Author Interview with Mikey Brooks

I've become virtually acquainted with a very interesting and talented young author. I think you'll find him and his writing interesting too. Please check him out.

Mikey Brooks

1. Tell us a little bit about your upcoming book.

Mikey: I am excited to share! THE DREAM KEEPER

is a middle-grade adventure with a toe in both the real world and the fantastic. It’s inspired by the classic tales that I loved when I was a kid, The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland. It’s filled with suspense, action, and of course nightmares.

“When an evil shifter takes over the gateway to the realm of Dreams, it falls to 14-year-olds Parker and Kaelyn to stop him. Their only hope lies with Gladamyr, the Dream Keeper, but can they trust a Nightmare to save their world?”

It comes out June 1^st and is available at any bookstore. You can also find it online on Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com as well in ebook. Here are the links:

Hardback: http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Keeper-Mikey-Brooks/dp/1939993016

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1939993032

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/The-Dream-Keeper-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B00CPE0PT0 

Paperback Create Space: https://www.createspace.com/4260677

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17727253-the-dream-keeper

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1115262781?ean=9781939993014 

2. You are a multi-talented young man. If you had to pick a turning point in your life that spurred your creativity, what would it be? 

Mikey: Thank you! Since I was little I used to dabble in art and writing but I never thought of doing it as a profession until I had kids. So I’d say they were my turning point. My daughter was the inspiration behind one of my first picture books, BEAN’S DRAGONS. One day she was telling me to tell the dragons in the living room it was time to go home. I promptly opened the front door and sent them on their way. Dragons never leave for long and I’m glad they came back. Children have a way of bringing magic into every home. I think it’s something that should be encouraged. The imagination children have is more than enough fuel to spur any artist’s imagination.

3. You write and illustrate children's books, but from what I read you have won some awards for more literary writing, which do you love to do more and why? 

Mikey: I wrote a lot of my literary work while I was getting my degree in Creative Writing. I’ve personal essays published in literary magazines and even some poetry, but they have never been my passion. Not that I don’t enjoy that side of writing, but my heart lies with the kids. I think there is something unique about storytelling to children that surpasses any type of award or recognition that comes from literary works.  

4. Tell us how you got into sewing and how it relates to your writing (if it does). 

Mikey: My mother taught me how to sew when I was young. By the time I was in high school I was designing all the costumes for the shows. I had a lot of fun doing it. Costumes can tell the audience more than one story about a character. I think it helps me to keep that in mind. Clothes are important in a story. After high school I worked for the Utah Shakespearian Festival and then Ballet West. I even designed several wedding dresses. Now I just make costumes for fun. Halloween is my favorite holiday. What writer wouldn’t want a day dedicated to pretending to be someone else?

5. What authors living and dead have influenced your life and your writing?

Mikey: The most influential have been C.S. Lewis and Frank L. Baum. I grew up in a very rural part of Missouri and had little to no friends. I loved how these authors wrote of escaping the mundane of this world and finding the fantastic somewhere else. I can’t even count the number of times I tried climbing through a wardrobe or clicking my heels together. I never went to magical lands but I did have fun making up stories about them. 

6. What do you wish you had known about writing before you began your career?

Mikey: I think that every writer comes into their craft in their own way. I don’t know if I had changed anything if it would have spurred my career forward or not. I think the only thing I can offer to other writers wanting to turn this into a career is to obtain a support system right off. Without the love and compassion of my wife, family, and friends I would be nowhere. Too often writers get discouraged and we need these wonderful people to help boost our spirits. I am certainly grateful for the angels in my life.

7. What do you like to do besides writing, illustrating and sewing?

Mikey: My favorite thing to do is spend time with my girls. In one afternoon I can be an explorer in Africa, a spaceman on Mars, the king of my own country, even a wizard able to conjure whatever I wish. Most of all they make me feel invisible. Being an author/illustrator is pretty cool but my greatest title in life has been a father. 

  

Thanks Mikey for taking the time to be interviewed for my blog. You seem like a very imaginative person. I also really loved Frank L. Baum books. I read every book of his that I could find. They made my childhood even more interesting. 

Take time to find out more about Mikey and his book. I'm sharing a bio, a synopsis and an excerpt from his book. 

TEASER: 

Dreams: Dorothy called it Oz, Alice called it Wonderland, but Nightmares call it HOME.

When an evil shifter takes over the gateway to the realm of Dreams, it falls to 14-year-olds Parker and Kaelyn to stop him. Their only hope lies with Gladamyr, the Dream Keeper, but can they trust a Nightmare to save their world?

SYNOPSIS:

Loser—the most frightening word to ever be uttered in junior high school. Even the coolest kids are afraid of being associated with it. 14-year-old Parker Bennett is no exception. He can’t even be himself around his friends for fear they might not accept who he really is. When circumstances force him to team up with Kaelyn Clarke, the biggest loser in the ninth grade, Parker has to decide what is more important; protecting his social status or saving the world. Nightmare named Fyren has taken over the gateway to the realm of Dreams, with the intention of controlling mortals, and it falls on Parker, Kaelyn, and Gladamyr – the Dream Keeper – to stop him. They learn being called a loser is no longer a fear, when compared to the terror of real nightmares.

