Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I just published book number six! Yay me! I’ve given several of these interviews and nothing changes. I grew up in mid-Missouri on the north side of the Missouri River. I have lived on the south side of the Missouri River since I married my husband almost 37 years ago. He is a fifth-generation farmer and we continue the ‘family enterprise’, these days, raising cattle and crop farming several hundred acres. We have two grown sons who are married to two wonderful women and we have the two most fantastic grandchildren in the entire world.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Time to Deceive (Sweet Pea II) will be available for pre-order from Oct. 5-thru-Oct. 7, 2017. Oct. 7 is the official release date. Price is just 99 cents
Description of the Sweet Pea Trilogy: To one man she gave her virginity; to another she gave her heart. One, she would mourn. With the other, she would share life’s triumph and turmoil. With both, she would endure times of love, and passion and complete happiness as well as times of despair, confusion, and sorrow. One day at a time—each day, building unforgettable memories.
Sweet Pea II: Time to Deceive (1973-74): Getting married means you’re going to live happily ever after with your true love. Right? Unfortunately, for Johnie, the first thing she learns after marrying Phil is the necessity of deception as she conceals her love for Jake. Fate continues its cruel intervention when members of Johnie’s family meet untimely death and Jake returns to mourn the loss of his sister. Jake and Johnie reunite briefly, painfully, in determination to adopt their four-year-old nephew, B.J. Together, they tackle the on-going vengeance of Phil’s sister, Brenda. Johnie’s dream of happiness becomes a nightmare where Brenda cackles while Johnie boils naked in a cauldron of pea green soup. Because of Marsha’s return and steadfast loyalty, Johnie is able to endure even the most unthinkable.
This is the blurb for Demise of Innocence (AVAILABLE FREE Oct. 5,6,7 2017!)
Sweet Pea I: The Demise of Innocence (1968-70): At seventeen Johnie is no longer a child but still full of virgin innocence—and defiance. Her final year of high school isn’t exactly a picnic as she endures the untimely deaths of two friends and a rocky relationship with a jealous boyfriend. A third friend disappears on Prom Night. The summer after graduation, she encounters her first ‘real’ love and the loss of her virginity to a soldier bound for Viet Nam. By fall, she discovers the world of factory employment. As fate intervenes in every avenue of her life, throughout the harsh winter of 1970, she learns growing up involves a lot more than physical loss of her virginity.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t consider anything about myself unusual. I’m just me that writer-nut who stays up till nearly dawn when the muse hits. Actually, I do my best writing between 10 PM and 4 AM
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I have several favorite authors such as Katheleen E. Woodiewiss (author of my favorite book of all time, Ashes in the Wind) and Nora Roberts, Sandra Brown, Sherrilynn Kenyon, John Bowers, Newt Gingrich, Dan Brown. I read both fiction and non-fiction. Lately, I have concentrated on the work of Indie writers, like myself
What are you working on now?
In November I plan to publish number three of the Sweet Pea Trilogy. I am currently still working on edit/corrections/rewrites for it
Sweet Pea III: The Price of Passion (1984-1990)
Time has come and gone, years pass, Johnie’s children are growing and she has learned to accept her parents’ untimely death. Her friendship with Marsha continues to thrive. By the time ‘the 70’s’ become ‘the 80’s’, Johnie has also built an enduring relationship with her mother-in-law, Amie. Her marriage to Phil is a sham. Although they tried, they were never able to rekindle the trust they once shared. All those years, a secret part of Johnie’s soul survives. Then, Jake returns and fate strikes several more dramatic blows. Once again, everything changes.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I believe interviews like these and those promotional websites (such as Awesome Gang and Pretty Hot.com, Book Reader Magazine, Book Goodies, etc) go a long way to promote authors and their published work. It also helps to belong to a number of writer groups such as The Heartland Writers Guild or FaceBook groups like Kindle Book Worms, EBooks and Bookreads or Awesome Gang and Linked-In. Amazon has a number of ways to help authors promote their books. Many of these sites are free.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just do it. No one is going to be able to pull that story from your brain and put it on paper or computer page but yourself.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write. Finish that story. It doesn’t matter how many times you have to rewrite to perfect that story. Getting out of your mind and onto a physical entity like a computer screen or notebook page is the most difficult of the entire process.
What are you reading now?
I’m between books right now. I tend not to read anything deep or heavy or that might somehow connect to my current work while I’m working. That guarantees that my work is mine and mine alone.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Once The Price of Passion (Sweet Pea III) is published I plan to return to my Birds in Peril Series. Book number V Wise, Bold Eagle is partially written. I just have to get back into the story.
I also have notes for a number VI possibly titled The Bluebird of Happiness
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
My kindle (right now it has about 30 books on it) and hope there is a way to charge the battery on that island. And my Bible.
Author Websites and Profiles
Mary Elizabeth Fricke Website
Mary Elizabeth Fricke Amazon Profile
Mary Elizabeth Fricke’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile