Interview with Shirley Connolly

Like historical romance? I have only read a few myself, but I do think today's guest might change that. 


Shirley Connolly, coffee loving author who writes from the heart.

Welcome, Shirley! Please tell us your latest news! 

Finishing up my 2nd book in the Decisions Series. It’s called More Than a Ruby and it will be out in October.

Hope many of you got to enjoy Book 1 SAY GOODBYE TO YESTERDAY and another of my earlier books, FLAME FROM WITHIN.

It’s all in the family, so it’s great to now see what is happening to my Jordan ladies and in my earlier books, from the Jordan men.


If you were to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

Since I’m still working on it, it is changing in front of me EVERYDAY! :-)


Who is your favorite author, and what really strikes you about their work?

I have several. Love Francine Rivers and her precise writing in Redeeming Love and the detail work she created in her Mark of the Lion  trilogy a while back.

Love reading Tamera Alexander’s books.

On the secular side, I really have fun reading Julia Quinn and Loretta Chase is an excellent writer too. I also enjoy Susan Wiggs’ historical work.

Mostly, I just get a hold of any Historical Romance I can find, and devour them one by one.

Is there a single book or author that made you want to write?

Kathleen E Woodiwiss when she started doing historical romance decades ago. It was her first book The Flame and the Flower which grabbed me. Then her Ashes in the Wind which excited me about writing about the War between the South and what gave me the inspiration for my Flame from Within book.


Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

Probably from my dad, who wrote short story mysteries and suspense during the 2nd World War. I was about eight years old when the interest grabbed my heart. It never left.


How does your family feel about having a writer in the family? Do they read your books?

My husband doesn’t read my books but he gets to hear about them. All my kids read them though.

My sisters read them but since they are inspirational, I’m not sure if my sisters enjoy them as much as they might a secular story. You just never know. I try to make my stories apply to EVERYONE like writers did in the past (Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Victoria Holt) All their books had an element of inspiration in them but met the needs of all at the same time.

You can add those to my favorite authors although they are from the past.


Do you have a favorite object pertinent to your writing? (Pen, coffee cup, pet, blanket, chair…?

COFFEE COFFEE COFFEE

Haha, I can relate to that one. What do you love about your latest book?

If you are talking about Say Goodbye to Yesterday, which has been out for a bit, I love that the story, though written for the 1870s was very true to life and spoke about taboo things that were happening back then but were seldom spoke of openly. I made sure there was a message to be drawn from what my characters went through. I think I was able to do that.


What is your favorite review of your book?

The one that can be found at Romance Studio and also from Reviews by Molly (who does reviews for The Romance Reader as well)

They were both a real blessing to me.

Also one that came in from Delia Latham, another author. She really saw the message of the book and wrote of it in a way that hit the nail on the head.

Most of these reviews and others can be found right in Amazon with my book.


Tell us about your all-time favorite character (of your creating.) Is he/she modeled after a real person?

I have no favorites, not yet. But they all delve just a little bit into the true character of someone in my past or possibly present. I stay careful, though, not to go too far with that.


What type of scene do you enjoy writing the most?

I mostly enjoy writing dialogue to make my characters come alive. How they spoke back in the 1800s is so different from today. I love to draw emphasis to that I think.


How does it feel when you write? 

Sometimes frustrating, but most of the time very fulfilling to me. It is part of me. Except for the love of my family, my husband, and God, and my friendships with my pets and my chickens, and my greenhouse, and redesigning my rooms (all these things so much a part of me), writing is me. It will always be me. And I will do it until I no longer have hands and a pen and a keyboard to do it with.



What’s your favorite place you’ve visited?  Do you have a “must see” destination on your bucket list?

Loved seeing Ireland.

Loved going to Washington, DC and seeing history come alive.

Loved living in New York and working at West Point, United States Military Academy.

I just love it all over.



Anything else you want to share?

Just a hearty thank you, Maria, for the interview.

Hoping you’ll get a chance to read my books. I think people get to know me best when they read my stories.

If you have already read my other books and my devotional series, be watching for More Than a Ruby.


Thank you so much for coming over, Shirley! I loved learning more about you, and I'll keep my eyes open for More than a Ruby. :-)


Check out Shirley's website: http://shirleykigerconnolly.com 
Read Shirley's blog: http://apenforyourthoughts.blogspot.com/ 

Meet Shirley on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShirleyKigerConnollyAuthor

Follow Shirley on Twitter: https://twitter.com/shirleyhere

Welcome, Stephenia McGee!

A few days ago, Stephenia McGee's new book, "A Legacy of Lies" was featured on the blog. The excerpt fascinated me, and I asked Stephenia to come back for an interview. Luckily, she agreed! =D

Stephenia McGee, Writer with degree in Animal Science!


Welcome Stephenia! I am delighted to see you here! I'm curious, how does your family feel about having a writer in the family? Do they read your books? 

My husband is a huge support. He is the one that gently (and sometimes not so gently) pushed me to follow my dream of writing a book. He has gone to writer’s conferences with me, and he is always the first person I bounce ideas off of. He is also my first editor, and reads through my first drafts helping me see when things don’t make sense or flow right. He has also become somewhat of a marketing director as well! He took it upon himself to find a few people to do reviews and write about my book in print magazines that will be coming out in the next few months.


What is your favorite review of your book? 

My favorite review I have gotten so far is from author Patty Froese. She put it in a category I had never considered, but I loved it. She really seemed to get it. Here’s her review:

When I first started reading this novel, I fired off an email to the author (an online friend) and told her that this was a fantastic book.  And I was serious.  She starts with a murky mystery and it doesn’t let up until the very end.  In fact, as I read the last few pages, I realized what this book was:  this is an Inspirational Gothic novel.  Think Castle of Otranto and The Turn of the Screw in a cowboy romance.  Fan-TAS-tic. 