In Praise of THE DREAM KEEPER:

“This really is a cracking novel. Action-packed and spellbinding!”—Cas Peace, author of The Artisans of Albia series.

EXCERPT FROM BOOK:

Parker was about to assassinate the general of the goblin army. It wasn’t murder, it was an assignment. He tried to justify what he was about to do as he jumped from the rooftop and landed just above the battlement wall. It was the perfect spot to scout the camp. The goblins filling the keep were everywhere, sharpening blades and axes or gathering weapons for the impending battle. Parker noticed a large troll in the right hand corner of the space below, hammering solidly on a sword large enough to split three men into six. He spotted his target. 

The general of the goblin army was a large brute with golden braids hanging down his chest. He was the one who had ordered the burning of Parker’s home village. The one who had ordered the death of Parker’s family and friends. This monster, this villain, was the reason Parker had set out on his journey to seek vengeance upon the unjust. This was the creature responsible for Parker swearing allegiance to the Mightercore army, who quickly gave him the role of assassin-scout.

Parker maneuvered his way down the wall, careful not to move too fast or his invisibility cloak would lose its power. He placed his foot in one crevice, then his hand in another. After a few moments of skilled climbing, Parker found himself precariously positioned just behind the golden haired brute, leaving only a small distance between him and his foe. In a quick session tactic, Parker could ignite his blade with the magic of the Mightercore and his target would be no more. He positioned himself to strike, raising his sword and whispering the incantation that would release the blade’s power—.

“Parker.”

He ignored whoever was calling his name; they did not matter. All he saw was the villain before him. The completed spell ignited Parker’s sword with a blazing haze of blue fire, and he had to act fast.

“Parker!”

The loud call startled him and he swung too late. The goblin general had already turned and he struck, forcing Parker back against the rocky battlements. Parker parried the attack and thrust forward with a low slash. The general sidestepped and lunged forward again. Parker parried and rolled away from the wall. A lightning spell was the only magic he had left. If he could find enough time to call out the incantation, he could have the general radiating electrons from every appendage. 

He rolled until he was a good ten feet from his opponent, then quickly stood. Lifting his hand into the air, he called down the lightning. The sky filled with a brilliant white light, and the crack of thunder reverberated off the walls. Parker briefly closed his eyes then opened them, praying he had hit his target. As the white dust began to clear, he made out an image before him. He peered at it, his heart thumping.

The screen went black.

“Parker, I’ve called you three times. Now get off that machine and go do your homework.”

BIO:

Mikey Brooks is a small child masquerading as adult. On occasion you’ll find him dancing the funky chicken, singing like a banshee, and pretending to have never grown up. He is the author/illustrator of several books including BEAN’S DRAGONS, the ABC ADVENTURES series, and author of the middle-grade fantasy-adventure novel, THE DREAM KEEPER. He spends most of his time playing with his daughters and working as a freelance illustrator. Mikey has a BS degree in Creative Writing from Utah State University. He is also one of the hosts of the Authors’ Think Tank Podcast.

EMAIL: 

insidemikeysworld@gmail.com

AUTHOR LINKS:

Website: http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/ 

Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Mikey-Brooks/e/B00B8ICZ4W

Blog: http://writtenbymikey.blogspot.com/

Podcast: http://www.foreverwriters.com/category/podcast/

Goodreads at: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17727253-the-dream-keeper  

Facebook at: http://facebook.com/writtenbymikeybrooks 

Twitter as: @writtenbymikey 

WattPad: http://wattpad.com/MikeyBrooks

BOOK LINKS:

Hardback: http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Keeper-Mikey-Brooks/dp/1939993016

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1939993032

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/The-Dream-Keeper-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B00CPE0PT0 

Paperback Create Space: https://www.createspace.com/4260677

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17727253-the-dream-keeper

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1115262781?ean=9781939993014 

TITLE: 

THE DREAM KEEPER

ISBN: 

Hardback: 978-1-939993-01-4, Paperback: 978-1-939993-03-8, EBook: 978-1-939993-02-1 

PRICE: 

Hardback: $19.95, Paperback: $12.99, EBook: $4.99.

Wednesday Writer An Interview with Carole Thayne Warburton

I liked the interview, author Tanya Parker Mills, did with me so much that I decided to post it here. Also my book Poaching Daisies is being launched at the incredible Kindle price of S2.99 for just two weeks at Amazon.





Interview on Tanya Parker Mills blog.



Announcing my Blog Tour Begins on March 24th. Check back for Details. 

Meet Author Cami Checketts and Enter to Win

A few years back I met Author Cami Checketts. Cami is one of those people who you feel an immediate connection to. She is a talented and prolific writer. I got to ask her some questions that I think you'll find interesting. She's giving away a bunch of great stuff with her latest book blog tour. Check this out. Read the interview and enter. After reading the interview and blurbs enter by clicking on the Poison Me icon on the right of this post. 

1.      You are a busy mother, how do you squeeze time in for writing?

I had to give up non-essentials: cleaning, cooking, television, scrapbooking, sleep.

2. How many novels have you published?

Poison Me is my sixth published novel.

