Interviews
Sabrina Jeffries
Interview Date: 10/21/07
Sabrina Jeffries
Being a daughter of missionaries in Thailand at a young impressionable age no doubt encouraged the adventuresome spirit in Sabrina Jeffries, but despite exposure to the strange culture and foods and being chased by an elephant, she chose a more traditional path and secured a Ph.D in English. A great love for reading and romance novels, though, eventually spurred her to try her hand at writing and now she writes full-time in North Carolina, where she makes a home with her husband and son. Check out her website, where you'll find more information on Sabrina and loads of tempting books.
(Sabrina's photo is by Trevor Borchelt of Borchelt Photography)
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MQ: Why historical, though you do entertain writing contemporary stories in the future?
SJ: The little voices in my head all date from Regency England! *G* Seriously, though, historicals allow you to write plots and plot devices you couldn’t get away with in contemporaries—marriage of convenience, kidnappings, duels…fun, adventurous stuff like that. I also like the constrained mores, and trying to find ways around them. And history is just fun! Did you know that you can clean a castle with urine? Seriously.
MQ: What prompted you to pick the subject of writing the physical love scene as a workshop topic to teach other writers?
SJ: Because so many authors hate writing them. Some feel it’s required, and that turns it into a drudgery that shows in the writing. Either that, or authors don’t put the same creative energy into it as they do into the rest of the book, because they think all love scenes are the same. But that’s not true. Love scenes should be as much a part of the story as the plot and characters; they should differ accordingly.
MQ: Authors are encouraged to promote by doing workshops and public speaking. Given your speaking style that's very funny and candid, is it possible you go through a period of nervousness? If so, how do you overcome?
SJ: What can I say, I’m a ham. I’m the daughter of a preacher and spent several years as a teacher. I’ve been speaking in front of groups since I was very small. At 11, I approached the lieutenant colonel directing the music at the little church my dad held off-base for GI’s, and demanded to know why he hadn’t asked me to sing a solo yet. A little taken aback, he countered, "Do you want to sing a solo?" I informed him that I sure did, so he called me to the front for one service, and I sang my little heart out. I suspect that if I hadn’t been a writer, I would have been some sort of performer.
MQ: You have a very good grip on promotion, a daunting part of an author's career, with workshops, speaking engagements and a beautiful website. What do you feel personally has been most effective for you in this area?
SJ: Sending galleys to targeted booksellers has probably been the most effective. I also send out postcards to my fans announcing the arrival of my newest book, which I think is an effective tool. Whatever you do, get the biggest bang for your buck by making your material as creative as your books. If you focus on having a website or a blog, make it unique. If you send mailings, give them a twist. The standard flyer or ad with your book cover and back copy just doesn’t cut it anymore.
MQ: The section on your website about your son and autism is very informative and open. How has writing as a career, including related travel, worked for you as the parent of an autistic child?
SJ: I have to stay on top of the writing. I can’t just let it build up, then do a blitzkrieg to finish the book. Despite being a teenager, my son is always needy (he’s severely disabled and we do all his grooming, etc.). He can’t be put off the way most people can put off their teens ("I’m busy, so go play with your friends"). And when I lock myself into writing mode for days on end, he gets cranky and harder to handle. So I have to stick to a fairly rigorous daily writing schedule. I’m sure that has contributed to my success—I rarely miss deadlines, which is always an advantage in publishing.
MQ: Has your upbringing as a child of missionaries clashed with the sensuality level in your books?
SJ: It really hasn’t, but only because I decided long ago that I LIKE sensuality in books. I read every level, and I certainly enjoy that aspect of marriage personally *G*, so I see no reason to leave it out of my books. It DOES create problems for my parents, but who among us sees eye-to-eye with our parents all the time anyway? I think they’ve come to accept that this is who I am, even if they don’t approve of that aspect of my writing.
MQ: You mention on your website having an ugly cover for one of the novels written under the name Deborah Nicholas. Do you have a favorite amongst the attractive covers for novels written under the name Sabrina Jeffries?
SJ: My favorite right now is from my latest book, Beware a Scot’s Revenge. The inside art is fabulous!
MQ: How did you get involved in the Mossy Creek stories?
