Meet Guest Author Susan Crandall …

Today, I’m welcoming author Susan Crandall to the blog.  Susan is an award-winning, multi-published author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction.  Her new book, SLEEP NO MORE,  is on sale this week.

Barbara:  Tell me about your new book?

Susan:  SLEEP NO MORE is the story of Abby Whitman, who was a sleepwalker as a child, setting a fire that destroyed the ancestral home and scarred her younger sister for life.    Abby’s sleepwalking passed with puberty, but the guilt did not.  She lives alone, structuring her life to insure that if her sleepwalking reoccurs no one else will be in harm’s way.

Now Abby’s mother has recently died, her sister is being her usual manipulative self, and her father is showing signs of Alzheimer’s.  And her sleepwalking has returned.

One night Abby awakens behind the wheel of her van at a fatal accident.  Sleepwalking, or more specifically, sleep-driving, is the only explanation she can come up with for her presence at the scene.  But it soon becomes clear that there was a third party involved, and that person begins making threats for Abby not to tell what she saw.  But Abby has no recollection of the accident.  She seeks the help of a family acquaintance and psychiatrist, Jason Coble to try to figure out what happened at the accident and why someone is threatening her.

Abby’s journey toward truth and self-forgiveness uncovers long buried secrets in both her family and her town.  Secrets someone will go to any lengths to protect.

Barbara:  Sounds great … interesting and mysterious …   When did you first begin writing?

Susan:  I didn’t actually begin writing until I was in my thirties.  My younger sister sort of dragged me into it.  She came to me one day with a stack of paper and admitted she’d been writing in secret and wanted me to look over her work.  Being the older sister and an avid reader, naturally I had an opinion.  We worked on some stories together, then she stopped writing, but I was totally hooked.  I could no more stop writing than I could stop reading.  The first novel I wrote solo was RITA and National Readers Choice winner, BACK ROADS.

Barbara: Wow!  Great accolades for your first book.   What is your favorite thing about writing?  What is your least favorite thing?

Susan: I absolutely love the beginning stages of writing a book.  I love the brainstorming, the research, the exploring of possibilities, the laying awake at night pondering “what ifs.”  It’s the stage when everything is possible and you aren’t yet hampered with the reality of making all of the parts work.

My least favorite?  This may sound contradictory, but it’s the blank page, the blinking cursor waiting like a teacher with a tapping foot.  It’s that stage between all of the daydreaming and actually having something concrete to work with.  It’s the place where you have to begin to make the real choices that will chart the course of your character’s journey.  Once I have something started, it’s fun to work with it, expand, delve more deeply into my characters.

Barbara: What is your advice to aspiring writers?

Susan: Because my son is writing his first novel, this is an easy question; I give the same advice on a weekly basis:

1)  Read widely, and read like a writer.  When an author has elicited a particular emotion from you as a reader, take the work apart and figure out how he/she achieved it.  Study the story construction, the pacing.

2) Continually hone your craft.  Learn from workshops, classes, and just chatting with other writers.

3) Learn to trust your writing instincts.  We writers are filled with self-doubt, constantly questioning the quality of our work.  If you’re a writer, there is something special inside you that lead you to it.  Don’t follow every suggestion made by everyone who has glanced at your work.  Carefully evaluate criticism.  It’s a valuable tool, but it must be weighed.

4)  And lastly, put on your armor and send your work out there into the world.  No one is going to come knocking on your door and say, “I heard you’re writing a book.  I’d like to publish it.”  Yes, you’ll probably receive rejections.  That’s all part of the process.

Barbara: I agree with all of the above, especially about not doubting yourself … every writer goes through the doubt during the writing of every book … it’s important not to let the doubts stop you.   So, what’s next for you, Susan?

Susan: Now that SLEEP NO MORE is safely launched, I’m focusing on two novels.  One is a mainstream women’s fiction.  The other is a slow-boil psychological suspense.  I’m having a great time with both of them!

