Author extraordinaire Trice Hickman invited me to participate in the Blog in the Round, as she was asked by Trisha R. Thomas. What’s it all about? Each author answers four questions about their writing process so you can get to know new authors and/or refamiliarize yourself with your favorites. Now it’s my turn and I’ll be passing the torch to the beautiful and talented Marissa Monteilh, author of contemporary romances, and Cherlisa Starks Richardson, a fantastic new YA author! Check them out on their blogs.
What am I working on/writing?
I always stay busy busy. I’ve got three books in the works, which will be released in the order that they are finished. I don’t know, at this point, which will reach the finish line first but I can’t go full steam ahead on these until I’m finished with a book in a different series. But…
12 Honeymoons will be my first adult romantic comedy since I released my sophomore novel — Got a Right to Be Wrong. All I can say about this one is the character is different from anything that I’ve written before and so she’s proving to be a bit of a challenge. The story is based on the premise that a late 20-ish woman has faithfully applying the 90-day rule (no sex for the first 90 days of a relationship), in hopes that she will find the right man. But her results have been pitiful at best and she’s extremely frustrated, especially with that biological clock tick-tocking in her ear. Her recent break-up makes her decide that maybe love isn’t the way to go. She wants the “honeymoon” without the marriage…and she’s conjured up a plan to get what she wants. The only problem is…her plan just might work.
The other books are the second books in my two YA Series — The Jane Series (Worst Impressions) and Soul of the Band.
Missed Match picks up where Worst Impressions leaves off. Liz and Darcell are happy…but Liz’s insecurities threaten to break them apart. Now, that she’s finally found love, she’s afraid to lose it which influences her to make a series of unwise choices that threaten to end their relationship. Will they survive it? I dunno. You’ll have to wait and see. 🙂
The final book is Soul of the Band II — Marching in Place. I have to say I NEVER thought in a million years it would take me so long to get back to book II. I know I left it on a major cliffhanger and had every intention of writing them back to back–or at least a little closer together. But I was dealing with my mother’s death and health issues that led to two major surgeries in the past two years.
Anyway…of course, Soul of the Band II will pick up where the first one left off. Brandy’s got trouble when someone threatens to spill her secret. She has a major choice to make–quit the band or suffer the embarrassment and humiliation of having her secret revealed to the whole school. What will she do? The answer is not as simple as you think…
So, that’s what I’m working on. If I have my way–all three books will be finished and available by the end of next year. So, look for them in the coming months.
How does my writing/work differ from others in its genre?
Well, let’s face it. There’s not an author alive today really doing something “new.” All the stories have been told countless times, again and again. What makes each book different is the author’s perspective and their voice. I think after nearly 5 years of writing I’ve finally begun to have a very distinctive voice — it’s realism coupled with a lot of humor. When I look at my reviews and find the common thread, it has to be the humor and the twists and turns. Also, my book are notoriously genre-mash-ups. Each story contains romance, drama, humor, a level of suspense — and one of my series is downright thrilling.
Why do I write what I do?
I honestly can’t help myself. I can’t NOT write. Even when I claim I’m taking a brake my mind keeps ticking. My brain becomes filled with voices and I have to transcribe their stories. And every story and every character is very different and yet each is derived, in some measure, from my experiences and people that I’ve met, things I’ve observed, and a healthy dose of my imagination.
How does my writing process work?
Well, the hardest thing about my writing process is balancing my schedule. I still have a 9-to-5 job so my biggest challenge is dumping that stuff out of my head each day so I can sit down and write. All I need is a desk or a couch and some good lighting. For my romantic comedies, my process is very organic in that I just write the story however it comes to me. I learned early to let my characters have their way because they tell way better stories than I do. And most of the twists in my stories come from them, not me. I mean, I’ve never written a book in which I wasn’t surprised or even shocked by what the characters did. That’s such an energizing process. It really does make you anxious to get to the page every day to see what’s going to happen next.
Thanks so much for hanging out with me today and please don’t forget to check out the blogs from my fellow authors–and pick up their current releases. They are all amazing!