3. You are physically active and care a lot about exercise. That seems to play a role in some of your novels. Does it in Poison Me and if so how?

The heroine in Poison Me is a runner, but it’s not an integral part of the storyline like it was in Dead Running.

4. Tell us about your perfect day.

It would have to be a Saturday. I’d wake up and go for a long run then come home to waffles (made by my husband) and a house already cleaned (by my children). Go on a bike ride with the family to the park, picnic lunch, arrive back home, baby goes to sleep without fighting (this is becoming more and more unrealistic), older boys play outside without fighting, while I write for a couple of hours (seriously, this is a dream), read stories to boys until dinnertime, they make themselves dinner and offer to babysit while husband takes me to dinner at Café Sabor. You don’t want to hear what happens when we come home to a houseful of freshly-bathed, sleeping children.

Haha, okay, my perfect day is when I spend quality time with my family (without Mom getting grumpy) and accomplish even one sentence of writing.

5. Besides writing, what are your passions?

My family, my testimony, exercise, and chocolate (the only four things I’d get passionate about at least).

6. What are some of your favorite books and some of your favorite authors (besides your own)?

I hate this question, I could go on for pages! Here are a few I’ve enjoyed recently.

Line of Fire by Rachel Ann Nunes

Poaching Daises by Carole Thayne Warburton

Gifts & Consequences by Daniel Coleman

The Walk Series by Richard Paul Evans

Anything by David Bunn, Susan May Warren, or Karen Kingsbury

7. How did you get involved in writing novels?

I was fighting postpartum depression after the birth of my second son. My mom came to visit, hauled my rear out of bed and said, “You need a hobby, go…write a book.” I’m an obedient child, so I went to my office and wrote a book. I haven’t had time for a nap since.

8. What advice would you give someone who is starting out?

Learn all you can and find a fun, positive critique group.

9. What was your inspiration for Poison Me?

My parents worked at a retirement home and my mom told me one day that they had four deaths that week. I was shocked and asked what the police said. She told me that they police didn’t even investigate. It got me thinking, what if someone was murdering these sweet people? Hmmm.

10. Are you working on a new novel and if so what is it about?

I’m writing the third book in my Running series, polishing the sequel to Poison Me, and I just had a horrific nightmare that gave me the inciting scene for a new book. And to think I used to pray not to have nightmares!

Thanks for having me on the blog!



Poison Me by Cami Checketts



Jake Merrill was raised by his grandmother, Ruby, and her hilarious friends. After a suspicious death at the retirement home where Ruby lives, she enlists Jake and Chanel, the beautiful activities director, to help her find the killer.

But secrets Ruby has kept for decades threaten her family and the man she’s always loved but could never have. Chanel’s unstable ex-boyfriend, a presumably dead relative, and vicious criminals add to the confusion. Time is running out as Jake, Chanel, and Ruby desperately search for clues to solve the murders and fight to save those they love.

Praise for Poisen Me

Poison Me made me laugh out loud and thoroughly enjoy myself. I wish I had a friend like Ruby! Snappy dialogue, romance, and a strong sense of family made this book well worth reading.

Rachel Ann Nunes, bestselling author of Line of Fire andBefore I Say Goodbye

Purchase Poison Me

Author Cami Checketts

Cami is a part-time author, part-time exercise consultant, part-time housekeeper, full-time wife, and overtime mother of four adorable boys. Sleep and relaxation are fond memories. She's never been happier.

A portion of the proceeds from Cami's books will be donated to The Child & Family Support Center. For more information on this worthy cause, please go towww.cachecfsc.org

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Blog Tour Giveaway

$50 doTERRA Oil basket and $35 wholesale membership, $50 Kate Ryan Skincare GC, $50 Amazon GC. Ends 3/30/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Author Braden Bell and his newest Book.

One of my favorite author's was Roald Dahl. I love books for younger readers that challenge and really stretch the imagination. I was drawn into Braden Bell's latest book, The Kindling, because it begins in a school setting, involves magic, strange events, intrigue, and dangerous situations. The beginning reminded me a bit of one of my favorite stories "Matilda" by Roald Dahl and a mixture of Madeline L'Engle's books. In "The Kindling" Conner Dell is confused by some special powers he seems to have and strange behaviors from the school teachers. It seems like just thinking thoughts can make things happen, like things exploding and gym shorts starting on fire. He and his friends don't know which teachers and adults to trust and even the creepy pizza delivery guy seems to keep popping up in odd places.

This is a fun book, with adventure, imagination, and touching scenes. It has some truly frightening life and death situations and keeps things moving until the end.

One of the real perks to being a writer is all the people including authors I've gotten to know. I've known Braden through LDStorymakers (an online group) for a few years now. I got a chance to interview him about his writing and his books. You can read more about him here.  And you can find out how to order a copy.  I have found Braden to be a skilled and accomplished writer. It was fun to hear more about his writing and personal life. Even though I have never met Braden, I consider him a friend. He's the kind of man who I would have wanted as a teacher growing up. It was fun to hear how similar his writing method is to my own. Hear what he has to say! I bet you might get an idea for something you want to write.

How many books have you written/published?

