I think that’s what important to overcome procrastination. To realize that the only way to fail on a project is to not do it. Even if the book only sells a copy of copies, you can learn from that experience and apply it to the next project.

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?

DC. I wish I could say that they came to me in a dream, or something profound like that, but they don’t. Sources of inspiration for characters come from all over the place. In earlier writing, I was inspired by philosophers and gods. In my new novel, Interpretation, the main character was sort of assembled together after I completed a Myers-Briggs personality test. That was a really fun exercise. I answered profile questions in a way that I wanted the character to respond to those situations. Once I understood his personality, I could understand his motivation throughout the novel. My next novel might be based on me – but that’s kind of a frightening thought.

Q. What first inspired you to write your stories?

DC. I’m greatly inspired by philosophy and psychology. While in university, I wrote a novel that underlined the principles of phenomenology. It was as good as it sounds. I completely trashed the manuscript. It is rotting away in a dump somewhere. (You’re welcome, humanity.)

The first novel that I completed arose from the same place, though. I was teaching Nietzsche’s madman parable in a philosophy course. That is the story where Nietzsche says, “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.” In the middle of that lesson, I kind of chuckled at an idea – what if Nietzsche was God’s boss and tried to fire him? I began outlining the story from there. It was an ‘ah-ha’ moment for me.

Don’t miss the conclusion to this Interview. Click here
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? June: Mehreen Ahmed. July: Janet Macleod Trotter, author of Tea Planter’s Daughter and in August we say ‘hello’ to Cheryl Hollon. September: Dylan Callens

Check out more Motivational Moments…for Writers!

Interview with author, Cheryl Hollon (part 2)

Q. Do you have a new book coming out soon? If so tell us about it.

CH. The next book in the Webb’s Glass Shop Mysteries, ETCHED IN TEARS, releases on November 28, 2017. It’s available for pre-order now. Here’s the back-cover copy:

When a famous glass artist is found murdered at his own exhibit, deadly secrets are put on display, and it’s up to glass shop owner Savannah Webb to

see through a killer’s cover. . . Celebrated glass artist Dennis Lansing is returning to St. Petersburg, Florida, for an exhibit at the world-renowned Salvador Dali Museum. His unique style of embedding document images in his art is at the vanguard of contemporary glass-work. But as Savannah’s first boyfriend and a former apprentice to her father, Dennis’s return home has her reflecting on the past–a trip down memory lane that takes a dark turn when Dennis is found murdered at the museum with an old reference letter from her father in his pocket. A search through her father’s records sheds new light on Dennis’s history, but it seems his present life wasn’t so transparent either. Now, with a gallery of suspects to consider, it’s up to Savannah to figure out who fits the mold of a murderer.

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

CH. The first step I took to establish writing as my new career was in April of 2005. I attended the Malice Domestic Conference. It is an annual fan convention in the metropolitan DC area that celebrates the traditional mystery, books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie. I found my tribe! The authors were friendly, sociable, and helpful to aspiring writers. I never looked back from that conference.

Q. How long after that were you published?

CH. My first book was released in September of 2015. A mere decade was all it took from my first writing attempts to holding my first book in my hands. I’m now on my second contract with Kensington Books and that means that there will be at least six books in the Webb’s Glass Shop Mystery Series.

Q. What makes a writer great?

CH. A great writer provides a great reading experience. I continuously aim to improve my writing skills by taking classes, workshops, and participating in critique groups.

Q. ……and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

CH. The first thing I decide is where the body will be found, who will find it and what is the cause of death. After that, I begin sketching out the main events that eventually expands into a synopsis of about 12-14 single-spaced pages. This gets submitted to my publisher as part of my contract. Next, I break up the synopsis into a scene-by-scene outline that I document in an Excel spreadsheet. Each scene is a chapter in my manuscript, so I spend some time noting the time that will pass, the location of the scene and the point of view character for each chapter.

At this point, I am usually itching to start the first draft. From this point on, I update the spreadsheet as I go. Even though I am a confirmed outliner, I leave creative room while I’m writing to take advantage of those flashes of inspiration that occur while I’m laying down that first draft. After I type ‘THE END’ and enjoy a glass of bubbly, I immediately start a revision pass from the notes I written during the first draft. Then I share the beginning chapters with my in-person critique group and start another round of revisions. Then I send the manuscript to my literary agent as well as an independent editor for a development edit.

When I’ve received their comments, I revise for at least three more passes and then it goes to my editor at Kensington. She will also have great suggestions for making the story stronger and I incorporate them. The next step is to work with a copy editor to make sure that there are no technical errors or plot inconsistencies. I’m forever leaving someone in the next room and then they magically appear in a conversation. The last step is when I received the hard copy galley images for a final check. This is where I use a ruler to check every single line of print in the book. There’s no turning back after that – in a few months I’ll be holding it in my hands.

Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?

