Heidi Thomas and Cowgirl Dreams

Raised on a ranch in isolated eastern Montana, Heidi Thomas has loved reading and writing since she was a child. A tidbit of family history, that her grandmother rode steers in rodeos during the 1920s, spurred Heidi to write a novel based on that grandmother’s life. Cowgirl Dreams is the first in a series about strong, independent Montana Women. A sequel, Follow the Dream, will be published in 2010.

Heidi has a degree in journalism, has worked in the newspaper business, and has had numerous magazine articles published. She lives in the Pacific Northwest, is a member of several writers organizations, writes, edits, and teaches memoir and fiction writing classes.

Wlecome, Heidi. When did the writing bug bite, and in what genre(s)?

I began telling stories before I could write. Later, I tried to emulate Nancy Drew mysteries or Zane Grey or whatever wonderful book I happened to be reading at the time. I’ve always loved to write.

I loved Zane Grey as well.
Is there a message in your writing you want readers to grasp?

That we all have dreams and need to pursue them, to find our path in life and follow it. We all have the potential for a gift or a passion, whether it’s for writing, hairdressing or auto mechanics. The path is never straight—we all take many side trips, get lost, forget the goal. But my advice is to never give up, even if we discover the direction we took at the beginning has changed.

Tell us more about Cowgirl Dreams.

Cowgirl Dreams is based on my grandmother’s life. (That seems to be my hook, what grabs potential readers’ interest.) In the book, Nettie Brady bucks 1920s convention and defies family and social norms with her dream of becoming a rodeo star. Broken bones, killer influenza, flash floods, and family hardship team up to keep Nettie from her dreams. Then she meets a young neighbor cowboy who rides broncs and raises rodeo stock. Will this be Nettie’s ticket to freedom and happiness? Will her rodeo dreams come true?

Do you think your writing has improved since your first attempt? In what way?

Absolutely. I have learned how important it is to develop rounded characters, to show their feelings and reactions, rather than just “telling” the reader about them. What I particularly love about writing is that I’m continually learning something new and improving my craft. It’s never a dull life!

Specifically, how does your environment/upbringing color your writing?

It has had a great influence on my writing. I grew up on a ranch in isolated eastern Montana, without electricity and indoor plumbing for many years, so I could identify quite a bit with the way my grandmother lived her childhood. I rode horses and gathered cattle, but never participated in rodeo. Also, growing up this way formed me as a strong, independent woman, a trait passed along to me by my grandmother and my mother and encouraged by my father.

How do you promote yourself online and off?

I have a website and a blog. I belong to several on-line writers and book-related sites. I did a virtual book tour as well as a “reality” book tour. In addition to bookstores, I sell my book at western-related stores and gift shops and at arts and crafts fairs.

What are your current projects?

My sequel, Follow the Dream, will be out sometime in 2010. I am also writing a third “Nettie book.”

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

My website is http://www.heidimthomas.com and I blog at http://heidiwriter.wordpress.com My book is available as an autographed copy through my website, and it is also available from my publisher http://www.trebleheartbooks.com/SDHeidiThomas.html and from the usual on-line sources.

It has become clear to me that I should have asked to interview you in person since I've been to the edge of Montana but an avalanche in Yellowstone kept us from going farther north. Next time, perhaps?

Anne Patrick returns

My guest today is Anne Patrick, back for a second visit. Welcome back, Anne and even though I have previously interviewed you, please give new blog visitors a brief bio.

Well, I’m a suspense junkie with a bad habit of mixing chocolate and diet colas when writing which can, and often does, lead to mayhem. The proof being almost a dozen romantic suspense novels that are either published or under contract at this time. I do have a lighter side in the form of an alter ego named Kinzie Monroe who writes inspirational romance. When I’m not killing off people or falling in love with dashing heroes, I enjoy spending time with family and friends and traveling to foreign countries to experience new cultures.

Wow! What a great life!
What books came along at just the right time to influence your reading/writing?

I’d have to say Dee Henderson has been the most influential. I love how she can tell a spine-tingling tale laced with Christian themes.

