Book Trivia: Interview with Historical Fiction Author Douglas W. Jacobson

It’s time to play Book Trivia!  Periodically, we scour the Internet for interesting authors who would like to play Book Trivia with us.  By answering our book trivia questions, we get to learn things about the author no one else knows!  So, let’s get ready…let’s play…Book Trivia!

Today our guest author is Douglas W. Jacobson, author of the historical novel, Night of Flames.

Douglas W. Jacobson is an engineer, business owner and World War Two history enthusiast. Doug has traveled extensively in Europe researching stories of the courage of common people caught up in extraordinary circumstances. His debut novel, Night of Flames: A Novel of World War Two was published in 2007 by McBooks Press, and was released in paperback in 2008. Night of Flames won the “2007 Outstanding Achievement Award” from the Wisconsin Library association. Doug has also published articles on Belgium’s WW2 escape organization, the Comet Line and other European resistance organizations. Doug is finishing up his second historical novel set in Europe during WW2, focusing on one of history’s most notorious war crimes. Doug’s blog can be found at http://douglaswjacobson.blogspot.com.

Thank you for playing Book Trivia with us, Douglas!  Here are your questions:

If Tom Hanks, in the movie Cast Away, unearthed a copy of Night of Flames, how would that help Tom find a way off the island?

This story of personal courage and determination to overcome enormous odds would give Tom the strength he needs to get off the island.

Everyone knows rock star idol Brittany Spears is always in trouble with everything you can think of.  In what way could your book help her and set her life back on track?

Brittany would read about young women her age living in Belgium and Poland under Nazi occupation and despite constant danger and deprivation, found the courage to help other people they didn’t even know. These stories would give Brittany a different perspective on life.

You have a chance to appear on the hit talent show for authors, American Book Idol, with judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Kara DioGuardi determining whether your book will make it to Hollywood and become a big screenplay.  What would impress them more – your book cover, an excerpt or your best review – and why?

Without a doubt, the excerpt, because it is a story of fast-paced action and intrigue that would be absolutely perfect for a screenplay.

They’ve invented a board game using the theme of your book.  What would the title of it be that would be different from your book and which retail store would they place it to make the most sales?

The title would be “Courage” and the best retail stores would be bookstores such as Barnes & Noble and high end retailers like “Macys”

The Arbor Day Foundation has decided to pick one tree in your honor because of your writing brilliance.  What kind of tree is it and why did they choose that tree in relation to your book?

The Bur Oak, because it can survive adverse conditions.

President Barack Obama has become the author of several books and he has requested your presence at a special hush hush meeting to discuss ways to promote it.  Through luck of the draw, you were chosen.  What would be the first thing you would tell Barack?

As an author, you have to be willing to bow your own horn, and not be shy about getting out there and promoting. Although I doubt he’d have any problem with this.

Finally, you just got word that your book has received the 2009 NY Times Bestselling Book Award and you have to attend the ceremony at the Four Seasons Hotel in Manhattan.  Anyone who’s anyone will be there and it’s your shot for stardom.  On stage, you must give an acceptance speech.  What would you say and who would you thank?

I would thank the unlikely heroes of World War Two that inspired me to write the book, especially the young women in Belgium and Poland who put their lives on the line to rescue Allied soldiers that they didn’t even know. And then I’d thank my wife, Janie, for putting up with me during all this.

“After all the edits and tweaks, I fall in love with it again”: Interview with Sheila Roberts, author of Angel Lane

Joining us today is multi-published Sheila Roberts, author of the women’s fiction novel, Angel Lane (St. Martin’s Press).

Writing since 1989, she has had twenty-four books published both in fiction and non-fiction under different names and in different languages. Her books are making best-seller lists on a regular basis and her novel On Strike for Christmas is becoming a Christmas perennial, and will be in the stores again this year for the third year in a row. When she’s not speaking at conferences or hanging out with her girlfriends she can be found writing about those things near and dear to women’s hearts: family, friends, and chocolate.  You can visit her website at www.sheilasplace.com.

Thank you for this interview, Sheila. Can you tell us what your latest book, Angel Lane, is all about?

Sheila: Angel Lane is a about three friends who decide to bring their community together by launching a grass roots good deeds campaign . . . and quickly learn that no good deed goes unpunished. Poor Emma Swanson helps the town mooch and slashes prices at her quilt shop to the point of teetering on extinction. Sarah Goodwin, who is going through granddaughter withdrawals, decides to offer a baking class for local little girls and winds up with a future baker who has very sticky fingers. Oh, yes, and she also finds her new neighbor the lounge lizard is determined to mistake neighborliness for a bad case of Desperate Housewives disease. Jamie Moore, who owns the local chocolate shop, is determined not to fall in love again, but well, you know what they say: never say never. Lost cats, mixed signals, and backfiring good deeds – is it worth it? Absolutely.

Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

Sheila: No. I’ve been doing this for a while. One thing never changes: my process. I start out loving the book, reach a point where I realize I’m working and hate the book, then, finally, after all the edits and tweaks, I fall back in love with it all over again. I’m proud of this book and think it’s both fun and encouraging. In short, a good read! (And I must say, the recipes are fabulous.)

Q: How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

Sheila: Like I said, it was work. But I didn’t experience writer’s block, and I think that is because I had pretty well planned out where I was going. I think writer’s block is often a case of getting lost in your own story. Really knowing where you want to go helps avoid getting lost. Not that things don’t change along the way, but still, when you’ve got your route mapped you can afford to stop and explore some side roads.

