#WriterWednesday Author Interview with Judy L. Murray

I’d like to welcome the fabulous Judy L. Murray to the blog for #WriterWednesday. I had the privilege of reading an early version of her latest mystery.

A few of your favorite things: My books, all of them. Antiques and prints I’ve collected over the years. I remember where I found each one of them. It’s fun to reminisce about the hunt for treasures.

Things you need to throw out: Clothes I never wear. I always think – maybe next year I’ll wear this. I’m usually delusional, either because it will never be back in style, or I’ll never fit into it again.

Things you need for your writing sessions: Quiet, and my cats, Agatha and Dr. Watson.

Things that hamper your writing: Getting distracted by social media and the news. That’s a rabbit hole I still haven’t mastered.

Things you love about writing: Hearing from readers who love my people and all the twists and turns. That they relate to my characters. When someone asks me, “what will happen between Helen and Joe?” I smile. It means that they’re real people to my readers. Readers seem to love my Detection Club of famous sleuths in my series.

Things you hate about writing: Outlining. Hate it! Trying to improve my attitude but not being very successful.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Did I mention outlining?

Easiest thing about being a writer: Feeling good about giving yourself time alone with your thoughts. The excitement when I know my story is on a roll.

Things you never want to run out of: New ideas…and paper. Maybe pretzels. Chocolate to eat with the pretzels is nice too.

Things you wish you’d never bought: Any silly device for neck pain from working on my laptop. I think I’ve tried most everything. Heaven forbid, I force myself to exercise every day.

Words that describe you: People person, micromanager, persistent. I talk to anyone anywhere, especially in the grocery store. Yes, I’m one of THOSE.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Not enjoying the moment when I should. A worrier about things that may not ever happen, especially involving my children. I’ve improved over the years, but not enough.

Favorite foods: Cake, ice cream, twice-baked potatoes, red wine in the winter.

Things that make you want to gag: Beets and other odd vegetables. Give me the basics.

Something you’re really good at: Being creative. I’m usually a problem-solver. I’m also very good at seeing the potential in neglected houses. My husband and I have been rehabbing all our lives. It truly is an addiction.

Something you’re really bad at: Holding back on giving my advice to my grown children. I’m not sure about yours, but mine usually don’t want it!

Something you wish you could do: Speak a foreign language. I just can’t roll my r’s. I’m terrible at it. This is from someone whose maiden name is Casanova. I admire people who speak other languages.

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Clean house.

Something you like to do: Jump in and help.

Something you wish you’d never done: Shovel plaster off old walls into dumpsters. You have to be young!

Things you’d walk a mile for: My family when they need me. I’d go through fire. Or, run through the woods in the dark, like my protagonist Helen in her first mystery.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: A house with more visiting dogs than people after a long weekend. My cats will come with me. But please don’t tell my children.

Things you always put in your books: A little romance and a happy ending. Life should feel good at the end of a story.

Things you never put in your books: Sex. I’m too self-conscious and inhibited.

Things to say to an author: Keep writing, welcome feedback from your editors. Revise, revise, revise.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I can’t believe you wrote that!”

Favorite places you’ve been: The Adirondacks, the Chesapeake Bay, and Bath, England.

Places you never want to go to again: Las Vegas. It’s just not my scene.

Favorite books (or genre): Books by other mystery writers. Jane Austen’s books – I own multiple sets. I re-read Rosamunde Pilcher’s whenever I need to sooth my mind.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Books about serial killers and explicit thrillers. They’d keep me up at night and I’m already a poor sleeper.

Favorite things to do: Sailing and sleeping overnight on our boat, Persuasion which was named after Jane Austen’s book and my forty years in marketing. Spending time with my family. If I can do those together, even better.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Moving. Which is pretty funny coming from a Realtor of forty years. I get very attached to my surroundings. And doing taxes. I hate anything to do with accounting.

Things that make you happy: Meeting friendly people.

Things that drive you crazy: People who don’t smile. Smiling costs you nothing except the lines around your eyes. I have many.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Actually, a couple things: Teaching my children the importance of family. Also, I’m not sure if it’s the best thing I’ve ever done, but getting my first book, Murder in the Master, published.

Biggest mistake: Waiting so long to find time outside of work to write.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: “I love your mysteries. Brillant!” Ahhh.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “Are you Helen?” “No. I’m not nearly so Nancy Drew brave!”

About Judy

An IPPY Silver Medalist, a Silver Falchion Award Winner, and Agatha Award Nominee for Best First Mystery. Judy L Murray’s debut novel, Murder in the Master – A Chesapeake Bay Mystery, came out in 2021. Her second in the series, Killer in the Kitchen, was released late September 2022.

The Chesapeake Bay Mystery Series Book One, Murder in the Master, introduced Helen Morrisey, a quick-tongued, gutsy, and mature woman long on loyalty and short on romance. A mystery story addict, Helen’s approach to solving problems was to call on the talents of her favorite, strong-minded female detectives within her own Detection Club, much like Agatha Christie formed in 1930. 

A real estate broker in the Philadelphia area and restoration addict, Judy has worked with enough delusional sellers, jittery buyers, testy contractors, and diva agents to fill her head with back-office insight and truth versus gossip. She lives atop a cliff on the Chesapeake Bay with her husband where she writes long after sunset. They're buffeted by winds in winter and invaded by family and dogs in summer.  Judy holds a newspaper journalism degree from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University and an MBA concentrating on marketing with Penn State University. She began her writing career as a newspaper reporter and magazine columnist. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. Judy is represented by the Blue Ridge Literary Agency and Level Best Books Publishers. Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. Follow her at www.judylmurraymysteries.com with her newsletter and Judy L Murray Author on social media. She welcomes your conversations. You can also reach her directly at judylmurray@gmail.com She’d love to hear from you!

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#WriterWednesday Author Interview with Edward Willett

I’d like to welcome author, Edward Willett to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

The thing you like most about being a writer:

Readers telling me they enjoy my work!

The thing you like least about being a writer:

The extremely irregular and sometimes entirely lacking income.

Things you will run to the store for in the middle of the night:

Coffee cream.

Things you never put on your shopping list:

Heart of palm.

The coolest thing you’ve bought online:

Antique champagne glasses with hollow stems that show the bubbles rising—found on eBay for my wife for an anniversary present.

The thing you wished you’d never bought.

Two wireless mics for my iPhone for livestreaming, when a cheap wired one works better.

Something you’re really good at:

Singing. I’ve sung in very good, national-level choirs, and have performed professionally in musical theatre and opera.

Something you never learned how to do:

Fly. Always kind of wanted to but it’s never happened.

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid:

Astronaut.

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do:

Own a publishing company, and publish and edit internationally bestselling authors (in the Shapers of Worlds anthologies).

Things you always put in your books:

Almost always, there’s a little nod to Saskatchewan—it might be the landscape, or a place name, or a character name.

Things you never put in your books:

Explicit references to modern-day politics.

Things to say to an author:

I love your books!

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book:

When are you going to get a real job?

Favorite things to do:

Perform in a musical, preferably one where I’m onstage all the time and have all the best songs.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing:

Attend the political convention of any party.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done:

Skydive.

Something you chickened out from doing:

Skydive a second time.

The coolest person you’ve ever met:

Alan Doyle (former lead singer of Great Big Sea)

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

Pierre Eliot Trudeau (way shorter than I thought).

The best job you ever had:

Musical theatre performer.

The worst job you ever had:

Manual laborer at the Weyburn Inland Grain Terminal.

The one thing you cook/bake that is better than a restaurant dish:

Enchilada casserole, a recipe my mother picked up when we lived in New Mexico that remains my favorite food ever.

The one thing you cooked/baked that turned out to be an epic disaster:

A chocolate cake that fell so badly I took it to work and passed it off as brownies.

About Edward
Edward Willett is the award-winning author of more than sixty books of science fiction, fantasy, and non-fiction for readers of all ages. His twelfth novel for DAW Books, THE TANGLED STARS, comes out October 18. In 2018, he founded Shadowpaw Press (www.shadowpawpress.com) which publishes new work by emerging and established authors and new editions of notable, previously published work. Among its releases are the SHAPERS OF WORLDS anthologies, featuring authors, many of them international bestsellers and award-winners, who were guests of The Worldshapers podcast (www.theworldshapers.com), which Ed hosts and which won an Aurora Award for best fan-related work in 2019. SHAPERS OF WORLDS VOLUME III also comes out in October. In addition to writing, editing, and publishing, Ed is a professional actor and singer who has performed in numerous plays, operas, and musicals. Ed lives in Regina, Saskatchewan, with his wife, Margaret Anne Hodges, P.Eng., a past-president of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan.

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#WriterWednesday Author Interview with Roger Leslie

I’d like to welcome Roger Leslie to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

A few of your favorite things: I love dachshunds, classic movies, and compelling books.

Things you need to throw out: I have multiple copies of several drafts of books published years ago. Either I need to save them for The Roger Leslie Museum, or it’s time to trash them.

