Exclusive Interview with
Larada Horner-Miller
When did you start writing?
When I was teaching writing to middle school students is when I really got into serious writing. I had penned a historical fiction before that, but it was in the studying of writing and preparing for my students and writing with them, I realized I was a writer!
What makes writing your passion?
I have feelings, thoughts, emotions that have to be expressed and when I see them on paper or the computer screen, something explodes inside of me—passion for the expressed written word.
How long have you been writing?
I wrote a historical fiction in the late 80s when I was going to Colorado State University, so that's almost forty years.
After retiring in 2013, I got truly serious about it and have published six books and three cookbooks since then.
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
I felt humbled when I saw my words on the printed page. I breathed a sigh of relief that it was done because it took me twenty years to finally get it out of the drawer and out to the world. I also felt a deep sadness, because my mom passed away a year before I published it.
What’s the story behind your choice of characters?
I have only written one fiction book, and I chose Maria and a Mexican immigrant family to tell their story of prejudice and injustice in the 30s in Colorado.
What annoys you the most in pursuing a writing career?
I don't like not selling more books. I know my books are great, but it's so time-consuming to do all the marketing required to sell books.
How do you get over the “writer’s block”?
I have never had a problem with "writer's block." In fact, I have five books in the queue—three poetry books, a how to write a biography and a fiction, so there's just not enough time.
We all know the writer’s path is never easy, what makes you keep going? What advice would you give to new authors?
I keep writing because that's how I interact with my changing world. I have to express it!
Don't wait like I did for 20-30 years to publish. Admit deeply you're a writer then give it all you have to make it happen.
If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with the bad ones?
Yes, I do read my book reviews and I haven't had any bad ones yet. I know they're coming. I did get a one-star rating and I wonder about that because if they had written a review, I could have understood it.
What is the feeling when you get a good review?
Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?
My fiction in waiting is a compilation of my real life experiences.
Which of your characters you can compare yourself with? Did you base that character on you?
What do you think, the book cover is as important as the story?
Do you connect with your readers? Do you mind having a chat with them or you prefer to express yourself through your writing?
How do you feel when people appreciate your work or recognize you in public?
Who is your favorite author? Why?
What’s the dream? Whom would you like to be as big as?
Would you rewrite any of your books? Why?
If you could switch places with any author – who would that be?
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.
What would you say to your readers?
Share a bit about yourself – where do you live, are you married, do you have kids?
I live in the east mountains above Albuquerque, NM, nestled in the piñon and juniper trees. I am married to Lin, the love of my life. He has a gorgeous garden that occupies his time and is his creative expression.
I have a 19 year old cat, Jesse, who is diabetic and aging right before my eyes.
I co-own a ranch in southeastern Colorado with my brother and love to visit there as often as possible.
What is your day job if you have one?
What are your hobbies? What do you do in your free time?
I love to knit—learned how at age 10 in 4-H. I've made everything imaginable and am working on a baby afghan right now.
Lin and I square and round dance and love to travel.
Did you have a happy childhood?
Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?
Do you have unpublished books? What are they about?
What do you think should be improved in the education of our children? What do we lack?
I think education needs to emphasize reading and writing. Because of the crazy focus on test results, writing has gone by the wayside, along with social studies and history. We desperately need those topics to keep us humans human.
If you were allowed 3 wishes – what would they be?
What is your favorite music?
Share a secret with us 🙂