 

This is my second published book. I have a few other manuscripts I've written. 

Tell us how your teaching profession has influenced your writing?

In addition to influencing when I write (summers, etc), teaching has influenced what I write. This book, for example, is set in a small private school, which in a striking coincidence, is the same kind of school where I teach. Also, the fact that I am around middle school students all day has led me to want to write things for them that might entertain them. But also, as I watch the challenges they face, it's made me want to write things that I hope might help them get through the rocky seas of adolescence a bit easier (if that's possible). 

Obviously your students influence your writing. Are there times while you're teaching that inspiration strikes--and if so what do you do about it?

Often during a class or rehearsal, I might hear someone say something--a new idiom or expression or something that I want to remember to write down and use later. If I am able to, I'll make a quick note and email it to myself so I can write it down later. If there's not time to email myself, I try to get it planted firmly in my brain--something that seems to harder and harder to do the last year or two. 

But my students also inspire me in other ways. I haven't lifted real-life situations and put them in my book. However, I see them sometimes show great kindness, generosity, or bravery, and that inspires me to try to capture those glimpses.  I don't think most people realize what remarkable creatures middle school kids are. There's a lot of goofiness, a lot of quirks. But underneath it all, you have some really amazing human beings. My book is fantasy in terms of all the magic. But the kindness, loyalty, and bravery that the protagonists demonstrate is very real, very possible. 

 

When and how did you start writing?

I've been writing for most of the time I remember. At least since I was in 3rd grade. Probably before. I remember setting up an office in a quiet corner of our basement every summer, determined to have a finished book to publish by the end of the summer. It took a few decades for that to happen. 

 

Who are some of the authors who influence your writing style?

Dickens is very wordy, but I love his characters. They seem so real to me, and he's one of the few authors that makes me laugh out loud. Of course, the power of Shakespeare's language is something I admire. As a kid, I loved reading C. S. Lewis and  Lloyd Alexander. When I got older, I loved the imagery and thematic wizardry of Madeline L 'Engle.  I love the playful sense of fun in the early Harry Potter books. As soon as I hit "send" I'm going to think of 50 other people that I should have included. 

 

You are a busy man, what do you do to unwind?

No matter what's going on, or how late it is, I have to read something I enjoy before I go to sleep. Sometimes it's less than a page, but I do this every night. My wife and I also like to watch DVDs--usually BBC versions of books we like. 

If you had to choose only one book to take with you on a deserted isle (apart from religious) what book would it be?

That is a really good question. Probably the complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.  

What sparked "The Kindling" into fruition?

I had it in my mind that I wanted to write a book about a secret order of wizards living in contemporary society but I didn't have a lot of ideas beyond that. Then one night, my family was driving home from some church activities. It was spring which in  TN means enormous storms. A major thunderstorm was raging outside. When my kids got home, my son told me about a weird guy they had drove past. In a huge storm, he was wearing  a black cape, walking across people's front yards. That image really stuck in my mind and as I started asking myself questions--who might that be? Why would he be out? Ideas kind of crackled and the story began to take shape. I stayed up really late that night, typing frantically in bed, trying to get it all out on paper. I think I wrote two fight scenes that night--essentially the beginning and end of the book.  

What advice would you give to young aspiring writers?

Keep writing! As much as you can. Good or bad, just write. Stories, a journal, a blog. Also, pay attention in school. I didn't listen in my English classes. So now I'm trying to go back and learn how to use commas and semi-colons properly. I really wish I had paid more attention. 

Are you a plot driven writer or a character driven writer?

Very much character driven. I suspect that is partly because I'm very right-brained in general, but also because my background is theatre, where character is everything. I've tried writing with outlines and it doesn't work very well for me. My characters are so real to me and once I get started, they seem to push the story in different directions than I had anticipated. I'm fighting with them right now, actually, as I work on the sequel to the Kindling. They don't seem to like my outline very much. 

Tell us something about your process of writing?

I usually have an image that pops in mind. A character in a situation that catches my interest. I start asking questions--what's going on, who is this person--and so on. I then start writing. I almost always write the first scene and then the last scene. Then, I fill in the middle parts. Which takes me a long time because I am really uptight about revisions and polishing. 

I'm also intensely collaborative--probably because of my theatre background. So I have a few people that I have read a chapter as soon as possible--my daughter, a critique partner, a former student. I need to get a sense that I'm on the right track. In theatre, you get a pretty immediate response when you do something, either in rehearsal or a performance. Author's may wait a year or more until they get feedback from an editor or readers. That doesn't work for me! Plus, it's helpful to find out I'm over-using a word or indulging in a bad habit  right from the beginning. Easier to prevent it than it is to go back and weed it out at the tend.  

What is the last movie you've seen in a theater--and what is the last movie you saw in a theater that you couldn't stop thinking about?

I rarely go see movies. If I watch them at all, it's usually on dvd. I think the last one I saw in a theatre was the last of the Harry Potter movies. And that was a year ago, I believe.  The last one I saw that made me think was...gosh, I'm not sure!

What is the last fiction book you read--other than your own?

I just finished The Old Curiosity Shoppe by Charles Dickens.  

What is your primary motivation for writing?