Things you need for your writing sessions: I’m at my creative best when I open a clear channel to my subconscious and I exercise the courage to bare my soul in my writing. Oh, a computer and a comfortable chair help, too.

Things that hamper your writing: The misguided thought that I can’t do something. Of course, we can do whatever we’re inspired to do. We wouldn’t get the inspiration if we weren’t already equipped to fulfill it.

Things you love about writing: It’s an adventure into the subconscious. I not only learn about my own psyche when I write, but every time I also rediscover my connection to the realm of creativity.

Things you hate about writing: Nothing. My goal is to love everything about any endeavor I’m committed to.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Real-world time suggests I couldn’t possibly write all the books my creative mind wants to write. My goal is to use time so effectively I write every book stirring inside me.

Easiest thing about being a writer: The creative process is solely dependent on me. To generate new books, I must only be true to my own vision and maintain the discipline to write every day.

Words that describe you: I’m exuberant, creative, organized, and disciplined.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: A nurse friend told me I’m obsessive-compulsive, stuck in the anal stage. (I thought I was just conscientious and neat.)

Something you’re really good at: I am an expert at assembling jigsaw puzzles. Sometimes I’ll put together six or seven 1,000-piece puzzles in a single day.

Something you’re really bad at: I didn’t know until my mother-in-law told me, but apparently I’m a terrible singer. (I don’t care. I sing anyway—just not around people with nice voices.)

Something you wish you could do: I’d love to play the piano beautifully.

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Every time I learned to fix anything in my house or car, I became more convinced I’d rather work more hours and pay somebody else to do it.

Last best thing you ate: A friend brought me a box of Dutch chocolates from Europe. Each bite warranted a celebration.

Last thing you regret eating: I ate leftovers that had been in my fridge for five days only because I refuse to waste food. After I finished eating, I spent the next hour worrying I’d have food poisoning.

The last thing you ordered online: A ring light, green screen, and microphone for a virtual interview on a national television show.

The last thing you regret buying: I bought a less expensive name brand dish soap that comes out thinner than the water from my faucet. Who knew?!

Things you’d walk a mile for: I’d walk that far for a great double-dip ice cream cone, the opportunity to watch my dog walking through a park he loves, or a reunion with a loved one.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: I’m thrilled to stay away from incessant complainers and political discussions. Complainers want me to agree with them. I won’t. Political enthusiasts want me to argue with them. I don’t.

Things you always put in your books: Hope and positivity, and usually a subtle reference to a friend or family member who will be the only one to recognize it.

Things you never put in your books: One-dimensional antagonists who are mean for no reason. I don’t believe people are ever mean for no reason. Mean people get that way to protect themselves from hurt.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: Your book changed my life.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: A parent picked up a copy of my book, Success Express for Teens and asked, “Would this book be good for my teenagers?”

About Roger

Award-winning author, publisher, editor, and writing coach Dr. Roger Leslie is a scholar in the fields of education and success. His bestselling works cover multiple genres of nonfiction and fiction. A lifelong teacher, Leslie leads courses (RogerLeslie.com) on writing and on living the life you dream. 

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#WriterWednesday Interview with C. L. Tolbert

I’d like to welcome the fantastic C. L. Tolbert to the blog for #WriterWedneday!

A few of your favorite things:

The things I like often remind me of times or events from my past. An elegantly shaped bowl by Peter Anderson, the master potter at Shearwater Pottery in Ocean Springs, Mississippi currently sitting on a table in my living room reminds me of my mother’s back porch where it resided for years. The bowl takes me back to walks on the beach, and beauty of the Gulf Coast, where I grew up.

I cherish a poster of my “accomplishments” prepared with loving detail by my sixteen-year-old daughter for my fortieth birthday. One glance at that poster and I’m teleported back to happy times with her and to the days when she was so excited about the future and the medical career she was just starting to plan.

Finally, I love the poems written by my son when he was at Emory University, and published in the Lullwater Review. I love his insight, his humor, and his observations. And I love knowing that I’ll never be half the writer he is.

Things you need to throw out:

Over the past few months, I’ve begun the process of down-sizing - throwing out unnecessary ‘things’ to accommodate a house with poorer storage capacity than my former home. I’m throwing out clothes I haven’t worn in the past two years, electronics, and sadly, I’m giving away unnecessary, but beautiful, antique bowls, temple jars, and urns. I have too much stuff. And even though I love all of my antiques, I don’t want my house to look like a museum. Plus, we need space to breathe.

