If it’s the
19th, that means it’s time for the news. The 3 19 news that is. That
little grouping of numbers continues to pop up when I least expect it. Just last week, gas prices here in the Mitten
were at $ 3.19 a gallon. I was also
reading “Lisey’s Story” by Stephen King and room 319 kept popping up in the
story. It’s a good thing I don’t believe
in coincidences, or I’d be looking over my shoulder.
Here’s a peek into my world of writing, a bit about my latest
work in progress, an interview with another great author and of course, music. How
dull this world would be without music.
Let’s roll.
Writing
When and where your story takes place
can have as much impact as a character. Some people enjoy reading about events
from a hundred years ago. Others want to look at the future and jump several decades
or lightyears ahead. Does your story
take place in a real location, or a mystical garden of make believe?
The setting plays a role. Almost all my novels take place in the
metropolitan Detroit area, where I lived for many years. Set in a contemporary
time frame, I like to use some landmarks that people familiar with the area
will recognize. This includes Comerica
Park, Ford Field, the McNamara Federal Building, Belle Isle, the Grosse Pointe
suburbs and more. There are often restaurants
mentioned where I’ve enjoyed a great meal.
In addition to the physical geographic
area, the time of year can be a factor too. In “Vanishing Act” the story takes
place during the winter months. While
other parts of Michigan often get hammered with blizzards, it’s unusual for the
Detroit area to experience this. Most storms move from west to east and it’s
not uncommon for them to run out of steam crossing the mitten state. But I need a storm to be part of the
story. The arrival of a snowstorm hampers
the search for Jamie’s best friend when she goes missing.
In one reader’s review of the story,
they claimed to be able to feel the cold of these winter scenes. Considering
they were enjoying the book during the summer and in the warmth of Atlanta,
Georgia, I’ll take that as a compliment.
Here’s a
picture of a favorite spot in Motown.
Work In Progress
The query for “The Wayward Path” was
submitted ahead of schedule. Feedback
from my fantastic team of beta readers was very positive and they helped catch
a number of screwups I made in the earlier drafts. Now it’s time to ‘hurry up and wait’ to hear
from the publisher.
Meanwhile the fourth Jamie Richmond
book has begun. I hit 18,000 words the
other day, which is a good start. There
is a main plot and one subplot slowly developing. I’m looking forward to seeing what mischief
my favorite redhead gets herself into here.
There may also be a crossover appearance. Jamie has popped up in the second and third
Jefferson Chene novels. Maybe Chene and his team will return the favor. Anything
is possible.
Author Interview
I think of this month’s featured
author as a dear friend. After all,
we’ve both been featured in two anthologies and have been writing for a few
years now. We’ve both appeared on Dr. Paul’s Family Talk on Impact Radio. The
fact that we’ve never met might seem a bit odd. But the world is a smaller
place these days. The wonders of technology do bring us all a little bit closer
together. I’ve no doubt that if the
opportunity were to present itself, Liz Ashlee and I would gather at a corner
of the bar, with a cocktail or two and pass several hours trading tales, ideas
and experiences.
Where are you from?
I’m from Independence, Kentucky! It’s located in Northern Kentucky, very close
to Cincinnati, Ohio.
What’s your
‘someday’ or dream vacation spot and why?
I am obsessed with Banff in Alberta, Canada. A few years
ago, I was looking at one of those slide shows that randomly pops up your
Google News and the subject was beautiful vacation spots. Banff happened to
make the list. I’m not sure if it was the mountains straight out of a Window’s
Desktop background, the glassy water, or the Stephen-King-vibe Fairmont Banff
Springs Hotel, but I vibed with it. Hopefully someday I’ll make it there!
What’s your
favorite thing to do for relaxation?
Like a lot of people, I’m really into true crime. What
better way to relax than to listen to a podcast or watch a documentary about
murder, theft, or unsolved mysteries? Weirdly, it makes you very thankful that
your life is normal and lacking those mysteries!
Any favorite
hobbies?
I’ll be blunt: I’m not your
average twenty-something. I love to watch TV shows like Columbo, M*A*S*H, The
Twilight Zone and Green Acres. So it should be very shocking when I say that my
hobby is to cross-stitch. There’s something magical about creating thousands of
tiny squares and seeing them slowly form a message or picture. I’m currently
working on a pattern of the Biltmore.
