Tuesday, May 8, 2018

The Question Writers Hate by Clare O'Donohue

JENN McKINLAY: A million years ago when dinosaurs roamed -- okay, more like seven years (in 2011) it just feels like a million -- I was fortunate enough to be paired up to sign books with this sharp cookie, Clare O'Donohue. I remember because my best friend Annette flew all the way in from Connecticut to go to the signing and afterwards she said, "I am buying all of that woman's books. She's amazing." I totally agreed and we did. So, here is Clare, breaking down the inner working's of the writer's mind for us while we celebrate the release of her new book Beyond the Pale, which is out TODAY!!!

I FINALLY HAVE AN ANSWER TO THE QUESTION WRITERS HATE:


Clare O'Donohue

Every writer has been asked this. At every conference, on every panel, at every book signing. “Where do you get your ideas?” It’s probably the most asked question novelists hear.
The most hated question? “Where do you get your ideas?”
It’s not that writers are curmudgeons (okay, yeah, maybe) it’s just an impossible question to answer. Mostly ideas are not there, and then they are. Like the name of the person who sat next to you in sophomore English. One minute your brain can’t come up with a thing, then BOOM. There it is.
            At the risk of annoying all my fellow writers, the next time this question gets asked though, I’m going to raise my hand high, yelling, “Call on me!! Call on me!!” like the perfect student I never was. Because I know exactly where I got my idea for Beyond the Pale.


            Since I was a little one I’ve dreamed of traveling the world and having a passport filled to the brim with stamps from far-off places. But, you know, work, family, life, excuses. I have traveled a lot, seeing all but three states in the US (Alaska, N. Dakota and Idaho, just hang in there I’m coming). And when my idea was forming, I’d already been to what others might see as an impressive amount of foreign shores – twenty countries. But, ever greedy, I wanted to see more.
So, before you could say book research, I came up with a plan – create a mystery series with each novel set in a different country. Travel, writing – two birds, one tax-deductible stone.
The original plan was to have my main character be a single woman in her early 30s who inherited (Won? Found?) a large amount of money and decided to travel. At her first country she’d happen across a murder, meet quirky, possibly dangerous people, see the sites, and solve the crime. Book #2 would be similar, except different country. Genius!
I thought about my main character potentially meeting a love interest in book one. Would he follow her to country #2? Would there be a new beau in #2? If I wrote twenty books in the series would she end up with an admirer in every port? Plus, who would she talk to, who would she trust? Yeah scratch that. I’d already done the beginning of a relationship in my Someday Quilts series, and the end of a relationship in my Kate Conway series. I decided instead on featuring a couple, long married, and focus on the middle bit of a relationship, where you love, understand, and slightly annoy each other. That bit. Genius!
But would they just trip over bodies in every country? I’d already done that too – and nothing wrong with it, I’m here to say. Agatha Christie built a nice career out of body-tripping mysteries and I’m not fit to shine her shoes, so nothing against it. But maybe, I thought, I could mix it up. Give them a professional reason for all the bodies that will inevitably pile up across a long series. Spies. I felt particularly good about myself with that one. Genius wasn’t big enough. I’d write a Thin Man meets James Bond spy novel. That way there’d be a reason for all the travel and all the danger. It opened up a world of possibilities of bad guys, and crimes, and international intrigue.
But who would my husband and wife be? That took some time. I wanted smart people, capable of taking care of themselves but not so capable that they wouldn’t really be in danger. Accidental spies. College professors (he’s a World Literature professor with a reputation for sniffing out forgeries, she’s an International Politics professor who once trained to be in the CIA). They would know a lot about each country so the location would become a kind of character in the novel, they would bring special skills, and they would – of course – have each other to rely on even when they couldn’t rely on anyone else. And, I’d get to sneak in stuff I know from having an International Politics degree (Double genius because I’m finally using my college degree!)
My idea, in spits and spurts, was formed. A long-married pair of college professors sucked into helping Interpol but finding that instead of a straight-forward assist, they’ve gotten themselves caught between an international crime ring and a dangerously off-the-book subgroup of the famous international police organization.
I patted myself on the back coming up with all that. I did sort of feel genius-y. But then that’s what ideas are like. They’re promises mixed with ego and dash of optimism. That’s why writers are so loath to hear people talk about how special their ideas are. We want the real thing – the thousands of words on paper – thing. And now I have it. It may not be genius, but it feels good to see my idea become an actual book. And it doesn’t hurt that it took several stamps in my passport to do it.