Things you need for your writing sessions:

The only things I need for my writing sessions are: my computer, my computer glasses, and a chair, a table, or a bed. I don’t even need a desk, although I often write at one. I try not to write on my bed since it encourages bad posture, but I occasionally find myself there, seeking a softer spot and a place to elevate my feet as I type away.

Things that hamper your writing:

I am distracted and aggravated by people talking, and loud noises when I write. I also do not like to listen to music with words while writing, although instrumentals are fine. I am able to write in coffee shops, but loud conversations and loud music impede my ability to think creatively. So, I seek quieter places.

Things you love about writing:

I enjoy researching issues which are relevant to each book. And I love creating the plot, the storyline, developing the characters in the book, and bringing them to life. I also enjoy the process of writing. I often get lost in the story, and cannot pull myself out of what I’m doing to have a conversation with anyone else. Getting “lost” in the story may be my most favorite aspect of writing, but it isn’t one my husband appreciates.

Things you hate about writing:

I do not enjoy the editing process. I am not good at finding my mistakes, but am especially terrible at finding redundancies. But obviously, it’s necessary.

Hardest thing about being a writer:

Marketing your book is, for me, the most difficult aspect about being a writer. I have yet to discover the perfect marketing scheme, and know that I have spent money on projects that have not paid off. Yet, book marketing is essential, and the author must do the majority of the work, or pay someone else to. Most authors, including me, would far prefer spending their day writing, and leave the marketing to others, but that isn’t always possible.

Easiest thing about being a writer:

I find the writing process enjoyable, making the writing process the easiest aspect about being a writer. I love settling down and escaping into the world I’ve created. If I didn’t have other obligations and duties, such as the need for clean laundry and dishes, I would write all day long. I love building a story, and seeing how the story and the characters’ lives interconnect.

Things you never want to run out of:

I never want to run out of printer paper, Pilot pens, or a notepad to write on. I type all of my manuscripts on the computer but print off articles and other research as needed. I also keep an outline of the book in a separate notebook.

Things you wish you’d never bought:

I wish I hadn’t purchased an exercise bike since it is rarely used, and is collecting dust.

Words that describe you:

I was once told by a boss that my best traits were my aggressiveness and thoroughness. He also said that those same traits were my worst characteristics. Since my retirement from the practice of law, I’m far less aggressive, but am even more tenacious, and I like to think I’m still thorough. I also try to be thoughtful of others and kind. If I’m not always, I aspire to be.

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

I did not like my former boss’s description of me as aggressive. I never saw myself that way, but can appreciate his perspective.

Things you always put in your books:

Emma Thornton, is the protagonist in the Thornton Mystery Series. Each story in each of the books of the series has been told primarily from her point of view. Although the books in the series are all legal thrillers, Emma is also a mom, and the relationships in her life, especially with her twin boys, are important to her. As a working mother, a lawyer, and a law professor, Emma struggles to manage her personal and family life with some equilibrium. I include family interactions, and the ups and downs of family life in each of the Thornton Mysteries.

Also, the setting is a character in each of the books in the series, and a strong sense of place accents the story line of each of the books. Out From Silence was set in the fictitious town of Jonesburg, Georgia. Jonesburg is a college town, and is as charming as a “Eudora Welty novel.” Daffodils cover its hills in the spring and its local watering holes are filled with benevolent drunks quoting lines from their latest poems or books. But the early fall heat in Jonesburg is oppressive, relentless, and bears down on its citizens. The sun is so bright it sears skin and burns eyes. Jonesburg is a beautiful but deadly southern town.

New Orleans is the setting for both The Redemption and Sanctuary, and is the perfect place for a murder mystery. Both stories are set in the 1990’s when, statistically, there was more than one murder a day in the city. Police corruption was at its highest during those years. New Orleans citizens couldn’t walk outside at night without the fear of being robbed, or killed, or both. But New Orleans is also one of the most beautiful cities in the world, filled with Georgian, Queen Anne, and Victorian styled mansions lining St. Charles Avenue, the Garden District, and Bayou St. John. Flowers spill out from wrought iron fences and frame wrap-around porches. French Quarter townhouses trimmed with ornate wrought iron rails and dripping ferns soar over narrow cobblestone streets. It’s a city filled with visual treats, and sinister nights.

Things you never put in your books:

Although Emma has a love interest, Ren Taylor, I do not put explicit sexual scenes in my books.