Why do you use a pen name?

If you knew my last name you wouldn’t ask that question :-). Actually my mother came up with my first pen name, Anne Patrick. The second, Kinzie Monroe, I concocted at the advice of my publisher. We didn’t want a reader to pick up my inspirational romance, expecting murder and mayhem, and then be disappointed.

You have two new books. Congratulations! Please give us a short synopsis of Ties That Bind and Out of the Darkness.

Thank you, Susan. Well if you like reading about serial killers and the FBI profilers that hunt them, you won’t be disappointed with these.

Ties That Bind pits physic profiler Jo McDaniels against a sadistic killer in her former home town, and helping her is the handsome sheriff, Austin Garrett, who doesn’t quite know how to handle Jo’s unusual gift which allows her to tell him things that even the coroner doesn’t know. Things really get tense when they figure out that Jo could be the killer’s next victim.

Out of the Darkness (May release) has ex-FBI Profiler, Alex Michaels, forced into hiding by the serial killer who murdered her twin sister and left her with a career ending injury. Meeting up with an ex-pro football player who is also facing an uncertain future, Alex makes Royce McIntire an offer he can’t refuse. Settling into her new life, Alex has no idea the killer is hot on her tracks along with the team of FBI agents who failed to protect her before. When they all catch up to her, not only is her peaceful life shattered, but once again her life is in jeopardy.
Review: 
Out of the Darkness is a perfect example of a story done right. You'll keep turning pages because you can't wait to find out who the villian really is and how the story will play out. Once you finish this book, you'll be searching for more from Anne Patrick, and you can find what you seek on her website. To purchase your copy of this amazing suspense thriller, visit Champagne Books.
Read the whole review at  http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34490-eBooks-Examiner~y2010m4d28-Review--Out-of-the-Darkness--Romantic-Mystery

Great review, Anne.
How do you think your writing has progressed since your first book?

It has gotten tighter and less passive, thanks to some wonderful editors who took the time to point out my flaws and made suggestions of how to improve my style.

When do you accomplish your best writing?

I’m a night owl, so usually about the time most normal people are sound to sleep in their comfy beds I’m creeping along dark alleys either searching for a killer or looking for my next victim.

After hours of intense writing, how do you unwind?

Music. Not only do I write by it, I can’t get to sleep without it. Now if it’s during the day, a long walk at the lake or a game of Frisbee with my German Shepherd, Zoe, usually does it.

Both novels have profilers but the characters and settings are different. How did you keep confusion at bay while writing the books simultaneously?

Actually the books were written a few years apart with books in between them. Out of the Darkness is the prequel to my first published book, Every Skull Tells a Story. I was midway through it when the characters in ESTAS starting bugging me. They were so insistent I had to put aside Out of the Darkness and tell their story first. Now seven books later, I’m thrilled that Jo and Royce finally get to tell theirs.

Anne, it's been great to interview you again. Let me know when the next book's out.
Where can we purchase these books and get more information about you?

Ties That Bind can be purchased through Awestruck Publishing and Out of the Darkness through Champagne Books or you can buy them at most online bookstores. I have buy links to both on my website: www.annepatrick.weebly.com and my blog: http://www.suspensebyanne.blogspot.com/
Thanks for another great interview, Anne.

Thank you for having me back, Susan. I’ve enjoyed it! I'd like to offer a PDF copy of either Out of the Darkness or Ties That Bind to one of the commenters. Would you like to draw a name at the end of the day on Tuesday?

Sure! That's very generous of you, Anne. Okay, bloggers, here's your chance. Just leave a comment in the link below for your chance to win the PDF.

Nita Hickock: Solving Psychic Attack

                                                            ISBN #978-0-9824876-2-4

Nita Hickok is the great grandniece of Wild Bill Hickok of Western fame. She was born in Pontiac, Michigan and grew up in San Diego, California and later in Las Vegas, Nevada. She developed an interest in the occult in her late teens and started studying with magical teachers at the age of eighteen. She saw that many people with serious life problems could easily be helped by using magical techniques.

