Dec 15, 2022 | Editors' Blog, Interviews
This week, we’re talking with Fern Ronay about her book Better Believe It
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
My grandfather sends me pennies as a sign. He passed in 2001.
(This might not be so unexpected to people who follow me and my podcast #SignsFromTheOtherSide.)
Why do you write?
To tell stories I would like to read.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
The protagonist of Better Believe It was a subordinate character in my first book and she has issues I couldn't wait to explore.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
Relatable characters
How would you describe your writing process?
Get it all out, and then sculpt it later.
What advice would you have for other writers?
Write at least one sentence a day.
It usually leads to more but one sentence is enough, and then, before you know it, you have written your next book.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Connecting with people who are interested in the same weird stuff you're interested in. No better way to find your tribe.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
My publisher does that but I've been lucky. They have good taste and great ideas.
What's your next step?
A third book!
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
Excited!
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Oct 10, 2021 | Editors' Blog, Interviews
This week, we’re talking with Marguerite Nardone Gruen about her book The Band 4: The Air We Breathe
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
It wasn't my aspiration to be a writer. It just happened.
Why do you write?
I had all these thoughts and decided to sit down and write them out.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
I had a dream and couldn't stop thinking about it weeks later, so I decided to sit down and write it out – 300 pages later I had a manuscript.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I wrote it for a younger crowd but every time I have a book signing – older women seem to be more interested in my books.
How would you describe your writing process?
I write myself notes during the day and then at night I sit and write about them.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
I have never had any success with social media. I thought it would help me, but so far the results are not there.
What advice would you have for other writers?
If you are on the wire about publishing your manuscript – do it. You will always wonder what if? Great advice I got from my sister.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
The cover has to be attractive. It has to make someone say ‘I want to read that' or at least pick it up to look at it. The title comes to me when I'm writing the story.
What's your next step?
Trying to get an audience out there and a following. I believe in the story and want everyone else to love it too.
What book do you wish you had written?
The Shadowhunters series by Cassandra Clare.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
It makes my heart melt if the review is good and if it's not – I see what I could have done better.
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Sep 8, 2021 | Interviews
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
My teenage sons and I play rock/ acoustic music together and love performing in the bars and restaurants around town.
Why do you write?
To share with the world the untold stories of hope, heroism, and humanity.
I believe these stories will serve to inspire others to love without fear, and to fight back at all costs.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
While promoting another work in Germany, I learned that old habits die hard in the Fatherland.
I discovered that many publications had been put out by reputable sources stating that my Jewish great-grandfather was a Nazi collaborator! That he was the one responsible for murdering his fellow Jews! Teacher's unions, historians, archivists, and professors, are spreading these lies.
I wrote this book to clear Carl Katz's name and to stop and hold accountable these hidden, modern-day Nazi sympathizers.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I love the thrill of discovering how truth is often stranger and more shocking than fiction!
How would you describe your writing process?
While everything is heavily researched, once I feel I've acquired substantial information, I set it aside and write from the heart.
I sit down behind my computer without even an outline, and just allow the story to dictate to me where it would like to go! It is always an incredible journey!
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Social media is a wonderful opportunity to interact with readers who you would otherwise never have the occasion to meet!
Sometimes writing can be quite isolating. Therefore, my favorite part of being a writer has always been the Q & A's. I love when people reach out to me, and we have exciting exchanging of ideas. I always find it very inspiring!
What advice would you have for other writers?
I have often been told that no one wants to read about the subject matter I've been focusing on. Well, (thankfully) the sales have suggested otherwise.
My advice would then be to write what interests you! If you have a passion for the subject, then others will too! As long as you transmit that excitement though your words, and with honesty and authenticity, then I believe you will always be successful.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
As for the titles, It usually jumps out at me somewhere towards the end of the book. I will often times pull it from a chapter that marks the moments and events that inspired the work as a whole. As for the covers, it tends to be my favorite image of the main character – one in which they look hopeful, powerful, and therefore, beautiful.
What's your next step?
I'm working on a coming-of-age trilogy that is very close to my heart. Book two is well in the works.