Q: How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

Sheila: Too early to know that. I sure hope they will like it. I will say that some of the experiences in the book were based on my own. I have a scene in the book where one of my characters gets bitten by a dog when she’s passing out invitations to the organizational meeting for the “Put the Heart in Heart Lake” campaign. Well, guess who that happened to! I was going around the neighborhood passing out fliers for our first ever community picnic and got bitten by someone’s dog. I felt almost as badly for the dog’s owner as I did for me. (Almost.) The poor woman was mortified. Needless to say, that was the last flier I passed out. Ever.

Q: What is your daily writing routine?

Sheila: I work hard but I don’t have set office hours. I usually get started around mid-morning and then log in about four hours. Or five. Or six. It all depends. I always make a point to schedule my writing around my social life. In September I traveled around Germany with my husband and son. I sat in the backseat and worked on my new book, writing it out long hand in a notebook. This beat looking out the window at all the crazy drivers roaring around us trying to kill us.

Q: When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

Sheila: Oh, wow. So much. I love tennis, volleyball and dancing. I love to go to chick flicks and play games with my girlfriends and snuggle on the couch watching the tube with my hubby. I love to entertain and read and I am addicted to “Dancing with the Stars”.

Q: What book changed your life?

Sheila: The Bible.

Q: If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

Sheila: Dingbats Among Us.

Q: Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

Sheila: Gosh, I don’t think I can answer that. I’m pretty much an open book. Oh, wait. How about this? I tend to speak before I think. (When you talk as much as I do this can happen.) Sooo, if I ever say something dumb, know I’m not really dumb – I’m just not thinking. There is a difference, right? J

Thank you for this interview, Sheila.  I wish you much success on your latest release, Angel Lane!

Interview with Family Plots Author Mary Patrick Kavanaugh

Mary Patrick Kavanaugh recently launched her first novel, Family Plots: Love, Death and Tax Evasion, at an outrageous public funeral event. A writer since the age of eight, Mary’s award winning creative non-fiction has been published in Alligator Juniper, Room of One’s Own, San Jose Mercury News, and the San Francisco Chronicle. Her professional writing has appeared in numerous trade journals. She is the recipient of the nonfiction award from the Soul Making Literary Competition sponsored by the American Pen Women and was awarded writing fellowships at The David and Julia White Artist Colony, Hedgebrook: Women Authoring Change, and The Vermont Studio Center. She has an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from the University of San Francisco.

NOTE: Mary’s altar ego, “Cemetery Mary,” will be hosting a lively Funeral Event and Resurrection Workshop on December 31, 2009, and January 2, 2010. Participants will bury dead dreams, dashed hopes, old habits and grudges to make room for all the good that’s coming in 2010. For information about attending, please visit her blog at www.crapintocompost.com.

Watch the Book Trailer:

http://www.mydreamisdeadbutimnot.com/trailer/trailer.html

Book can be purchased at all the online booksellers, including Amazon.

Mary’s blog can be found at www.CrapIntoCompost.com

Follow her on Twitter @marypatrick

Watch her funeral, or bury your own dead dreams at www.MyDreamIsDeadButImNot.com

Q: Thank you for this interview, Mary. Can you tell us what your latest book, Family Plots: Love, Death and Tax Evasion, is all about?

A: My book is a work of Pulp Faction, a term I coined to best describe a fictional story based on fact. It is about a young single mother and private investigator who falls in love with a criminal attorney, who, it turns out, is committing a few crimes of his own. In an effort to find love and security, she falls into a world of pseudonyms and unexplained cash. Secrets and stashes are revealed as family members make their way to the cemetery, for a permanent place in this family plot.

Q: Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

A: Yes. This is my first novel.

Q: How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

A: Giving birth to this creation was harder and maybe even more expensive than the one I raised and sent to college.

Q: How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

A: People have been wonderful, supportive, rude, fascinating, funny, and everything in between. My most unusal experience was looking up at a reading and seeing a colorful local personality who also turned out to be someone I’d based a character on. I was mortified when she bought a few copies of the book, and then invited me to speak to her writers group. She is a lively character and I knew there was no way she wouldn’t recognize herself in the story, so I raced home, went to each scene she was in, worrying what I’d written would be interpreted as mean or cartoonish. She had a great sense of humor about the matter, and even dressed up exactly like I’d described her character when I arrived to speak to her group. She turned into one of my greatest fans and supporters. I love life’s coincidences.

Q: What is your daily writing routine?

A: Because I am not currently working on a book-length work, my routine is sporatic. I am writing articles and short pieces and do that in spurts. My greatest muse these days is named THE DEADLINE.

Q: When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

A: When I’m into my computer addition, it can be Facebook, one of the most insidious time sucks ever invented. But as a result of a recent mid-life crisis, I’ve also recently installed a stripper pole in my workspace and while I don’t undress, I do spin around the pole a few times, working on my moves. I also like to stretch and eat chocolate.

Q: What book changed your life?

A: Catcher in the Rye and Gone With the Wind. The former because I understood that depressed wise-ass narrators could capture existential angst better than any philosopher, and the latter because I experienced complete absorption into another time and place through good old fashioned melodrama and storytelling.

Q: If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

A: Turning Life’s Crap Into Compost, and I believe I’m writing that book now.

Q: Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

A: I love spaghetti and meatballs almost as much as life itself, but I feel terrible about the loss of life involved. This internal conflict dogs me…

Thank you for this interview, Mary. I wish you much success on your latest release, Family Plots: Love, Death and Tax Evasion.