She has been a spiritual and energy consultant for almost forty years. She has written this book to show the victims of black magic, bad luck, hexes, and curses how to help themselves. Her other interests include anthropology, archaeology, linguistics, and comparative religions. She lives in Southwest United States with her husband of 26 years.


Nita is available for consults. For more information on self-help, healing techniques, and contact information, Nita invites you to visit her web site at http://www.astralhealer.com/


Welcome, Nita. I am delighted to know your relationship to Wild Bill. That's so cool! Now, on to the interview. Please tell us more about you.

When I was sixteen years old, I became interested in psychic abilities and the occult. After being hypnotized, I found out I reincarnated. Testing me for psychic abilities, they found me to be a high-functioning clairvoyant with the ability to see what was in a desk drawer in a room next door and describe what was in a box.

I always knew I had special abilities and was able to do things that other people didn't do. It was nice to have the proof and find out there were books to read on that subject. I started reading and learning about many fascinating subjects since that time.

I graduated from high school in the seventies when there was a big increase in knowledge and interest in spirituality. I moved to Los Angeles, and started my life in learning Magic and Spirituality.

I started doing ceremonial magic when I was 17 years old. Finding a teacher after I left home, I learned from them, as well as, other people’s mistakes. At the same time, I was taught earth magic.

In the next twelve years, I did countless exorcisms, and helped everyone in and outside of my group with their mistakes and spiritual problems. After leaving the group, I began doing exorcisms and removing curses for people. I have found that people, who haven't practiced magic, are having a lot of problems with negative energies and forces. I believe this is because of a shift in the balance between good and evil. The more people that know magical methods and how to help themselves the better this world will be.

I have been doing spirit releases, exorcisms, house clearings and cleansings, house blessings and curse removal for 40 years. I have done over a hundred exorcisms of people, places, and land. Trying to help everyone, as I believe even small improvements helps the person to manifest big improvements, I believe my new book will help people, since it has advanced methods—plus my alphabet—to help others.

Wow! How fascinating! When did the writing bug bite, and in what genre(s)?

I was home ill with the Whooping Cough or what is now called diphtheria. I felt okay, but was not able to be around anyone because I was contagious. I loved the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, who wrote a thirty page African adventure with pictures. I have loved writing ever since then, but had problems with grammar and syntax. I studied the rules of grammar many times. I feel it is my biggest challenge.

When you started writing, what goals did you want to accomplish? Is there a message you want readers to grasp?

I want the readers of my book to know they are able to help themselves and improve their lives. They are empowered. They can change the things in their lives and transmute their lives in a positive way.

Briefly tell us about your latest book. Series or stand-alone? If you have written both, which one do you prefer?

The book I have now uses my alphabet plus adds in advanced methods and ways for people to help themselves heal and bring positive energies into their lives.

What’s the hook for the book?

You can transmute negativity in your life and improve yourself and everything in your life.
How did you develop the alphabet?

I felt that the first thing most people did when they studied magic was develop their own symbols and ways to make things work with their mindset. I felt an alphabet empowered by the divine and akashic volts would fit into the energies of a novice and be able to help them learn how to change the energies in their lives. It would empower them to see how their choices and actions cause reactions. It would help them to overcome rationalization and learn to live in the truth of the divine.

What are the ways that people sabotage themselves in their lives?

People sabotage themselves by rationalizing their actions and not seeing the damage or pain it causes another. They then set into motion reactions to their actions, which bring negativity into the person’s life. Others try to impose this mindset of I am wrong to make it, so the person, who is innocent, accepts the abuse and trauma. The cycle continues until the person learns to know and live in truth about himself and all of his actions.

Life is about overcoming the challenges, learning from experiences, and making it so you are empowered and work in the energies of the divine to bring alive the divine sparks within you and in the people around you.

Do you have specific techniques you use to develop the plot and stay on track with your writing?

I like to use an outline so if parts get shifted around I have the important subjects covered in the outline.

How does your environment/upbringing color your writing?

