STEVE BEDERMAN

Author Interview

STEVE BEDERMAN

 

1. When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer? Actually, I had never planned to be a writer. When I was in my 20s, I wrote music, songs and was an entertainer. After that, I went into business and although I wrote songs from time to time; that was it. I always loved Thrillers/Mystery but fell in love with Corporate type Thrillers. There was a wonderful writer, Stephen Frey that I read all in his Corporate Thriller series. He still writes but seems to have stopped with the Business aspect. I am a business executive and I loved relating to the protagonist. So, after many searched for great Corporate Thrillers and not finding many, I decided out of frustration that if I couldn't read one then I'd write one. As of today, I have written 2 in the series and am starting a third. I'm in love with writing and feel as if I have gained a whole new network of friends (characters in my book). I can't wait to see what they are going to do next!
   
2. When did you write your first book and how old were you? July 17, 2009
   
3. How many books have you written? Which one is your favorite? I have now written The CEO and just finished the second in the series 'Executive Execution'. I am now on to the third as we speak.
   
4. What is your work schedule like when you're writing? I typically write early in the morning when I wake and race through a chapter. Then I let it rest until evening and read and edit, read and edit. On weekends I do write a few extra chapters too.
   
5. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? My quirkiness comes from my belief that my characters are real people. They are my friends and some, my enemies. When I write then it is like I am spending quality time with them. When I am not writing, I miss them.
   
6. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books? I am 57 years old and have been a CEO in Global technology companies for many years. My ideas come directly from the places I've been and though the battles are fiction, they mimic some of the ruthlessness and intensity and passion that I have faced in my career.
   
7. What do you like to do when you're not writing? I love being a CEO. I love mentoring young entrepreneurs. I love to read. I play guitar and some piano. I run marathons, hike and ski. I just stay engaged in life. Though, most important to me is what I can do to give back to others.
   
8. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books? I was shocked at how easy it flowed out of me. Especially surprising were the conversations. When I write with quotes. I feel as if I am right in the meeting or moment and literally visualize the discussions taking place.
   
9. What do you think makes a good story? Depths of characters, intensity, urgency, passion, subplots that speed up as the book moves on and combine into mini climaxes. Readers of Thrillers need it to be believable and not audacious but they still need to be amazed. Lastly, ending a chapter and leaving the reader impatient for that particular subplot to soon come back to them is important.
   

Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer? Unfortunately, the only suggestion I have is to keep it simple. Don't become overwrought with perfection. Visualize the moment and write what you see.

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MYSTY MCPARTLAND

Author Interview

MYSTY MCPARTLAND

 
 

1.     When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?

About fifteen years ago, I started to write down rough drafts of a few story's

2.    When did you write your first book and how old were you?

I completed my first book ten years ago at the age of forty-three

3.    How many books have you written?  Which one is your favorite?

I have completed fifty-three manuscripts only five so far have been published. It's hard to choose a favorite but if I had to choose I would say my series The Mathews Men. Dane, The Payment is the very first book I wrote.

4.    What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

I am very lucky with my work schedule, I can write whenever the mood strikes me since my husband works away and none of my children live at home anymore. Now though I have moved to Penang to live for a year I have even more time without my children, grandchildren and friends coming for a visit.

5.    What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

When I am writing or edit my work, my characters make me laugh or sometimes cry.

6. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Mostly when I go to bed the beginning or the story and characters start playing around in my head and from there the story develops.

7.    What do you like to do when you're not writing?

I love to read, potter in my garden, spend time with my husband when he is home and travel

1. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
   

That there is still so much to learn about creating a good story that the reader will enjoy reading.

9.    What do you think makes a good story?

One that keeps you so interested that no matter what you can't put the book down and you have to keep turning the next pages until you have finished it.

10.
Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer?

Accept any criticism, take well meaning advice because everything is a learning curve. If you are rejected by a publisher or have a bad review brush it off but most of all believe in yourself and your writing.

KAREN LEWIS

Author Interview

Karen Lewis

 

1. When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?

I always did. Books fascinated me. I loved reading. The world of make believe beckoned.

 

2. When did you write your first book and how old were you?

My first story, flash fiction about an antique shop, was published when I was in my early teens.

 

3. How many books have you written? Which one is your favorite?

Dozens. Mostly featuring fictional detective, Neil Slater, and based on real cases. I don't know that I have a favourite, but probably Fiend. It's a suspense thriller about a serial killer.

 

4. What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

Quite hectic. Everything has to wait.