CH. The Webb’s Glass Shop Mysteries are set in St. Petersburg, Florida. I’ve lived here since 1975 and am considered nearly-native. The arts are a big part of the culture of this city as well as outdoor cafés and magnificent museums. Many residents live, work and entertain themselves by walking the charming streets of the waterfront downtown area. I’ve also been working in the glass arts with my husband for over twenty years. He’s the craftsman. I am the designer. We have a small glass studio in a building behind our house. I have a workbench of my own for my jewelry making efforts. I’m also in the middle of creating a lampshade. These skills are the basis of my character’s teaching efforts in her shop.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?

CH. I’m working on a proposal for a historical novel series. In 1954, Harriet Buchanan graduates with a PhD in Physics from Georgia Tech. However, the only job she can get in her hometown of Marietta, GA is secretary for the Simulator Training department at Global Aircraft Corporation. She doesn’t merely type technical reports – she understands and corrects them. Christine uncovers a fatal flaw in an engine algorithm, but her boss doesn’t believe her. She pairs up with test pilot Andy Anderson to prove her theory to prevent a crash of the C-130 aircraft on its first flight. Hopefully, the series will find a publishing home soon – I can’t wait to write about Harriet’s challenges.

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

CH. You can reach me at my website: www.cherylhollon.com also on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/cherylhollonwriter

The best writing advice I’ve ever been given: Finish the book!

Did you miss Part 1 of this Interview?
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? June: Mehreen Ahmed. July: Janet Macleod Trotter, author of Tea Planter’s Daughter and in August we say ‘hello’ to Cheryl Hollon.

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An Interview with Mystery Series Author ~Cheryl Hollon

TS. Cheryl Hollon writes a charming series entitled Webb’s Glass Shop mysteries. I particularly like her well-developed characters. Let’s follow her around in her writing processes in this entertaining interview.

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? (please provid

e a photo/s of your shed, room, closet, barn….) Or tell us about your ‘dream’ work space.

CH. I have a little writing shack behind the house. It’s an ordinary wooden storage shed that used to contain husband’s woodworking tools. He sacrificed that to my writing addiction by emptying it out, painting the inside white, and installing a lot of shelfs. Since we live in St. Petersburg, Florida, he also installed a small window air conditioner. It looks out over the bird feeder and is shaded by an old oak tree.

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)

CH. I have a well-established and reliable morning routine that gets me writing every day. My alarm goes off at 6:30 am and I get dressed, grab coffee, then walk out to my writing shed. I power up my laptop to post a Facebook comment by 7:00 am to a group of writers who start their day with a sprint. This focusing technique is hosted by Ramona DeFelice Long. In short, we each sign in and then write for an hour with no interruptions. She puts up the Sprint Thread every morning. It’s a way to get those fingers moving and ensures that I have accomplished a good bit of my writing target for the day.

Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?

CH. I spent a few years as a card-carrying Boy Scout Leader. First as a Den Mother, then as a Committee Chairman, and finally as a member of the Training Council. My husband was and still is basically allergic to nature, so I stepped up in his place when our two boys wanted to join the local troop. It was a terrific experience – I received the best leadership skills training I’ve ever experienced. It was simple, direct and actionable.

Q. Do you have a set time each day (or night) to write?

CH. In the early morning, the words just fly from my fingers onto the page like eager ducklings. After that, if I haven’t met my word target, I must hunt those words down, grab them by the scruff of the neck, then stab them to the page. I really try to finish my new words before eleven in the morning.

Q.What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

CH. I’m getting to be an expert in confronting and defeating procrastination. In fact, I’ll be presenting a workshop on that topic at SleuthFest 2018. I basically trick myself into working for little rewards during my writing sessions. One of my tricks is to use an hourglass to write for a continuous thirty minutes with no breaks for e-mail, social media or any breaks at all. I also line up a series of rewards for successfully achieving the sprint. The rewards are a combination of candy treats, on-line crossword puzzles, social media time and reading intervals.

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?

CH. When I have a need for a new character, a waiter for example, I’ll take several distinctive features from recent restaurant experiences and Frankenstein them together into one person. To make that character come alive, I free-write dialogue to discover their personality in how they use language. It’s a method that works for me – your mileage may vary.

Q. What first inspired you to write your stories?

CH. In my previous career as a project engineer and program manager for foreign military sales of flight simulators, there were many long-haul flights to Singapore, Taiwan and even India. I started scribbling ideas then as well as during the several months the team was on site for delivery and acceptance testing. Taking advantage of a corporate downsizing incentive, I left to write full time and haven’t regretted it for a second.

Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?

CH. The situation comes to me first. Since I write for a series, the characters are already known. First, I pick the site for the discovery of the victim. Then I concentrate on how someone could be driven to make a violent fatal choice as a reaction to difficult circumstances.

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?

CH. I get completely immersed in my writing world. I’m a visual writer and play the scenes in my head as if I’m watching a movie. I’ve also been told that my writing is heavy in dialogue. I like that – that’s how I hear what my characters are feeling and what they’re thinking about doing next.

Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment?

CH. My muse is Lujoye Barnes who lives in a woodland cottage near Gainesville, Florida. We have been friends for more years than I care to count. We have always shared a love of books and especially mysteries. When I get stuck in a plot, I always ask myself, “What would Joye like to see happen next?” It works every time. She has been my number one inspiration since I first confessed to her that I would like to write.

Join us for Part II of this fascinating Interview on Aug. 25th
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months?

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On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service ~~ A Review

5 out of 5 quills
A REVIEW ~~ On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service

Delicious! House parties full of the aristocracy just as war rumblings begin again in Europe. Rhys Bowen’s series, A Royal Spyness Mystery delivers once again as Lady Georgiana is roped in by Her Majesty Queen Mary (Elizabeth’s mother) to spy on her son, the Prince of Wales and his oh-so-notorious lover, Wallis Simpson.

It seems that Darcy is always saying goodbye to our royal ‘Georgie’. Something always thwarts our lovers and separates them. Will they ever marry? In this very fine tale, Georgie is off to Italy and Darcy is called back to his mysterious job with the English government.

It’s a good story but if the writing falls short, it diminishes the storytelling. Rhys Bowen is a wonderful writer and one of my favorites. Her writing is crisp and her characters fully developed. The reader is fully engaged. While this is a series and I always tell my readers to begin at the beginning (for a fuller experience) all of Rhys’ stories stand on their own.

I give this book my highest rating and recommend it to you!

To Purchase click here

Did you miss my Interview with Rhys Bowen?
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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? June: Mehreen Ahmed. July: Janet Macleod Trotter, author of Tea Planter’s Daughter and in August we say ‘hello’ to Cheryl Hollon.

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Interview with Janet Macleod Trotter (conclusion)

Q. What makes a writer great?

JT. I think that’s very subjective –we don’t all like the same books. But I suppose the writers I admire most are the ones who create a world so vivid that you remember the characters and places long afterwards – they can change the way you see the world. Books that have done this for me that spring to mind are, The Great Gatsby (Scott Fitzgerald), Passage to India (E.M. Forster), Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte) and The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver).

Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

JT. This can vary! I usually do about 6 months of research and gathering material before mapping out a storyline. Then I write a synopsis so I know where the story is going and how it will be resolved. This isn’t always strictly followed but it’s the blue-print for building the story, allowing for variations along the way. I write character profiles which are added to as I write the novel (these are really important when writing a series as I record their physical features, dates of significant events, relationships etc. that can be referred to when writing the follow-on books).

It takes about another 6 months to write the novel. My technique is to edit as I go along. Each day I begin by going over what I have written the day before and re-write it, before moving on to the next scene. When it’s all written, I’ll put it aside for a week or so and then go back to it and re-edit the whole manuscript. After this it will go to an editor and be given further edits as well as being copy edited and proofread. I make sure this happens for my independently published novels too – everything must be professionally done.

Q. How has your life experiences influenced your writing?

JT. I hope it has enriched my writing. As a writer you may not use actual incidents from your own life but you certainly use your own emotional response to make a novel realistic. How else can you feel your way into the inner life of your characters? More directly, I have used the experience of my younger self going on the overland trail to India. I used the diary I kept as an 18-year-old for the background to my mystery novel, THE VANISHING OF RUTH. I was writing it 30 years after the event so wanted the setting to be authentic – I certainly wouldn’t have remembered half of it without the prompt of my diary!

The one big traumatic event that I did use in an early novel was my experience of a stillborn baby. I did so partly as therapy for me and partly to make others aware of how deeply it can affect people. At the time, 30 years ago, society tended not to acknowledge such losses or encourage bereft parents to talk about it. Now, things are handled much more sensitively. THE HUNGRY HILLS is dedicated to our firstborn son.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre`?

I have written a couple of mysteries which I greatly enjoyed, and I’ve also written a childhood memoirs. But my default setting is historical novels!

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

Writing is a very solitary way of life and to produce anything a writer must put in hours and hours of work. So I just want readers to know that if you’ve ever taken the time and trouble to contact an author and let them know you’ve enjoyed their book, you have done a wonderful thing! I get giddy with gratitude if a complete stranger gets in touch and thanks me for giving them a good read. You have no idea how much pleasure that gives in return – and the inspiration to carry on!

Did you miss Part I and Part II of this wonderful Interview with Janet?

https://janetmacleodtrotter.wordpress.com/category/news/

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MY BLOGS feature INTERVIEWS with best-selling AUTHORS! Did you miss the past few months? Johan Thompson (South African author) joined us in April. June: Mehreen Ahmed. July: Janet Macleod Trotter, author of Tea Planter’s Daughter and in August we say ‘hello’ to Cheryl Hollon. September: Dylan Callens

Check out more Motivational Moments…for Writers!

To receive my posts sign up for my On the home page, enter your email address. Thanks!

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