The story follows Jim, a ranch hand with a history he refuses to discuss, Sarah, a frustrated student sinking in debt, Jonathan, a billionaire with a heart of steel and Elizabeth, a lost soul who can’t seem to remember who she is or why she keeps coming back to a strange little shop that is always open in the middle of New York City.  They are all linked in one tragic tale of love, rejection, redemption and supernatural intervention. 


This book has it all: a nice quick plot, a massive castle, cowboys, a dark mystery, a cold seductress and a story that leaves you thinking about it long after you’ve finished the book.  If you’re looking for one good read, I definitely recommend this book. 


Would you share with us what inspired you to write this kind of story? 

My husband and I were killing time on the two hour drive from our college to his parent’s house. We were talking about how I’d always loved to write and throwing around story ideas. We actually started with a man in hospital room and the preacher who comes to hear his final confession. That prologue no longer exists, but the entire story stems from his confession.


When did you discover you are a writer? Was there a specific catalyst? 

I wrote my first story from a first grade spelling list. Then I wrote a children’s story from a pig’s perspective coming to America on the Mayflower. A short story project in high school turned into several chapters. So, I guess it’s always been there. Like I talked about earlier, my husband was talking to me about how I liked to write and all these story ideas I had while we were traveling one day. I really started working on my first book then. I played with it, but it was just a hobby. Then he took me to a writer’s conference when I finished my first manuscript (oh how awful it was!) and I really started to let the dream bloom. It wasn’t what I had always said I was going to do. I intended to go to Vet school, and I have a degree in animal science, but this was something that just wouldn’t let go of me. Then, my mom brought me an old notebook that she had kept with all those stories I had written growing up. When I looked at it, it hit me. Before any plans, before any expectations, before anything else, writing is what I did. It was something God put in my heart from the very beginning; I had just buried it under everything else. It was then that I made a commitment to making it my career to be a novelist, and I haven’t looked back!

Anything else you want to share? 

If it’s okay, I’d love to share a little about Spirit Horse Ministries. We are still trying to start-up, but now that we have official 501(C)3 status and are a Mississippi non-profit organization, we are starting to get things rolling. SHM is designed to create a “hometown” for foster children, especially those that are older and are looking at leaving the system and entering a world where they are alone. We want to create a type of “Mayberry” for them. A place to come home too. We will also have afterschool and summer programs that focus on not only foster but handicap, at risk and underprivileged children as well. They will work with therapeutic horses, go fishing and learn important life skills like cooking and how to balance a checkbook. It’s a big dream. We are opening a country store to help raise funds by selling homemade and donated country items, and should have some day programs running this summer. We’ve been super busy, so our website is a little out of date, but if you want to know more you can go to www.spirithorseministries.org for more info. A portion of all my book sales goes to help the ministry.


Website: www.StepheniaMcGee.com

Facebook: www.facebook/StepheniaHMcGee

Twitter: www.twitter.com/StepheniaHMcGee

Interview with Jillian Chantal

Very exciting day today - welcoming talented Jillian Chantal to the blog. Her new book comes out April 15, and is definitely something to keep eyes open for!

Jillian Chantal, romance with international flair

Please tell us your latest news!

My newest book from Desert Breeze Publishing comes out April 15, 2012. It's Book One of The Gambler's Inheritance series and is called The Gambler. So, when you're bemoaning that it's tax day, you can escape with a mystery/romance novel.

What do you love about your latest book?

I love the fact that my heroine is psychic and has her visions in an odd way. She's not your run of the mill psychic. I also realized about half way through the book that I was writing a variation on the Cinderella theme. Being a pantser, that came as a surprise.

Can you tell us something behind-the-scenes about this book that readers would love to hear - something not easily found on your website?

I flew out to California and spent two days and nights on the Queen Mary in order to research the story. I took the ghost tour as well as the behind the scenes tour. I hope it makes the book feel authentic and pulls the reader into the scenes in a good way.

Do your fictional characters develop on their own, or do you have their lives planned out in advance?

Oh, on their own, for sure. Part of the joy of writing for me is the adventure of the first draft. I start with a basic premise and it grows organically from there. Such fun for me!

Would you share with us what inspired you to write the story?

I love the early Twentieth Century and am a huge history buff of all the different ages and eras. I just adore reading and studying about things that happened in the past. This book came from my fascination about the older ocean liners. I also have another novel out with Desert Breeze Publishing, called Redemption for the Devil which takes place in 1920 and is on the Mauretania.

Living on the Gulf of Mexico makes me a water person and so, my fascination with oceans and history made me want to write these kind of stories.

What's your favorite place you've visited? Do you have a "must see" destination on your bucket list?

I love the British Isles. I base a lot of my stories there or have characters from England, Scotland, or Ireland. I haven't written a Welshman yet, but want to.

Is there something funny about you people don't know?

I am a roller coaster nut. I love, love, love to ride them. It is so much fun to go backwards, loop around, fly up and down hills and just plain have fun with them. The weird thing about it is that I can ride them all day long and not get sick, but put me in one of those movie theaters that have the 360 degree screen and I get so nauseated that I think I'm going to die. I got so sick at the Oh Canada show in EPCOT, I had to go outside and vomit. Crazy, huh?

Anything else you want to share?

I hope that anyone who reads this story enjoys it. I had a blast writing it and figuring out the whodunit myself! LOL! Thanks for having me come in. I enjoyed the questions. They were fun and well thought out.

For more information, visit Jillian at:

http://www.jillianchantal.com

http://southernsizzleromance.wordpress.com/