We welcome Linda O. Johnston to the HotSeat!

Today we welcome bestselling author Linda O. Johnston!

A bit about Linda:

Linda O. Johnston’s first published fiction appeared in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and won the Robert L. Fish Memorial Award for Best First Mystery Short Story of the year.   Since then, Linda, who is also a lawyer, has published more short stories, novellas, and 33 romance and mystery novels, including Harlequin Romantic Suspense as well as the Alpha Force paranormal romance miniseries for Harlequin Nocturne. 

Linda’s Pet Rescue Mysteries, a spinoff from her Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime, feature Lauren Vancouver, a determined pet rescuer who runs a no-kill shelter.  In this cozy series, “no-kill” refers to pets, not people!  (R: Yay!) 

And now, in my hotseat....Linda O. Johnston!

R:  Meow, welcome to my blog Linda
L:  Thanks ROCCO.

R:  Tell us a bit about yourself and how you became interested in writing.

L: I’ve always been interested in writing.  As I grew up, I saved ideas for essays for school assignments.  I even started a sci fi epic when I was in my early teens--one I didn’t finish, unfortunately. 

I’ve been an L.A. resident for many years, and I’m also a lawyer by background.  I still practice law occasionally but I’m delighted to be able to immerse myself in what I really love to do: write!

R: You are heavily involved in pet rescue, a cause dear to my own heart, meow.   What sparked your involvement in this worthy cause?

L: I came up with the idea of writing the Pet Rescue Mystery series as a spinoff from my first mysteries, the Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter Mysteries.  My publisher liked the idea as long as all the animals came out of it safe and healthy--which was the only way I’d write!  My pets, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, had come from breeders, so although I liked the idea of adopting from shelters I didn’t know much about it until I started researching my stories.  I learned a lot about the shelters, the shelter systems, and the wonderful people dedicated to rescuing pets--and I was hooked.  I not only write about pet rescue these days, but I also volunteer at a wonderful local shelter, Pet Orphans of Southern California.

R:  Tell us about your other series for Harlequin! You go from rescuing animals to hot military Shapeshifters.  What inspired you to do something like that?

L: I actually write for two Harlequin series.  I write my own paranormal romance miniseries for their Nocturne line, the Alpha Force stories about a covert military unit of shapeshifters.  Hey, I like animals, even quasi-human ones!  Most of my shifters change into wolves, which are, of course, canines, and I think it’s pretty obvious that I adore dogs.  It’s a natural for me to write about werewolves, too.

I also write for Harlequin Romantic Suspense.  All of my stories, whether mysteries or romances, contain elements of suspense and romance, so it’s also fun for me to write for this Harlequin line.

R: Tell us about your latest release

L: I actually had two books released in February.  OODLES OF POODLES is the fourth Pet Rescue Mystery.  It’s themed around the film industry and the “No Animals Were Harmed”® certification, available only from the American Humane Association.  The story involves rescued poodles playing the roles of rescued poodles in a film, and the director, who endangers them, is murdered.  My protagonist Lauren Vancouver has to figure out whodunit since her good friend, veterinarian and TV star Dr. Carlie Stellan is the primary suspect.

In May 2013, one of my Pet Rescue Mysteries, HOUNDS ABOUND, is being reprinted with a special seal for Read Humane™, a program of the Penguin Group U.S.A. which has reprinted other specific books involving animals and also donated money to the Humane Association of the United States.  It’s the second time one of my Pet Rescue Mysteries has been chosen for the Read Humane program.  The first one, BEAGLEMANIA, was a Read Humane imprint last year.

And, by the way, I have an e-novella scheduled to be published in June: NONSTOP SPANIELS, which is also a Pet Rescue Mystery.

Also released in February was my fourth Alpha Force story for Harlequin Nocturne: UNDERCOVER WOLF.   In it, a hunky shapeshifting member of Alpha Force joins forces with a nonshifting aide to go find a missing honeymooning couple who happen to be his brother and her commanding officer.  They have to go undercover--literally and figuratively, since their optimum method is to pretend that they, too, are honeymooners!

I’ll bet that was a longer answer than you were anticipating... (R: but very interesting...and the HUMAN's favorite breed of dog is a King Charles Cavalier, BTW, so if I were to allow one in the house that is the breed of choice)

R: Which of (your character)  adventures was the most fun for you to write? Were any of them the least amount of fun?

