#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Libby McNamee

I’d like to welcome author Libby McNamee to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: Reading, Traveling, Visiting Historic Sites, My Friends, Comfort Food, Swimming and Biking

Things you need to throw out: Clothes that no longer fit me, but I hope they will someday; sentimental chotchkies; and random papers that I plan to refer back to someday

Things you need for your writing sessions: QUIET!

Things that hamper your writing: Constant distractions

Things you love about writing: Creating a labor of love from a blank page

Things you hate about writing: It often feels pointless

Hardest thing about being a writer: Believing in yourself enough to keep going when things aren’t coming together

Easiest thing about being a writer: Flexible hours!

Favorite foods: Chocolate, Twizzlers, Sushi, Anything Asian

Things that make you want to gag: Meatloaf, Stewed Tomatoes, Cooked Carrots

Something you like to do: Finding bargains

Something you wish you’d never done: Gone to law school

Last best thing you ate: Homemade Thai Lettuce Wraps

Last thing you regret eating: The frosted cookie for breakfast Things you’d walk a mile for: A bookstore!

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Someone chewing with their mouth open

Things to say to an author: “Congratulations! What a wonderful accomplishment!”

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “Why haven’t you finished another one by now? Shouldn’t the second one be easy?”

Favorite places you’ve been: Mount Rushmore; Sedona, Arizona; Paris; Hawaii; Everywhere in Washington State; Vail, Colorado

Places you never want to go to again: Camp Bedrock in Tuzla, Bosnia, where I lived for six months as the only female officer when serving in the US Army JAG Corps

Best thing you’ve ever done: Publishing “Susanna’s Midnight Ride”

Biggest mistake: Not publishing it sooner!

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Joining the Army

Something you chickened out from doing: Joining the State Department

About Libby

Libby McNamee is an author, lawyer, and veteran. She loves exploring America’s many historical sites. When a descendant told her the TRUE story of Susanna Bolling from Hopewell, Virginia, and her heroism during the Revolutionary War, Libby was determined to share it with the world. “Susanna’s Midnight Ride: The Girl Who Won the Revolutionary War” is her first published novel, geared to upper middle grade readers through old age. "Susanna's Midnight Ride" was named #1 in Juvenile Fiction by the 2020 Independent Publisher Book "IPPY" Awards. In 2021, she will release "Dolley Madison & the War of 1812: America's First Lady."

Libby served as a US Army JAG Officer in Korea, Bosnia, Germany, and Washington State. A native of Boston, Libby graduated from Georgetown University cum laude and Catholic University Law School. She has lived in Richmond since 2000.

Let’s Be Social

Website

Facebook: LibbyMcNameeAuthor

Instagram: libby_mcnamee_author

Twitter: @LibbyMcNamee

Goodreads: Libby McNamee

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Elizabeth Moldovan

I’d like to welcome Elizabeth Modovan to the blog for today’s #ThisorThatThursday interview.

Easiest thing about being a writer: I have grown used to writing about myself now, so it is easy for  me, and being  honest and telling the truth makes it very easy to do.

Words that describe you: Confident, vulnerable, honest, courageous, loving, kind and generous.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Impatient.

Favorite beverage: Coffee

Something that gives you a sour face: when people lie to me.

Favorite smell: jasmine and lavender.

Something that makes you hold your nose: the smell of damp on people’s clothing and belongings.

Something you’re really good at: Cooking, cleaning, gardening, making a home.

Something you’re really bad at: Marketing my autobiography.

Something you like to do: Helping people

Something you wish you’d never done: I wish I had never started to use heroin.

Things to say to an author:  Market your book six months before it is published.  Never give up and never write a book to get rich.
Favorite books (or genre): Autobiographies, True Stories, Memoirs.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Graphic horror.

Things that make you happy: Spending time with my family.

Things that drive you crazy: When people lie to me.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Go public with my true story.

Biggest mistake: Not marketing it widely for six months before it was published.  

The nicest thing a reader said to you: Reading your book has saved my life.

About Elizabeth:

Elizabeth's life is penned very simply in this inspiring memoir about her incredible battle, to find a way to live. Born the year her parents immigrated from Europe, in a large Catholic family, she experienced poverty,
neglect, rejection and abandonment before the age of eighteen. She had no sense of self and felt invisible most of the time. Her father passed away after battling cancer for eleven years, when she was nineteen years old. It was then that her world took a bad turn, when she fell in love with a drug addict/dealer. Twenty-four years later, after using heroin everyday while trying to raise her five children, circumstances forced her to leave him. Elizabeth and her three year old daughter had only one bag of clothes and a stroller. They were homeless for three months, and she attempted suicide. Without a car, phone, money or friends and in very poor health she was lost and broken and needed help but was too stubborn to reach out, believing her life to be worthless and of no value. She did not attend any detox, meetings, rehabs, counselors or doctors but with only sheer determination and persistence, overcame her dependency on drugs. Elizabeth began her harrowing journey towards the light of truth and found freedom in Christ alone. She remains clean to this day and is a very private person. She wrote her story only to help people who suffer like she did and need help to find a way to live without drugs.