 

5. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I spend a lot of time creating names for my characters. Sometimes I change them several times before they feel just right.

 

6. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Often from news stories. Something that has human interest appeal and captures the imagination.

 

7. What do you like to do when you're not writing?

Go for long walks, catch up on the house work, and shop.

 

8. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

The writer isn't in complete control. When the Muse kicks in, the characters take on a life and will of their own.

 

9. What do you think makes a good story?

Characters and situations that are believable, and that the reader can relate to and empathise with.

 

10. Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer?

Read books by authors you admire, and write as much as you can.

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DONNA CROCKER

Interview Questions

 

1. Tell us a little about _____The Eyes Of a Killer_____, what inspired you to write __The Eyes Of a Killer_______?
   

I wanted to try my hand at a different genre. I typically write romance.

 

1. Do you have a favorite character you have written?
   

Yes. Rebecca from "Silence In The Hills"

 

3. What are you currently working on?

An untitled western romance.

 

4. How long have you been writing? What influenced you to start?

I've been writing for about 7 years. I've always loved reading romance books. I decided that writing was something that I would like to try. 7 years later I'm still writing.

 

1. How do your family/friends feel about your writing?
   

They are very supportive of my writing.

 

1. Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
   

On the New York Times best seller list and one of my books to be put into film. I can dream can't I :)

 

1. Do you have any advice for new or aspiring author?
   

Never give up.

 

1. What is your favorite book? (one that you have read) and why?
   

Gone With the Wind. It's a wonderful classic to read.

 

1. On the fun side, what is your favorite television show and why?
   

American Pickers and Pawn Stars. I like seeing the treasures that they find.

 

1. Where can readers find you _________? (Include all links you want, facebook, twitter etc....)
   

donnacrocker.webs.com

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LIKE SCI-FI?

Check out the trilogy now available.

CHALLENGE TO THE STARS

GRAND SCIENCE-FICTION SPACE ADVENTURE!

It is the 25th Century. The space cruiser Beagle explores a planet ravaged by war millennia ago, now inhabited by hostile, savage, mutated descendants of the planet's original humanoid species.

When the Beagle re-enters orbit on departure, the craft is shot down by an ancient, planetary defense network long pre-dating the alien savages. The aliens abduct two women officers—the sexy and sultry Maya Terrazone and the bright but petulant Veronica Winters. Colonel Kendrick Landry, together with Veronica's pet telepathic alien tiger named Jones, leads a rescue party to find and bring back the two women. Even if the two women still live and Landry can rescue them, he wonders if his group can survive another crossing of the planet's desert terrain—teeming with the savage humanoids—to return to the Beagle.
More, it will be virtually impossible to repair crash damage to the Beagle with the creatures lurking outside the craft.

The Beagle team learns that the savage alien race is going extinct because a virus from long ago biological warfare has killed off all the females. All the surviving creatures are male. Landry poses a challenge to the Beagle's genetic scientists: can they create adult females for the creatures and preserve the planet's dying humanoid race? If so, might the added presence of females distract the vicious male creatures and permit the Beagle crew to complete repairs and escape the planet?

But even if the Beagle crew does regain orbit around the planet, then the ancient, mechanized planetary defense network may fire upon them a second—and likely fatal—final time.

This dilemma is Colonel Landry and the Beagle crew's Challenge To The Stars . .

LIZARD WORLD

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN LIBERATING HUMAN SLAVES IS AGAINST THE LAW?

In the 25th Century the starcraft Aurora travels to planet Alpha Centauri B-III and the Aurora commander, Colonel Kendrick Landry, discovers that descendants of the colonization crew of the Green Horizon, Earth's first interstellar starcraft, are living in centuries-old enslavement to a lizard-like race.
The First Intergalactic Alliance does not permit liberation of the human slaves because the planet is not a member of the Alliance and subject to Alliance law.
Alliance law would sanction the Aurora's defense—including even offensive action against the lizard government, permitting its overthrow by human resistance fighters on the planet—but only if the lizard government has first attacked the Aurora.
Without the knowledge or consent of Colonel Landry, head-strong officer Major Will Adams devises a scheme to provoke an attack by the lizard command and so justify a retaliatory pre-emptive strike by the Aurora against the lizards.
The lizards attack the Aurora, in orbit around the planet, with surprisingly devastating force. Now the command and crew of the Aurora will be fortunate to ensure their own survival—let alone assist in liberation of the lizards' human slaves!

A FINAL BATTLE

A FINAL BATTLE . . .