I was taught that I could accomplish anything that I set out to do if I just kept trying. My father inspired me with two messages. He said if you always lived in truth and tried not to lie then you would like yourself. People who liked themselves could survive any experience

I have found this to be very true, as you can put yourself in the other persons place if you like yourself and do not feel threatened by what you are experiencing. Understanding is a key to working with others.
Other people can try to judge you, manipulate you, or try to make you what they feel that you should be. Any one this is being done to should just be themselves and like themselves as all of the problems being caused is not about them. It is about the other people trying to make them into what they want them to be. They are not the Divine, nor do they even know what they are on the inside. It is up to you to be the person you are meant to be by the Divine.

Have you started any online networks or blogs to promote yourself and others?

I have the blog: http://astralhealer.blogspot.com/
After hours of intense writing, how do you unwind?

I talk to others while drinking coffee. I watch TV and movies. I read, and relax petting my dogs Bear and Buddy. I enjoy looking at nature.

What are your current projects?

I just started Astralhealer Church and plan to write instruction manuals to teach others what I do. I found that most people do not know what a specialist, such as myself, does. They try to place their expectations upon the poor person trying to help them. I feel there is a need for this and a way to have others train to do my work.
The manuals will be in different levels of difficulty. I plan to write a book about my experiences and finish my screenplay about my first exorcism.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

They are listed on my website http://www.astralhealer.com They are listed in the news section. You can find out about my book on my publisher’s website, as well, at http://weavingdreamspublishing.com

Thanks for letting me interview you, Nita, and continued success in your interesting endcavors!

This blog recieved another award!

Thanks to Anne Patrick for this hysterical award! I love it! I'm looking forward to having Anne come back May 24th and talk about her latest book. You be sure to come back as well.

Reece Hirsch

Reece Hirsch’s debut legal thriller THE INSIDER was published this month by Berkley Books. Reece is a partner in the San Francisco office of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP specializing in privacy, security and healthcare law. He is also a member of the board of directors of 826 National (www.826national.org), a non-profit organization that conducts writing programs for young people. Reece lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife Kathy and their dog Simon.

Reece, congratulations on your book.  Tell us about it.

THE INSIDER is the story of Will Connelly, a young corporate attorney in a big San Francisco law firm who is on the verge of making partner. Will thinks that becoming a partner will solve all of his life’s problems, but his troubles are only beginning. Within a week of being promoted to partner and taking over a major merger transaction, Will becomes the prime suspect in a colleague’s murder and an unwilling participant in a complex criminal scheme that involves the Russian mob, insider trading and a secret government domestic surveillance program.

What are your writing goals?

As a reader, I love books that have narrative momentum and provide an immersive reading experience. That’s what I was aiming for with THE INSIDER. But I suppose that’s what thrillers are all about – keeping the reader turning the pages, anxious to find out what happens next.

Do you have specific techniques to develop the plot and stay on track?

I usually have a sense of the general arc of the story when I start writing, but I don’t prepare a detailed outline. At any point in the writing, I’ll usually have notes on what’s going to happen in the next four or five chapters. I find that writing a thriller is a little like playing both sides in a game of chess – you keep looking for ways to surprise yourself. And if you can surprise yourself, then there’s a pretty good chance that you’ll surprise the reader, too.

Where do you write? When?

Because my law firm job is pretty demanding, it’s not always easy to find writing time. I work very early in the morning on weekdays, on weekend mornings, and on the BART train to work. They say that Scott Turow wrote much of Presumed Innocent when he was riding the train to work as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. I’ve always taken some inspiration from that story.

What is your current project?

I’m currently working on another stand-alone thriller with a San Francisco attorney as the protagonist. Like THE INSIDER, my new book touches upon some cutting-edge privacy and security issues that are drawn from my legal practice. Go with what you know, right?

How did you draw upon your privacy law expertise in THE INSIDER?