Things to say to an author:

I am always thrilled to read a review which finds and understands the theme of the book. I am attracted to vulnerable suspects, who are usually the main character of the story. Although I write legal thrillers, there is a subtle social justice issue in each of my books, and I find it gratifying if a reader finds that issue and understands why it is important.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book:

I am grateful to all of my readers, but I find it aggravating if a small typo is pointed out after a book has gone to publication. I hate typos, and strive to find each one of them. But they cannot be corrected once the book has been printed.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done:

I once went scuba diving in Mexico with ill-fitting, leaking equipment. I was not certified that day, and still am not. We dove down forty feet off the coast of Cozumel. I had to grab on to the sea grass at the sandy bottom to keep myself down since I apparently float. (In earlier times I may have been burned at the stake as a witch.)

I was told to keep breathing in and out of my regulator or face certain death. I had no problem remembering that and didn’t die. I was in my late twenties, and more stupid than brave. But I was with a group of friends, and at the time, didn’t want to be left out of any of the fun. I believe that’s called FOMO. I haven’t been scuba diving since.

Something you chickened out from doing:

Once, when I was in high school, I was invited on a boating trip by a friend. Her family owned a huge one hundred-and-twenty-five-foot yacht, and it seemed as if our entire circle of friends, girls and boys, were invited. When we finally anchored a short way from an island, a group of football players decided it would be fun to throw girls off of top deck, where I happened to be sunning. This deck seemed very far from the water. The unlucky girls who were thrown over came back on board complaining of sea nettles in the water. I should have left the area then, but felt a little queasy below deck. So, I stayed and hoped the boys had grown tired of their prank. Shortly afterwards, my wrists and ankles were grabbed, and I was swung out over the railing of the yacht. I screamed, and grabbed the railing, immediately wrapping my arms and legs around it. I didn’t care if my fear of being thrown in the sea nettle-infested water was uncool. I only knew that I wasn’t going in from the top deck.

The two boys who tried to throw me in ended up helping me off of the rail. Nothing was ever said about the incident. But I learned that day that I have a strong survival instinct. I didn’t chicken out as much as I refused to be thrown in.

The nicest thing a reader said to you:

A lovely reader, who happens to be an incredible writer, Ellen Byron, kindly said that “C.L. Tolbert follows in the footsteps of legendary southern author Margaret Maron with her haunting debut, OUT FROM SILENCE, a beautifully drawn mystery that explores the duality of evil and kindness in a small Georgia town.”

The craziest thing a reader said to you:

I once received an Amazon review for THE REDEMPTION, the second book in the Thornton Mystery Series, proclaiming that it was “a fun book to read to children!” It went on to explain that the book was about a little boy who wanted a dog. I quickly realized that the comments were intended for another book, and were mistakenly identified as a review for THE REDEMPTION. I write adult-themed murder mysteries/ legal thrillers, not children’s books!

About C. L.

After winning the Georgia State Bar Journal's fiction contest in 2010, C.L. Tolbert developed the winning story into a full-scale novel. OUT FROM SILENCE was published in December of 2019, and is the first novel in the Thornton Mysteries series. Her second book, THE REDEMPTION, was published in February of 2021, and SANCTUARY, the third book in the series, was published in July of 2022.

Licensed in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Georgia, C.L. practiced law for thirty-five years before retiring to pursue writing. During her legal career she spent several years teaching at Loyola Law School in New Orleans, where she was the Director of the Homeless Clinic. She also has a Masters of Special Education, and taught in a public school prior to enrolling in law school.  

C.L. has two children and three grandchildren, and lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and schnauzer.

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#WriterWednesday Interview with Philip Fracassi

I’d like to welcome Philip Fracassi to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

A few of your favorite summer traditions: Like most folks, I love a good barbecue. Burgers and chicken and salmon and sausage with lots of toppings, cold beer in the fridge, and French fries in the oven. Yum.

Something summer-related that you’ll never do again: My wife and I went parasailing once while in Hawaii. It was pretty cool for a few minutes, but after a while I got kinda bored just floating up there. A one-time experience for me, but one I’m glad we did.

Favorite summer treat: An ice-cold gin and tonic.

A summer treat that makes you gag: I’m not a big popsicle guy. They’re too cold, too drippy, and too much work for too little reward.

Best summer memory: I used to love waterskiing on a lake in Michigan, where my family owned a small cabin.

Something you’d rather forget: Pretty much all of high school.

Best summer vacation memory: For a few years running my friends and I would spend Thanksgiving in Big Bear, California. We’d bring tents and beer and spend days on the coast, swimming and hiking. Those were good times.

A summer vacation disaster that you’d rather forget: On an otherwise wonderful trip to Thailand, my wife and I misjudged a travel day that ended up being over twelve hours in a hot, crowded bus, then a hot, crowded van, then a crowded (and apparently shock-free) pickup truck. Not a good day to say the least.