How long have you been writing?
I have been writing since I was in the second grade. It was probably
horrendous, I’ll admit. It started with an amazing, kind teacher who recognized
that a shy young girl had potential; she would exchange letters with me. I also
remember yearning to be a writer because my mom was taking a writing class when
I was around that age. I wanted to be just like her. Later in elementary school
I started writing a book - it was a horrendous ghost story that will never see
the light of day.
Are
you able to write full time or do you also have a job/career?
I am Prospect
Analyst for Northern Kentucky University. I like to joke that my job is to
creep on people. I research alumni, community members, organizations, and
foundations who might be interested in getting further involved with NKU,
either by participating in events on campus, making a gift, or joining a board.
Is there a particular genre that you write? Or more than one? What led you there?
I write
contemporary romance, particularly New Adult romance. I’m very much a
happy-endings person! This is to the extent that I’ll intentionally spoil
movies, books and television shows to see if they end happily - if they don’t,
I won’t usually go down that path. Weird, considering I like true crime, right?
But I just believe that there is enough unhappiness in the world and if I’m
going to create something, I want it to be filled with love, hope and
happiness.
Do you use friends or family as characters in your
work?
I try not to! Because it’s fiction, I never want somebody I know to
think, “Oh, this is me!” but then that character does something horrible or
dies...how depressing would that be? I even feel weird about using the names of
people I know half the time. For example, in Heart’s a Mess, the love interest was named John...and in the midst
of editing the book, I began working for a man named John. Although, nobody
else but me would probably feel weirded out by me!
I will say,
though, that situations do slip in here and there that echo my life. I feel
like writing is always an extension of the author’s world. Nothing that I’ve
experienced directly correlates with my writing, but it’s always adjacent. With
Step Toward You, I was dealing with
the loss of my grandfather and my thyroid cancer diagnoses. When I was writing Sort of Normal, I needed to laugh, and Boone’s
character made me do just that. When I started Heart’s A Mess, I was reading The
Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple by Jeff Gunn.
What authors had an impact on you growing up and as an
adult?
I am probably one of the few writers who will say that I did not like reading when I was little. I’ve always been anxious
about reading aloud and I’ve never been good at understanding as I’m reading,
so I probably psyched myself out! But when I was in high school, I remember
picking up random books here and there, and eventually I tore through the Morganville Vampire series by Rachel
Caine at about a book a day. Those books taught me to love and appreciate what
reading can do for you! The other authors who have impacted me the most are Mia
Sheridan, Abbi Glines, Tonya Kappes, Kylie Scott, Jennifer Echols, Jennifer L.
Armentrout, and Carian Cole. My favorite author is Agatha Christie - her books
are marvelous and mysterious!
What is your
favorite aspect or writing? Your least favorite?
My favorite part of writing
is dialogue. I feel like it is the best way for the reader (and myself) to get
to know a character. Once you hear their voice, you see the way they look and
act, and eventually, it’s like they’re sitting in the room with you. There isn’t
anything as energizing as just letting your fingers fly over a keyboard as
you’re just typing out dialogue - it feels like the characters are speaking
through you.
My least favorite part is
writing descriptions. I’ve gotten to a point now where I combat the problem by
having Google Images at the ready, or I type “NEED MORE HERE.” Of course, when
I go back in my first round of edits, those words make me feel sick to my
stomach. I always find it difficult to know when you should tell the reader
what they see, versus just letting them make up whatever they want.
What aspect of
writing would you most like to improve on?
Is it okay to say sitting down and writing?
You would think that in this pandemic, I would have more time to write, but
when I do have free time, I just want to watch TV and cross-stitch. 2020 was a
big year for more - I got engaged, finished grad school, started a new job (my
first without downtime to write during!), got married, and bought a house. I
feel both guilty and thankful to say that 2020 was the best year of my
life...but not when it came to writing. So, hey you, 2021...I’m coming for you.
Do you have any
“must haves” with you while you’re writing?
When I write, I usually have
The Avett Brothers, The Lumineers, or The Head and the Heart playing quietly.