This novel is the third in the Colonel Kendrick Landry space adventure series. The novel is an intriguing blend of classic science-fiction, military science fiction, spy novel, and romance.
It is the 25th Century. On the far off Earth colonial planet of Sirius V, settled long ago by North Americans and Europeans on a Western continent and by radical religious zealots from Earth's Middle East on an Eastern continent, a final showdown is about to occur.
The Eastern continent has been attacking the West. The First Intergalactic Alliance dispatches Colonel Landry to Sirius V in the starcraft Aurora to locate and destroy a hidden radical Eastern base on the planet. After the Aurora's military fighters disable and occupy two Eastern headquarters, there should have been no more attacks on the West. But the attacks continue, apparently from the invisible hidden base which Landry was sent to locate and destroy.
As it turns out, the hidden Eastern headquarters is located in a version of the same planet existing in a parallel universe which is accessible through a man-made "wormhole" in the mountains. A treacherous double agent guide from the West leads Landry and his team through the wormhole where Landry and the beautiful blonde Major Veronica Winters are taken captive and ransomed by the sinister Eastern leader Bin Obami.
Now that Landry has found the hidden Eastern base, will he and Veronica be able to escape from it, much less destroy it?

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THE GIFT


The gift is a lesson to be learned. Sometimes we need to slow down and find out facts, instead of rushing on with life assuming the worst.
Kimberly loved her high school sweetheart, Chad, but after no word from him, since he'd left for college, she gave up on the dream of becoming his wife and move away to New York. She soon realized that her life was meaningless without Chad. When she decides to take a trip home for the Christmas holiday, and sees Chad with another woman, she automatically assumes it is his wife. Will she loose the man she loves by jumping to conclusions? Or will she face facts before it's too late?

KISS CARSON

KISS CARSON

Author Interview

 

1. When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?

About 6 years ago, I realized I wanted to become a published writer. However, my passion for words started long before this.

2. When did you write your first book and how old were you?

I wrote my first full length fiction book when I was about 14. Before this I wrote little stories about me and my friends and our favourite pop stars. Then I turned to writing fiction but still using our real names. By the time I was 16 I'd written four or five novels, all fantasy/paranormal romance, which I still write today.

3. How many books have you written? Which one is your favorite?

I've written dozens of books, even more if you count the ones I haven't finished. Three of my books are published, In the Shadows of Angels, Illusions of Destiny and Jewels of the Sun. My favourite would have to be Jewels of the Sun. The interaction between the heroine and hero still gets me chuckling.

4. What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

Well, with a young family and a job, I've had to create quite a strict writing schedule. I try to keep to it, simply because if I don't, I'd never get any writing done. I write Sunday-Thursday 6.30pm-10.30pm. This includes research.

5. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I don't know whether it's interesting, but I hand write all my manuscripts before transferring them onto the computer. Hand writing helps me think. Then when I type the story into the computer I add world building, more character traits etc. I'm not much of a plotter so I rewrite my stories four or five times.

6. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Sometimes, I might see an ad, hear a song, or someone might say something that gets my imagination in gear. I once wrote a book based on the word nebulous.

7. What do you like to do when you're not writing?

Day trips! Jump in the car with the hubby and kids and drive two hours north, west, or south. Here in Queensland, 2 hours in those directions takes us to the middle of nowhere! If we drive east we hit the coast. We have a picnic lunch, a bushwalk, then get back into the car and come home. I love outdoor activities like fishing, hiking and gardening.

8. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

No matter how hard I try, no matter how many times I threaten to do them harm, my characters never behave themselves! This surprises me considering they came from my imagination!

9. What do you think makes a good story?

A romance partnered with a little mystery, fantasy and action. Strong characters who have the ability to make me smile, laugh or cry. Bringing out emotions in the reader is a must. If I feel no emotion while reading a book I stop reading.

10. Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer?

Find an honest critique partner who will help you each step of the way. Read books of the genre you want to write, or read books that portray the atmosphere you would like your story to have. Keep trying. Don't get hung up on the one story for years and years. Write as much as you can, as often as you can and eventually, you will find your calling. Remember writing a book doesn't happen in a few days or weeks. Be prepared to sacrifice your life for months, even years to get that book written.

CHASTITY BUSH

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Featured author is

CHASTITY BUSH

Eden Campbell, a woman who has it all. A good job, handsome fiancé, even the same cat she had as a teenager. However, when her world is turned upside down by the sight of her fiancé in her favorite high heels and lingerie, Eden finds herself single again for the first time in years.