Most favorite place to write/edit in the summer: I tend to do all of my writing in my home office, regardless of the season. But occasionally on the nicer summer days I might take the laptop to a coffee shop patio to get some work done.

The worst place to try to write in the summer because of all the distractions: Not so much because of distractions, but for some strange reason I can’t write on airplanes. Could be that I’m distracted, or the air pressure messes up my creative brain, or that I’m just so uncomfortable.

Favorite thing to do on a summer evening: I like a good sunset walk. There’s a college campus near our home and my wife and I like to walk its perimeter when the day starts cooling down. Two miles that crawls up the hills and offers a stunning view of Los Angeles and the ocean.

Least favorite thing about summer: When the days to too hot. I’m not a big “heat” guy. I prefer a cool day to an overly-warm one. Luckily we hover in the low 70s most days here, but occasionally it crawls up into the 90s and those are no bueno for me.

The thing you like most about being a writer: My favorite moments of being a writer is meeting someone who is a fan of my work; signing a book, taking a photo. Those moments go a long way.

The thing you like least about being a writer: I don’t mind bad reviews, but it really gets to me when reviews are spiteful, or snarky, or angry. I’ve been called a lot of bad things by reviewers, none of them true, and wholly unnecessary in my opinion.

Things you will run to the store for in the middle of the night: Scotch.

Things you never put on your shopping list: Mushrooms, olives, or eggplant. Yuck.

The thing that you will most remember about your writing life: Stephen King tweeting about my upcoming novel from Nightfire will be something I’ll never, ever, forget. Amazing.

Something in your writing life that you wish you could do over: As a writer I tend to let my emotions get carried away and regret a few angry social media posts I’ve made over the years. Yes, you can delete them, but self-control or not responding to something negative is a learned skill.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Not sure how daring it was, but climbing an (inactive) volcano in Guatemala was likely the most grueling experience of my life.

Something you chickened out from doing: Don’t recall ever being too scared to do something, but my biggest summertime regret would have to be not seeing Nirvana perform at the Metro in Chicago when I was a young man. A small group of friends had tickets, and I was invited, but I begged off at the last minute. A huge regret.

About Philip

Philip Fracassi is the Bram Stoker-nominated author of the story collections Behold the Void (named “Collection of the Year” from This Is Horror) and Beneath a Pale Sky (named “Collection of the Year” by Rue Morgue Magazine). His novels include A Child Alone with Strangers, Gothic, and Boys in the Valley.

Philip’s work has been translated into multiple languages, and his stories have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies, including Best Horror of the Year, Nightmare Magazine, and Black Static.

The New York Times calls his work “terrifically scary.”

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#WriterWednesday Interview with Ann Charles

I’d like to welcome Ann Charles to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

A few of your favorite summer traditions:

Taking family road trips to see new places, traveling back roads in different states, and enjoying the local food.

Something summer-related that you’ll never do again:

Pick strawberries for money. Unfortunately, that means I’ll also never have “strawberry fights” at the end of a strawberry season where all of the pickers have a big party and then get to gear up in strawberry boxes, mash up handfuls of strawberry “bombs,” and throw them at each other.

Favorite summer treat:

Iced flavored coffee.

A summer treat that makes you gag:

Ceviche

Best summer vacation memory:

Adopting kittens we found along the way from different states and watching our kids have fun playing with them in the car during the long driving days. (We currently have a cat we picked up in Idaho and another from Ohio, and have had other cats from different states in the past.)

A summer vacation disaster that you’d rather forget:

Driving across northern Montana with a pop-up camper trailer that kept falling apart and losing pieces along the way. It was hot and dry and every time we had to stop, the flies would try to eat us for lunch.

Most favorite place to write/edit in the summer:

On our back porch in the early, dry part of summer when there are very few bugs around, relaxing in a warm breeze with one of our cats on a nearby chair, listening to mellow music.

The worst place to try to write in the summer because of all the distractions:

Inside in our living room while the kids are home from school for weeks on end and the cats are acting stir crazy, bouncing off of furniture—and me.

Favorite thing to do on a summer evening:

Sit on the back porch and drink iced tequila with lemon.

Least favorite thing about summer:

Heat and humidity mixed together to form what feels like Hell on Earth.

Favorite place to visit in Virginia: At this time, Interstate 81 because we’ve only driven that route on our way from Gettysburg Battlefield in Pennsylvania to Natchitoches, Louisiana for some cracklin’s.

Somewhere you’ve visited way too much. Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt: West of Amarillo on Interstate 40.

