Gerry Joy
asked
Cathy Cash Spellman:
Cathy, I learn so much from reading your books, in all genres. Throughout your stories you intersperse all kinds of fascinating and interesting tidbits and pieces of information that I normally would not know anything about. How much research goes into one of your typical novels?
Cathy Cash Spellman
Hi Gerry,
Great question! The answer gets a bit complicated because I tend to continue researching all during my writing of a story. I feel as if I need to live the times with my characters, so I keep on digging deeper and deeper as the story evolves for me...
Paint the Wind took five years of research and writing, plus five trips to the West. Lark's Labyrinth took more than a decade of writing, studying and delving!
My Irish sagas, So Many Partings and An Excess of Love, brought a lifetime of family history, music and poetry into play, as I'd been steeped in all of it from childhood on, so that helped immensely with authenticity.
Bless the Child percolated in my head for several years before I put pen to paper, but then an intensive two years followed. The Playground of the Gods was a snap, by comparison! It needed no historical research, being contemporary... I had met the kinds of characters who peopled my tale, so it was fun to write them and to have the kind of sexual freedom that contemporary stories allow. The most difficult parts were the aviation and the grandiose architectural ambitions of a billionaire constructing his own Paradise!
Truth is, I get almost as much pleasure from doing the research as from evolving my stories! History is a treasure trove of hidden gems.
Great question! The answer gets a bit complicated because I tend to continue researching all during my writing of a story. I feel as if I need to live the times with my characters, so I keep on digging deeper and deeper as the story evolves for me...
Paint the Wind took five years of research and writing, plus five trips to the West. Lark's Labyrinth took more than a decade of writing, studying and delving!
My Irish sagas, So Many Partings and An Excess of Love, brought a lifetime of family history, music and poetry into play, as I'd been steeped in all of it from childhood on, so that helped immensely with authenticity.
Bless the Child percolated in my head for several years before I put pen to paper, but then an intensive two years followed. The Playground of the Gods was a snap, by comparison! It needed no historical research, being contemporary... I had met the kinds of characters who peopled my tale, so it was fun to write them and to have the kind of sexual freedom that contemporary stories allow. The most difficult parts were the aviation and the grandiose architectural ambitions of a billionaire constructing his own Paradise!
Truth is, I get almost as much pleasure from doing the research as from evolving my stories! History is a treasure trove of hidden gems.
More Answered Questions
Julie Guarascio
asked
Cathy Cash Spellman:
Dear Cathy Cash - The first book of yours that I ever read (An Excess of Love) tore at my heart and sole. Although some of your other books have come close, this will always be my favorite. How many days/weeks/months did it take to research all of the facts to match your story line? Your Devoted Fan - Beverly O'Neil (Pittsburgh PA)
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