In the early Nineties, the National Security Agency (NSA) developed a powerful encryption device known as the Clipper Chip, which was to be used to encrypt telecommunications transmissions. The encryption software was to be made available for use by private businesses and individuals. However, the Clipper Chip was designed to provide government agencies with “key access” to all encrypted transmissions for law enforcement and national security purposes. The program was criticized in Congressional hearings based upon privacy concerns and was ultimately abandoned in 1995.

THE INSIDER posits that the Clipper Chip program was never really abandoned, but went forward through an undisclosed deal between the NSA and a private software company, and that the NSA continued to secretly monitor the communications of private citizens during the ensuing years. THE INSIDER also considers what might happen if the encryption keys that permitted government access to all of that confidential data fell into the wrong hands.

As an attorney specializing in privacy and security issues, I’ve long been aware of the Clipper Chip program. The program was real, but it was entirely abandoned by 1996. However, the issues highlighted in THE INSIDER are still very much with us today and have never been more timely. In the wake of 9-11, the government has continued its pursuit of what was once referred to as “Total Information Awareness.”

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

For more information about my books and events, please see my author website at www.reecehirsch.com. You can also find the first chapter of THE INSIDER on my website.

Continued success, Reece.

Annette Snyder's Eureka Springs

Annette Snyder, author of Eureka Springs, is my guest today.
Annette, welcome. When did the writing bug bite, and in what genre(s)?

I wrote in high school, but later life and kids seemed to take up all my time. One day my father-in-law gave me a computer. It wasn’t long before I had my first draft of my first story, 2003. It took me a few years to decide what to do with my work and then, in 2005 my first novel was published.

When you started writing, what goals did you want to accomplish? Is there a message you want readers to grasp?

When I was growing up, people would tell me that with my stories, I should write a book. That was my goal. I didn’t ever imagine that I’d write more than thirty and that I’d have thirteen published, but in 2010, that’s how many I’ll have out—so far. I like to read about real people with real lives and real jobs so, that’s what I wanted to write and I think my readers can relate to my characters. I also wanted to write Midwestern stories about life surrounding small towns and the relationships that form within those.

Briefly tell us about your latest book. Series or stand-alone?

My next published novel is Drive-Thru, releasing this year. It’s the second in my Packard Family Series, the first being Intimate Flames, released in 2009. Drive Thru is a story of a single mom working a job that gets her by. She likes the stability in her life and wants to keep it that way. It all works for her until one fateful night when a handsome film star crashes into her car and causes emotional upheaval.

How do you develop characters? Setting?

I went to a class last year giving by a former US Poet Laureate. It was a memoir writing class but I still gained some valuable info--like picking the setting first. It was something I always did, but with admission of experience from the multi-published author who taught the class, I learned that I was on the right track. My characters develop on their own. I’m not sure I even pick the physical properties or the names. Once, I was in a museum reading accounts of an exhibit and someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, “My name’s Sally. Write about me.” I turned around and there was no one within thirty feet of me but I had this amazing idea for Sally Murphy, my first published book.

Do you have specific techniques to help you maintain the course of the plot?

My characters usually lead the way. When I first get an idea, I rush to type it out. I get the main idea and direction of the story, write down the basics of some characters and have a few ideas that I’d like to happen before the end. As I go back and actually work the novel, I add or subtract events depending on the lives of the characters. By the time I finish the second draft, I’ve got a good idea where the story will end up. In Viveka’s War, I didn’t have a clue that one of the main characters would die until the third draft. I had to go back and fix the scenes to accommodate that shift all because the character took a trip with his girlfriend.

Share the best review (or a portion) that you’ve even had.

My novels have received stellar reviews at places like FAR, RTBookReviews, Coffeetime, Howling Good Books, GoodReads, so many I couldn’t possibly list all the sites. On my website, http://annettesnyder.atspace.com I list one or two reviews for each book.
What are your current projects?


I’m working on a novel concerning a secondary character in Viveka’s War and Eureka Springs. I got the idea for the novel from a reviewer who said Eureka Springs gave a hint of another story with Virgie’s character and I ran with that. I decided I also wanted to know how Virginia Seidle got where she did. Hoping to get that story done by June 2010.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?