SJ: I read the first book and fell in love with it. I’ve followed the series since its inception. Then when I had an idea for a story, I approached Belle Books, and they were kind enough to let me write it for them. It was such fun!
MQ: What have readers told you they love most about your novels?
SJ: The strong female characters and the dialogue mostly. Surprisingly, though I consider myself a plot-driven writer, it’s my characters they enjoy the most in general. They say that they behave in a realistic manner. I hope that’s true, since that’s what I aim for.
MQ: What do you find most gratifying as an author?
SJ: Being able to give the same joy to readers that I’ve had for years as a reader. I love being able to provide some relief from the stress of their daily lives by giving them a good story.
MQ: Thank you, Sabrina, for sharing so many of your thoughts on writing with us. We know we can count on you for more fascinating books in the future.
Released in May 2007, Beware a Scot's Revenge is the third book in the School for Heiresses series.
Purchase Info: Amazon.com & BarnesAndNoble.com
Ann Macela
Interview Date: 1/09/08
Ann Macela
Author Ann Macela has enjoyed many different careers before settling down to writing stories: teacher (both public school and at the university level); writer of history (complete with footnotes); sales, marketing and PR person; consultant; and computer manual writer. Whew! She hails from Texas, but eventually ended up transplanted to Chicago, where she had to adapt to colder weather by wearing all her clothes at once. Check out her website, where you can read excerpts of her magical books.
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MQ: When did the writing bug bite you and what did you do about it?
AM: When I was in marketing/PR and later a consulting firm, I wrote for business purposes--PR pieces, annual reports, marketing info, advertising copy, and then computer manuals (a real soul-killer!). When we lived in Minnesota, I had more business than hours in the day. Then we moved to the Chicago suburbs. All my business had come by word of mouth, and here I was, waaaaaay out in the burbs, knowing no one, with no contacts, and what would I do now after unpacking? I picked up a Jayne Ann Krentz for some unknown reason--I’d only been a very occasional reader of romance before. Mysteries and sci-fi/fantasy were my first loves.
Well, the JAK book led to Susan Elizabeth Phillips led to others. I got hooked and spent most of the first winter here reading romance. After a while, I started thinking again--finally--of how I’d always wanted to write, but never had the time or energy. And here was my chance!
My first story will never, ever see the light of day, but it taught me how to write. By the way, I’m a history major, not a literature one. Then I had a second idea for another book, and then a third, and by that time I was having a ball with them all. I’m a "finisher" of stories. I got to the end of all of them--except number four, which has great characters and no plot and which I’ll come back to later.
I took a couple of classes at the local community college--mostly to see if I could hold an audience. And I discovered RWA. And I’ve never looked back from there.
MQ: Your biography mentions the move to Chicago as opportunistic for you to begin writing fiction. Are you writing full time?
AM: Yes, I am. I’m a slow writer. The story, the characters, all of it has to "percolate" in my head for a while before it really comes together. I have to go over and over what I write, layering, making sure I’m putting everything into a scene that needs to be there, developing my characters. I figure I’m good for about a book a year, but no more than that.
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MQ: Did you work on the third book in the Magic series, Your Magic or Mine, at the same time as Windswept?
AM: No, I can only work--really write--one book at a time. But I think about the next one at odd moments, especially when I’m going to sleep. I wrote them in this order: The Oldest Kind Of Magic, Do You Believe In Magic?, then Windswept, then Your Magic Or Mine?, then Wild Magic, and now I’m working on "Magic5," which has no title yet.
MQ: Windswept appears to be a departure from the paranormal aspects in the Magic series. Is this the case?
MQ: When did Windswept bloom in your mind and how long did it take you to write it?
AM: I’ll answer both these at once.
Windswept--or a version of it--was the second book I wrote. I got to "an end," but knew the story was bigger than what I had--so many clichés, it’s pitiful. I wasn’t ready from a craft perspective to write it either. I needed to really think about this one, let it percolate in my head for a while. So, I put it aside and wrote four more before going back to it. I kept the original idea but almost completely rewrote it. This was a book I had to write for a variety of reasons. First, it used a bunch of stuff I learned getting my history degrees, and I wanted a heroine who was a historian.
Before the Magic books started being published, I entered Windswept in contests. I knew I had something when it made the finals in five of them. Thank you, RWA Chapters!