Let’s Be Social:

https://www.elizabethmoldovan.org/ 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41838888-from-heroin-to-christ

#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Author LeAnna Shields

I’d like to welcome LeAnna Shields, author and mystery podcaster, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday.

---

Favorite things to do: Writing, podcasting, and watching old movies
Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Being on
Survivor.

Things to say to an author: I loved your book. How did you figure out that great character.
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Oh if only I didn’t have a real job than I’d sit around and write like you.

Things you always put in your books: hopefully a good mystery
Things you never put in your books: swear words

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: wasps or anything that stings or
has more than four legs.

Things you’d walk a mile for: I’d walk a mile for some great chocolate or a great coffee
drink.

Favorite beverage: Iced coffee or Chai lattes
Something that gives you a sour face: Macha (sp) Tea it tastes like grass (not that I’ve eaten grass)

Music that drives you crazy: I can’t stand hard rock music.

Favorite music or song: I’m a huge fan of pop violin music right now my favorite song is
Dreamer by Black Violins

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Fearful, shy, and plus-size

Words that describe you: Creative, fun, loyal, and introverted

Things you wish you’d never bought: Oh so many, but if I had to peg it down I’d say a
paint set I don’t think I’ll find the time to use.

Things you ever want to run out of: Chocolate Milk and iced coffee
Easiest thing about being a writer: Easiest thing about being a writer is (for
me at least) creating the character. They just seem to find the back door of my
imagination and come on in. Lol.

Hardest thing about being a writer: The hardest thing about being a writer is finding the
right words.

Things that hamper your writing: a comfy place, a good movie, and figuring out my podcast

Things you need for your writing sessions: Music, coffee, and a comfy place

Things you need to throw out: Bathroom scale, jeans, and clocks

Most embarrassing moment: My aunt was teaching me to drive using her golf cart and I drove it into her neighbor’s front yard, right over their Christmas decorations. Thank goodness it wasn’t a
nativity scene, or I’d still be hearing about it.
Proudest moment: My proudest moment was when I published my first book.

You can visit LeAnna at her website and find her books, Sparx of Suspicion and The Art of
Facts on Amazon.

Her podcast, The Cozy Sleuth, is available on Anchor.com or wherever your readers find their podcasts.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Colleen Shogan

Please join me in welcoming author Colleen Shogan to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday. Happy Thanksgiving!

A few of your favorite things:  I love pizza, swimming, and dogs. All dogs.

Things you need to throw out:  My old t-shirts from college and graduate school. I can’t bear to part with them since they represent good memories.

Things you need for your writing sessions: My dog Conan, my trusty iPad Pro, a glass of wine or a cup of coffee, and a pleasant breeze (if I’m writing outside).

Things that hamper your writing: Constant interruptions, loud music, and television. I can’t multi-task and write well.

Things you love about writing:  Creating characters! Talking to readers about them!

Things you hate about writing: Constant promotions. I feel as though it takes away from my writing time, which is scarce.

Things you never want to run out of: Wifi, coffee, and clean running shorts.

Things you wish you’d never bought:  Those three chocolate bars I bought on my birthday. Sigh.

Words that describe you: Fun, hardworking, intellectually minded.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Political, guilt-ridden, impatient.

Favorite foods: Pizza, Indian, and Italian.

Things that make you want to gag:  Korean, beets, and olives.

Favorite beverage: Gin and tonic with Bombay Sapphire and lime.
Something that gives you a sour face:  Whiskey

Something you’re really good at:  Talking. If you put a microphone in front of my face, I will talk.
Something you’re really bad at:  Singing. I’m tone deaf!

Last best thing you ate:  Palak Paneer (Indian).
Last thing you regret eating:  Buffalo wings.

Things you’d walk a mile for:  Good friends, good company, good food.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room:  Bad karma

Things you always put in your books:  Happy hours!
Things you never put in your books:  Gratuitous violence or sad storylines concerning animals

 Favorite places you’ve been:  London, Florence, and the Outer Banks
Places you never want to go to again:  Iowa (sorry!)

Favorite books (or genre):  Definitely traditional mystery or cozy mystery.
Books you wouldn’t buy:  Westerns or explicit romance

The coolest person you’ve ever met:  Stephen King

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: RBG

The nicest thing a reader said to you: A blind reader said she really enjoyed listening to my books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. That was great!

The craziest thing a reader said to you: You should put more sex in your books.