The thing you like most about being a writer:

Giving people a fun escape from reality.

The thing you like least about being a writer:

Staring at a blinking cursor on a blank page.

Things you will run to the store for in the middle of the night:

Cat food because my cats think they have to have a full bowl of food waiting for them when I go to bed or they might starve to death by morning, and if that bowl is empty, they will wake me up and let me hear and earful about it.

Things you never put on your shopping list:

Grass seed and a lawn mower. After spending almost 4 hours a week on a riding lawn mower throughout much of my childhood, melting into a pool of sweat in the heat and humidity of a Midwest summer, I have taken a permanent vacation from all lawn-mowing duties.

The thing that you will most remember about your writing life:

How wonderful it feels when a reader takes the time to write and tell me how much fun they had reading my books, how the stories take them away to a happier place during the tough times in their lives, how they had fun sharing the stories with their parent, sibling, friend, and even a stranger who had also read my books.

Something in your writing life that you wish you could do over:

I wish I could spend more of my early writing years putting more energy into improving my craft and my “voice,” and less time into trying to write stories to please agents or editors.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done:

Filed for divorce.

Something you chickened out from doing:

Umm ... well, I try to live my life without putting myself in a precarious situation that will result in me chickening out. For example, I haven’t gone up in a plane out of which I’d potentially parachute because I know without a doubt that I’m too chicken to jump.

About Ann

USA Today Bestselling author, Ann Charles, writes spicy, character-driven stories full of mystery, comedy, adventure, suspense, romance, and supernatural mayhem. When she's not dabbling in fiction, she's arm wrestling with her two kids, attempting to seduce her husband, and arguing with her sassy cats.

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Website: http://www.anncharles.com

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#WriterWednesday Interview with Skye Alexander

I’d like to welcome author Skye Alexander to the blog for #WriterWednesday.

Things you need for your writing sessions: A least an hour or two of uninterrupted, quiet time. In the morning, a cup of coffee; late in the afternoon, a glass of wine. And the company of my beautiful Manx cat Zoe.

Things that hamper your writing: People wandering around the house, making a racket. Lately I’ve had a lot of construction guys doing repairs and they’re distracting. My ex-husband used to just burst into my office––even if I put a Do Not Disturb sign on the door––never understanding that once the train of thought pulls out of the station, there’s no calling it back.

Things you love about writing: Pretty much everything. I love doing research. I love hanging out with my characters. I really love it when the story flows through me effortlessly and I’m just the designated typist.

Things you hate about writing: When the Muse decides to take the day off without letting me know ahead of time.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Being alone so much, although it’s a necessary part of the job.

Easiest thing about being a writer: I don’t have to commute, wear a business suit and pantyhose, or deal with bitchy coworkers.

Something you’d like to do: Go on a tour of England’s sacred sites.

Something you wish you’d never done: Gone out with some of the guys I dated when I was younger and less discriminating than now.

Things that make you happy: Hanging out with my friends, playing with my cat, sitting by the ocean, watching sunsets, dancing, writing, reading, playing my drum, music, flowers, art.

Things that drive you crazy: Truck drivers who ride my bumper at 75 mph, neighbors who let their dogs bark for hours on end, waking up at night with a great story idea and forgetting it by morning.

Things you always put in your books: Music. Colorful locales. At least one cat per book. At least one character who’s gay. Interesting and/or obscure historical information (my novels take place in the mid-1920s). For example, the first automatic gates were devised by an Egyptian inventor named Heron nearly 2,000 years ago––he also designed a coin-op dispenser for holy water. How could I resist putting that in?

Things you never put in your books: Child or animal abuse.

Things to say to an author: I always try to say something positive and encouraging, especially to new authors. If they ask, I offer constructive suggestions. I also tell them writing isn’t easy and urge them to stick with it through disappointments and frustrations. I’ve heard that Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury got 60 rejections before a wise publisher brought it out. It’s one of the most highly acclaimed novels in American literature.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Don’t give up your day job. I really hated your book/protagonist/plot. (However, one of my beta readers told me she hated the ending of the third novel in my Lizzie Crane mystery series and her criticism inspired me to write a much better one.) Whether or not the author kills you off fictionally in a book, remember that anything you say to a writer is fair game and may appear in some form in a future novel.

Favorite places you’ve been: Barcelona, Florence, Rome, Stonehenge, Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, the Greek islands. I also love Maine and the North Shore of Massachusetts where the first four novels in my Lizzie Crane series are set.

Places you never want to go to again: Some of the rough neighborhoods in Boston, Houston in the summer, Bosnia, Acapulco, the New York subway, any NASCAR race.