I keep an updated website http://annettesnyder.atspace.com

Readers can also find me at www.growne.com and at my publishers www.whiskeycreekpress.com

Annette, thanks for the interview. Continued success!

Christy Tillery French's Bodyguard

My guest today is prolific author, Christy Tillery French. Christy, thanks for dropping by. Please tell us more about you.
I’ve published eight books to date. I’m happy to state several have won awards and two are internationally published. I co-own with my husband two small businesses and am a book reviewer for Midwest Book Review. I am a volunteer with Wolf Creek Weimaraner Rescue and donate proceeds from my books to local shelters and rescue groups.

When did the writing bug bite, and in what genre(s)?
I’ve loved writing since the fifth grade when I was asked to start a newspaper for my elementary school. I didn’t actually begin to write books until my kids were grown enough that they didn’t need me constantly. My first book was a romantic comedy, which is my favorite to write. I’ve since published in several genres: psychological thriller, romantic suspense, as well as humorous mystery. But in all my books, romance is a strong element.

What are your writing goals?
 Readers! Lots and lots of readers! I’d also like to earn a viable income from writing. If not, I’m having fun, so I’m not complaining.

Briefly tell us about your latest book.
The Bodyguard and the Snitch, number 4 in my Bodyguard series. In this installment, protection specialist Natasha Chamberlain thinks guarding a defense attorney from a disgruntled client should be a fairly normal job, but when she learns he’s been targeted by the mafia, she’s ready to call it quits. However, the attorney holds her to their contract and Natasha finds her own life placed in danger, along with her bodyguard cohorts Pit and Bigun.

What are your protagonist’s strengths? Flaws?
Strengths: My bodyguard sees herself as protector of the innocent and is zealous in her attempts to protect her clients. She cares about animals, especially dogs and horses. She loves deeply and is loyal and very independent. She’s tough physically but has a soft heart. Flaws: She’s too spontaneous at times, is overly zealous, young and a tad naïve. She has a bit of a temper. She has no patience for people who are cruel to animals or humans and is quick to confront them over it. Well, actually, I don’t count that last one a flaw.

Where do you write? What do you have around you?
Usually in my office at home, where it’s the quietest. My husband built and installed a large, L-shaped unit which butts up against two walls and has abundant workspace and bookshelves. Occasionally, I write on the back deck of our houseboat, which I find calming (I am drawn to the water). Always nearby: my Weim, Emma.

What are your current projects?
Actually, doing three at this time. Of course, the next installment in the Bodyguard series, The Bodyguard and Bridezilla. This idea came to me during the one-year (!) planning phase for my daughter’s wedding. Meghann is a perfectionist, very detail oriented and meticulous. She formulated a timeline (I suspect the very day she got engaged) and we stuck to it, no matter what. At times, she got a little, shall we say, overworked about things. Towards the end, her friends would run when they saw her coming. I tried that but wasn’t fast enough and could never get away in time, so found myself in the role of soother and doer, trying to keep my daughter’s nerves under control while taking care of problems that came up. I’m happy to say the wedding came off beautifully and I gleaned a lot of good things to use in the book.

I’m also working on an apocalyptic romantic suspense about a future world in which the great majority of the population has been decimated.

My sister, Caitlyn Hunter, and I are doing a faction together about our Great Aunt Bessie, who grew up in the mountains of North Carolina. Her father (our great-grandfather) was marshal and tax collector of Hot Springs, NC, and the stories our dad tells about Bessie and her father and the colorful mountain folks around them are funny and heartwarming. This is our way of ensuring those great stories don’t end with our dad but will continue on.

I love Hot Springs and set one of my own books there. Cool!
Where can folks learn more about your books and events? My websites: http://christytilleryfrench.com or http://www.authorsden.com/christytfrench.

All my books are available at online stores such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Fictionwise, etc. If they’re not on-shelf at brick-and-mortar stores, they should be in their system.

Christy, I appreciate the interview. Continued success with your writing and endeavors with Caitlyn as well.

Thanks so much, Susan. I enjoyed this!!!