Clare O’Donohue is the author of Beyond the Pale, the first in the World of Spies Mysteries. It’s set in Ireland. She visited Argentina, her thirty-third country, earlier this year, which will be the setting for book #2.

Okay, Reds, what about you? Answer the hated question -- where do you get your ideas?

72 comments:

  1. Happy Book Birthday, Clare. I enjoyed hearing about how you put together the ideas for “Beyond the Pale” and now I’m really looking forward to reading it.

    I’m curious to know if, in your travels, you’ve found a place you simply couldn’t imagine using as a setting for a story. One would suppose that any place could become a location for a story, but I would imagine that some settings hold more appeal for an author than others might. So, any places that you’ve visited that you won’t be using as a setting for one of your stories?

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    1. Oh wow, um... I think places are a lot like people. Some you connect with immediately, and others, while being perfectly nice, you never really get past the polite stage. So yes, there are places I've been that I thought were nice - Finland jumps to the front of the list - that I didn't quite feel a special spark. No specific reason, really, as it's a beautiful place. Maybe a second trip is in order.

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  2. Clare, first let me congratulate you on this new book and series. I included on my Reading Room blog preview of May books I'm looking forward to.

    And as for the most hated question, I think you just proved that it should be asked. Your idea journey for this book is fascinating. Maybe authors don't like the general question of "Where do you get your ideas," but I've yet to interview an author about their ideas for a specific book that the author didn't tell an interesting story about its origin. And, they actually seem to enjoy it. For a series, I do think the question works best for discussing where the idea for the series came from, though particular story lines have some intriguing origins, too.

    I can't wait to read this first World of Spies book and learn about places all over the world.

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    1. Thanks Kathy. I think it intimidates writers because it seems so big - but you're right, when it comes to a specific book or series, there usually is a reason why a writer chose it. I feel like I'm going to be asking other writers to answer that for me now.

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  3. It's interesting that sometimes we have the answer plain as day, like you do with this one, and like I do with my Quaker Midwife mysteries. And other times it's that poof thing. Anyway, I love the premise of the series and am off to order this book! Great meeting you in Bethesda, too.

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    1. Thanks Edith. That poof thing is magic, isn't it?

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  4. Congrats on the new book. Any book set in Ireland has to be good so this one goes on the want list.

    Sadly, my thoughts tend to die a quick death due to loneliness. HA!

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    1. Ha! Thanks Jay, glad to hear you're putting on your list. I do my best thinking right before I fall asleep and I swear I'll remember them in the morning - which of course I don't. Ah well.

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  5. Congratulations on your new release. I've read the book and enjoyed it.

    As for ideas, they come to me from everyday life - just the little things.

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    1. Hey Dru! They do, don't they. And it's so fun how easily it can spark a whole story.

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  6. By Jove, I think you've got it! Sounds fabulous.

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  7. I love this: "that’s what ideas are like. They’re promises mixed with ego and dash of optimism." Spot-on, Clare! And yes, the idea for your series IS brilliant!

    Actually, I love the question: where do you get your ideas? Because it's different for each book and always interesting how the author used whatever-it-is as a starting point and then went unexpected places with it.

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    1. Well I love your books, so wherever you get your ideas Hallie, I'm all for it!

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  8. Gosh. Some writers may hate the ideas question, but this reader loves the answers - any answers that are given! Yours is fascinating, Clare. Thanks for the trip through your mind-work. Now I'm off to find your book. Congrats on its publication.

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    1. Thanks Amanda! I have to admit I like the question now too!

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  9. Welcome Clare! I love this question too, actually, because it is fun and enlightening to trace back the growth of the idea. The poof from moments are fabulous, that is very true! But the brain-frying thought-process answer is also fascinating.
    I have to say, I have read this book! And it is absolutely greats. A smart fast paced page turner— and it simply must be made into a TV series. . And I also have to say that as I was reading it, all I could think was: wow what a great idea!
    And I will be interviewing Clare on May 19 here in Boston at Whitlam’s Books ! So y’all come… and, evil laugh, now I know what to ask!
    Tell us more about your locations. What do you have in store?

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    1. Thanks Hank! I grow more nervous every day that an Emmy Award Winning Investigative Journalist is going to question me. :) The next stop is Argentina, which I went to in March for research and absolutely fell in love with. And then somewhere in Asia, not sure yet. I want Hollis & Finn to circle the globe and I hope this book has given readers a reason to join them.