Interview with Randall Lang, author of Magnificent Man

Randall Lang grew up in the tough coalfields of southwestern Pennsylvania where nothing comes easily. It is a world of limited opportunity and few roles to follow. Dreams are quickly vanquished in the shadows of necessity and creativity is usually buried beneath an avalanche of cynicism.  However, epiphanies come in all shapes, sizes, and in a wide range of locations. In the dark and quiet world of the underground worksite, the stories within him began to take form. Years later, Randall Lang is the author of eight books of erotic stories published by Renaissance E Books, has contributed to two erotic anthologies, and the recently released Magnificent Man, an erotic romance published by Midnight Showcase. Randall’s erotic works include the five volume Trailer Park Nights series and three books of erotic short stories. These are available at http://shop.renebooks.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=120. His newest release, Magnificent Man, is available from Midnight Showcase at http://www.midnightshowcase.com/MagniMan.htm. See the book trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv3T4zXq_Lo.  Visit Randall’s website, The Worlds of Randall Lang, www.randalllang.com.Or his blog, The Mind of Randall Lang, www.randalllang.blogspot.com. It’s a strange place to be. Randall now lives historically on an historic island in historic Wheeling, West Virginia.

Thank you for this interview, Randall. Can you tell us what your latest book, Magnificent Man, is all about?

Firstly let me thank you for inviting me here today. Magnificent Man is the story of Cassandra, a struggling single Mother, who takes a chance to better her family’s future. On her way home she is rescued from dangerous thugs by a large, handsome man on a motorcycle. He agrees to take her home after he completes his work at reservations and small villages in the southwest. It is during this journey that she realizes what a special man Coyote is. Coyote and Cassandra resist the ever-growing attraction between them, but ultimately they surrender to their love.

Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel been different from writing your first?

I have been writing contemporary heterosexual erotica for about ten years and this is my ninth published novel. For several years I have felt a bit ‘illegitimate’ for writing wrotica. While I was not ashamed of what I was writing, I avoided author interviews and I did not even know to whom I should market what I wrote. After spending more time on the internet chat loops with heavy-duty romance writers such as Brenna Lyons and Morgan Ashbury, I developed the desire to write something more ‘mainstream’. An idea had been haunting me that combined a strong, anachronistic hero with a capable but in need of a break heroine in a hostile but beautiful environment. That idea became Magnificent Man, my current release. To answer your question specifically, I believe that this novel is better written and more polished that my earlier works. Having an editor helps to eliminate those problems that an author does not recognize as problems.

How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

I have this inertia problem. Once I make a credible start I am able to keep pushing until it is finished, but that start is the critical thing. Magnificent Man started with an idea for a hero, then a setting, and finally a story. It took off well, but I quickly hit a wall because I had never been to the American southwest. After spending time in Arizona and New Mexico actually visiting places where I was an obvious stranger, I developed a feeling for the land and its people. After that, the novel began to flow. There were a few times when I simply couldn’t picture the next step in the novel. I wanted to keep it moving so I skipped ahead and wrote scenes that I knew would be included later in the story. That helped a lot and made it rather easy to connect up the scenes.

How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

My feedback has been limited. What I have received both from readers and reviewers has been very positive. What surprised me was the enthusiastic reception for Frank Sancho, a secondary character in the book. Some readers found him so interesting that they asked about a sequel written about him. That was completely unexpected. Another unusual thing that happened after I finished Magnificent Man (so I thought),occurred when I asked my friend Morgan Ashbury to read through the book and give me her opinion. Morgan has been an award winning writer for many years and I seriously wanted her input. She returned the manuscript fully edited, but the big surprise was a note stating, “This is NOT the ending! You do NOT leave romance readers hanging with a (expletive deleted) ending like this!” That put my head back into gear and my butt back in the chair. The ending was revised until Morgan approved.

What is your daily writing routine?

A: It is more like a nightly writing routine. I am nocturnal by nature and my best hours are from eight in the evening until about four A.M. Inside and outside are quieter and the mind can be more free. If things are cooking along and the story is flowing, I may work all night. It’s just really nice to have that option.

When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

I enjoy bicycling. Please do NOT misunderstand, I’m NOT one of those characters in the spandex suits with the silly little plastic hats. My blog post “Some Serious Spandex” lampoons them. http://randalllang.blogspot.com/2009/04/some-serious-spandex.html .  I’m just a plodder in jeans and tee shirt grinding away the miles on any of the wonderful rails-to-trails conversions that exist all over the country. We have two excellent trails here in Wheeling, several nearby in Pennsylvania, and more (as of yet unexplored) in Ohio.

I also enjoy kayaking. I must admit that I’m a ‘wimp-water’ kayaker rather than a Mountain Dew swilling white-water’ kayaker who is  out playing in waterfalls and protruding rocks. But I do enjoy four or five hours of quietly drifting down a scenic river.

What book changed your life?

Not so much a book as an author. I’m actually hooked on history, and in particular local history. Much of my working life was spent in and around the coal mining industry. One of my favorite writers is Homer Hickam, author of Rocket Boys, the book that became the movie October Sky, http://www.homerhickam.com/. He has numerous published books and many of them are about his youth in Coalwood, a small company town deep in southern West Virginia. I had met his Father, a mine supervisor featured in several of his books, and I was familiar with the town and its people. Reading Homer’s work taught me that an author could write an interesting and captivating story in plain words. Before that, I had assumed that authors had to have a PhD in literature from an Ivy League college and be fluent in four languages before they could write a book. Homer opened the mental doors that had held me back.

If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

It would be called Doing the Right Thing. Despite my failings and rather shady lifestyle, I always attempted to do the right things in life, and I tried to treat people with courtesy and respect.

Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

Oh gosh this kind of thing is difficult. Here it comes, stripped to the bone! I’m not arrogant or stand-offish, I’m shy. That may be hard to believe of a veteran public speaker, stage performer, and professional group president, but it is true. I welcome meeting people, but I have a problem remembering names and that is embarrassing and awkward. I recognize the same trait in other people and it is more common that most people expect.

Thank you for this interview Randall.  I wish you much success on your latest release, Magnificent Man!

Thank you for inviting me, it has been a pleasure.

Interview with F.W. vom Scheidt, author of Coming for Money

F. W. vom Scheidt is a director of an international investment firm. He works and travels in the world’s capital markets, and makes his home in Toronto, Canada.  He is also the author of a new book, Coming for Money (Blue Butterfly Book Publishing), a remarkable and provocative novel about the world of international finance and the human quests for success, understanding and love.  You can visit his website at http://www.bluebutterflybooks.ca/titles/money.html.

Thank you for this interview, F.W. Can you tell us what your latest book, Coming for Money, is all about?

Coming For Money is a novel about the world of international finance and the human quests for success, understanding and love. Because it reflects the questions that I continually ask about life, it is provocative. It is also fast-paced, honest, and deeply felt. The central character is a man caught between the unrelenting demands of imminent success or failure in his career, and his private heartbreak over the loss of love in his life.

The story focuses on an investment executive, Paris Smith. As he steps onto the top rungs of the corporate ladder, he is caught between his need for fulfillment and his need for understanding; between his drive for power and his inability to cope with his growing emptiness where there was once love. When his wife disappears from the core of his life, his loneliness and sense of disconnection threaten to overwhelm him. When he tries to compensate by losing himself in his work, he stumbles off the treadmill of his own success, and is entangled in the web of a fraudulent bond deal that threatens to derail his career and his life.

Forced to put his personal life on hold while he travels nonstop between Toronto, Singapore and Bangkok to salvage his career, he is deprived of the time and space to mourn the absence of his wife and regain his equilibrium.

In the heat and turmoil and fast money of Southeast Asia, half a world from home, and half a life from his last remembered smile, he finds duplicity, friendship and power — and a special woman who might heal his heart.

It’s a deeply felt story about the isolation of today’s society, the prices great and small paid for success and the damages resulting from the ruthless exercise of financial power. It is also a story about a man who refuses to capitulate to the darkness in his journey into the light.

Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

It is the first of my writing that I have wanted to be widely circulated. I have always been a writer, always written. Always. But I have also had a successful career outside of writing. There was nothing different about this writing except the larger collaborative effort of interacting with the editing and production team of my publisher.

How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

I did not find it difficult to structure, plot or complete my novel. I have been fortunate to have a life rich in experience. My task, as I saw it, was always to maintain my focus on writing truthfully.

I never experienced writers block. Far from it, the demands and responsibilities of my career always left me with insufficient time to write; so I always came to the writing with pent up writing within me … and pent up need to write.

How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

To date, my primary fans have been editors who have followed my literary writing set in the non-literary world of international finance. They have always been supportive and encouraging, and always patiently promoted that I bring a book to print.

I’ll hope, now I that have released this novel, it will receive support and understanding, and find new fans, among my readers.

What is your daily writing routine?

I have no daily writing routine.

I work in the international financial markets where there is no typical day.

In fact there really isn’t even a day; money never sleeps … and there is always a market open somewhere 24-7.

I write when I can.

When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

I have significant responsibilities in my daily work.

I write when I put down everything else.

What book changed your life?

In some small way, every book I have ever read has left something in my life.

If I actually had to name a favorite book, it would be Ernest Hemingway’s Islands In The Stream.

If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

I honestly don’t know how to answer that question.

Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

There is no one thing that is true … it’s all true.

Thank you for this interview F.W.  I wish you much success!

Meggie’s Remains: Interview with Historical Romance Author Joanne Sundell

Born in a tiny hospital in rural Virginia, tucked snugly away in a bureau drawer, Joanne ever cherishes her country beginnings. Fond memories of toddling along after her older sisters along the Appalachian Trail, catching tadpoles in the local creek bed, chasing after lightening bugs, or falling asleep to the evening hum of katydids, remain with her still, despite the family move to more urban Arlington where Joanne spent her formative school years, and then on to Richmond for college. Though nursing was her chosen vocation, her chosen avocation has ever been the romance novel. Joanne grew up reading romance, falling in love with heroes and heroines from Regency England to the American West, from London’s pubs to Colorado’s ski slopes, loving that moment when the hero and heroine meet and fall in love. That moment to Joanne is the moment when Jane Eyre meets Edward Rochester, when Elizabeth Bennett meets Mr. Darcy—that’s the heart-stopping, passionate moment for Joanne in romance. That moment is what led Joanne to attempt traditional, old-fashioned, historical romance. Her first sale was in 2005 and since then, she’s sold five more historical romances to Five Star-Gale, Cengage Learning, in their Expressions line. Her books have been reviewed nationally by such notables as Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, Library Journal, and Romantic Times. With her three children grown and off on their own adventures, Joanne now lives part-time in Colorado and in California with her husband and their entourage` of felines and huskies. Joanne’s writing groups include Romance Writers of America, Colorado Romance Writers, Los Angeles Romance Writers, Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and Women Writing the West. You can visit her on the web at www.joannesundell.com.

Thank you for this interview, Joanne.  Can you tell us what your latest book, Meggie’s Remains, is all about?

Meggie’s Remains is a love story—a romantic suspense in which the heroine struggles with far more than meeting the man of her dreams.  In fact, she’s scared to death when she does.  Why?  That’s the question I hope to answer in this novel.  I hope to peel away the pretty layers in classic, romantic theme and character, and show the not-so-pretty events that can happen—the dark, complex, emotional path a heroine’s life can take, suddenly, without warning, and with no guarantee of survival.

