Sherry Morris's Blog, page 23

Interview with Romance Author Sharon Horton

Author Sharon Horton
1.  Tell us about your writing journey thus far.
Well…it’s been a fun and exciting and exasperating roller coaster ride that I wouldn’t change for the world.  Like most writers, I entered this world of writing with high hopes and not much concept of how it worked. 
2.  What inspired your current project?
When I was twelve years old, my parents took me to Catalina Island, which is located 26 miles from San Pedro, California.  It’s a beautiful island, but high on a hill there was a huge mansion that looked like a skull to me.  I began wondering what it would be like to be on that island, wondering if anybody was in that mansion watching me.  Over the years, that thought motivated me to start my current project.  It’s a Romantic Suspense.
3.  Describe the last place you wrote in and what you were wearing.
I only write in my office/living room, and I always write in my sweatpants and a short sleeve top.  I’m no fashionista.  hehe
4.  What was your favorite class in school?
Shakespeare.  I was one of the few who willingly took it.  Three years of The Bard was great!
5.  If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be and where would you dine?
I would love to have dinner with Sherlock Holmes.  I’d take him to my local favorite place and then pick his brain for new clues to write the next ‘great’ novel.  BTW, did you want me to name the restaurant?
6.  If you could time travel, what year would you go back or forward to?
I’m a big cowboy fan, so I suppose I’d prefer to go back to the nineteenth century West.  However, as I was born and raised not too far from the great California gold rush, maybe I’d like being in that part of the century. 
7.  Who do you miss the most? 
My parents.  Nothing can prepare a person for when their parents are permanently gone. 
8.  Did you make your bed today? What color are the sheets? 
Yes, I made the bed.  At the moment, the sheets are a cream color flannel - very cozy this time of year. 
9.  What is the best thing your mother, father or grandmother made for you to eat? 
My mom made wonderful spaghetti sauce.  She also made the best coq au vin I’ve ever had.  My dad liked to BBQ steaks and hotdogs.  Unfortunately, my grandmothers were gone before I could sample their foods.
10.  If your pet was a person, what occupation would he or she be employed in?
I have four cats and I know all would be in different occupations.  Riley, a boy, would be a male model.  He’s got long black and white fur, and is quite full of himself.  Roary, a girl, is a tubby little sweetie who would be a great short-order cook – she loves to eat!  RJ, another boy, is a little ‘mama’s boy’, so I doubt he’d have any occupation that took him away from me.  Finally there’s my Ripley, a girl, and very, very snippy.  She’s make a wonderful ‘no-nonsense’ attorney or possibly prison warden.  She’s the smallest of my cats, but definitely the most intense. 
11.  Tell us all of the jobs you have held.
My first job was at sixteen – I was hired by a small company to type (on an actual typewriter) mailing labels to J.C. Penney.  It wasn’t until some 1,600 labels later (and after they were mailed) that I realized I’d misspelled the name of Penney.  I spelled as: Penny.  Yikes!  My next job was at McDonald’s, where I met the man I’d eventually marry.  After that I worked in a record store and ultimately at an insurance company answering phones and helping to run its library.  Those were my ‘money paying’ jobs, but my best jobs have been being a wife and mom. 
12.  Tell us where we can find you online.
I have a website at:  http://www.sharonhorton.com/
Sherry, thank you SO much for this opportunity to participate on your blog.  I really appreciate it.  Sparks by Sharon Horton

Interview with Author Sandra Cox

 Author Sandra Cox
Tell us about your writing journey thus far.Oh my gosh, it’s been on going forever. Seriously, forever. I wrote a long time before I got published. I got an agent and then we parted ways. And it was a long time before I got another one. I’m hanging on to the publishing ladder and slowly inching upwards.
What inspired your current project?My muse decided on it. I have no idea where she came up with the idea.
Describe the last place you wrote in and what you were wearing.Now that’s a tricky question. Grin. I wrote in bed, wearing black sports pants and a comfortable mauve shirt.
What was your favorite class in school?History, hands down.
If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be and where would you dine?You know I think it would be with Brandon Wade from Silverhills. And I’d like to dine at his ranch.
Did you make your bed today? What color are the sheets?Actually, it’s the hubby’s job to make the bed. Grin. The sheets are green checks and red roses.
What is the best thing your mother, father or grandmother made for you to eat?My grandmother made homemade bread and my mother made a chocolate pie from scratch to die for. You know the kind, bars of unsweet chocolate mixed with canned sweet milk. Oh my.
If your pet was a person, what occupation would he or she be employed in?Belle, my cat, would wear a badge. Whenever I get on the case of one of the other cats or dog. She waltzes over to them and smacks them, definitely an enforcer.
Tell us all of the jobs you have held.That list would be too long and way to boring.  For the past ten years I’ve been an admin assist for a VP at a community college.
Tell us where we can find you online.Thanks for asking. I’d love it if you dropped by my blog @ sandracox.blogspot.com.I can also be found at sandracox1.com, downtownya.blogspot.com, nightwriters.blogspot.comAnd my twitter account is Sandra_Cox.
Thanks for having me, Sherry. It’s been fun. Minder by Sandra Cox

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I am being interviewed today at Geek Girl USA

Writing Tip #31: Party

Tonight is the big party.