L: What’s always the most fun for me is the story I’m writing at the moment!  Sometimes I find stories that are a little harder to edit than others, but on the whole they’re all fun.

R:  Do you have a “how I got my agent” story you’d like to share?  How did you feel when you got the call your first novel had sold?

L: I sold my first books, which were time travel romances, before I got my agent.  I received the call on the first novel while I was at work--in-house counsel at an oil company.  Needless to say, all my coworkers got the word, too, as I ran around with joy! 

I don’t have a particular “how I got my agent” story, except that I knew the kind of agent I wanted.  As I was leaving that law job because the company had moved far enough away from my home to make the commute difficult and was also downsizing, I decided to try my own hand at becoming an agent.  It didn’t work out well, especially since my former employer kept me busy with part-time law projects and I of course was also writing.  But I knew I didn’t want an agent like myself, and I did want a diligent New York agent who really liked my stuff!

R: What’s a must have for you when you are writing? What aids the creative process?

L: My dogs help, although they love interrupting my writing to give me orders--out, treats, the usual.  (R:  Hmmm....sounds a lot like here, LOL)

R: What do you hope readers will most take away from your writing?

L: I want them to enjoy what they’ve read!

R: Are you a plotter or a pantser?

L: I’m definitely a plotter, although occasionally my characters will tell me to take a different direction in a story, and I nearly always obey them.

R: What do you do when you’re not writing? Any hobbies or party tricks? :)

L: As I indicated, I obey my dogs a lot.  Ask them about tricks. 

R: Where can we find out more about you and your work?

L: My website is: www.LindaOJohnston.com. ; I’m also on Facebook.  I blog weekly at KillerHobbies.blogspot.com, and I also blog on the 18^th of every month at KillerCharacters.com.

R: Do you have any advice for beginning writers?

L: Keep at it.  Don’t ever give up.  Join writers groups,  especially those that focus on the genre(s) in which you’re writing, and attend their local meetings as well as conferences--and schmooze as much as you can with the authors who write in your genres.

Just for Fun:

Night or Day?  Day.

Dog or Cat? (answer carefully)  Sorry, Rocco, but for me dogs are #1.  I do love cats, too, though.

Beach or Pool?   Air conditioning.

Steak or salad?   How about a steak salad?

Favorite Drink?  A good, dark beer.

Favorite Book?  My own, of course.

Favorite TV Series?  Castle

Dirty Martini or Pina Colada?   Pina Colada

Hawaii or Alaska?  Alaska.  Alaskan cruises are my favorite!

Meow, thanks for a great interview, Linda!

Linda will give a copy of her fourth Pet Rescue Mystery OODLES OF POODLES to a lucky reader.  To enter, just leave a comment with your email address. For extra entries, you can:

 * Follow my blog (+ 1 point)
* Follow me on Twitter (+ 1 point) (Link: https://twitter.com/RoccoBlogger)
* Tweet about the contest (+ 1 point)
* Friend me on Facebook (+ 1 point) (Link: https://www.facebook.com/ToniLotempio)#!/

* Mention the contest on Facebook (+ 1 point)
* Mention the contest on your blog (+ 1 point)

Winner will be chosen at random using random.org.  Don’t forget to mention all you’ve done in your comment. Good luck! Contest ends midnight June 2!

next week: Hannah Reed!

Winners of our Maggie Shayne giveaway: Lulu, Renee Bremer and Amber! Congrats! Watch for an email from maggie to claim your prize!

Spend Memorial Weekend with...Author Maggie Shayne!

Today we welcome author Maggie Shayne!

Maggie Shayne is best known as the New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels, nearly 30 novellas, a former soap writer, (The Guiding Light, As the World Turns,) a former advice columnist (Shayne on You,) and RITA Award winner. But what’s less known about her is that she’s been a practicing Witch for almost as long as she’s been a published author.

While The Portal series is entirely fictional, and necessarily brimming with special effects, any portions of the stories pertaining to the actual practices and teachings of witchcraft are entirely authentic. Due to the oathbound nature of some Wiccan rites several of the spells and other rituals, particularly rituals of Initiation and elevation, have been altered, abbreviated, or are deliberately vague. These rites are revealed only to Initiated Witches who reach the appropriate levels of study in traditional Wiccan Covens.