I just have to do it. I get pictures and people in my mind--still pictures or movies. I have to put them on paper and get them out.  

Finally, what is your ideal date night?

My wife and I both love a quiet night at home watching old movies on dvd (probably something with British accents) with Mexican food.

Taking a Break

I have been spending a lot of time since Christmas, writing, studying, editing, and reading. It's been great. Today however, I took a break and went skiing with my other potter friends. K & Kerri Rasmussen. We met a hundred years ago--well when we were students at USU which was almost a hundred years ago. Anyway over the years Kerri and I have become really good friends. We put up with K. I know Kerri will read this to him and they will laugh about that. It's great that they include me whenever I can tag along. We had a nice day.

Cultivate Talents, Reap the Rewards!

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about talents and interests and how they are formed. I’ve thought about my own childhood and how my experiences shaped my life. I’ve thought about my friends and how they formed their talents and interests. Sometimes talents and interests are the same and sometimes not. For instance I have a great interest in hiking and it’s something I regularly do, though I don’t think hiking is something I’m particularly talented at. In fact, often when I’m with a group I might be the last one to make it to the destination. Both talents and interests enrich my life and the life of my family

However, there are two things I’m particularly talented at and I have been doing these two things from very early on in my life. The two things are writing and pottery.  My mother is a writer and during my childhood wrote for the local newspaper. She took classes. She read us her stories and it sparked my interest. My aunt Emma Lou Thayne is also a writer. Though I never talked to her about writing when I was little, the desire to be something like her was instilled. I had teachers as young as third grade who had us write stories and share them in class. I found out quite early that I had some natural ability. In eighth grade while sitting in a science class and feeling rather bored I began to write a story. It was a story about an abused boy. It was a touching and yes, sappy story but my mother thought it was wonderful and entered it in a contest with the League of Utah Writers and it won an award in the youth category. I was hooked. From then on, I wanted to be a writer.

Now about this same time in my life, I also had an interest in art. I had very artistic brothers and while I was less artistic I was still interested. I took art classes in school. In ninth grade the teacher Mr. Neilson had a unit on clay. I loved making things out of clay. One of the projects I made was a giant tennis shoe. I gave it to one of my friends and she still has it, some 40 years later. Then Mr. Nielsen brought the potter’s wheel out of a closet for a couple of days and we each got a short turn on it. My first pot was thick and small. Pottery is something that no one really has any natural ability. It is a skill that has to be learned, practiced and perfected. From the time Mr. Nielsen brought the wheel out of the closet I was hooked, but it would be a couple more years before I would have the opportunity to learn the skill in high school. I think about the rest of the kids in my class. Why was I hooked and they were not? What has to happen to our brain that turns something from an interest into a skill?

I had another friend Susan who was also in lots of my art and English classes. In high school she learned how to do the wheel right along side me. After school she got on the bus and rode to her house up Provo canyon. Often rather than going home, I would stay after school and throw. (that’s what it’s called—throwing) I would stack the balls of clay up on my wheel and try to center them. And when I’d fail which I inevitably would, I would try again, pot after pot and by the end a pile of slop and sometimes a pot worth keeping, firing and glazing. Eventually my teacher, then Mr. Bird would have to go home. I along with another student or two would beg him to let us stay. Sometimes we stayed until midnight, promising the janitor that we would lock up.  Eventually we got into some trouble for that and we had to get permission from the principal to stay late, but they capped the time at 10 PM. My dad had a hard time believing that’s what I was really up to, but after months of this hours and hours after school, long into the night, I started bringing home my wares—then he would proudly show off my work, even my rejects that I’d thrown in the garbage, he’d dig out and show his co-workers and try to sell the “junk” for 50 cents or so.  He’d give me the money he’d earned.

What I’m trying to get at is that I didn’t have any natural ability in pottery making. I was creative, had a lot of desire and worked hard to learn the skill. So many other things I do and have done spur ideas that transfer somehow to my artwork or to my writing. My science class –contributed to my first good story—because I was too bored to listen. Eventually I majored in art—not because I had any real talent in drawing, I still am just “pretty good” at drawing, but Ceramics/pottery was part of the art department and pottery was something I was passionate about.

Now back to some of my other friends, Susan. In high school Susan was a fairly skilled potter, but the spark that hooked me didn’t hook her. So what did? When Susan went home from school she often went to the sewing machine. She became skilled and developed a real talent in sewing. Both Susan and I took home ec in junior high. Both Susan and I had to sew first a hot pad and then a skirt. That was about all I ever made. Sewing was ok for me, but I didn’t love it. I never went home from school and sewed.  So because I excelled eventually in pottery and Susan excelled in sewing. Was the home ec class as waste of time for me? Were the art classes a waste of time for Susan since she never made anything beyond her classes? I don’t think so. I think being exposed to lots of different learning activities in and out of school helps develop who we are, helps us to find our passion, and helps us to find ways to contribute to society.   I can sew and have sewn a couple of Halloween costumes for my children, believe me I’m very proud of them because they were so difficult for me to do. It would have been easier to call Susan and have her do it. I can mend a seam and sew a quilt block though I usually have to have someone thread the machine for me.