 About Colleen:

Colleen J. Shogan has been reading mysteries since the age of six. She conceived of the plot of her first novel one morning while taking a walk in her suburban Washington, D.C. neighborhood. A political scientist by training, Colleen has taught American politics at numerous universities. She previously worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative staffer in the United States Senate. She’s currently the Assistant Deputy Librarian for Collections and Services at the Library of Congress. “Stabbing in the Senate” won the “Next Generation Indie Prize” for best mystery in 2016. Her subsequent books have been finalists for the RONE award and Killer Nashville. She lives in Arlington, VA with her husband and beagle mutt, Conan.

Let’s Be Social:
www.colleenshogan.com

 https://twitter.com/cshogan276

 https://www.facebook.com/washingtonwhodunit/

 https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1269678.Colleen_J_Shogan?from_search=true

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Charlotte Stuart

I’d like to welcome author, Charlottes Stuart, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday.

A few of your favorite things: I collect small boxes made of a variety of materials, but especially wood. I particularly value ones given to me by friends and family. And I love my orange Subaru Crosstrek, mainly because it’s orange.

Things you need to throw out: We downsized a few years ago, but I still have too many clothes, especially jackets. And shoes that I never wear. And old family pictures of relatives I’ve never met and couldn’t name if my life depended on it.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Marketing!
Easiest thing about being a writer: Getting enthused about an idea and having fun exploring ways to bring it to life. I love doing research.

Words that describe you: Friendly. Opinionated. Stubborn. Sense of humor.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Short. Opinionated. Stubborn.

Favorite foods: Blackberry pie. Tomatoes. Almost any cheese. Prawns and scallops.

 Things that make you want to gag: Oysters. Sushi. Undercooked steak. People eating undercooked steak.

 Favorite smell: A saltwater beach.
Something that makes you hold your nose: Vomit. Not only does it make me hold my nose – I run away! It’s either that or throw up alongside the person throwing up.

Something you wish you could do: Play the piano.

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Work with fiberglass. My husband and I built a fiberglass boat, and I was, unfortunately, good at fiberglassing. I always wore a mask, but that didn’t keep the resin stink from penetrating my psyche.

Things you’d walk a mile for: To go swimming in a freshwater lake.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Frequently of late, the nightly news. And, still another update for my computer or cell phone.

Things to say to an author: I read your book and really enjoyed it. I’m planning on reading your book soon. I like the cover of your book. Congratulations.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I knew who did it in the first 10 pages. I found 3 typos. Comment: I just don’t read mysteries. What the mystery writer hears: I only read REAL literature.

Favorite places you’ve been: Greece. Italy. Vashon Island.
Places you never want to go to again: The O’Hare Airport. Minneapolis in the winter. D.C. in the summer.

Favorite things to do: Swim. Walk in the woods. Read.
Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Not sure about eating bugs…but I hate cleaning the house, especially dusting, doing the floors, scrubbing the tub/toilet/sink…just about anything that involves using cleaning products.

 Things that make you happy: Being with people I enjoy. Swimming. Reading.
Things that drive you crazy: Snooty people. People who give you the stink-eye over things such as a dirty car, Velcro sneakers, or an overgrown yard. TV mysteries where someone discovers a body and kneels down to look without considering that there may be someone behind them.

The funniest thing to happen to you: Giving a finger to a slow driver on the way to an interview only to discover he was a board member at the college where I was interviewing. When introduced, he said, “We’ve already met.”

The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: Falling down on stage at my high school graduation after playing a saxophone solo. I fell like a tree with my arms wrapped around my instrument to protect it. And I didn’t get up right away; I just lay there laughing but with tears rolling down my face. When I returned to my seat, I had to walk all the way to the back of the graduating class because we were seated alphabetically, and my last name began with ZY. So many murmured “Poor Charlotte’s….” And a few snickers.

About Charlotte:

In a world filled with uncertainty and too little chocolate, Charlotte Stuart, PhD, has taught college courses in communication, gone commercial fishing in Alaska, and survived being the VP of HR and Training for a large credit union. Her current passion is for writing lighthearted mysteries with a pinch of adventure and a dollop of humor. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys watching herons, eagles, seals and other sea life from her Vashon Island home office.

Let’s Be Social:

 cs.charlottestuart@gmail.com

Website: www.charlottestuart.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/quirkymysteries

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlotte.stuart.mysterywriter

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Mary Dutta

I’d like to welcome author, Mary Dutta, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: Dark chocolate, Victorian novels, New York City

Things you need to throw out: All the organizers, bullet journals, color-coded pens, and calendars that I keep thinking will change my writing process and don’t.

Things you need for your writing sessions: Yellow legal pads

Things that hamper your writing: Internet access

Things you love about writing: Endless possibilities

Things you hate about writing: Plots that resist revealing themselves

Hardest thing about being a writer: Rejections
Easiest thing about being a writer: Jumping into a new story

Favorite foods: Anything pork, anything chocolate

Things that make you want to gag:  Stinky tofu

Favorite beverage:  Gin & tonic
Something that gives you a sour face: Kombucha

Something you’re really good at: Baking
Something you’re really bad at: Skiing

Last best thing you ate: Pepper & egg grinder
Last thing you regret eating: Octopus. I keep trying it and never like it.