Only days after Eden discovers her fiancés hidden little secret, she loses her job
and she finds herself accused of her boss's estranged wife's murder.

The only up side to her situation is the sexy man her best friends and lawyers, Tilley and Joe Madison, entrusted her life to. Not only is Jasper Carrington doing his best to hide her from the life sentence hanging over her head, he is stirring her desires like no man ever has.

From her black as night hair to her deep blue eyes Eden Campbell sets Jaspers blood on fire. She is his to protect until the danger to her wanes but every look sent his way has him wondering, who going to protect her from him?
 

 

Chief Tall Bear is shocked when he learns of the stolen lady in his teepee but cannot overcome the pull she has on him once he meets her. He knows her presence will bring trouble to his peaceful village but cannot fight the desire rising within him. From her long dark hair, to her deep blue eyes she is stirring his passion like never before. He is determined to have her. Both in his bed and in his life.

After a lifetime of abuse at the hands of her father and his ranch hands, Cecily Smith has been rescued…or kidnapped. Either way, she is grateful. Especially when she meets the incredibly handsome Chief Tall Bear. Unable to explain or contain the odd rush of emotions flooding her, Cecily finds herself longing for something…something only Tall Bear can give.

But when her brutal father learns of her whereabouts, will she survive the coming battle and keep her place at Tall Bear's side or be enslaved by her father once more?

NEW RELEASE

NEW RELEASE

When Shannon Bank's fiancé rushes to Sicily to collect his inheritance, he disappears without a trace.

She has no choice but to leave the safety of their home in the United States and jump on a plane to follow his tracks into the unknown. She knows next to nothing about Sicily, except for his fascinating tales.

There, she encounters Damiano Malandrino, a sexy actor who is determined to bar her path and keep the truth from her.

 Just out of prison for murder, he is brusque and dangerous, but also suave, enigmatic and painfully alluring.

Accidently seeing him with another woman awakens needs in Shannon that she never knew she had, but being determined to find her fiancé she tries to resist the flames of desire that all but consume her.

 In her quest for the truth, Shannon faces deception, danger and death. Will she find the truth or succumb to the desires of a Sicilian Stranger?

NEW RELEASE

NEW RELEASE

 

For over a thousand years, LORD AIDAN HARTLAND OF WESTLAKE and his lover have in turn been eating each other's hearts in order to regenerate. Now he's back with his new identity- and the perpetual mission of protecting his woman and mankind from the demon Zendor that has no mate and eats human hearts at random to survive.

FBI agent ROBYN WAINRIGHT, assigned to investigate the strange deaths, is still unaware of her past, and determined to nail Westlake, with his mad tales of demons, paranormal powers and his eternal love for her. But the erotic visions she keeps having are driving her insane…

NEW RELEASE

NEW RELEASE

 

Police Officer's Affair with Gangster Moll Jeopardizes Case. The headline blazed from the newspaper lying on Cheryl Richards' front doorstep. When she realizes this is her husband, Brian, they're talking about, she reels and spills her morning coffee. Devastated that her marriage was thrown away for a slut, a gangster moll, who's been passed around by gang members and even done donkey sex shows, Cheryl walks out. But to make matters worse, she must now be isolated in a police safe house, which turns her world upside down.

While in protective custody, Nicky, the gangster moll, finds her rescuer in Brian. Their affair produces what he wants most in life, and hasn't been able to have with Cheryl, a child. Nicky sees this as a way out of her gangster life and lures him into her web of deceit. When Brian, bored with his wife and enticed by Nicky, makes a life altering decision the results are not only catastrophic but potentially deadly.

NEW RELEASE

NEW RELEASE

 

When Jack Brannigan signed on for the week-long, 135-mile horseback ride to chase the ghost of Billy the Kid over the mountains and across the desert in central New Mexico, he expected new challenges. He expected new demands on his wits, his strength, and his stamina. But no man could have expected what Brannigan encountered.

The brochure had offered a mild caution about "elements." For Jack, those elements tested the limits of human endurance. But the brochure had said nothing about kidnapping – nothing about murder. No one had told him about a sadistic rancher who held a beautiful young woman as a slave on a remote ranch in the desert. No one told Jack Brannigan that his ride upon a crazy horse could be the last ride of his life.

DENYSE BRIDGER

Author Interview

 

 

1. When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?
   

I don't know that there was a specific time when I realized I wanted to be a writer – it just sort of always did it. English and literature were my best subjects in school and my imagination was always shaping stories about everything I looked at and heard around me. As long as I can remember, I was spinning stories in my mind when I would encounter something that inspired me, whether it was a song I heard, an image I saw.... or my favourite television show, I'd just create tales. I started writing them down with serious intent to telling the stories about 26-27 years ago, but I've always written in one form or another.