Is your character the host or an invited guest? The caterer? The valet? A waiter?

Is he/she looking forward to going? Dreading it? Indifferent?

What does he/she wear?

Writing Prompt #30: Bath

Your character is filthy and wants to bathe.

Why is he/she dirty?

Does he/she want to take a bath or a good long soak in the tub?

What delays him/her from getting clean?

Writing Prompt #29: Two Words

Use two of the following words in your next paragraph:

schedule
refrigerator
fly
mug
request
destroy
dream

Writing Prompt #28: Backache

Your protagonist has a backache. Is it mild? So severe he/she can't move? Cronic?

What happened to cause this injury?

How does this backache affect his/her plans for today?

Writing Prompt #27: Newspaper

It's morning. Your protagonist gets his/her morning newspaper. Does he/she read it electronically? Does he/she get it from the front porch? The mailbox?

What is the headline? How does this effect him/her?

Writing Prompt #26: Calendar

Your protagonist is looking over his/her calendar. Is it blank? Is it filled? Is he/she over-scheduled? Nothing at all to do? Did he/she miss an important event or appointment? Is he/she counting the days until...?

Interview with Author Diane Scott Lewis

Meet my good pal,  Author Diane Scott Lewis!


Tell us about your writing journey thus far. I’m striving to be on the best seller list, <sly grin> but it’s been a long road of discovering craft, style and voice. I had no idea there was so much formula involved in writing. I wanted to create a story my way, and then let an editor polish it. Of course it doesn’t work that way in today’s publishing world. I joined on-line critique groups which helped me immensely. I learned so much from these wonderful people that I worked as an editor myself.
What inspired your current project? The phenomenon of Fifty Shades of Grey. I read the first book in the series and decided to write a parody. Since I read and write historicals, I set the story in the late eighteenth century. Miss Grey’s Shady Lover is a tongue-in-cheek, erotic romp. Here’s the blurb:Aspiring servant, Anya Grey, goes to work at Pretentious Hall in 1781 and meets the strikingly handsome and dangerous, not to mention damaged, Lord Libidinous. He soon involves her in a sultry affair where she must submit to his lecherous and tortured needs. Prepare to laugh, and sigh, at their sexy, and explicitly steamy, antics.It’s available on Amazon 
What was your favorite class in school?Creative writing, of course! My teacher loved everything I wrote—I’d found something I excelled at. I let my imagination run wild, and she encouraged us to be free with our prose, no restrictions on what was required; it worked for me. But see question one above, and you can see that constraints and certain structures in a novel are expected, especially of fledging authors.
If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be and where would you dine?Elizabeth Bennett of Pride and Prejudice. She’s so intelligent and willful, I think I’d enjoy conversing with her and learning about her everyday life, and the limits she dealt with as a woman. It would be perfect for my research. Where would we dine? A bistro in Paris on the Champs - Élysées —in the same era, naturally.
If you could time travel, what year would you go back or forward to?I’d travel back to eighteenth century (1780’s to 1790’s) Cornwall, England, where many of my novels are set. I’d experience life as it was lived. I’m dedicated to energizing my stories, along with vibrant characters and plot, with the correct historical details.But I couldn’t stay there—I prefer indoor plumbing and washing machines!
Who do you miss the most?I nearly skipped this question, but I decided to answer it. My brother. I lost him when I was only 24, and he 22. I wish he was around now, successful, with a family of his own. He was my only sibling, and as life goes on I see how important it is to have family.
What is the best thing your mother, father or grandmother made for you to eat?My mother was a fantastic cook, something I took for granted growing up, but my friends pointed it out. I adored her stuffed cabbages. No one makes them as delicious as hers.
If your pet was a person, what occupation would he or she be employed in?My pet is a naughty little dachshund, and he’d be a nasty little corporate lawyer because he’s stubborn and loves to argue. But he’d have a loving marriage because he loves to cuddle with his humans. When he’s not ordering us around!
Tell us all of the jobs you have held.I’ve been an office worker, a supply clerk, a government employee and a radioman in the US Navy. But since I dislike being ordered around (ask my husband) I decided to work for myself as a novelist.
Tell us where we can find you online.Please visit my websiteOr my Amazon author page