Things you always put in your books: Humor
Things you never put in your books: Graphic violence

Things to say to an author: I loved your book!
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I could write a great book if I just took the time.

Favorite places you’ve been: Petra, the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, the Bronte parsonage
Places you never want to go to again: Any gas station in New Jersey, where you’re not allowed to pump your own gas.

Favorite books (or genre): Wuthering Heights, Mysteries
Books you wouldn’t buy: Sci Fi

About Mary:

Mary Dutta traded New England and a career as an English professor for a new life as a college admissions reader in the South. Her short story "Festival Finale” appears in The Best Laid Plans: 21 Stories of Mystery & Suspense.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Kristin Kisska

I’d like to welcome author, Kristin Kisska, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: I am a beach girl at heart. I love cats, bookstores, coffee, spring flowers, and Chanel No. 19 perfume.

Things you need to throw out: My college textbooks. Someday I’ll get around to organizing my attic.  Maybe in a decade or two.

Things you need for your writing sessions: Complete quiet. No music. Oh, and I need coffee, too.

Things that hamper your writing: Humans breathing near my writer’s cave. I also have a pesky habit of checking Twitter when my creative wave runs dry.

Things you love about writing: Riding a wave of creativity. Every once in a while, one of my characters will do or say something I hadn’t plotted, and it’ll change the course of my story.  I love being surprised, even if it means I have more work to do!

Things you hate about writing: Every time I type the words “The End.” It’s a tease. I can celebrate for completing the first draft, but the next step in the process is to revise the story again. And again. And again.

 Hardest thing about being a writer: Staring at a blank page wondering how to start a story. That first sentence pulls a lot of weight and can be crazy-intimidating. Also, I harbor an inner fear that someday I’ll run out of story ideas, so I keep a running list of random concepts as they pop into my head.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Spending time in a fictional world that I’ve created, with characters I love. The feeling doesn’t get old!

 Things you never want to run out of: Highlighters in all colors. I’m a huge fan of the “rainbow editing” technique, so I use them to help me revise my stories. Unfortunately, they tend to run dry faster than I like, so I stock up whenever I see them on sale. Back to school shopping season is a good thing!

Things you wish you’d never bought: Pens. I placed a large order of purple-ink pens to hand out at my book signing events. The first batch I received had black ink. I contacted the manufacturer and offered to return them in exchange for the correct color, but they told me to keep the bad order and sent me the new ones. Now I have hundreds and hundreds of pens.

Favorite music or song: I’m a big 90s music fan, so I’m waiting for the 80s craze to fade out. One of my favorite songs from the era is “Hey Jealousy” by the Gin Blossoms.

Music that drives you crazy: Rap music.

 Favorite beverage: Coffee (I take mine with cream, no sugar)
Something that gives you a sour face: Sweet tea.  I enjoy iced tea, but if it’s sweet, I go running the other direction. By admitting this publicly, I risk getting evicted from Virginia. 

 Things to say to an author: “I loved your story, especially the twist at the end.”
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “When is the action going to start?”

 Favorite places you’ve been: Savannah, Georgia. Destin, Florida. Prague, Czech Republic. Venice, Italy. Exuma, Bahamas. Sydney, Australia. Bali, Indonesia. (in no particular order)
Places you never want to go to again: Charleston, West Virginia.

 Favorite books (or genre): I love domestic suspense, especially if it’s Southern fiction. Right now, I’m reading WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING. I also love anything written by Mary Kubica.
Books you wouldn’t buy: Science fiction. While I enjoy watching it in the movies, reading it doesn’t interest me.

 Most daring thing you’ve ever done: In my 20s, I bought a one-way ticket to Prague. I didn’t speak the language, and my parents tried to talk me out of going, but I found a job and an apartment and lived there for three years.

Something you chickened out from doing: Sky diving. Never will I ever.

About Kristin:

Kristin Kisska used to be a finance geek, complete with MBA and Wall Street pedigree, but now she is a self-proclaimed fictionista. Kristin contributed short stories of mystery and suspense to seven anthologies, including DEADLY SOUTHERN CHARM (2019). She is a member of International Thriller Writers, Vice President of Sisters in Crime-Central Virginia, and James River Writers. When not writing, she can be found on her website~ KristinKisska.com, on Facebook at KristinKisskaAuthor, and Tweeting @KKMHOO. Kristin lives in Virginia with her husband and three children.

Let’s Be Social:

Website - www.KristinKisska.com

Twitter -  @KKMHOO    

Facebook -  KristinKisskaAuthor