And now...Maggie!

R:  Meow!  Hello, Maggie, and welcome!

M: Thank you Rocco!

R:  Tell us a bit about yourself and how you became interested in writing.

 M: I’ve been writing stories since I learned to spell my first word. It’s just never not been what I did. Eventually I figured out people were getting paid for that sort of thing, and turned my attention to publishing. It’s been twenty years since I published my first book, and I’ll never want to stop.

R: Tell us about your Portal series! What inspired that?

M:I’ve been an Ancient Mesopotamia buff for almost as long as I’ve been an author, so setting a story in Ancient Babylon (partially, mostly they’re contemporary novels) was always a goal. The trilogy features three women who were sisters, slaves in the king’s harem, and secretly practicing witchcraft.  They were found out and executed, and an innocent man was cursed to far worse. Now, they’ve reincarnated to break the curse, free the innocent, and reunited with the lovers torn from their hearts so long ago.

R: Rumor has it you were once a soap opera writer!  How different is it to do that than write novels, and which do you prefer and why?

It’s extremely different. It’s writing by committee. I was writing for them for six months before someone finally asked how I was liking seeing my stories on TV. I said that I hadn’t seen any of them yet, and was told, but we’ve been using them all along. That’s how unrecognizable my own stories were to me. TV was definitely not where I belonged, and though I was offered a lucrative position as co-head writer, I knew I had to turn it down. My heart belongs to novels.

Do you think your soap opera experience factored into your novels?

M: I think it made me appreciate that what I do isn’t about the money or the success or the awards. The only reason to write any novel is that you feel in your heart it is a story worthy of being told. Because once it is told, it becomes a thread in the fabric of our very reality. Write a story because it’s worthy of that, a story that will add beauty and meaning and enlightenment and goodness to the Whole, and for no other reason.

R:  You have been a practicing Witch for many years – how did this come about in your life ?  Are there any books on this subject you can recommend for those interested in this?

M: Yes, I’ve been a Wiccan for a very long time, and am considered a High Priestess and Craft Elder. It’s the religion that spoke to me. I believe that all religions are equally valid. People choose the one that speaks to them. Spirituality is very different than religion, and is personal to each individual.

I’ve written a book that gives a primer on what Witchcraft is, how it’s practiced and how it works in relation to the Law of Attraction. It’s Called Magick and the Law of Attraction; A User’s Guide and I’ll give you the links.

Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/magick-and-the-law-of-attraction-maggie-shayne/1114507855?ean=2940016397290

Kindle: http://amzn.com/B00BEL2Q2Y

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/magick-law-attraction/id602368262?mt=11&uo=4

Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Magick-and-The-Law-Attraction/book-10uDe7dCbUuuDG6gjZh3UQ/page1.html?s=Z9g0J2v3YEmlDUNaTQ6gBA&r=3

Smashwords (all formats): https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/284529

R: Tell us about your next release coming this October!

M: Oh, I am SO excited about this. It’s a paranormal thriller my editor says could be my breakout novel. SLEEP WITH THE LIGHTS ON (mid-September.) In it, you’ll meet my new favorite character, Rachel de Luca, a blind self-help author who doesn’t believe in the message that’s making her reach. She’s cynical and sarcastic about life, in fact. She does get her vision back early in book one, but 20 years blind has left her with uncanny senses. She doesn’t miss much. She has a blind bulldog, Myrtle, a goth-chic assistant, and an attitude that can’t be beat. I adore this character. The sequel is WAKE TO DARKNESS and comes out Mid-November. We’ll have more on Rachel soon.

R: Which of (your character)  adventures was the most fun for you to write? Were any of them the least amount of fun?

M: They should all be fun, but sometimes I forget that I’m getting paid to do something I would do for free, and let it become work. When that happens, nothing is fun. I’m getting better and better at remembering that I’m writing for the sake of the story and at making sure it’s a story worth the telling.

