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Exclusive Interview with

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When did you start writing?

I started writing ten years ago when I took creative writing classes.

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What makes writing your passion?

I enjoy creating a fictional world and living in that world while I'm writing the story. Sometimes my world is more pleasant than the real one, especially during the era of the pandemic.

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How long have you been writing?

I've written for all my life, mostly silly poems, but I've only recently started writing fiction.

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What was the feeling when you published your first book?

Pure exhilaration! It didn't seem real until I held the book in my hands.

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What’s the story behind your choice of characters?

I make up my characters. I'm sure there's something of myself in some of them. I try to have a few characters who bring a smile to readers' faces.

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What annoys you the most in pursuing a writing career?

The marketing.

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How do you get over the “writer’s block”?

Just start writing. Once I put a few words on the page, more follow. They may be dreck, but at least I'm continuing the story, and I can delete the parts that don't work later.

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We all know the writer’s path is never easy, what makes you keep going? What advice would you give to new authors?

Persevere. Never give up.

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If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?

Have more confidence.

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Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with the bad ones?

Yes, always. I try to keep in mind that not everyone will like my books, so I will get some bad reviews. Luckily, so far the good ones far outweigh the bad ones.

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What is the feeling when you get a good review?

Happy that someone understood and found something to like about the book. Sometimes a review makes me see my own book in a different light and I love that.

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Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?

Yes. My novel Waterbury Winter has a parrot called Popsicle. She's modeled after a parrot my family had.

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Which of your characters you can compare yourself with? Did you base that character on you?

I can compare myself (my younger self) with the character of Anne Gautier in ESTELLE. She is a twenty-two-year old recent college graduate and lives in New Orleans.

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What do you think, the book cover is as important as the story?

A great cover is important for selling the book, but the story should always be better.

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Do you connect with your readers? Do you mind having a chat with them or you prefer to express yourself through your writing?

I love connecting with readers, either by chatting or through email correspondence.

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How do you feel when people appreciate your work or recognize you in public?

Happy, and a bit embarrassed.

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Who is your favorite author? Why?

Currently Ann Patchett. She has the ability to make an engaging story in a limited setting or environment. Examples: The Dutch House, Bel Canto.

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What’s the dream? Whom would you like to be as big as?

Can't answer that one. I have modest aspirations.

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Would you rewrite any of your books? Why?

I recently re-read ESTELLE. It was my first novel, and I now see things I would have stated differently.

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If you could switch places with any author – who would that be?

Jane Austen

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What would you say to the “trolls” on the internet? We all know them – people who like to write awful reviews to books they’ve never read or didn’t like that much, just to annoy the author.

Just quit, please.

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What would you say to your readers?

I hope you enjoy my books.

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Share a bit about yourself – where do you live, are you married, do you have kids?

I live in the Pacific Northwest with my husband. My two adult kids live in North Carolina and in Italy.

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What is your day job if you have one?

Not working now.

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What are your hobbies? What do you do in your free time?

Watercolor painting.

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Did you have a happy childhood?

Yes, in England.

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Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?

My husband's fiction writing seminar.

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Do you have unpublished books? What are they about?

Not telling. I have one work in progress, scheduled for publication in 2024.

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What do you think should be improved in the education of our children? What do we lack?

Good instruction in reading, writing, and arithmetic. No social programming.

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If you were allowed 3 wishes – what would they be?

For the pandemic to end
An end to the horrible divisiveness in our country
A kinder, gentler world

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What is your favorite music?

Classical, after that the music of the fifties and sixties.

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Share a secret with us 🙂

I'm not a foodie, and I have real trouble writing about food in my novels. That was a big challenge in ESTELLE, set in New Orleans.

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