 

1. When did you write your first book and how old were you?
   

My first completed novel was written when I was 23, I think – so a long time ago! J I sent it to the actor who inspired the story and 13 DAYS later while on the set of his television series, he picked up the phone and called me during a break – said he'd just finished reading my gift and it was better than what he was filming at the time. He told me to keep writing, it was obvious I had a gift for it. When you really admire someone and they tell you that about your first serious effort, it stays with you!

 

1. How many books have you written? Which one is your favorite?
   

I've written more books and stories than I can even remember. I never read my own work, so I have no idea if any of them are even worth the time it took to write them, honestly. I leave that decision to the people who read the books. At this point, working from memory and including all the amateur stuff I had published as fan fiction – I've done in the vicinity of 450+ stories, novels, and novellas.

If I was forced to pick a favourite I think it would have to be AS FATE DECREES simply because it's my first internationally published novel, and is available all over the world in bookstores. I just discovered it was for sale in Italy, and for me personally that was very exciting!! FATE was ten years in the making from the time I started writing it until the day we had the launch party at my favourite local bookstore. Amazing experience all the way around...

 

1. What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
   

I work 12-14 hours a day, every day of the year. It's an insane schedule, but it hasn't killed me yet. There is mail first, then newsgroups and lists to check in with, MySpace, Facebook, Fan Page, and website maintainance. Plus, I run an online romance magazine. The days are full, and I often don't get time to write with all the other things that require attention. Somehow it all works itself out with time.

 

1. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
   

The one everyone remarks on – I never read my own books. I never have and I never will, probably. I line read for typos and continuity, but to just sit down and read it as a book – have never done it. I've forgotten half the character names and things I've created... I just keep moving with it all.

 

1. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
   

Ideas come from everywhere. A snatch of overheard conversation, an image I run across. Sometimes a particularly vivid dream. My biggest inspiration is music. I love it, and there is always a "soundtrack" in my mind when I create a story. I can hear a song and it fills my mind with a story...

Information is the second best part of writing – you get to read, watch DVDs, and just learn so much. I love research as much as I love writing.

 

1. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
   

Sleep mostly, it seems like most of my life is connected to what I do in one way or another. I watch shows or movies on DVD, occasionally, and I listen to music at the end of every day to wind down... mostly Italian, and mostly romantic, because it is soothing and creates peace in my mind.

 

1. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
   

That what you write can inspire someone else, and in some cases help them understand things about themselves and those they love. That's one of the best things about it – you can offer your personal life experience through fiction, and maybe save another person a bit of heartache. Wisdom comes with age, and I'm a lot older than many of my readers, so there's an interesting relationship there. Most people find it surprising to get to know me, because I'm sort of a paradox to what I often create.

 

1. What do you think makes a good story?
   

Strong characters that readers can identify with on some level. Even in fantasy, there has to be a core that is reachable to the average reader. If you can't "get into" the book, you can't enjoy it to any great degree, no matter how well written it is. So, humanity has to be present in some form. In romance that is particularly true. Passion is the universal emotion, and if you bring it to the relationship you're creating, it's what everyone responds to. So, good writing makes a difference, but good story-telling is by far more important to reaching the heart of the reader. Let them feel what your characters are feeling, and live it with them... Ultimately, we as story-tellers are entertainers, just like any other artists, so you have to do your job and make someone smile, shiver, think, any and all of those things is the mark of a good job done!

 

1. Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer?
   

Pay attention to the details, and most of all, employ all five of your senses with your writing. This is something I have told many people who have asked this question. A simple thing to do, and I've said "tape it to you computer monitor so you can see it as you work" – ask yourself as you approach the scene – what does it look like, what does it taste like, what do you hear, what do you smell, and most of all, what does it make you feel? Answer those questions and you've got a scene that "lives and breathes" for your reader to experience.

The second thing is to never believe what your best friend or your family tell you about your work – take it out and get an impartial and honest opinion from someone who doesn't love you. They have no vested interest and will not be as reluctant to tell you what is flawed in your book. There is NO SUCH THING as a perfect book, so get that notion out of your head right away, and accept that all books can be improved, and editors are there to help make that happen, not destroy your work. Be open to help offered, and ignore bad reviews!

