Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been an author for over thirty years, which is almost as long as I’ve been living in my small log house in the middle of thirty acres of evergreen forests in Oregon. I share my life with my husband, Ed, our cat, Izzy, and our German Shepherd, Maggie, whose sole purpose for living is to play ball. I currently have 21 romance novels and 3 non-fiction books available on Amazon. All of my books, including their covers and descriptions, are posted on my website. I’m a full-time writer, and I love the quietness that comes with living in the woods. We have beautiful trails and I get good ideas when I take a break from writing to walk in the woods, which we do daily. My laptop sits on a coffee table in the living room so I can look out the window and see squirrels, chipmunks, and birds at the feeders just outside, so I have little desire to go to the city, which is about 35 miles away.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is entitled, Imperfect Magic, and it is Book 11 of my Dancing Moon Ranch series. Being part of a series, my hero and heroine had already been introduced to readers in earlier books, so the inspiration for the story came out of the series. However, the inspiration for the first book in the series was based on an actual lawsuit over a botched procedure at a fertility clinic, when two women got sperm from the wrong men. That book is entitled, Righteous Lies. My heroine’s sister, who popped up toward the end of Righteous Lies, prompted me to write the second book in the series, which is entitled, Pandora’s Box. That story brought in the twin brother of my hero in Righteous Lies, and things just kept going from there. The 13-book series ended up spanning thirty years and two generations. It’s been great writing the series because I always wanted to live on a working guest/cattle ranch and be surrounded by cowboys and now it’s like I am, and the couples in the first three books, and all of their sons and one daughter, are my family. My series is getting great reviews, and a couple of reviewers equated the series to the “Dallas” TV series without all the sex. There is some sex, but it’s PG-13.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I guess my unusual habit is that I have to discipline myself to stop writing and do other things. like get up and exercise. I keep a timer next to my laptop to remind me to do that, once an hour, because I can get so wrapped up in the story I’m writing that an entire day can slip by unnoticed. So every hour I either walk on my walker, kick Maggie’s ball so she can retrieve it for me to kick a hundred times more, or walk in the woods. But even when the time dings, more often than not I turn it off for a couple of minutes, and an hour later, realize I forgot to get up and exercise.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
A few authors who have influenced me are Kay Nolte Smith and her wonderful historical saga, A Tale of the Wind, which is my all-time favorite novel. Legacy, by Susan Kay, which is a novel about Queen Elizabeth, I is another favorite. Sadly, I spend very little time reading fiction because what little time I have when not writing is spent reading research material for my current or next book.
What are you working on now?
The book I’m working on now is entitled, Imperfect Magic, and it’s Book 11 in my Dancing Moon Ranch series. The series is a contemporary western series, which is set in Oregon, not far from where I live. Several towns in the area, along with an Indian Reservation and some local rodeos, are woven into the stories. My heroes are cowboys, except for the hero in my current book (Imperfect Magic). He’s an illusionist who falls in love with a cowgirl, who happens to be the youngest child of my hero and heroine from Book 1 in the series. My hero in Imperfect Magic has to make some changes in his life, and in his goals, in order to hold onto my heroine. As soon as I’m finished writing Imperfect Magic I’ll start on the last book in the series, which is Book 12, Finding Justice. There is a Prequel to the series (Justified Deception), which is why the last book in a 13-book series is Book 12.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My website is my best promoter. On it I post the covers and descriptions of all of my books, divided by “tabs” for my single-title contemporaries and my historical romances, but I feature the books in my Dancing Moon Ranch on the primary page. At the end of every one of my books I include three chapters of another book (or the next book in the series), along with links to that book, and to my website. Most of my books are on Amazon KDP Select, so subscribers can purchase them that way, and on occasion I do a free book offering, mostly on older single title books like In Hot Pursuit.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
My advice to new authors is to read books outside of their genre (assuming they have a solid knowledge of what’s expected in their genre). That way they don’t inadvertently start re-writing other author’s stories, or fall into the cliché trap. I read books by authors I admire, outside of my genre, and learn from those. But my main advice is to just keep writing. There is more to learn from that than spending time on blogs talking to other struggling writers. It took me about ten books before it all started coming together. My last advice, for indie authors, is to never stop reviewing and revising your books. I reread all of my books every 6 months and I always find things to change. As time goes by it’s less and less, but there are still ways to make every story better.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I ever heard was from a senior editor from Harlequin who liked my writing but knew I didn’t have a clue about weaving in story threads. She actually worked with me, one-on-one, until I got it right, then bought the manuscript, which was entitled, Sweet Promised Land (now on Amazon as Broken Promises). Editors today will not do that. I just got lucky. I later wrote an article for Romance Writer’s Review on “Weaving in Story Threads” which is posted on my website, along with other “How-To” articles on writing. The second best advice I received was to take the plunge and become an indie author. I had already published with Harlequin and Avon, which meant jumping through all the query and submission hoops, then waiting FOREVER to hear back from editors. It was the pits! So, on May 5, 2011, I got so disgusted that I hadn’t heard back from editors who had requested manuscripts that I uploaded 7 books to Amazon, and I’ve never looked back. I love having complete control. I choose my own title, design and make my own covers, write the back-cover blurb, write the story the way I want it, pass it on to my husband, who has always been my editor, then send it on its way. It’s great!
What are you reading now?
Right now I’m reading all non-fiction research material. Maybe someday I’ll sit back and read some of the books I’ve downloaded to my Kindle, but it won’t happen until I’ve finished writing the last book in my series.
What’s next for you as a writer?
After I complete my Dancing Moon Ranch series, which will be finished in early 2015, I plan to make audio books out of the entire series, doing my own narrating. I’m currently researching that, with lots of input from authors who have done this themselves. I look forward to doing it.
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?
If I was going to be spending time on a desert island, the book I’d grab first would be A Tale of the Wind because it’s long, involved, spans a lifetime, and I learn something new about writing every time I read it. The second book would be my memoir, which is entitled (on Amazon) Around the Belt. It has over 1000 photos of my family and all aspects of my life while growing up in New Orleans in the 1940s and 50s, including some of the many colorful people who were either directly, or indirectly, a part of my life. The 3rd and 4th books would be books on screenwriting, one by Syd Field, and the other by Laura Schellhardt (Screenwriting for Dummies), so when I’m finally rescued I’d be able to write the scripts for my Dancing Moon Ranch series in hopes that the series would be bought for TV.
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