Interview with mystery author Michele Drier

A nice round of applause for today's guest, mystery author Michele Drier.

Welcome, Michele. Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I was born in Santa Cruz, California to a family that migrated west to San Francisco in 1849. Unfortunately, they never found gold, nor did they buy (and hang onto) any California land.

My mother named me 'Michael,' after author and actress Blanche Oelrichs, who wrote under the name of Michael Strange. After months of saying, “Yes, she’s a girl. Yes, her name is Michael,” my mother finally caved and I became “Michele.” I was read to as a child, and needed always to have a book with me. My maternal grandmother belonged to a writing club in San Francisco in the early part of the 20th century and wrote poems and jingles—one of which won her a travel trailer during the Depression.

My first career was in journalism, and I spent seven years as a staff writer with the San Jose Mercury News. After returning to Humboldt State University to complete school and work on a master’s, I fell into my second career, as a non-profit administrator.

Please tell us about your current release.
SNAP: The World Unfolds is the first in a series about the Kandesky vampire family. The Kandeskys moved away from traditional vampire activities (killing, violence) and decided to make money instead. They stayed small as a family and spread across Europe, making money, buying up land in their native Hungary and developing different food sources. Over the last 60 years, they’ve built an international multimedia empire and now rank among the wealthiest family-owned corporations in the world.

When Maxie Gwenoch takes the job of Managing Editor for their print magazine, she has no idea she’s taken up with vampires, let alone that she’s absolutely taken with Jean-Louis, the company’s art director.

What inspired you to write this book?
My daughter made an off-hand comment a couple of years ago that celebrities could be vampires: They only come out at night, they’re always in limos with tinted windows, they always wear huge sunglasses. I started thinking about this, and that celebrities around the world all look and dress similarly, and thought, “What if?” I started to write SNAP—my working title was OMG—as a celeb vampire story, but when Jean-Louis comes into the picture Maxie is a goner. SNAP turned into a romance between a vampire and a regular.

What exciting story are you working on next?
The second in the Kandesky books is SNAP: New Talent and continues the romance of Maxie and Jean-Louis against the backdrop of a continuing war between the Kandeskys and their neighbors and rivals, the Huszars.

While the Kandeskys were building an international business empire and moving around the world, the Huszars stayed put and kept up traditional activities—violence, killing, and occasionally bringing in new vampires. Some of the newer vampires think this is limiting, are envious of the Kandeskys, and are willing to align with them.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
OMG, I don’t really know. I was recognized for a short story I wrote for a high school English class, but I wanted to be a chemist, so didn’t take it seriously. After dropping out of college as a chemistry major, I ended up as a reporter with the San Jose Mercury-News. I went back to school, this time as an English/History major and began a novel, which I entered into the Phelan Young California Writers Competition. I didn’t win, place, or show. That was the year Anne Rice won for Interview with the Vampire, heavy competition.

I went on to build a career in non-profit management and as an editor for several other daily newspapers. Like a lot of newspaper people, I had some beginnings of a book in a desk drawer (really, a shoe box in the closet) that I would take out and work on every so often, but didn’t get serious about finishing anything until a few years ago.

I worked on my first book, Edited for Death, a newspaper-themed mystery for a few years and started looking for an agent. After several; many; close to a ton; of rejections, I submitted it un-agented to Mainly Murder Press and was accepted. It’s being published Oct. 1, 2011 and I’m very happy!

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?
I’d like to write full-time, but need to pay the mortgage and bills. I’m semi-retired and doing consultant work for non-profit agencies on organizational and board development, fund generation, grant writing, and communications.

I give myself time to have coffee and read the paper every morning before I sit down at the computer. Between e-mails and phone calls trying to drum up clients, or working with existing ones, I write. I try to write 4-5 hours a day, but only manage that a few days a week. If I’m consistent I can write about 35 pages of first draft a week—this doesn’t happen often, unfortunately!

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Huummm...you mean besides writing in my jammies? :)

I guess that I’m a pantser, writing without an outline. I’ve lived with a lot of these characters in my head so I know some of the stories, but they can surprise me. New people pop up, different actions. The resolution, though, I know from the start. I guess it’s sort of like going somewhere. You know the destination, but there could be a lot of side roads, hitchhikers, detours, before you get where you’re headed.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Seriously? A race car driver. I wanted to drive the Mille Miglia, a race and rally in Italy, which I think now is primarily vintage sports cars...aahhh, my cup of tea!

About four years ago, after my granddaughter was born, I bought my first-ever four-door sedan. My daughter grew up riding in my 356 Porsche and now will only buy SUVs, the bigger the better!

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Reading is my first passion, and I love stories. My books are for fun...I’ve had fun writing and I hope readers have fun reading them. Life is too short without some laughs along with way!

You can find the book at Smashwords, Amazon, and B&N.

