Author Debbie Burke joins me today to
talk about her upcoming contemporary women’s fiction novel, Glissando: A Story of Love, Lust and Jazz.
Welcome, Debbie. Please tell us a little
bit about yourself.
I was born
in Brooklyn and now live in northeastern Pennsylvania. My background is in
print production, advertising, journalism and marketing. I was the editor of an
award-winning business journal and am now the editor of a regional lifestyle
magazine.
In my 20’s,
I learned how to play the alto saxophone at the New School for Social Research
in NYC. Many years later, after moving to PA, I played in a community jazz
band. I was thrilled to find a thriving jazz
community here, and it became the inspiration for my first book (in 2011),
The Poconos in B Flat.
In 2016, I
launched my jazz blog,
which is a substantial collection of Q&A-style interviews with jazz
musicians and others in the music industry.
I am a contributing writer for www.jazzbooks.com and www.allaboutjazz.com.
My upcoming
novel, Glissando: A Story of Love, Lust
and Jazz will be released in July 2018 (Waldorf Publishing).
Please tell us about your upcoming
release.
Glissando is a sharp slice of middle-aged angst and
re-discovered lust, set against a jazz backdrop. The title refers to the slow
and sultry slide from one note to another, often found in jazz. It’s a metaphor
for the protagonist’s downward slip into morally questionable circumstances
that can very possibly lead her into a one-way emotional decline.
What inspired you to write this book?
When
ensconced in my band years, I was fascinated by the personal drama going on
under all the music. I thought it would be fascinating to combine my love for
jazz with affairs of the heart and how music actually enhances our emotional
state, whether we are in love or lust. I also wanted to explore a person who
seems to have it all together, but there are cracks in the façade. People
knowingly make terrible choices and I wanted to take the characters through
that.
What exciting story are you working on
next?
It’s
a mystery about jazz in the post-Civil War period in the American South, and
toggles forward to the present, where a man learns about a heritage he’s been
denied. It almost has the feeling of historical fiction. I don’t have a working
title yet!
When did you first consider yourself a
writer?
I really
started writing a lot when at the age of 25 I became a Probation Officer for
the NYC Supreme Court system. I had to churn out a huge number of pre-sentence
investigation reports. That meant interviewing defendants and family members,
law enforcement personnel, etc. and then crafting it into a kind of story which
ended with an assessment and summary for the sentencing judge.
I realized that
talking to all kinds of people was fascinating; and then to extract an accurate
and succinct story from it was a real literary turn-on.
Do you write full-time? If so, what's
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?
Yes, I’m the
editor for a lifestyle publication called Local Flair Magazine. I edit and
write articles, manage freelancers, handle social media for the publication and
a host of other tasks, some of them extremely rewarding like doing restaurant
reviews! After hours, I concentrate on my own social media for Glissando and I
interview jazz artists for my blog (www.debbieburkeauthor.com).
I also fit in some freelance work for AllAboutJazz.com and JazzBooks.com.
What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?
I don’t have
an office at home. I’m often found sitting on the floor of the living room,
throw pillows all around me, laptop burning into my thighs.
Often,
writing is accompanied by ice cream.
As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up?
A
violinist.
Anything additional you want to share
with the readers?
I love
meeting and corresponding with other authors and of course anybody in the jazz
realm.
On another
note, I’d like to say the love of my amazing family (husband Rich and two grown
kids) and my two BFFs Vicky and Diane have provided support and encouragement
without end. I’m blessed beyond belief.
Links:
Thanks for being here today, Debbie.
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