Sherry Harris on Real Life in Fiction #bookgiveaway

LUCY BURDETTE: Today Jungle Reds welcomes back a talented writer and an old friend. She's fun and funny and thoughtful and has a new book to share. Welcome Sherry Harris--and her sidekick!

SHERRY HARRIS: Thank you, Jungle Reds for having me back to celebrate the release of my fourth book in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale series, A Good Day To Buy! Every time a book releases I think about what led to this moment. Authors are often asked if they use anything from their real lives in their books. My answer is no, not a thing, it’s all made up.

Conscience: Sherry tell the nice people reading this the truth.

Me: Uh, that is the truth?

Conscience: Sherry!

Okay, gather round. I might have borrowed from a couple of aspects of my life. For example, the whole garage sale thing. I went to my first garage sale when I was in second grade. My best friend’s family was having one and I had no clue what happened at a garage sale. I was first delighted to see my friend wasn’t selling her actual garage and then amazed to see people were buying my friend’s old stuff. I ran home, grabbed some comic books and marbles, ran back and sold them. Cash for stuff sitting in the basement? A lifelong love was born.

Conscience: Sherry?

Okay, I confess! I always regretted selling the marbles. It taught me a valuable lesson: don’t sell things that you will really, really miss. But I love buying other people’s castoffs and it’s an excellent form of recycling. There’s nothing like holding an old postcard or staring into an old mirror while wondering who else did exactly the same thing. Were they happy or sad? Did they like their reflection? Ah, the mystery of it all! 

Since my husband was in the Air Force I’ve been able to explore garage sales, flea markets, and antique stores all over the country. More than once I’ve brought something home and my husband said we didn’t have room for it. (We’ve lived in a lot of small places on various bases.) He learned a determined woman can make room for almost anything. And for the most part he’s come to appreciate my purchases.

My protagonist Sarah is an Air Force wife and we both loved being Air Force spouses.
Fortunately, things ended up better for me than they did her. In Tagged for Death Sarah’s husband is kicked off base for conduct unbecoming an officer (yes, that really is a thing). We don’t have too much else in common although Sarah’s ex does drive the same model of car as my husband. I’m getting that in here before my conscience comes back. And they share one other trait, but if I mentioned it here it might give away something that happens in Tagged.

When I was thinking about where to set the series, it didn’t take long to realize I had to set it in Massachusetts. PSA -- I did not want to move to Massachusetts, but you go where the Air Force sends you. I’d always heard stories about the cold people, the colder winters, and the crazy drivers – who would want to move there? But it didn’t take long for me to fall in love with the charming towns with their town commons (or greens depending on which state you are in), their big white churches, the quirky accents, and funny way people pronounced things.

Conscience: Excuse me.

Okay, okay. The drivers are crazy. A friend told me not to make eye contact with other drivers which made me wonder if they were people or wild animals. I found out that making eye contact was a sign of weakness. And yes the winters are cold but the people are lovely (once you can understand what the heck they are saying – carriages, bubblahs, jimmies – no clue). We lived in Bedford, Massachusetts for five years and by the end I could pronounce Peabody, Quincy, and Reading properly (Pee-biddy – say it fast, Quinzee, Red-ing). I even knew how to use “wicked” like a native (although I still feel a bit self-conscious when I do).

And finally I do use people from my real life in my books. I hear a story and I can’t resist using it. Well, I wouldn’t use it if you told me in confidence and prefaced said story with, don’t ever tell anyone. I am really good at keeping secrets. (Note: my conscience is silent.) The opening of Tagged For Death and part of the plot comes from a conversation I overheard in an airport.

One of my favorite characters in the series is Angelo DiNapoli. He’s based on Lou, a former neighbor in Bedford. I wrote the whole book with Lou in mind. When I finished the novel I called him and made sure it was okay (thank heavens he said yes or it would have been a massive rewrite—don’t try this at home). I gave him a different profession – restaurant owner – and amped him up a bit or so I thought. My former neighbors thought I might have toned him down.

So there you have it. Now I can go forth with a clear conscience.

Conscience: Sherry?

Oh, stuff it. A writer has to have a few secrets.

Readers: Do you notice when authors use their experiences in books? Writers: Do bits of your real life end up in your books? Leave a comment with your email included to be entered in a drawing for Sherry's new book!

Sherry Harris, a former director of marketing for a financial planning company, decided writing fiction couldn’t be that different than writing ads. She couldn’t have been more wrong. But eventually because of a series of fortunate events and a great many people helping her along the way, Kensington published Tagged For Death the first in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale mysteries. Sherry blogs with the Wicked Cozy Authors.