Two books after the original Windswept, I got the Magic idea and concentrated on it for two books. Then Windswept started beating on the back of my forehead saying, "Let Me Out!" It was ready and I was ready. I also knew that Magic3, Your Magic Or Mine?, needed more percolation time in my head. So, it all worked out.
MQ: Do you have more "Magic" up your sleeve for that series?
AM: Magic3, Your Magic Or Mine?, comes out this October and is Gloriana Morgan’s story. She comes up against another practitioner and they have a huge battle over the "correct" way to cast spells. The hero, Marcus Forscher, is also determined that he will never take a soul mate. The soul-mate imperative is not kind to either of them, poor things.
Magic4, Wild Magic, comes out in 2009. I’m working on Magic5 to propose to Medallion very shortly. I have a Magic6 in my head. These three books involve totally new characters and location. They concern those magic practitioners who are the "police" of the practitioner world and who hunt for and destroy evil magic items. Here come the fireballs and lightning bolts of fantasy!
Here’s a short take on Wild Magic:
Irenee Sabel is a Sword and Defender, but has come into her powers much later than is usual. She and her Defender team are after an ancient and powerful evil magic item, the Cataclysm Stone.
Jim Tylan is a DEA agent after the Stone’s owners because they are drug and gun runners. Jim will discover that he is a "wild talent," someone who developed magic practitioner talents spontaneously, not the usual way by inheritance.
The soul-mate imperative will be sure to bring practitioners together, ready or not.
At their heart, all the books are concerned with the variations on the soul-mate theme--how the soul mates come together. None of them has it easy. Heh, heh, heh.
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MQ: What are some of the things you have found frustrating with a writing career? What has been especially rewarding or unexpected?
AM: The most frustrating thing to me has been the wait between submission and publisher’s response.
Rewarding and unexpected? So many things. I’ve met some of the most wonderful people in the world--fans of my work and other authors and booksellers. I’ve had so much fun writing--I really enjoy the challenge and putting a story together. I love the thrill of writing "The End." When I got my first printed copy of The Oldest Kind Of Magic, I stood there like an idiot and hugged the books. I’ve made friends I would have never met otherwise, and I know we’ll be friends to the end of our days. And I’m thrilled when someone says they love my stuff and want me to sign the book.
I might mention that I couldn’t do this without the wonderful support of my husband. He thoroughly enjoys telling others that I’m a romance writer and he’s my "research helper."
MQ: Do you have dusty unpublished manuscripts under your bed? If so, any intention of bringing them out into the light of day?
AM: Book Numbers One, Three and Four are stored in the computer. Four will definitely come out, once I figure out the plot. Three, maybe. One-No way! I have ideas for at least three others for the future, but the ideas are very vague at the moment.
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MQ: Do you relate to any particular character, male or female, in your books?
AM: I related to Barrett in Windswept, because of the historian and professor stuff. Generally, I think I become each of my heroes and heroines. Nothing like a little schizophrenia to brighten the day!
MQ: Any advice for the struggling writers out there?
AM:
- Really, really, really, work on your craft.
- Learn to edit your own work and to look at it dispassionately and ruthlessly.
- Find a couple of critiquers you trust to tell you straight out what their opinions are and what works or not for them in your story.
- Remember always, the opinions of others are their personal ones and may not be relevant. You don’t have to take them as necessary to do. People are always happy to tell you how they would write your book. It’s your story!
- Learn as much about "the business" as you can.
- Get to the end of the story. Note, I did not say "finish" it. Finish implies a completeness and a "perfectness" that will never exist--you will always find something you might "fix" to make it better. But you have to have a whole story to be published.
- To quote Jennifer Crusie, who told the first PRO Retreat, "The secret to getting published is to be standing there with a completed manuscript in hand when lightning strikes." That’s what happened to me. Medallion had a sudden open slot and needed to fill it with a good, complete, not-needing-much-editing story. They chose mine.
MQ: All that is wonderful advice every writer should heed. Thank you, Ann, for sharing your writing experiences with us. We'll be waiting for more of your books to hit the shelves in the near future.
Purchase info: The Oldest Kind of Magic.
Purchase info: Do You Believe in Magic?.
Purchase info: Windswept. Your Magic or Mine is the third book in the Magic series and will be released in October 2008.