Something else though that I gained from my friend Susan was my interest in hiking. On Saturdays or sometimes after school we would walk up the mountain from her house and hike to a waterfall. She taught me to love the mountains. Isn’t it great what we can learn from each other? My love for the mountains has always brought me so much enjoyment. It has brought my family enjoyment and is one of the things I have passed on to my children. My five-year-old grandson just hiked a full six miles with me without any help. My love for the mountains is reflected in my pottery and again in my writing. One benefits the other. Time is not wasted doing something we enjoy or that we can share with family or friends.

Another friend I had was Shellee.  From 2^nd grade on Shellee was one of my best friends. Shellee had a natural ability at all things athletic. If it involved a ball, a bat, jumping, dancing, or running, chances are Shellee was very good at it. In 4^th grade whenever Shellee got up to bat everyone in the outfield backed up. When I got up to bat the outfield didn’t even need to worry, but the infield needed to move up. I had no skills, but I loved to play. Sometimes after school, our neighborhood had baseball games. The whole gang played--boys and girls. Shellee taught me how to hold a bat, how to watch the ball, how to catch, and how to hit. I never became like Shellee, but I learned to play well enough that I didn’t strike out every time. I had fun. I didn’t go on to play baseball, but still it was not a waste of time—I was developing my personality and gaining friends, and learning sportsmanship. Shellee on the other hand didn’t go on to play baseball either. There weren’t a lot of opportunities for females in sports in the 60’s and 70’s, but years later when I met Shellee in a park for lunch with our young children, she brought her three-year-old son and I had mine. Her three year old could already swing a bat, hit a ball, and catch. Although she managed to pass on her athletic skills to all of her children, at least one son went on to play professional baseball. Her talent, her desire, her passion for sports increased her enjoyment and ability as a mother. Shellee too was in the same art classes that I was, but did not take it any further and yet she is the friend who still has that shoe pottery piece I made in the ninth grade.  Again isn't it nice what we gain from each other and how we can bless each other through our talents and interests?

Another friend was Rosanna. Rosanna was one of the neighborhood gang. She played baseball. She took art classes too. But instead of signing up for extra art classes she signed up for Drama and Choir. What Rosanna ended up becoming passionate about was singing and acting. I’ve seen Rosanna in performances at BYU, Sundance theatre, Hale theatre, in commercials, and in church films and now during General Conference singing in the Tabernacle choir. Rosanna made some pottery with me when I got my wheel. As far as I know those were the only pots she ever made. Her passion was not clay but performance! And look how many lives she’s touched with her talent.

Now back to writing. I learned in 3^rd grade that I loved writing. I learned by 8^th grade that I had some natural ability. So what did I do? Whenever I could I signed up for Creative Writing courses. I took classes at BYU before transferring to USU. At USU I took poetry writing, short story writing, and so forth. Eventually—like twenty years after college graduation I attended the League of Utah Writers in Logan and met some friends with similar interests. We started a critique group. I attended conferences. I read books on writing. All the time I was writing some short stories, but didn’t begin writing my first novel until the year 2000. In fact, it was one of my century goals.

I didn’t really know I could write a novel, but I tried it anyway and it turned out good. It takes a lot of work and it takes a lot of desire. It takes a lot of practice and continuing to develop and learn. So even though I always wrote a little I didn’t get serious until I was forty years old. In fact it was a mid-life crisis that sent me back to college to get a second degree in English which reminded me that I was pretty good at writing. Our time to find our passion doesn’t have a time limit. There is no one setting a standard except ourselves. Olive Ann Burns was 60 yrs. Old in 1984 when she published her first novel “Cold Sassy Tree” which became a best seller. She died of cancer before completing her second. And yet her book continues and is being read by young and old alike today and has reached wide audiences and much acclaim.

Talents and Interests are worth developing. They are worth sharing. They make us who we are. Whether you make the best Lemon meringue pie, or garden, or know how to be a good friend, or write a book, making and sharing talents is important. We are told to let our light shine. But we aren’t told what our light is. We each have a unique light don’t we? Isn’t it nice that we don’t all love the same things? Isn’t it nice that we don’t all know how to make pottery? If we did who would appreciate my work? Isn’t it great that we all can’t sing a song or act in a play?  Natural ability helps sometimes too, but exposure can lead to desire which can lead to a  passion, then add the time and learning and practice to really cultivating a talent and reap the rewards. It takes all the ingredients. There are no shortcuts.

Where Ideas Come From

I’m often asked where I get ideas for my novels. I have three published so far. A Question of Trust, False Pretenses and Sun Tunnels and Secrets

My ideas come from life situations. Ideas come from listening to the news, reading, listening to people talk in cafes, or in church, or on the bus. They come from dreams, or from driving down the road—in other words—ideas just come. Once at a workshop on writing, the presenter, Ken Rand, said our first ideas are often cliché. He said to twist the idea and then twist it again to come up with something fresh. With my newest published book, “Sun Tunnels and Secrets” I tried to do that.  The first idea was to have a hero from my other two books, Sam Carson, an all-American cowboy find a body near the Sun Tunnels. Images of Sun Tunnels

My husband and I had just been to see these and he had an idea to set a mystery there.  But then something happened in real life to change that. Some friends, two sisters and one other woman, all originally from Grouse Creek where my novels are set had an experience. In their experience they decided to take a little day trip to the Sun Tunnels also.