I am enjoying this opportunity to continue writing stories of heroism in the face of adversity, and faith in the bleakest of times.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
Even though I tend to hold my breath upon receiving them, I truly do treasure the input and insights!
The best part is when a reviewer relates to my characters and/or their circumstances
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Jun 23, 2021 | Editors' Blog, Interviews
This week, we’re talking with Donna Jean Picerno about her book, I Had to Leave
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I have always wanted to write a book. I've started it several times over the years but, never stuck with it.
Then, one day, I received a psychic reading and the woman said to me, “so tell me about these books you write.” I was in shock, I had never told anyone except my husband that I had a dream of writing books. She said that I was going to publish multiple books and they would be successful.
That night, I started writing again and continued writing for the next six months straight until I finished my debut novel, I Had to Leave.
Why do you write?
I write because I love to read and I have always thought to myself, I can do that!
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
My books are inspired by Nicholas Sparks and Mary Higgins Clark.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I write romantic suspense novels and most enjoy the fact that my books have a little bit of everything rolled up into one book.
Writing romantic suspense novels allows me to combine the writing styles of my two favorite authors, Nicholas Sparks and Mary Higgins Clark into one story. I try to write stories that will pull at your heartstrings and also give the reader a thrill of suspense.
How would you describe your writing process?
I write by the seam of my pants. I write one chapter at a time, and even I don't know where the story is going from one chapter to the next. I typically wake up in the middle of the night with an idea of what a character will do next.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Social media can help authors develop a fan base and announce new novels. It is also a great word of mouth. If someone reads your book and loves it and shares it on social media, it can make a book go viral.
What advice would you have for other writers?
I am a new author so I don't have much advice on writing, but what I will say is just do it. You will never know if you don't try. Still today, as I hold my first book in my hands, I cannot believe that I wrote it.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
The titles I select come from a line somewhere in the book and cover design is what I think of when I envision what the title looks like in my head.
What's your next step?
I am almost done with my second novel, Blood Brothers and then I plan on writing a sequel to I Had to Leave and a sequel to Blood Brothers. I never like to leave a reader hanging on the ending, but I always like to leave it so that the story can continue with another character.
What book do you wish you had written?
The Notebook.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
I get so excited when I see a new review pop up. After reading a good review, I am on a high for several days.
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Jun 22, 2021 | Editors' Blog, Memoir
I am not a writer, and I never thought I would be the author of a book. The idea for the memoir entered my brain decades ago. The thought was simple- write about my experiences with depression and suicide and hopefully help others who were struggling like me. At the time, I thought that the idea was stupid because I did not believe I could write a book, and I was sure that no one would be interested in my ramblings. So, I put the idea somewhere in the darkest recesses of my mind.
I also knew that I did not have enough in my thoughts to inspire others which I desperately wanted. The idea kept coming back to me, and each time it grew stronger and stronger. I still thought that I did not have enough to write the story I wanted to tell, so starting the memoir was as close as Mars.
It just happened that the rest of my life was full of tragedy, shock, pain and the experiences my book needed. It wasn’t nice to live through, but it gave me the book I always wanted. I had the book in my head, but I did not start writing it. I did not have the confidence or self-belief even to sort out the big pile of notes I had kept for years.
The book grew in my mind until it took over my thoughts anytime I was not concentrating on something else. It grew to be a colossal millstone around my neck that was dragging me and my mood down. It wanted to explode out of my brain, and I could feel it trying to escape. Eventually, I had no choice but to start releasing my story and getting it down on paper. I did it because I had to. I had to find a way to take all that pressure out of my mind. I did it to help ease my depression and to try to help someone else.
So, I wrote In Two Minds, a kind of memoir to help myself and hopefully others too. It was incredibly difficult for me, but I am happy that it is finished and published now. It took over three years but is a kind of a legacy for me, which is why I was as honest as I could be. I am pleased that those who have read the book have only good things to say about it. My Dad finished reading it yesterday, and he was full of praise, and I was delighted. I was not too sure how he and Mam would react, but Dad was thrilled with it. I cannot ask for anymore.
Visit http://www.intwominds.ie/ and find our more about Peter and his memoir!