Thanks for visiting, Susan.  The new book sounds great.   If anyone has a question, feel free to ask.  And for more information on Susan’s books, check out her website at http://www.susancrandall.net

Old goals and New Year’s resolutions …

As I’ve finished up revisions on one book and a proposal for the next, I can actually take a breath for a minute … but only a minute because Christmas is rapidly approaching and I’ve been buried deep in my Angel’s Bay books for the past few months.  Shopping, decorating, baking, cleaning the house have all gone by the wayside until now …

Now it’s all about the holidays … Yesterday I sprinted through several malls, ran through the supermarket because family has descended and they’re always hungry.  Last night I started the wrapping with the help of my cat, who loves to jump into every box as soon as I get the tissue paper spread out. When that gets boring, she goes for the curl ribbon that I’m tying around the gifts and we had a tug of war over one piece of wrapping paper that she eventually won.  My kids think it’s hysterical … but I’ve got my eye on the clock, because there’s so much to do.

But it will all get done … one step at a time … which brings me to the heart of this blog … making time for the things that count … setting goals and meeting them …

For me I’ve had  a lot of ideas but not all of them came to fruition … I’d like to change that next year.  I have a new writing project that I’ve been working on for awhile that’s a bit of a change for me.  I love it.  And I hope to sell it at some point, but I need some more pages.  I’m putting that closer to the top of the list next year.  I love writing my Angel’s Bay books and hope the series will go on and on, but that all depends on sales of the next two weeks in April and May … but until I know, I’m just going to keep writing and hope the readers find the books.  I’m going to do all those promo things I keep putting off like redesigning my web site and making bookmarks … now that I’ve written it down in this blog, I’ll have to do it!

Publishing and books are in a state of great flux right now.  Book formats are changing with the wind.  People are reading on electronic readers and their phones as well as the traditional books.  Publishers don’t know what to publish besides vampires … will the vampires ever die?  It sure doesn’t look like that trend will go anywhere soon.  And for authors there are a lot of things to worry about with the progression of electronic publishing and the worry that the book will go the route of the dinosaur.

I hope people will keep reading, because every time I read a book I’m reminded of how much fun it is to sink into a story and get taken away.  While movies and YouTube videos abound, there’s really nothing like a book where you really get to know the characters and become a part of their world.  My New Year’s hope that is more people will remember that reading a book can be more fun than chatting on Twitter, making friends on Facebook, or laughing at kids making faces on YouTube.  Yes, lots of entertainment choices abound, but hopefully the book will stay in the mix.

So after the holidays it will be on to New Year’s … new diets, new goals, new work opportunities, new friends …  I love a change and there’s nothing like a new year to start out fresh.

What are your resolutions for the New Year?

My New Favorite Writing Book …

I recently picked up the book, THE FIRE IN FICTION, written by long time agent, Donald Maass.  This is a follow-up book to his best-selling book and workbook, HOW TO WRITE THE BREAKOUT NOVEL.

What I really enjoyed about the book is the focus on the small things, the nuances of character and plot that can take a book from good to great.   He talks a lot about character, the protagonist, the hero, the villain.  At the end of each chapter are some thoughtful questions that you can ask yourself about your own work.  I found the questions provocative and made me rethink some of my decisions.  One of his practical tools worksheet suggests that the writer pick a scene, identify its outer turning point, the exact minute when things change for the protagonist or the point of view character.  Then he suggests winding the clock back ten minutes, and write a paragraph as to how the point of view character sees herself before that turning point.  Then wind the clock ahead ten minutes and think about how the character feels now.  These kinds of exercises really break down the writing to small details and allow the writer to really craft the story instead of just coasting along and occasionally getting lucky with some great scenes.

He talks a lot about having the passion for the story, which I also think is so important.  You can always tell when the writer really believes in the world he/she is creating and those that are just going through the motions.

Maass’s other book is also really good – I must say he analyzes some passages from my novel, SUMMER SECRETS, in his book, HOW TO WRITE A BREAKOUT NOVEL, and I really enjoyed his analysis.

So if you’re looking for a good writing book, I highly recommend this one.

Deb Stover’s The Gift …

I had a chance to talk to Deb Stover recently about her new book, THE GIFT, which is in bookstores now!

Barbara:  Tell us about your new book — I love the cover by the way, very spooky and intriguing.