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  10. Clare, I can't imagine someone with a formula for coming up with ideas--I think that sort of book or series would be predictable and boring. It's amazing what the brain will come up with, if we're willing to be open to the world around us, wherever that bit of world may be. Your new series breaks intrepid new ground--an already married couple! They love each other! Can't wait to see where their travels take them!

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    1. Thanks Flora. Odd, isn't it, that a long married couple is a rarity in mystery fiction! I loved having them be ordinary - socks on the floor arguments in the middle of getting chased by bad guys. It was such fun.

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  11. First of all, I was very happy to get to meet you, Clare, at Malice. And I think you talked a bit about this very thing on your panel. As a reader, I am fascinated with where writers get ideas and I think this one is quite good. Looking forward to reading it soon. I'm doing a series of 5 posts next week about my Malice experience and several here will have a mention or picture. Had such a good time! Good luck with this new series - yes, I'd love to know where else we might venture with the characters - and it does sound like a great premise for a TV series.

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    1. Thanks Kay. It was great to meet you. That's what I love about the conventions - getting to connect with other mystery folks. I'd love to see this become a TV series... if only some Hollywood producer is reading this, call me!

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  12. Clare, I love this essay. And now I need to move the book up in my TBR pile.

    Where do my ideas come from? Everywhere and nowhere at the same time. As you said, sometimes they have a definite progression and sometims...poof!

    Mary/Liz

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    1. Thanks! Exactly - everywhere and nowhere. And that's what's so fun about them.

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  13. I suspect there are as many answers to this question as there are books written, writers writing, and access to hard liquor. My question is where do you get the words? I don't mean the 1000 per day goal. I mean the rare and lovely descriptors, the perfect word I've come across only once or twice in my reading, the word that makes me stop and grab the dictionary. I look authors up sometimes, thinking I'll find PhDs in linguistics (two so far) or advanced degrees in (fill in the blank) literature. But then I find someone with no more education than I have, perhaps even lots less.

    My conclusion is that you all have the vocabulary gene that the rest of us missing getting. You are so fortunate, and I am so grateful to be splendidly entertained by you every day of my life.

    Now JRW, where do you get your ideas?

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    1. I'm obviously not Clare, but am a writer without much formal education, so feel qualified to answer this one.

      It's simple: Reading. Readers have far larger vocabularies than nonreaders.

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    2. Of course, but even though I understand, can pronounce, and spell louche, I have never in my love from used it in a sentence!

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    3. Thanks Ann! I had to laugh because I was voted "girl with the biggest vocabulary" in 7th grade. So there - I guess... But Karen is right, reading is huge. And like ideas, sometimes the right words just fall from the sky.

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  14. Oops, happy bookday Clare. I look forward to getting to know you

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  15. Happy bookday, Clare. I'm looking forward to reading Beyond the Pale.

    I know where I get story ideas! I'm a college writing instructor and when I'm busy grading papers, and want to be doing ANYTHING other than grading, another part of my brain suddenly says "what if X happened? And then y? And then..." As you say, the idea is suddenly there, like the name of the person who sat next to you in sophomore English. The weird thing is, the ideas had no connection to whatever I'm grading. The hard part for me is finding the time and, let's face it, discipline to write every day.

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    1. Thanks Cathy! Agatha Christie said she got her best ideas while doing the dishes. I don't know if she really did the dishes, but her point is sound. Do something boring, and your imagination just has to find an outlet. That's why when the ideas won't come I start cleaning or going through receipts. :)

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  16. Waving at Clare, my sistah! So fun to hang out together at Malice this year!

    I'm kicking myself that I didn't get this book in Bethesda, so you could sign it. Please tell me it wasn't there.

    Seems to me the ideas are easy; I have boatloads of them. But putting the ideas in a cocktail shaker along with twists of plot, quirky characters, fascinating settings, humor, lovely prose, and a dash of bitters--that's the hard part, and what makes for compelling reads.

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    1. Hey Karen - It was! Sorry. Well, that's the thing... the idea part is fun, then comes the hard work. But if you stick with it (which you should) the hard work is also fun. It was great to hang out!!

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  17. My review of BEYOND THE PALE went up on BOLO Books today.

    As for ideas, the best ones for the blog have come to me in those waking hours between sleep and waking and stem from what I have witnessed within every day life. Ideas are everywhere!

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    1. Thanks for the review Kristopher. Next time I see you, I'm going to give you a big hug!

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  18. Hi, Clare, and congratulations on the Beyond the Pale! I think you're premise is brilliant and I can't wait to read the book.