The Sun Tunnels are a land-art project done by the artist Nancy Holt in the 1970’s. Remember the Spiral Jetty? That’s the project done by her late husband Robert Smithson. Anyway, these friends, all over the age of 70 at the time came across a man who had been beaten and left. He could very well have died had they not come across him since the area is so remote, dry, and it was late June, so hot. Anyway, I heard about their incident and it got me thinking. I twisted the original idea. What would happen if not a handsome cowboy finds a body—cliché—but what if three women, elderly women, sisters, find a body? Perfect! Meet Norma. Norma is seventy-nine years old and her husband just passed away. She writes poetry, news stories, and is about to have her life disrupted with a secret her late husband kept from her. Mabel is eighty-two, feisty and optimistic, always wears skirts, Nikes, and a baseball cap. Then there is LaRue, the oldest who is prudish and never quite approves of anything her sisters or anyone else does for that matter. I loved these women from the start. They were fun to write because they were tireless and had depth. They had ideals and life experience. Writing older characters is one of my strengths. But I needed some younger characters in the story to give the book a wider appeal and so I could have more romance. It’s hard to write romance for people well over seventy—though possible and there is some in here for the older sisters too. So I brought back two characters, young handsome Tony, just graduated from college and beautiful, but shy and distraught Kelli Carson. She comes to Grouse Creek to work for the summer. Then Tony follows, pretending to be there for ranching, but really to convince Kelli that they could be more than friends. Well that part might be a bit cliché, isn’t romance always cliché? So these characters had to have some things in their life that was unique to them.

As writers, we could all take the same basic idea and yet write it in such a way that most readers wouldn’t notice that the idea was the same. Yet to make stories fresh is always a challenge. On the back on Sun Tunnels, the blurb says “On a trip to the Sun Tunnels in the Utah desert, Norma and her sisters find a body on the side of the road. But this awful discovery turns out to be the least of their problems. Norma’s husband just passed on, and she learns he kept a secret from her for sixty years. LaRue is keeping a secret from Norma. The sisters’ young friend Tony is keeping a secret about his famous father, and Tony’s mother is keeping a secret of her own. Tony is secretly in love with his friend Kelli who, recently escaped from a polygamist cult. And who is the mysterious young car thief with whom Norma feels a special connection? Everything converges in Grouse Creek at the Fourth of July celebration. Will secrets prove everyone’s undoing”

Another strength readers have noticed in my books is the ability to make the settings “real enough to taste the Idaho dirt and smell the pines” Jenny Hansen—Meridian Magazine. One way that I do this is to set my stories in places I know really well. Sun Tunnels takes place almost entirely in Grouse Creek and the surrounding area. My husband is from this small community and twenty years ago, we lived there for five years and taught school in the K-10, two-room school with only 24 students. There are very few places in the world left like Grouse Creek. I’ve written the way I remember it from twenty years ago. We still visit, but it’s changed somewhat. For one thing there are fewer people. It’s gone from 100 people down to around 70. People who live 60 miles from a grocery store are a special breed. I’ve set three books in Grouse Creek so far because of its uniqueness and how much fun it is to describe. Often people think a small town is a town of 2000 to 3000, and really they have no idea that communities as remote and tiny as Grouse Creek still exist. It makes for fun situations. It makes for some small-town eccentricities that are fun to play on. I remember once when we lived there, I was riding bikes with a friend and she noticed a piece of carpet that fell out of someone’s truck on their way to the dump. “Looks like so and so got some new carpet in their living room.” I laughed thinking where else would you know what was happening in town by seeing a piece of garbage on the side of the road? Grouse Creek has a sign at the beginning of town, that says “A Town like No Other.” As writers it really is hard to write about a place unless you have intimate knowledge of it. I have written about places I’ve only visited, but in those cases I’ve written as a visitor, not as an insider. Insiders have a special knowledge that others don’t. You can research, but make sure you know what the locals say, where they hang out, and what they do.

Ideas come. They come from everywhere. Making ideas fresh is essential in making your book stand out and matter. 

Some sales are sales and others are sales!

So if that doesn't make sense let me explain. I go to a lot of different places to display my wares and sell pottery. Over the years all the hundreds of pots I've sold sort of mush together. This year at Trout and Berry days I didn't sell as much as usual--pretty much par for the whole summer of sales. The economy has taken a bite in the profit margin. So towards the later afternoon when I was still hoping to make an extra fifty bucks, I sold one of my frogs to a boy. He didn't have the full amount, but since he paid for it all in quarters I didn't mind that he was a dollar short. He was thrilled with it and later came back with his brother. This time he and his brother had managed to scrounge up more quarters, enough for a dish. I've sold more at one time to customers before, but seldom has a sell brought me more pleasure.


If you live in Cache Valley come hear me speak about my new book "Sun Tunnels and Secrets," at 7 PM on Monday, Oct. 4th at the Hyrum Library. There will be refreshments and door prizes--chances to win books and handmade pottery. I'll have books to sell, portion of proceeds will be donated to the library.