Deb: In my book, THE GIFT, the Dearborn family are born with some variance of an empathic gift.  Beth’s “gift” manifests in a particularly frightening manner by enabling her to experience the final moments of those who’ve died violently. As an adult, she chooses a career as a homicide detective, and–obviously–is very successful. However, the experience of being ”murdered” repeatedly takes a terrible toll and she turns to alcohol for solace. When she hits bottom and seeks treatment for her addiction, she is convinced the only way she can stay sober is to somehow suppress her gift-turned-curse by avoiding places where the spirit of someone who died violently might contact her. She leaves her position and takes one as a nomadic insurance investigator. Her new career keeps her safe and sober for three years. Convinced her gift has faded from lack of use, she finally accepts an assignment involving possible life insurance fraud, which leads her to a small town in eastern Tennessee.

Ty Malone’s wife, Lorilee, disappeared over seven years ago. Though the town and his father-in-law remain convinced she ran away to pursue a career as a painter in Europe, he has always maintained that the only thing that could keep his wife away from her children is death. It’s time to learn the truth, so he petitions the court to have her declared legally dead. The life insurance claim brings investigator Beth Dearborn into his life.

THE GIFT is part mystery, part ghost story, part suspense, part romance, part thriller. The novel also touches on the issue of women and alcoholism on various levels. Beth is a recovering alcoholic, and the reader will also meet a character who is a practicing one. Both Beth and Ty will be forced to face their greatest fears to learn the truth, and to find happiness.

Barbara:  What pulled you into the story and made you think ‘I have to write this’?

Deb: A protagonist always pulls me into a new story. In this case, I “met” Ty’s wife, Lorilee, first. She introduced herself to my muse, and I wrote a scene that appears very late in the book (it would be a spoiler if I told you about it) as a prologue initially. Then I saved it and used it later. From that scene, the entire story evolved. She is the catalyst who brings about all the events.

Barbara: When did you first begin writing?

Deb:  I think I was about eight. My first publication was a letter to the editor of the WICHITA EAGLE at age eleven. I majored in Journalism, thenworked for a newspaper. I wrote my first romance manuscript in 1984. It was a monster of almost 200,000 words. I still need to burn it…. I dabbled for a few more years, then joined RWA and got serious in 1991. I sold my first book in December 1993. SHADES OF ROSE was published by Kensington in 1995.

Barbara:  What is your writing process and where do you write?

Deb:  I prefer to write at my desk, mostly for comfort. Since I have rheumatoid arthritis, ergonomics are extra important. I have a special keyboard, keyboard tray, chair, mouse, etc. I love my laptop, but if I spend too much time on it, I pay the price. I’m typically a very early morning writer—and often wake hours before dawn to work while the rest of the house is sleeping soundly. I love quiet, and rarely listen to music while working–especially in first draft. While editing, I can listen to anything, but in first draft I can’t have any lyrics. They pull me out of the story.

I’m very much a “pantser”–and I have to say I hate that term. I much prefer Jo Beverley’s “writing into the mist” description. I start with a character in a situation, then start writing. Once I have a global idea of the general plot and the cast of characters, I write a narrative synopsis and send it to my agent. Once we go to contract, do any revisions to the proposal, if requested, I plunge ahead. I confess my finished product does not always follow that synopsis verbatim. And I NEVER outline. Perish the thought….

Barbara: What is your favorite thing about writing? What is your least favorite thing?

Deb:  My favorite thing is that it’s my favorite thing. Okay, seriously, I love being able to work in my pajamas. I stagger out of bed in the morning, get my fuzzy slippers and robe, my mug of strong coffee, and plop myself in front of the computer with an adoring dog at my side. Much better than dressing up and fighting traffic on the freeway.  My least favorite thing would have to be worrying about the business side of this, and promotion. In a perfect world, writers could just write and not have to worry about numbers and promo and covers and… ::sigh:

Barbara:  What is your advice to aspiring writers?

