Q. Tell
us about your latest work—title, genre, etc. —
and why you wrote it?
A. My fantasy novel Sdrawkcab was written for my
pre-teen son. It started off with me having a weird dream and needing to
write it down, and the next think I knew I had an outline for a story that
really interested my son. We kind of worked on it together. I would
write the draft of a chapter and read it to him in exchange for his opinion
from a child’s perspective. It was a fun project, and my son was very happy to
see the book in print. I published other books before, but the content
was too mature for him.
Q What draws you to
your genre(s)? Why is this type of story compelling to you?
A. I write a
bit of everything, but horror is more me in the sense that this is what people
expected me to write. I have always been a Halloween freak and turn my
apartment into a haunted house each October. I love Scary or suspenseful
movies and my reading interests are the same. But, you will sometimes
find me reading or watching something more girly. I have written romance
and a few feel good stories. I basically just write when inspiration hits
me. Sometimes I will get inspired my life events or a picture.
Q. What is your writing process
like? Do you map the whole thing out or do you just let it unfold?
A. I often
just write an idea down and see what happens with it. For my novels, I would
write out a basic outline. Sometimes it would change, but it is good to
have a general idea of were your story is going to begin with.
Q. What kind of research was involved in
writing your book?
A. When I wrote Just.Another.Common.Killer, I had to
do a lot of research on Jack the Ripper because, although my book is a work of
fiction, I wanted to get the factual parts right. I also had to do a bit
of research on serial killers in general to be able to portray the one I
created as realistic as possible.
Q. How much of YOU makes it into
your characters?
A. Most of my main characters kind of start off as me
and then I change them physically and modify the personality to fit my
story. Even Jack, from Just.Another.Common.Killer has similarities to
me! (Not the torturing or killing parts, I can assure you! I am not
a cannibal either.)
Q. How do you balance the need to
have time to write with the needs of family, society, etc.?
A. It is
pretty hard. The only time I can write is in the evening, when my son is
asleep or on weekends when he is at a friends. Otherwise, I get too
distracted and can’t concentrate. Writing a first draft is not so bad,
but when I need to focus on polishing up my stories and adding more to them I need
silence.
Q. Have
there been any authors in particular, that inspired your writing?
A. Not really. As a rule, I won’t read a book
when I am working on a story because I don’t want another author’s writing
style to unconsciously creep into mine.
Q. Is there a story you want to
tell behind or about your work(s)?
A. Although, some of my novels and stories were
inspired by facts or true events in my life, they are ALL works of
fiction. Even my novel Hope, which I wrote to make my family and friends
understand what it is like to live with Colitis (Which I was diagnosed with in
2009), is a fictional story.
Q.
What
other projects are you currently working on or about to start?
A. I started writing short stories for The Suburban`s
Online Magazine. My story «A Mother’s Love» was recently published in the
April 26 issue. «A Father’s promise» should be published in June.
People can read the stories by going to www.thesuburban.com and clicking the magazine tab.
Q. What would be the top
five, (or 3 or 1 or however many) things you would tell aspiring authors?
A. Always have writing material with you, in case an
idea pops up. Do writing exercises regularly, even if it is just keeping
a journal. Let at least one person read the work you want published
because you may see what you think you wrote not what you actually wrote when
you read your own work. Plus, it helps to get opinions.
Again, thanks Chantal for taking the time to share your knowledge with us. We appreciate you and your work.
Good luck with your current and future
publications.
For more information:
Book titles: Veronica`s Soap Opera Life, Veronica's
Attempt at Romance, Veronica's Happily Ever After, Just.Another.Common.Killer,
Thirteen-A Compilatin of Short Stories, Sdrawkcab.
Available at: Amazon sites and Rosedog online
bookstore
Here is the direct link to my US Amazon Author
page, where you can
also buy my books.
Here is the direct link to the Canada Amazon page, where you can buy my books.
Here is the direct link to my UK Amazon Author
page, where you can
also buy my books.
Website= Facebook page
Please go to the comments button below
in white box next to the time to interact with our Author and other readers.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for your valued comments