Part two of this writer’s world will appear on my blog on Tuesday, Dec. 10th and the final installment on Thurs. Dec. 12th
DON’T MISS IT!
Click here if you missed Part I
Heidi is a beautiful, thoughtful writer. Her characters jump off the page and remind us that we are all so…so human. 
Continue reading “Don’t Miss Part 2 of my Interview with Heidi Jon Schmidt”
My Interview with best selling author, Heidi Jon Schmidt
Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing?
A. I write in bed. It started during a chaotic childhood when my bed was pushed into the quietest corner of the house, a safe place to withdraw to and think, imagine, write. And now that I have my own house, family, garden, life….it’s still the place where I feel most connected to my imagination.
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.)
A. The minute my daughter walks out the door for school, I take a cup of coffee up the stairs. And I don’t do anything else until I’ve gotten a day’s work done.
Q. What is your mode of writing? (long hand? Pencil? Computer? Etc.) Continue reading “How Do those oysters get to your Dinner Table? Interview with Heidi Jon Schmidt (1of3)”
Patrick Taylor’s characters, Fingal O’Reilly, M.D. and his young protege, Dr. Barry Laverty play word games over a pint. Trying to out do each other with trivia. And my readers all know, by now, how much I love words.
Over a couple of whiskeys, at the end of a long day, Barry toasts Dr. O’Reilly, “Slainte”.
O’Reilly responds, “Prost!” and then continues, “Did you know ‘prosit‘ is the third-person singular present active subjunctive of the Latin verb Prosum or the Maltese prosit, meaning ‘bravo'”
“I did not know that.” Barry replied. “How do you?” O’Reilly chuckled, “I learnt the Latin grammar in school, and a good thing too, because when I was a student at Trinity some lectures were delivered in Latin.”
My Interview with Patrick Taylor
Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like?
A. You start with a blank screen. I have been writing a series for what seems like forever so I know my characters and the setting. Then I ask myself a question. What if characters A and B were faced with ??? and that is the beginning of the plot. Then I let the characters loose and see what happens Continue reading “‘Slainte, Prost, Cheers!’ Whatever the toast…..Part 2 An Interview with author, Patrick Taylor”
This blogger was in her home place of Ireland for a month….and each time I read another ‘Country Doctor’ book by this author, I revisit the home of my heart. Patrick has given me this opportunity to interview one of my top favorite authors!
AN INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR, PATRICK TAYLOR
Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing?
A. In my study when at home. In rented accommodation when we winter in California.
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.)
A. No. I usually sort out the admin stuff like e-mail then edit what I wrote yesterday and then get on with the new stuff.
Q. What is your mode of writing? (long hand? Pencil? Computer? Etc.)
A. Computer. I used to be a doctor. Nobody can read my handwriting—including me.
Q. Do you have a set time each day to write or do you write only when you are feeling creative? Continue reading “Sure’n It’s Off to an Irish Village, You’ll be goin’…an Interview with author, Patrick Taylor (1 of 2)”
This blogger was in her home place of Ireland for a month….and each time I read another ‘Country Doctor’ book by this author, I revisit the home of my heart. Patrick has given me this opportunity to interview one of my top favorite authors!
AN INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR, PATRICK TAYLOR begins this Tuesday, Nov. 5th in a two part Nov. 7th.
To Read My Review Click here
In Part I, I told you how I got started formatting my existing books into audio books with the help of my producer/narrator Carin Gilfry. Here is the rest of Carin’s story.
Carin Gilfry, narrator: I always knew how each character should sound by the way the dialogue was written. Cheets in particular, the mischievous and very effervescent elf, quickly became my favorite. I always wanted to be a Disney princess, but in reality, I think I was more like Cheets as a child. Eager, loud, and always wanting to be everyone’s friend. I always intended to narrate books when not in a production, but I actually narrated EEElf, while in rehearsals for Offenbach’s La Perichole with New York City Opera. It worked surprisingly well. Though, I did get locked in a hotel closet, trying to find a quiet space to narrate… Adventures of audiobook narration on the road!
Continue reading “More from the Opera Singer/AudioBook Narrator/Producer (part 2)”
JD: “Mickey Spillane once told me: “People don’t read books to get to the middle. They read to get to the end.”
Part 2 of my Interview with author, Jeffery Deaver
Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like?
A. I’m not sure I completely understand this question. If you mean the work process, I can tell you that I spend the better part of a year to create a detailed outline for my novels. Because my thrillers are so plot-driven, it’s important for me to know exactly where the story is going before I begin writing it. My outlines run hundreds of pages long and are the most difficult part of the writing process, but the most important. The outlines are where I work out all the twists and turns in the story. Once I finish the outline, writing the novel is fairly easy and only takes a few months. It takes about a year for me to write a novel, although some years I write two novels a year. Continue reading “Best selling Author, Jeffery Deaver…an Interview (part 2)”
Multi-talented, murder mystery best selling author, JEFFERY DEAVER shares his writing life with us………
“I never took classes. There aren’t any books that I would recommend. The best way to learn about writing is to study the work of other writers you admire.”
Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing?
A. Usually I write in an office in my house. But, I write pretty much anywhere — on planes, in hotel rooms, anywhere in my house. (My office sometimes gets so cluttered I end up working in the kitchen. When the kitchen goes, it’s up to my bedroom. And so on and so on. I wish I had a bigger house.) I like the writing area to be silent (or with jazz or classical accompaniment occasionally) and either windowless or shaded. When it comes time to write the book itself I’ll shut the lights out, picture the scene I’m about to write then close my eyes and go at it. Continue reading “An Interview with Jeffery Deaver…Best selling author of murder mysteries”
October 7th we begin my Interview with world acclaimed, best selling mystery writer, Jeffery Deaver
This author has written dozens of spine-chilling, goose bumpy, edge of your seat, murder mysteries over a three decade writing career.
His mega success, “The Bone Collector” was made into a movie.
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I have had a wonderful response from other authors and will feature an interview with one once a month . These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal, Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Walter Mosley, Nora Roberts, and many others.
So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers’ special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create! September will feature Tasha Alexander. Jeffrey Deaver is October’s author and Patrick Taylor will join us in November. Slick mystery writer, Andrew Grant will join us this winter. Loretta Chase will be featured later this year. Raymond Benson is my January author.
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The conclusion to my Interview with mystery writer, Tasha Alexander
Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like?
A. The first part of “no book” land is a barren, hideous wasteland. You’re sure you’ll never have a book-worthy idea again. You’re sure you should have gone to law school. You wonder if it’s too late. Then, as you’re reading, doing research, a little idea comes to you and you start developing it, researching it, playing with it. Pretty soon it coalesces and then you enter into the everything-is-possible-and-beautiful stage. A stage that never lasts long enough. In this stage, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the book. It can be the best thing you’ve ever written. It has no flaws. It will change your life.
All this is possible, of course, because you have not yet written a single word. Once you start writing, the book immediately loses all its shiny goodness. Continue reading “An Interview with Tasha Alexander (part 3)”