Oct. 9th, I'll be at the Book Table in Logan from 10-2. We'll give away more prizes and I'll be on hand to sign books. I hope you can make it.

And last but not least--a shot from my birthday hike. Thanks everyone. I love you! by the way the guy with the ball cap ran the TOU marathon before coming on our 9 mile hike.

Random Notes from 7th Annual LDStorymaker Conference

Marion Jensen alias Matthew Buckley needs to write for television--the guy is a comic genius--total deadpan with killer jokes. He did the welcome and introduction.
Next I attended Laura Rennart's--How to Ace the Audition. She said to have an elevator pitch memorized focusing on Who? What? Where? and Why should I care? What is the unusual detail that sets your story apart? Get at the HEART! The elevator pitch is something that you can tell someone about your book in under three minutes. She was great. FOLLOW SUBMISSION GUIDELINES and do your research. Don't send a thriller to someone who doesn't publish thrillers.

Next I attended Josi Kilpack's session on getting the most from booksignings and launching parties. I've been friends and an admirer of Josi for about six years. I've attended several of her awesome book launch parties and hope to do the same thing when my next book comes out. Which I hope will be before I die. Everyone keeps asking me and well that's all I can tell you for sure. Anyway Josi sends out about 350 postcards even to those who couldn't possibly come to the party, but it's a way of creating an event with your book and letting everyone know where they can get one. In other words don't forget to include online ordering information. Make sure that you know what else is going on in the community and to not schedule the party at the same time. Josi does her launch parties at a local independent bookstore in her community.

Then I attended Jeff Savage's session on villains. Jeff is one of the best presenters that I know. He is professional. He is courteous. He is generous with advice. And most important he is funny. The main thing I learned is that I need a more menacing and clear villain in my work in progress. But that the villain has to be believable and basically like the hero--they should have clear motives.

By this time on Friday 4:00--I was really tired. Still recovering from the lingering effects of pneumonia, I was drifting a bit during Stephanie Black's session on techniques for mystery/suspense writers, but she is really good also. Stephanie's book just took the Whitney for the best suspense of 2009. I haven't read it yet, but it looks really creepy doesn't it? I learned that she loves Jack Bickham, so I've resolved to read what he has to say. One of my favorite quotes from her session is "Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water." Kurt Vonnegut.

The keynote speaker for Friday night was David Wolverton/David Farland highly successful writer and teacher. They honored him with a lifetime achievement award Saturday night at the Whitneys. At our dinner table I sat by some friends, Anne Bradshaw, Jolynne Lyon and Amber Smith. We discussed how much better the food was at this conference than one we'd been to that was not a storymaker conference, but I won't mention any names.

Saturday: One of my wip (works in progess) is to write the story of a friend of mine who has had a very interesting life so I attended a session by Mary Greathouse on writing memoirs. She has a lot of great sites to go to and good information. It was geared more to those who want to write family histories, but I still found it helpful.

Sarah Eden: A storymaker whom I've never met--we're a very large group now--was hilarious. My goodness she has a lot of energy. She is not a fan of the old time greats, like Charles Dickens, at least in how they have pages and pages of description that isn't necessary to the story. She showed us how detail could be used to show character and so forth. How details should be appropriate for the character, to use and example she put up a scene where two guys are working out in the gym and discussing their outfits and the periwinkle walls. She had contests to have the group fix the passage. One changed the gender, one change their sexual orientation, and one changed the wording, but kept the scene. It was fun and telling.

Stacey Anderson: "The Santa Letters" has done a tremendously good job at self-promotion and taught us how to do the same. Lots of what she does, I realized I'm just not cut out for. I have a hard time putting myself out there. But there were things I could do and I tried to focus on those. One good idea was to send out News releases to the media-- not press releases. She worked for a newspaper and knows that most press releases get tossed. Look for ways your story can be made into news. She sent her book to some influential people--like Laura Bush and got a personal letter back from her. She could do that because her book related to drunk driving. Mine--well they are suspense. I'd have to come up with another angle. Many of my friends and I help each other with blog tours and social networking. Those are things I can do.

Ok, by this time I really wanted to go home. I still wanted to visit a bit more with my mother in Orem, but at 2:00 I had an important meeting with the senior editor Kirk Shaw at Covenant--my publisher. I'd never met him before so of course was just a bit nervous since I wanted to pitch my next book to him, well as luck would have it, he sat down in the open chair next to me at lunch. This made the meeting with him easy and worthwhile. He gave me lots of encouragement and some good ideas on how to get this next book published. It's a mystery set in Yellowstone National Park.

By now I was late to the final workshop I would be attending, Dave Wolverton's. He gave great advice on making our books more successful--one was to strike an emotional cord. People love books that will make them laugh and make them cry. Another was to broaden your audience. He told us how he made a character with a German name who had a Japanese heart. The book was very successful in Germany and in Japan. I was so tired though, I ended up leaving early, saying goodbye to a few friends out in the foyer and I was on my way back home--geared and ready to WRITE!

I love to write and am happy to feel like I'm getting back in the game.