Afraid of men, afraid for her sins, afraid for her sanity, and right now afraid for her life, Meggie McMurphy flees Boston once the fiendish terror so long stalking her in nightmares surfaces in the light of day.  She escapes west to Denver, in the wild Colorado Territory, hoping to lose herself among the multitude of townsfolk.  The year is 1874.

Twenty-five years old, alone, and near penniless, Meggie struggles to find honest work and to keep the dark secrets of her past just that:  secret.  Not so easily done when the handsome, formidable westerner Ethan Rourke stumbles upon her on a snowy Denver street.  Why it’s as if he’d stepped right out of the pages of her beloved novel, Jane Eyre! Safe to encounter such a man on the page, it is certainly unsafe, even deadly, for her to encounter such a man in the flesh.  Men belong . . . six feet under, six feet away . . . where to stay safe, the devil must stay!

Hired as a teacher, not in Denver, but in an isolated mountain town in rugged Ute country, Meggie is determined to make a home for herself in Hot Sulphur Springs.  There she keeps up her masquerade as Rose Rochester, yearning for a normal life, for companionship and even love—all the while knowing it’s only a matter of time until the monstrous changeling from her nightmares will find her, killing any possibility of a life at all. ~

Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel differed from writing your first?

Meggie’s Remains is my first completed manuscript and fourth sale.  I spent many years crafting and re-crafting my first manuscript; at last finishing it yet hesitant to submit.  It’s common for our first manuscripts to be our worst and so I waited until I’d written several more books, and then sold three, before re-crafting Meggie’s Remains and then taking the plunge into submission.  It still needed three re-writes!  Lucky for me, my publisher, Five Star-Gale (now a part of Cengage Learning), remained patient, walking me through the editorial process.

How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

I love this question because it gives me an opportunity to say that Meggie’s Remains was my first completed manuscript—you know, the one it takes years to write, and then re-write—all in an attempt to “get it right.”  I loved reading historical romance and it followed that I would love to try and write my own historical romance.  With a focus on history as well as the love story, I spent a good deal of time researching Colorado history and had files and files and charts and charts and outlines upon outlines going before I set down the first word.  I should back up a bit here.  This is how I write now.  With my first manuscript, because I worked on it so long, my recall is a bit fuzzy on detail (which a writer should never admit).  I can tell you that I’ve never had a day of writer’s block on any of my books.  Writing historical romance, so much has to be in place before the first word is ever set down.  Given enough history gathered, the characters are born out of that history, and tend to write their own stories!

How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

Too soon to tell.  A few readers have contacted me, expressing their thumbs up, which brings a smile, of course!

One comes to mind.  At a recent signing, a man waltzed by me then turned around and re-approached.  He picked up my book off the signing table, looked at me and said … “Hasn’t this all been done before?”  Like so many men who eschew romance, he spoke his heart.  Well … it gave me an “in” to speak mine and we ended up have a great chat.  I might not have won a sale from him that day, but I think I won him over to have a bit more respect for historical romance!

What is your daily writing routine?

When I’m working on a project, after all of my research is organized, collected, and at-the-ready, I write early in the morning from 6:00 to 11:00.  I might have another writing spurt in the afternoon, but most of my energy and creative juices give out by noon.  I’m a morning person, for certain!

When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

I take my huskies for a junket, whether on mountain trails in Colorado, or sporting trails in California.  We keep each other motivated to exercise and move, move, move!

What book changed your life?

Charlotte Bronte’s, Jane Eyre.  I was hooked on romance from the first read of the first page!

If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

The Country Girl

Finish this sentence:  “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is …”

“…that I hate change and wish I could keep my urchins close, no matter their age; my friends close, no matter their distance; keeping those I cherish only a glance away.”

Thank you, Joanne.  I wish you much success on your latest release, Meggie’s Remains.

Thank YOU, for this opportunity today!

Interview with Christian Fiction Author Jimmy Root, Jr.

Jimmy Root Jr., author of Distant Thunder: Book One of the Lightning Chronicles is a life-long student of Bible prophecy and has connected ancient prophecies with world events in a fast-paced fiction thriller. Jimmy has been an ordained Pastor since 1982 and has served churches in Nebraska and Missouri. He and his family also served for five years in Colombia, South America as a church planter and educator. He is an alumnus of Central Bible College of Springfield, Missouri, and Southeastern University of Lakeland, Florida majoring in Theology and Cultural Studies. Raised in the Mid-West, Jimmy is an outdoorsman and sports enthusiast. He is an aficionado of the military thriller genre and is an avid blogger as well as an author. More can be discovered about Distant Thunder and the Lightning Chronicles series by visiting his website at: www.lightningchronicles.com.  He also hosts a blog dealing with current world events and their relationship to Bible prophecy at: www.prophecyaler.blogspot.com, as well as a writer’s blog at: www.lightningchronicles.blogspot.com.

Q: Thank you for this interview, Jimmy. Can you tell us what your latest book, Distant Thunder, is all about?

A:   You are Welcome. Distant Thunder is the first book of a Prophetic Fiction trilogy called The Lightning Chronicles. The story poses a question that I believe needs to be asked: What would happen if radical terrorists somehow got their hands on tactical nuclear weapons, and then used them against both America and Israel? It is a frightening scenario that is becoming more and more plausible in light of current world events. But in the midst of unimaginable terror and tragedy, two unsung heroes rise to extraordinary heights as they begin to understand that everything has been prophesied.