    I don't know why some writers are so snippy about the ideas question. Personally, I love it, and I have yet to meet an author who didn't like to share the genesis of a book or a series. What could be more interesting than where ideas come from???

    Your description of your protagonists made me think of Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody books. A married couple who sometimes annoy one another mightily, but each knows that the other is utterly dependable. What fun!

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    1. Thanks Deborah. I think writers just feel it's unanswerable, because of the poof! factor - but when you break it down, it really isn't. I love Elizabeth Peters. I hope my couple are as much fun as hers!!

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  19. I'm curious: why did you feel it was so important to have a "love interest" in every book? Wouldn't none, or just in one book with some missing/regretting in the next and being without obligation in the next be as good or better? Do you think your readers expect a love interest in every book?

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    1. Great question. It's not, of course. The bigger concern I had with my original one woman idea was "who does she trust?" In darker thrillers that answer is no one, but I wanted my character to have someone to talk to and I could have written two friends, or siblings, but when the idea of a married couple jumped out at me, I saw a lot of cool possibilities. I don't think readers expect a love interest, and I'd hate to push the idea that it's required in fiction or life - I think it depends on the book and the character. I will say, though, that once a love interest is introduced, readers will want to know what happens. I still get letters about the love interests in my first series, wanting to know if they got married. That may have factored into my concern about having a love interest in book 1 but not moving that character forward to future books.

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    2. So smart, Clare. Love interests do become an important subplot and sometimes they take over and you wonder what genre you're actually writing - or is that just me?

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    3. No Jenn, I think you're right. As a reader I'm always more focused on the characters than the plot- I'll read a book about paint drying if the people in the book are interesting - and it's so easy to let that aspect take over from the mystery especially when you've got strong characters with a mind of their own. I had a lot of fun in this book instead of having character moments and then mystery moments, I had the most couple-y things happen in the middle of being chased. Hopefully that way I've balanced out the two.

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  20. Congrats on your new book. I look forward to reading it.

    I agree with Deborah...Amelia and Emerson Peabody.

    Ideas are all around us. The perfect idea or solution usually comes from freewriting around the idea/problem, or ignoring it until I'm weeding or walking the dogs.

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    1. Thanks Margaret. That's why the old joke about how writing and staring at walls look exactly the same. We do our best work sometimes when we're not at the keyboard.

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    2. Mine is driving. Being behind the wheel clears the cobwebs for me - probably, you should all stay off the road when I'm plotting! LOL.

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  21. Happy pub day, Clare! I love reading about the creation of your main characters. I'm curious, do you tell the story from the wife's point of view? The husband's? Do you feel more partial to one character than the other?

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    1. Hi Ingrid! I tell the story from the wife's point of view. I considered both, but they're together so much that it didn't seem necessary. I also tell bits of the story from the point of view of another character because I like having this person observe Finn & Hollis. I'm actually, oddly, partial to the husband. I say oddly because I write from her point of view. He's decent and nerdy, and far from perfect, but he feels so very real to me. Hollis is more of a risk taker and more willing to cut corners. For anyone wondering, I think I split the difference between the characters - I'm a bit like both.

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  22. Congratulations, Clare! So excited for this book! The premise is brilliant and I love how you broke down how the idea came to you. I hate this question but it's mostly because by the time someone asks, I've forgotten.

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    1. Ha! Yes I suspect that's the problem for most of us.

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  23. Clare, I want to read this book!

    I've always been more interested in what kind of research the author did than in how she/he came up with the ideas for the books. Thanks to authors who travel for their research, I get to "visit" a lot of places!

    DebRo

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    1. Personally, I am envious her passport stamps! How fabulous!

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    2. Hi Deborah! Thanks!! I hope that I've made Ireland a character in the book so that you get a sense of what it's like (and if you ever go, you'll love it!). I've always loved to travel but spent years and years not going anywhere and now I'm on a bit of a bender. I'll be going to Argentina in the next book, and wow it's a fab place. I hope you'll "visit" there with me as well.

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  24. This is an absolutely genius idea for a series. It reminds me in some ways of Mrs. Pollifax, which was a favorite series of mine. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of this book!

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    1. I knew we were kindred spirits, Mark. Mrs. Pollifax is one of my absolute faves!

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    2. I love Mrs. Pollifax! I want to be Mrs. Pollifax. Thanks for the kind words - I hope you like the book Mark!

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  25. I love this premise. And it has to be fun writing snarky exchanges between a happily married couple. Maybe even cathartic!

