--> How many rejection slips did you get before your first novel was published?
By the time I got around to writing my first novel, I was an established sitcom writer and had created Count Chocula and Frankenberry cereals for General Mills. So my agent was able to sell my first Jaine Austen mystery, THIS PEN FOR HIRE, rather quickly.
I did, however, have more than my share of rejection slips back when I was trying to break into show biz. I think it’s safe to say I could paper my house (and yours) with my rejected screenplays. When I finally did get a movie produced, I went to see it and there were a grand total of five people in the audience. (And four of them were with me!)
My advice to aspiring writers: If you’re getting encouraging rejection letters, ones that say that they really like your writing, but for whatever reason they’re not buying your book, that’s a good sign. If they ask to see stuff you write in the future, that’s a great sign. Letters like that mean you should keep on writing.
--> Have you ever thrown away a book that you just couldn't make work?
I’ve tossed out ideas in the plotting stage, but never once I start writing.
--> Is it still exciting to publish a new book even after all this time?
Astonishing is more like it. I can’t believe I’ve written one book, let alone thirteen!
(Sensitive readers, beware. Shameless plug ahead.) In my latest, DEATH OF A NEIGHBORHOOD WITCH, part-time sleuth and full-time chocoholic Jaine Austen is the cops’ number one suspect when her neighbor from hell, Cryptessa Muldoon, is murdered by someone wearing Jaine’s Halloween costume. Will Jaine exonerate herself and find the true killer? Will she win the affections of a hottie new neighbor up the street? And most important, will she make it through the night without eating all her Halloween candy?
--> Do you get ideas for new books all the time and you keep them written down, or does one come to mind when you need one?
I wish I could say my mind was buzzing with exciting new ideas (usually my brain cells are otherwise occupied trying to figure out where I left my car keys), but I do keep an Idea Box, where I toss in assorted notes. I often get ideas from stories in the newspaper. (Yes, I’m one of the three remaining people on the planet who actually reads a printed newspaper).
--> Do you know how a book is going to end when you begin it?
Absolutely. I’m a firm believer in plotting out a story before I begin. I often start with the murder (who gets killed and why) and work my way backwards. Sometimes I start with a setting (a fun place to put Jaine and her rambunctious cat Prozac). I write each of my scenes on an index card, and color code them. One color for the comedy scenes. Another for the action/danger scenes. Another for the quieter interview scenes. Then I lay them out on my dining room table, and switch them around if need be. Color coding helps give me a good sense of pacing. Don’t want too many comedy scenes in a row, or too many action scenes. Once I start writing, I’m not locked into my outline and I do make changes, but I never work without a safety net of a tight outline.
--> Is there any kind of book you would like to write but haven't?
Someday I’d like to try my hand at a comedy novel.
--> If you could have written any single work – novel, screenplay, stage play, poem, history, biography – that you most admire and adore, what would it be?
Anything by P.G. Wodehouse or Joe Keenan. Agatha Christie, too.
--> If you could change anything about your writing career, what would it be?
You know how some writers say that when writing a book their characters take over and tell them what to say? Well, it is my fondest wish to be one of those writers. My characters are a most uncooperative lot, lounging around eating bon bons all day, expecting me to do all the heavy lifting. When it comes to putting words down on paper, those lazy rascals are nowhere to be found. So if I could change anything, I’d like my characters to get off their fannies and write a chapter or two every once in a while. (That means you, Prozac!)
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