Michele, thanks for being here today and talking about SNAP. I look forward to having you back to talk about Edited for Death.

Interview with mystery author Stacy Juba

Reviews and Interviews welcomes mystery author Stacy Juba today.

Bio:
Although Stacy Juba specializes in writing adult mysteries, she has also authored books for children and young adults – she pursues whatever story ideas won’t leave her alone. Stacy’s titles include the Amazon bestselling adult mystery novels Twenty-Five Years Ago Today and Sink or Swim, the mystery short story "Laundry Day," the children’s picture books The Flag Keeper and Victoria Rose and the Big Bad Noise, and the upcoming young adult novels Dark Before Dawn, Face-Off, and Offsides. She is a former journalist with more than a dozen writing awards to her credit.

Stacy, please tell us about your current release.
Sink or Swim was published in trade paperback by Mainly Murder Press and is also available in multiple e-book formats. It's a fun beach read about Cassidy Novak, a personal trainer who appears on a hit reality show called Sink or Swim. (nicknamed SOS) After she returns to her normal life in a small New England town, Cassidy discovers that she has attracted a stalker. Soon Cassidy will need to call SOS for real. I like to describe it as a cross between a cozy mystery and a romantic suspense novel.

What inspired you to write this book?
With reality shows being so popular, I wanted to explore why a normal person might want to appear on one of those shows, how this brief stint with fame might affect her life, and whether fame was all she expected it to be. Since I love writing mystery novels, I injected this theme into a suspense story. Although fans of reality shows should appreciate the premise, you don't need to be a reality show lover to enjoy the novel as the show is just the hook that sets the story into motion. The reality show's season ends at the end of chapter one and then Cassidy returns to her normal life, working for a health club. I was an exercise science major in college and worked briefly in a health club, which is why I chose the health and fitness field for Cassidy.

What exciting story are you working on next?
I'm preparing for the release of my paranormal thriller Dark Before Dawn, which is scheduled to come out from Mainly Murder Press in January. It's a young adult novel, but adults who enjoy Twilight-type books should enjoy it also. This summer, I'm working on re-releasing my 1992 Avon Flare young adult novel Face-Off as an e-book and I'm also revising its previously unpublished sequel.

Once all of those novels are published, which should be by early next year, I'll be finishing up my adult mystery Sign of the Messenger, which was a recipient of the William F. Deeck Malice Domestic Grant awarded annually at the Malice Domestic convention. That's about Deirdre Sheridan, a psychic healer who co-owns a metaphysical shop. It's the first in a series, and in this book, she's trying to predict a serial killer's next move.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
When I was in fifth grade. I was fortunate that my elementary school teachers recognized and nourished my talent with words. I was very introverted and writing was a way for me to express myself. I wrote dozens and dozens of stories back then, mostly mysteries. By high school, I was submitting to magazines and I got my first book, Face-Off, published at age 18. There were many years of rejection after that, though, but while I was pursuing publication for my novels, I was also writing for newspapers, newsletters, and magazines as my "day job." I was always writing in some capacity.

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?
I write full-time, working around my family's schedule, so I do a lot of chipping away at my work in the early morning, at night, and on weekends. Right now, I'm mostly working on marketing my published books and editing the ones that will be going into production. I also write wellness newsletters for a couple of wonderful clients that I've had for several years, about five newsletters per year. I used to do a lot of freelance writing for magazines and other publications, but as my novel-writing career has taken off, I've eliminated all of that to focus on writing fiction and promoting my published books.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
That no one can read my writing - my handwriting, that is! I've interviewed hundreds of people over the years, either for newspaper and magazine articles or to research my novels, and I can't even begin to estimate how many interview subjects have looked at my handwriting and nervously asked me, "Is that shorthand? You can actually read that?" I can read it, but no one else can. It's like a secret code. That's just when I'm doing an interview though, when I have to write fast to keep up with what the person is saying. My "every day" handwriting is acceptable. Not great, but acceptable.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I loved to write stories as a child, but I dreamed about being a private detective like the women on Charlie's Angels. I didn't seriously think I'd become a detective, but it was my fantasy to go undercover and then surprise everyone by revealing my true identity. In high school, I daydreamed about being a Hollywood scriptwriter.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Feel free to connect with me on Twitter or visit my web site. I have lots of book trailers, excerpts, reviews, book club discussion questions, and blog posts. If you browse my past blog posts, there are numerous columns and interviews featuring guest authors from various genres.

You can also download my free short story "Laundry Day" and the Stacy Juba Mystery Sampler via my web site at http://stacyjuba.com/blog/short-stories/. It is available as a free download from Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and other retailers. In addition to the short story, the download also contains an interview and sample chapters from Twenty-Five Years Ago Today and Sink or Swim.

Stacy, thank you for stopping by and talking about your writing with us. It's been a pleasure. See you at Crime Bake!