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    1. It really is! And yes, I walk around with a pen and paper now to use real life in my books (not at all annoying I'm sure).

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  26. I'm just going to steal Clare's idea instead of coming up with a new one of my own, except my couple will be cruise travel agents who have to try out everything before they set their clients up. At last, a tax-deductible reason to take that Rhine river cruise I've always wanted to go on!

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    1. I volunteer to go with you and take notes!!! See that, Reds? I have dibs!

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    2. Steal away! I was thinking of setting my next series in a spa :) And Jenn, I have so many friends who've offered themselves up for my assistant on this book. Where are they when I want to find out how long it takes for a body to decompose?

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  27. Jenn, how did your BFF Annette discover Clare? She is a new to me author! Thank you for introducing us to her :-)

    Clare, welcome to Jungle Reds. I love to travel too. I want to read your book! I usually favor stories set on the International stage. I love your idea.

    To answer the question about where I get my ideas, unfortunately, I come up with many ideas then I struggle to come up with names, character development and forming stories. I was trying to write a mystery novel that I had been wanting to write. When I read what I wrote, it looked repetitive. I used too many "and" in my stories.

    My favorite authors use what a friend calls "ten dollar" words. For example, I learned new words like "meander" from Maisie Dobbs novels.

    When I went to a writing camp, I met a literary agent who mentioned that contemporary novels are popular. I am more interested in historical fiction. If I was writing a contemporary novel, then I would pick an international city that I love and that would be a perfect excuse for me to travel there, right?

    My favorite authors have been writing for many years, including years before I was born. I think I need to write every day and hone my writing skills before I try to publish a novel.

    Clare, thank you for sharing your ideas and your new book.

    Diana

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    1. Hi Bibliophile, Beyond the Pale is my 8th book and Jenn and I met when I was doing a tour for my first series, The Someday Quilts Mysteries, which is a traditional mystery series. I also have another series, Kate Conway, about a TV producer that's more similar to the new book in tone. I get what agents say about contemporary mysteries, but the thing about conventional wisdom is that it's right until it's wrong. I think you have to write what you want to write rather than worrying about the market. Writing every day is the thing we all have to do - and sometimes don't. Good luck!

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    2. Hi !! Thank you! I wanted to write the kind of books that I want to write. I have mixed feelings about writing a contemporary novel because I feel that I am "behind the times" on current events like the music scene, current phrases, etc. However, I think I am up to date on fashion. I want to write a novel that I would want to read. I think the main thing with this literary agent who was also the same person I consulted was that her agency is interested in contemporary novels. I am sure there are other literary agencies with an interest in historical fiction.

      It sounded like Jenn's friend knew about your books Before you met Jenn.

      I look forward to reading your new series.

      Diana

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    3. You should write the books you would want to read - that's exactly the right choice. There are certainly agents who love and want historical and amazing authors of historical (Rhys Bowen and Susanna Calkins for example). But don't worry either about being behind the times on music etc... You write what you know & what you want to know, and maybe your main character is also behind the times?

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  28. Hi, Diana,

    My BFF was supposed to be dazzled at my signing by me - but I was signing with Clare (for her previous series) and my friend was taken with her (as was I)! LOL.

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    1. Awwww. If I recall there was a very long line of people who wanted your book and a few stragglers for me, so I am forever grateful for your friend's interest. She gave me someone to talk to while you were busy signing books!

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    2. Hi Jenn,

      Amazing! I usually do not discover new authors until after they have been published for a while. I discovered Penny Warner when she was starting her new Connor Westphal series a long time ago. I met Rhys Bowen when she was starting her Constable Evans series.

      I discovered your books a few years ago, I think through Jungle Reds?, and I cannot believe there are many authors I still do not know about yet. Thank you for introducing us to Clare!

      Clare,

      Thank you for sharing :-)

      Diana

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    3. Thanks Diana. There are so many authors and great books, it's hard to keep up. I have stacks and stacks of TBR books - I just need a year and a cabin in the woods and I'll catch up.

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    4. I love Penny Warner. It is amazing how we find authors. I tend to trust people when they say "you must read this" but i love seeing an author in action and deciding I must read them! It's a score.

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    5. Hi Jenn, i love her too :-) . She gave me this really cool coffee mug called The Nugget Cafe (mocha ) - Flat Skunk, CA because I helped her with one of her books. I still have it. It was a nice surprise!

      Hope you are having a wonderful day :-)

      Diana

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