I’m obsessed with those bands, so I have their lyrics memorized, so it’s
something I can mindlessly listen to. Other than that, I can be in any
environment at any time or anywhere. A few weeks ago, I was writing while I was
getting my hair done!
Is there a common
theme or item that appears in each of your work?
I think that loss shows up a lot in my writing. Here I talk
about only happy endings and loss is the exact opposite of that, but it’s a
part of life. It’s something we can usually all identify with. But for me, when
you have something like loss, it is always bookended with hope and joy because
to have loss, is to have life. I love to write about people who are moving
through loss and toward their happily ever after.
What have you
learned the most from being in the writing business?
The writing business is a lot
bigger than just writing. It’s something I expected but didn’t necessarily
know. You have to be your main advocate and advertise yourself. There is so
much competition out there, so you have to figure out a way to make yourself
stand out. It’s not something I’ve cracked the code to, but it just gives you a
reason to explore opportunities and try new things. This leads me to say, thank
you, Mark, for giving me this amazing opportunity to be involved in your
newsletter!
Tell us about your
latest work. How did you decide on your
story plot?
Like I mentioned before, I
was reading a book on Jim Jones. Nothing as tragic happens in Heart’s a Mess, but it struck me how a
person can make others follow them to that extent. I wanted my plot to have an
antagonist with that charismatic quality and show people whose lives have been
impacted by it. And, also, I wanted to rewrite history, in a sense - create a
fictional world where *SPOILER ALERT, but also, duh, because happy endings* you
can stop the bad guy before he becomes the big kind of bad that Jim Jones was.
Describe how this method works best for you. Outline or
‘seat of the pants’?
I write by the seat of my pants! For me, I could never finish anything if I had
an outline set - it wouldn’t be as exciting! Usually, the only thing I sort of
know is how the book will end. Other than that, I like to let the characters
write their own story through their dialogue and actions. I do wish I was more
of an outliner, though! At least then I would have more direction.
Do you have a
favorite scene you’ve written? What makes it special?
My favorite scene to write
was in Step Toward You. The love
interests pretend to get married so the heroine’s dying mom can see her only
child’s wedding. It was the one scene that I could see, hear and feel from the
moment I first imagined Silas and Rooney. And, in part, it was also a wish that
everyone could have their dreams come true in front of someone they’ve lost,
even if it is just pretending.
Here’s an excerpt from the
story.
Sometimes our
hearts break…
When John Smith’s father was
dying, his family knew there was nothing to do, but they tried anyway. Paying
more money than they had, they took John’s father and the last of their hope to
Ezra Abel for a healing.
And we fight to
keep it beating…
But Ezra’s faith healing is
only a trick—a way to fool families out of their money. Worst of all, he
humiliates these families when they’re at their lowest. After his father dies,
John devotes his life to revealing Ezra for the evil person he is. And when
Kinley walks into his life, he’s much closer to accomplishing his goal. But all
you can do is hold it in your hands. Kinley Abel is Ezra’s weapon, milking
families of their hard-earned cash. She doesn’t want to do her father’s
bidding, but she has to. Except the more she falls for John, the more she
questions her role in the church, leading her down a dangerous path which could
break her heart.
Sometimes you
fall in love with lies.
Here are some links where you
can learn more about Liz.
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Liz-Ashlee/e/B07CHGG3GF/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
Website: https://www.liz-ashlee.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LizAshleeAuthor/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizashleeauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lizashleeauthor?lang=en
Music
There’s been a lot of variety this month,
but an old favorite keeps popping up when I least expect it.
Paul Simon has been performing for
more than 50 years and his catalog of songs are still as popular today as they
were back in the sixties and seventies.
Simon has won 12 Grammy awards, been inducted into the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. He’s also been honored by the Kennedy
Center and has won the Gershwin Prize.
Here’s my top five songs from Simon.
Picking just five wasn’t easy.
Call Me Al: https://youtu.be/uq-gYOrU8bA
Baby Driver:
https://youtu.be/J8i4Rp3qizk
Me &
Julio: https://youtu.be/Z6VrKro8djw
Obvious
Child: https://youtu.be/9HKNAhAxMAk
Loves Me
Like a Rock: https://youtu.be/CjFzw8AxSBA