Two main characters form the storylines of Distant Thunder. Moshe Eldan is an Israeli F-16 “Lightning” fighter pilot who is doing his best to defend his country against the latest cycle of attacks. Unbeknownst to him, the greatest horror imaginable is waiting in the form of a nuclear tipped missile. Moshe finds himself in an unlooked for journey toward faith as he attempts to save his people.

The other character is a man named Ty Dempsey. His story is a bit closer to home. He is a suburban Kansas City pastor who, in working through the grief of losing his younger brother to the war in Iraq, has begun to discover the ancient prophecies of Ezekiel. So enthralled is he by the information that he preaches the prophecies to his congregation. Some of his people listen and are interested. Others, however, do not want the status quo of their comfortable lives challenged by something they consider allegorical in nature. A good old fashioned church conflict ensues. Ty decides to stay the course in face of tremendous opposition and is ultimately vindicated when nearby Kansas City is the target of a terrorist attack. Moshe and Ty become connected throughout the story in strange, spiritual ways that will only increase as the series progresses.

Q: Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

A:  Yes, Distant Thunder is my first novel, and what a blast it was to write it and see it published.

Q: How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

A:  It was not difficult at all, at least not until the editor got hold of it. Then the writing got serious. It was truly an exhilarating experience. I never experienced writer’s block during the process. I think that is because a large part of writing involves research. I might get hung up in the story simply because I need to delve a little deeper into what is between the lines of the story, but it all flows as the details fall into place.

Q: How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

A:  Very much so. With a first novel, one never knows how it is going to be received. But so far, I have had nothing but positive and exciting feedback. The funniest came from a US Air Force fighter pilot who also served as a combat instructor. Much of Distant Thunder revolves around an Israeli F-16 fighter pilot complete with several segments of air-to-air combat. This particular pilot picked up the book with skepticism written all over his face. You see, I have never even touched a fighter plane, let along fly one. I’m not a pilot. All I have is a computer flight simulator. But not three weeks went by before this guy emailed me with a one liner. “I can’t believe you nailed it.” The next time I saw him he just shook his head. Since then, other pilots have commented that the aerial sequences are accurate and thrilling.

Q: What is your daily writing routine?

A:  There’s no doubt that writing takes discipline. However, I am also a full-time Pastor of a vibrant congregation. That takes up the bulk of my days and weeks. Therefore, I have been forced to carve out my noon hour specifically for writing on my novels, and my evening or early morning times for working on my blogs.

Q: When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

A: Oddly, writing for me is relaxing. But I also have a few hobbies. I love to fish and hunt. Gardening is a great source of peace and quiet, and I am a passionate football fan.

Q: What book changed your life?

A: As with most students I had to read many of the classics during my high school years. But when I was 17 years old, my dad gave me a set of books called The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings. I was hooked. That was thirty-three years ago, and since then, I have read Tolkien’s masterpiece nineteen or twenty times. What a work of art!

Q: If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

A:  That’s a great question, and difficult to answer, mainly because I’m not that introspective. So, as with any wise man, I consulted my wife. Here is her response concerning the title of my life. “Saddle-up Your Horse: We’ve Got a Trail to Blaze.”  I suppose that fits. I am a self-starter, am self-motivated, and love to create.

Q: Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

A:  “…I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I believe and live that verse. It is my driving force.

Thank you for this interview Jimmy.  I wish you much success on your latest release, Distant Thunder!

Interview with JD Seamus, Author of Mystery Novel, Last Call

JD Seamus was born and spent his early childhood in one of the worst ghettos of Belfast before immigrating to the US at the tender age of eight. One of nine brothers, he is the only survivor today.

Seamus was raised by his uncle, a sergeant with the NYPD, in the rough Five Points section of New York. He joined his local neighborhood gang shortly after his arrival in the US and began participating in minor illegal activities only to discover that he was a terrible criminal. He was demoted to look-out because of his slow running ability then demoted again after his gang peers discovered he was legally blind. He was demoted again and given the job of administrator where he negotiated with neighborhood fences. He was told by the gang leaders to continue his education as he was a very poor criminal, and did. It worked out well. He remains close to the remnants of his original gang who later in life became Mafia Dons and Capos, a Rabbi, two Catholic Priests and a Bishop, Captains of Industry, movie stars, TV personalities and sports heroes.

Upon completing his education, JD worked on Wall Street initially then began a venture capital firm and a hedge fund simultaneously. He retired early but still runs a small mutual fund for his friends. Being Irish he has the gift of gab and began his writing career at the insistence of friends.

Last Call is his first novel but certainly not the last as he has four completed novels waiting in the wings. He now lives in Central Florida with his wife and two dogs and is working on novel number six. He is a lifelong Braves and Jaguar fan and bleeds either blue or teal depending on the season.

His website is www.jdseamusbooks.com.

Q: Thank you for this interview, JD. Can you tell us what your latest book, Last Call, is all about?

A: A reviewer, and I don’t recall who, described Last Call as Cheers meets the Sopranos. It’s a book about a diverse group of people who ban together to help a friend. The book actually started as a dark comedy but it really lightened along the way.

I wrote it because I’ve always admired loyalty and this groups loyalty was stretched to the limit.

Q: Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

A: Yes

Q: How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

A: As a first book I didn’t know what to expect. Seemed easy, it wasn’t.

To combat writers block, I did research. Of course, a book that is based in a bar requires mass quantities of beer which meant I had to exercise frequently to break even on the weight thing.  Kids don’t try this at home.

Q: How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

A: I am absolutely surprised how well the book has been embraced. I was fully ready to embrace them back but was really let down when I discovered that writers don’t have groupies.