Deb:  It’s your book. Trust your instincts. There are no rules. Critique is a smorgasbord–take what you want and leave what you don’t. There are a thousand how-to books, workshops, and know-it-alls out there dying to tell you how to do your job. There is no special handshake. There is no secret potion. There is no magic elixir. You only have yourself, your muse, and the blank screen/Big Chief Tablet/whatever medium you choose. Keep throwing the spaghetti against the wall until something sticks.

Barbara:  What is next for you?

Deb: I am currently at work on the sequel to THE GIFT–working title is THE SECRET. When you read THE GIFT, you will meet Beth’s cousin, Sam Dearborn. His “gift” manifests in a different way. He jokingly refers to himself as a ”psychic errand boy.”

THANKS DEB for sharing your new book with us — I can’t wait to read it!  If anyone has any questions for Deb, feel free to ask away.

New Cover – On Shadow Beach

Here is my new cover for the next book in my Angel’s Bay Series.  ON SHADOW BEACH will be in stores April 2010.  And I’m thrilled to say that book three, IN SHELTER COVE,  will be arriving the following month, May 2010.   So no waiting in between stories – yay!

On Shadow Beach features a new central story line  … here’s a blurb from the back cover:

Lauren Jamison hasn’t been back to Angel’s Bay since she was a teenager … when her sister Abby was murdered and Lauren’s boyfriend, Shane Murray, was accused of the crime.  When Lauren reluctantly returns home to assist her ailing father, the old attraction flares between Lauren and Shane.  But the terrible days after Abby’s murder still stand between them as well as the secrets Shane has yet to unveil.  Finding the truth could bring closure … but at a cost.

Also featured in the story are continuing characters and secondary story lines … Kara is desperate for her husband Colin to awaken from the coma that resulted from a shooting… Charlotte finds herself in the middle of a growing love triangle between Joe and Andrew and rumors about the unnamed father of Annie’s baby continue to swirl.

You won’t want to miss the second installment in Angel’s Bay …

So tell me  - what do you think of the look?

Angel’s Bay Series – On Sale June 30th

With my new series kicking off next week, I thought I’d tell you a little about the history of the series.  I’d never written a series set in a town I created, and I found it both fun and challenging! 

Each book in the series will feature a new central story with romance, suspense and lots of emotion.  That way if a reader misses one book, they won’t be totally lost, however for the full reading experience, it would be great to start with Suddenly One Summer, because there will be continuing story lines with some of the other fascinating characters in town.   I hope you’ll come to know and love them as I do!

So getting back to Angel’s Bay – I knew the first thing I needed was a history, so here’s what I came up with.  Back in the late 1850′s when many were fleeing San Francisco after the California Gold Rush, a ship named the Gabriella went down in a horrific storm off the central California coast. There weren’t enough lifeboats as many of the ships were overloaded by people eager to get out of San Francisco, and tales of both heroic and murderous actions abounded. The twenty-four survivors of the wreck settled near the bay where many of their loved ones had lost their lives and for hundreds of years there have been legends of angels watching over the bay.  In Suddenly One Summer, an Internet video of angels over the Bay sparks nationwide attention, drawing a cynical reporter to Angel’s Bay who finds a story he never imagined.

In addition to the angel legends, the townis also known for its story quilts, in particular the original quilt stitched by the twenty-four survivors who each made a square to tell the story of their lost loved ones. Coming together in their grief the quilters formed a community that still exists to this day and each story in the Angel’s Bay series ties togetherthe past and the present through one of the quilting squares.

Adding color to the town are occasional angel sightings and the ongoing mystery of just what happened to the ship that has never been discovered and is believed to buried deep in underground canyons off the coast.  Yet, a few items begin to wash ashore.  Will the wreck finally be discovered?  Is there a lost treasure to be found?  And will the story of what really happened on the ship that night ever be told? 

In the first book, Suddenly One Summer, Jenna, is on the run with a seven-year-old, but shatters her hopes of invisibility in Angel’s Bay when she is called on to rescue a young woman who has jumped off the pier. Her heroic actions draw the interest of a determined reporter who senses a story much bigger than angels over the bay, and that’s exactly what he finds.   Both Jenna and Reid have a lot of secrets, and very emotional back stories.  They also have an unexpected tie to Angel’s Bay…

Suddenly One Summer has received some early rave reviews:

Library Journal: “A large cast of townspeople adds to this intriguing, suspenseful romance, which is the first of Freethy’s “Angel’s Bay” novels.Freethyhas a gift for creating complex, appealing characters and emotionally involving, often suspenseful, sometimes magical stories.”