Favorite books (or genre): Historical fiction, historical mysteries

Books you wouldn’t buy: Books about war, books with a lot of violence in them (although I really like Dennis Lehane’s books, so go figure), westerns, contemporary romances.

People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): The Dalai Lama

People you’d cancel dinner on: Kim Kardashian

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Hitchhiked around Europe for six months with my sister when I was twenty-one, with no itinerary, no cellphone, no contacts.

Something you chickened out from doing: Firewalking

The nicest thing a reader said to you: Recently I got a real, paper letter from a high-school girl who said reading one of my books gave her confidence and helped her connect with her personal power. Compliments like that are my favorites because one of my goals is to encourage young people––especially young women––to value themselves, to pursue their dreams, and to think for themselves.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: I don’t know if this person was really a reader, but she posted a negative review on Amazon about me for a book I didn’t write. Sometimes readers suggest changes they think I should make in my books. One told me the house in which the third novel in my Lizzie Crane mystery series is set should have a mile-long winding driveway. I pointed out that the historic mansion, built in the 1700s, is located in the heart of Salem, Massachusetts, where all the grand houses are only steps to the street and each other––I lived a few blocks from the actual house for eight years. Not satisfied, she replied, “Well, it doesn’t sound like a mansion to me.”

About Skye

Skye Alexander is the author of nearly 50 fiction and nonfiction books. Her stories have appeared in anthologies internationally, and her work has been published in more than a dozen languages. In 2003, she cofounded Level Best Books with fellow authors Kate Flora and Susan Oleksiw. The first novel in her Lizzie Crane mystery series, Never Try to Catch a Falling Knife, set in 1925, was published in 2021; the second, What the Walls Know, is scheduled for release in September 2022. Skye lives in Texas with her black Manx cat Zoe.

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Website: http://skyealexander.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skye.alexander.92

#WriterWednesday Interview with Leslie Gadallah

I’d like to welcome author Leslie Gadallah to the blog for an end-of-summer edition of #WriterWednesday!

A few of your favorite summer traditions:

I don't know if you'd consider this a tradition, but I do garden every summer, with the intent of getting a supply of veggies for the winter. It sounds like a chore, but I enjoy it.

Something summer-related that you’ll never do again:

Hang out in a public swimming pool. It's loud, choking in chlorine, and as sanitary as a sewer.

Favorite summer treat:

Wild strawberries right off the plant still warm from the sun.

A summer treat that makes you gag:

Stuff with shellfish in it.

Something crazy you did on vacation:

Swam with the stingrays off the coast of Grand Cayman. The fish were utterly fearless and quite curious. The whole mob came swooping by, turned, and hung around. They were so cool.

Something you’d never do again on vacation

Rent a B&B without checking it out first. You might ask, how bad can it be? Answer: really bad.

Best summer vacation ever:

Hanging out with my daughter in the Cayman Islands. It was awhile ago, when it wasn't so touristified as now.

Somewhere where you don’t ever want to return:

Paris. Ugh.

Favorite thing to do on a summer evening:

Sit on the deck with a glass of wine and a good friend.

Least favorite thing about summer

Mosquitoes

The thing you like most about being a writer:

Those days when the story flows and you look up from writing a desert scene and wonder how the heck it could be snowing outside.

The thing you like least about being a writer:

Those day when I'm totally blocked in the middle of a book, and don't know how to go on.

Things you will run to the store for in the middle of the night:

A kid's medicine.

Things you never put on your shopping list:

Shrimp. Mushrooms.

The thing that you will most remember about your writing life:

The first time an editor phoned and said their house would like to do my book.

Something in your writing life that you wish you could do over:

I had a chance to chat with Judith Merill, and I was so tongue-tied, I blew it.

The nicest thing a reader said to you:

A woman came up to me at a convention and said she had been trying for some time to get up the courage to tell me how much she enjoyed my book. And I thought I was the one with social anxiety.

The craziest thing a reader said to you:

I had a fellow seriously man-splain to me a book I had written. I had a hard time keeping a straight face.

The best summer job you ever had:

A photo finishing shop in the days when actual people handled the pictures. I got my sex education that summer.

The worst summer job you ever had:

Stoop labour at a berry farm.

About Leslie

Leslie Gadallah grew up in Alberta and is currently living in Lethbridge, Canada with her with her geriatric black cat, Spook. Educated as a chemist, she has worked in analytical, agricultural, biological and clinical chemistry. She has written popular science for newspapers and radio, has served as technical editor, and is the author of four SF novels and a number of short stories.