Q: What is your daily writing routine?

A: I’m an early riser and a morning person so I’m generally up before 4 am. This is peak writing time for me. After walking my dogs, I’ll usually write for 3-4 hours, then have breakfast and either go for a walk or go to the gym. Early afternoon I’ll put in 4-5 more hours but it’s not as productive as the early morning. I’ve learned to not force it. If it isn’t there, it isn’t there. I’ll find something else to do that day. Some days it just flows and you go with it. It could last 12-18 hours and you finally wake up as if from a trance.

Q: When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

A: Sports. I’m a big Atlanta Braves baseball fan. I pull for the Jaguars during football season.

Q: What book changed your life?

A: Some of the early Elmore Leonard stuff. I discovered that is was legal to primarily use dialogue.

Q: If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

A: If it’s fun, do it. My life is one big comedy.

Q: Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

A: I’m rarely serious. If I’m serious, I’m mad, so move.

Thank you for this interview, JD.  I wish you much success on your latest release, Last Call!

Interview with Mystery Romance Author Kim Smith

Kim Smith is the author of the popular Shannon Wallace Mystery Series, and A Will to Love is her first published romance story. You can find her at http://www.mkimsmith.com at her blog http://writingspace.blogspot.com and on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/mkimsmith and Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/mkimsmith

Q: Thank you for this interview, Kim. Can you tell us what your latest book, A Will to Love, is all about?

A: Sure! A Will to Love came to me when I learned a local bed and breakfast was going out of business. The ownership of that little place has a sort of sad history as the first owner’s wife passed away from being a victim of the Chicago Amtrak crash in 1999. She was buried in a little cemetery on the property. For some reason, hearing of it going out of business made me sad and I remembered the woman who died and who probably loved that place a lot. She was the catalyst for the story. Benton and Kitty were creations out of my own mind.

Q: Is this your first novel?  If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

A: No it is not my first novel. It is my first published romance story though. Writing romance is different for me because I never thought I would be any good at it. I have had a great marriage for nigh on 17 years and have someone who spoils me rotten. Writing romance should have conflicts and trials that make the relationship stronger and well, what can I say? My marriage is a very happy, hardly ever conflictual arrangement. Go figure I would wanna write romance!

Q: How difficult was it writing your book?  Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

A: It wasn’t difficult at all. I do not know why but sometimes great characters just COME to me. They pop out and begin talking to me and all I can do is just hang on for the ride. Benton Jessup was one of those. He came as a very broken man, with determination to succeed. And Kitty Beebe is already very successful and just hoping to continue. They just worked out well together and writing them was fun.

Q: How have your fans embraced your latest novel?  Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

A: So far the reception has been super. The reviews are coming in and all of them are very positive. I think that my fans think maybe writing mystery is not all I can do. I hope that is true because I intend on surprising my fans again very soon with a totally different twist.

Q: What is your daily writing routine?

A: Right now, I am being a lot more devoted. I am turning out four or five pages a day in the hopes of keeping up with one of my good writing buddies. She and I are going to write together (not the same book) and edit together and then submit together for an agent. Who knows where that will lead? It’s fun and challenging though to know I have to get my page count out every day.

Q: When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

A: I have just gotten an Iphone and it has games. Oh my goodness and everything else! I am having trouble keeping it charged because I use it so much. I also am a photographer and love taking pics.

Q: What book changed your life?

A: Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series. Those books are so much what I hope to aspire to one day. She entertains, and educates all at the same time. Who could ask for a better way to learn how to write?

Q: If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

A: A Bridge Over Troubled Waters – because I try so hard to help others get the word out about their work. My family sometimes thinks I neglect my own stuff in deference to others. It’s really fun though, and I am just a writer groupie as everyone knows!

Q: Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

A: I am not the characters in my books. I do not get implicated in murder, break into houses, own restaurants or b and b places. I am just a normal old southern gal, with a desire to entertain.

Thank you for this interview, Kim.  I wish you much success on your latest release, A Will to Love!

Interview with J.R. Hauptman, author of The Target

J.R. Hauptman, author of The Target; Love, Death and Airline Deregulation, has been a professional pilot for nearly a half century. Barely twenty years old, he began as a military pilot and for almost two years he flew combat support missions in the Viet Nam War. Upon leaving military service he was hired by a major airline and was initially based on the West Coast. His flying career was interrupted by the turmoil that racked the airline industry during the early days of deregulation. In the interim, he worked as a travel agent, a stockbroker and even trained dogs and horses. In the late nineteen-eighties, he returned to aviation, flying jet charters and air freight. He concluded his career flying corporate jets and now spends his summers in Colorado and winters in Florida. He is completing his second work, a non-fictional social commentary. Autographed copies of The Target are available at his marketing website, www.caddispublishing.com.  It is also available through Xlibris, Amazon and other internet marketers.

Thank you for this interview, J.R.  Can you tell us what your latest book, The Target; Love, Death and Airline Deregulation, is all about?

J.R.: My book, The Target, is set in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West, and tells the tale of the tumultuous first years of airline deregulation and the effects it had on that industry and the people who worked there. There are many of us today who believe it was, in large part, the rush to overall deregulation back then that led directly to the economic chaos that threatens to overwhelm our entire economy today.

In the nineteen-eighties, Carlo Clemenza was known as “the most hated man” in the airline business, as described by some pundits. A dedicated corporate raider and union buster, Clemenza uses ruthless tactics to crush competing airlines and to bring airline workers to heel. His methods earned him many death threats, yet he struts with arrogance, surrounded by his cadre of security toughs.