I guess that's more than one piece of advice, isn't it? Also, feel free to ignore twits like me!! J

Kelly Abell

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Author Interview

KELLY ABELL

 

 

1. When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?
   

I think I've always liked to tell stories from the time I could talk. LOL. I started writing stories in High School for our school Literary Magazine called Sketches. I wrote a series of short stories. I didn't seriously start writing again until 2000 when I started my first novel. The stories and ideas just wouldn't go away.

 

1. When did you write your first book and how old were you?
   

I finished my first book when I was 37. I guess I got started a little later than most. I have kind of a fun story about that. I was a manager for a claims department and I was conducting an evaluation with one of my employees and we began to talk about the creative things we liked to do. He did videos for his church and I always wanted to write a novel. I told him about this book I wanted to get at Barnes and Noble that would help me do that. He came in the next day and brought me a Barnes and Noble gift card and told me to go buy that book and write that novel. I was very touched. (was he sucking up because I was the boss? Probably, but it worked! LOL) I went and bought the book and the rest is history.

 

1. How many books have you written? Which one is your favorite?
   

I have written four three of which are published. Which one is my favorite? Gosh that's like asking which of your children is your favorite. I love them all, but if I had to pick one I'd say my newest novel Captured In Lies is my favorite. It challenged me with the research I had to perform to get it accurate and the villain was so evil that he was a lot of fun to write. He poses a lot of challenges for my hero and they aren't really the typical challenges you find in romantic suspense books.

 

1. What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
   

Because I am busy with a day job I usually have to grab writing time when I can. I try very hard to write from 7pm to 8pm in the evening but it doesn't always work out that way. I have a husband and two busy teens that keep me on the run. Also I grab time on the weekends and whenever I get an hour or two to myself. The important thing I think is to write a little every day. I set myself a word count or say I'm going to write a chapter today before I go to bed. Little goals like that keep me motivated.

 

1. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
   

LOL. I like this question. I've never been asked this before. Let me see…I think I would have to say the way I talk to myself when I write. I talk out loud in the voices of my characters so I can get a feel for how it sounds and if it is in pattern with their personality. My family will often come by my office and ask me who I'm talking to or if I'm on the phone. It has been the source of many good family jokes at my expense! LOL

 

1. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
   

Most of my ideas come from true news stories. The idea for my first published book Sealed In Lies came from a news story that happened in Northern Virginia. A guy broke into a Senator's house and kidnapped his wife. Once he realized who she was he let her go. My crazy mind started wondering, "What would happen if she didn't want to go back home?" and Sealed In Lies was born. I find more often than not that truth really is stranger than fiction and with a few twists and turns can be the fodder for a lot of good novels. I also dream a lot of my ideas. I keep a notebook by my bedside to jot them down as soon as I wake up. The mind of a writer can be a very strange and scary place! LOL

 

1. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
   

I really love to read. Yes, when I'm not writing I'm reading. I also enjoy spending time with my family. We live in Florida near the water and we have a boat so we spend a great deal of time in the sun enjoying watching the dolphins play and swimming.

 

1. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
   

Wow, this is a good question. Hmmm…I think I learned something about myself and that was that I really do have the perseverance and stamina to make it all the way to the end of a book. I learned that you really can visualize the story from start to finish and when you do your writing just flows onto the page like a river to the ocean. The story for Online Angel came from a real life story of a friend of mine and as he told it I began to literally see the book in my mind. We met in Orlando for business one day and by the time I got home I had the entire book outlined in my head. I wrote it in four days. That was truly amazing to me. Granted it was only a novella, but I was just amazed at how it really came together. I love it when that happens.

 

1. What do you think makes a good story?
   

I think it is a combination of plot and characters. You need a compelling plot. One that will draw your readers in and make them want to keep the pages turning, but if your characters are flat the reader won't care about them. You need characters that are interesting and quirky enough that readers can identify with them and fall in love with them. When those to things come together it's gold.

 

1. Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer?
   

I actually have a blog about that called Writing Tips for Writers on my website www.kellyabellbooks.com. I think the most important thing I've learned in the writing process is Do Not Rush. Many times I find myself getting excited when I finish a book and want to rush through the editing process to get it a publisher when I should be taking my time. Let your manuscript breathe for a little while and go on to something else for a week or so, then come back to it with a fresh look. Many times you will see problems with your plot or your characters that you can improve upon that will make your story much stronger.

 

Thank you so much for having me today. I've really enjoyed visiting with you. Stop by and view my books at www.solsticepublishing.com and learn more about me at my website www.kellyabellbooks.com. I love to interact with my readers.

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