Debbie Macomber: This book has it all: heart, community and characters who willremain with you long after the book has ended.”

Susan Wiggs:”SUDDENLY ONE SUMMER transported me to a beautiful place, and drew me into a story of family secrets, passion, betrayal and redemption. Barbara Freethy writes with touching honesty and the skill of a writer at the top of her game.”

I hope you’ll check out the book meet some of the fascinating people in Angel’s Bay. Read an excerpt at http:www.barbarafreethy.com/suddenly1.htm

Happy Reading!

Publicizing so much more work than writing …

I just fnished writing the second book in my Angel’s Bay Series, which is now titled ON SHADOW BEACH, a cool title I think you’ll agree.  I have to dive into writing book three, but first I have the release date for SUDDENLY ONE SUMMER coming up fast and furiously.  The book hits the shelves on June 30, 2009, just two weeks from today – yikes and I’m realizing that I’ve let the self-promotion slide.  So I’m updating my website and writing blogs and navigating MySpace and Twitter and Facebook and wondering how authors do it.  It’s so hard to keep up with all the Internet Social Sites and while fun, they become addictive and a great way to procrastinate.

On Facebook I’ve found myself looking up my old high school and college friends, which has been the most fun of all, but I really don’t know how to utilize the ‘Fan” pages.  On Twitter, I’ve started following some of my faves, but still wonder why anyone wants to really know the day to day tidbits of a person’s life.  I was watching the Ellen Show the other day and she had Matthew Perry on who admitted to just diving into Twitter.  He said he wrote that he had half a sandwich for lunch and got thirty-five responses ranging from “Cool, dude” to “Awesome”  … he didn’t quite get it, and neither do I, but I’m twittering in case anyone finds the life of a writer interesting.

What are your favorite ways to procrastinate on the web?  Am I missing any other great sites?  Someone suggested LiveJournal, LinkedIn and others, but my mind is spinning …

Mondays and Beginnings …

I actually like Mondays — something about all the possibilities of the week ahead of me, all that I can accomplish …  the same is true of writing the beginning of a book.  There is so much potential, so much story to mine, so many characters to get into.  And yet the beginning of a book is also the most difficult for me.  Some of my friends dive into writing chapter one and don’t stop for air until chapter three or four.  For me, I have to find just the right opening scene, just the right tone, just the right first line, and it’s never easy.

While I’ve always been a writer who tends to just write more than outline, I find it impossible to get the book going until I know the opening scene.  And in that scene I want to suggest the ultimate problem as well as set the tone for the story.   In my book SILENT RUN, my heroine is in her car driving along  a dark highway when the headlights behind her begin to draw closer. Every mile brings the car behind her closer and closer.  She speeds up.  So does he.  The chase is on.  We know she’s running, but not from who or from what.  And when the first scene ends, her car flies off the side of a mountain.  In Chapter One she awakens and has no idea who she is or where she’s been.  But what’s even worse is that the police want to know where her baby is, and she has no idea … From there the story takes off.  It took me awhile to get the beginning where I wanted it, but hopefully it draws you into the story.

Today I’m working on the opening to the third book in my Angel’s Bay series which begins in July of this year.  In this book, I’m wrestling with how to start a story that has some very strong roots in the past.  I could do a prologue or start in the present and weave the back story in… I’m still debating. 

So my question for you is — what do you think about prologues?  I personally do like them if they’re short and to the point.  I like the tease of something important from either the past or even the future … and then I’m more invested in the current story.  But what I don’t like are prologues that just aren’t that compelling.    Sometimes I’d rather just jump into the action and figure out what happened to get us there later.

One thing I do know about beginnings is that they can be paralyzing and the only way to get over the fear of starting is to dive in, and keep in mind that I can always go back and do it again.