Thousands of pilots and other airline professionals find themselves forced to start their careers over or find them at a sudden and complete end. The airline grapevine echoes with the cry, “Why doesn’t someone kill that SOB?”

Only one pilot, angered by the deaths of his friends in a bloody crash, takes up the chase and he makes Carlo Clemenza The Target! His quest will take him to the far corners of the country as he also finds himself the object of pursuit and murder. The characters merge in spectacular action and settings and the climax of the story ultimately ends in redemption.

Is this your first novel? If not, how has writing this novel different from writing your first?

J.R.:  Yes, this is my first novel and I suppose I should explain why it took over twenty years to complete the book and bring it to market. I developed the concept and wrote the first three or four chapters in a “fury,” in the few weeks before my return to professional aviation. Writing in a “fury” was advised by one of the contemporary guides to authors. At the time, I had no idea how the story would turn out, but as it was to be, my experiences over the next years in the underworld of aviation, would provide much of the material I used to develop and complete the book.

How difficult was it writing your book? Did you ever experience writer’s block and, if so, what did you do?

J.R.: Once I returned to flying, the hardest part was finding time, more so, finding the energy to write creatively. I had no more than landed a charter job and finished initial training and the airline folded. I found another charter job in Las Vegas and I had once again just finished retraining and a better offer from an airfreight operator came through. I hated to leave on such short notice but at these levels of aviation, you soon learn to play by the “laws of the jungle.” Flying night airfreight turned out to be a “jungle” of its own, but the money was good and I was grateful for the opportunity. I was also fortunate to make steadfast friends there, many of whom were like me, refugees from deregulation with all its bankruptcies and hostile takeovers. We used to joke that flying night freight and camping out in our “crash pads” was not unlike our combat experiences in Viet Nam. By the time I hit mandatory retirement age, which at that time was sixty, I had managed to develop my story line and had a realistic climax in mind.

I suppose it was a convenient form of writer’s block that kept me from completing my first draft at that time but I had the excuse that I had to go through training on the corporate jets I now flew for my new employer. It wasn’t until a medical condition came up a few years later that I had to face the fact that the end of my flying days was probably in sight. Finishing this book was still one of my main lifetime goals and the truth was that even if I would never see a financial return from writing, I had to do it while I could afford to do so, and before I became entangled in another career. I managed to attain that state of writing “fury” that characterized my first efforts. The rest, as they say folks, is or will become, “history.”

How have your fans embraced your latest novel? Do you have any funny or unusual experiences to share?

I directed my first marketing efforts at my fellow professional pilots and although the first response was good, I was surprised to find a much more positive response from retired non-flying airline personnel, the ticket agents and mechanics who wanted to relive some of their experiences from the old days. It is always fun to share some of those stories when we meet personally. Look for my “Best flying story ever” when I get my blog set up and running.

What is your daily writing routine?

J.R.: I try to always carry a scratch pad when I am out and around to jot down ideas and stories from the past or present that relate to one of my projects. These I place in a pile on my desk and insert them into outlines as soon as possible. I like to develop an outline early into a project. An independent operator like me has to be involved in promotion. At the present most of my time has to be devoted to blogs, interviews and reviews. Outlining helps me to keep it all in balance and for that matter, to balance the writing itself. It provides a good feeling for how much text should be devoted to a particular sub plot or event and it certainly helps me to return to writing when my mental process is interrupted. It allows me to write into the wee hours when I am most tired and spacey but probably at my most creative.

When you put the pen or mouse down, what do you do to relax?

J.R.: In Florida I go surfing every day I can. I made a stand-up paddle board to use on the flat or small surf days, so I can be in shape for the days when the waves get good. In Colorado I play drop-in hockey with guys and gals of all ages and especially with the “Olde Tymers.” I have many friends in both sports and the funny thing is their personalities are interchangeable between the two groups; the surfers would fit right in with the hockey players and vice versa. I love them all. They are the kind of people who will never give on living life to the fullest. We joke that if any of the old hockey guys die on the ice, we’ll just tie him up in the goal to stop shots and we can keep him cool till the session is over. If I die in the surf break, I just hope it doesn’t hurt too much and that they just leave me out there for a while to keep the sharks away from the other surfers. I tell my friends that revenge will come to me when they recognize themselves in my next book, and this will come true!

What book changed your life?

J.R.: As an author, the first chapter of A Farewell to Arms, consisting of two pages of the most beautifully crafted writing ever set down in print, is that to which I will ever aspire. In 1964, I read Dalton Trumbo’s Johnnie Got His Gun just a few months before I left for my first tour in Viet Nam and I hated it. In time it became the central focus of my personal farewell to arms. I am no pacifist and I will defend my family, friends and country with my last drop of blood and with my last drop of ink I will fight to prevent my grandchildren from becoming fodder for any chicken hawk politician’s expeditionary martial fantasy.

I recently discovered the writings of Reinhold Niebuhr, early Twentieth Century conservative writer, whose philosophy was totally alien to the current crop of neo-conservative warmongers and the thieving buccaneers of Wall Street.

If someone were to write a book on your life, what would the title be?

J.R.: “The World’s Most Amazing Recoveries!”

Finish this sentence: “The one thing that I wish people would understand about me is…”

J.R.:  “that I constantly endeavor to think outside the box and to convert those thoughts to prose that will convince others.”

Thank you for this interview J.R. I wish you much success on your latest release, The Target; Love, Death and Airline Deregulation.

You can pick up a copy of J.R. Hauptman’s latest novel, The Target, at these fine online stores:

Amazon

Target

You can also pick up a copy at the publisher’s website here.