That said, the most fun was plotting Everything She Does is Magick with my critique group. I’d decided the hero had to be kept a virgin until her could get with the heroine. The heroine’s three aunts (witches) conspire to interrupt his every attempt at sex to fulfill this prophecy and provide the world with the couple’s ultra powerful and important offspring. The aunts’ schemes to interfere with his “dates” were just too much fun.

Everything She Does is Magick, Links.

Kindle: http://amzn.com/B009KB5GDQ

Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/everything-she-does-is-magick-maggie-shayne/1113110262?ean=2940015541106

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/everything-she-does-is-magick/id567443807?mt=11&uo=4

Kobo:

http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Everything-She-Does-is-Magick/book-f9jRk2qK1ki92NReN1Yi3g/page1.html?s=6RS9M3GGfUmnr_uJxgtQHg&r=1

R:  Do you have an “how I got my agent” story you’d like to share?  How did you feel when you got the call your first novel had sold?

M: No, I was long published when I landed my current agent and we’ll never part. Lucky me.

R: What’s a must have for you when you are writing? What aids the creative process?

M: Deadlines. :)

R: What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?(other than the practicing witch thing)

M: Probably that I have 9 grandchildren.

R: What is the craziest thing you've ever done? 

M:  Everything I do makes perfect sense...to me.

R: What do you hope readers will most take away from your writing?

M: Light. Joy. I want them to be touched. I want them to feel like they’re better in some way than they were before the reading. I want them to feel empowered in knowing that love is not only the most powerful thing there is, it’s ALL there is.

R: Are you a plotter or a pantser?

Total Panster.

R: What do you do when you’re not writing? Any hobbies or party tricks? :)

M: I workout and I jog. I love kayaking in the summer. I try to hibernate in the winter. I have a salt water reef aquarium. My house, my car and my fishtank all have names. (Serenity, Vanessa, and Serenity Reef, accordingly.)

R: Where can we find out more about you and your work?

M: I SO LOVE FACEBOOK. I’m on it all the time. Like the page and come hang out. We have great discussions, and I give things away all the time. www.facebook.com/MaggieShayneAuthor

My website is www.maggieshayne.com

R: Do you have any advice for beginning writers?

M: This isn’t a career choice. It’s a sacred calling. The first author whose name appears on her work, was not only a woman, but a High Priestess of Inanna in the temple at Lagash in Ancient Sumer, where the first written language was invented. Her name was En-Headuanna. And she wrote a bestseller. Inanna and the Mountain. The story spread like wildfire and it changed the status of women in the culture of Sumer, and elevated Inanna to Queen of Heaven status.

Write stories that are worthy of the telling.

Just for Fun:

Night or Day?: Day. 

Dog or Cat? (answer carefully)  BOTH run us and our household.

Beach or Pool?   Beach

Steak or salad?  Steak!

Favorite Drink?  Water

Favorite Book?  The Mummy or Ramses the Damned, Anne Rice

Favorite TV Series?  The Walking Dead!

Favorite Movie?  The Princess Bride

Favorite Actor:  Harrison Ford. Still.

Favorite Actress: Anne Hathaway at the moment.

Dirty Martini or Pina Colada?: Neither.

Hawaii or Alaska? Hawaii!

Finish this sentence:  If I could meet anyone in the world, past or present, it would be _Stevie Nicks, and we’d sing in harmony together.__Soundtrack of my life.

If I had just one wish, it would be__for everyone to know that we all have infinite wishes, we just don’t know how to use them.___________

If I could trade places with anyone in the world, it would be ____Absolutely no one. My life is my own creation, and is absolutely perfect for me in every way because it has unfolded from me and through me. I love my life. It ought to be illegal how blissfully happy I am.

 Thanks Maggie!

Folks, three lucky commenters will receie a copy of ETERNITY in the e-format of their choosing. 

To enter, leave a comment on this blog post with your name and email address (entries without email will be disqualified). For extra entries, you can do any or all of the below:

* Follow my blog (+ 1 point)
* Follow me on Twitter (+ 1 point) (Link: https://twitter.com/RoccoBlogger)
* Tweet about the contest (+ 1 point)
* Friend me on Facebook (+ 1 point) (Link: https://www.facebook.com/ToniLotempio)#!/

* Mention the contest on Facebook (+ 1 point)
* Mention the contest on your blog (+ 1 point)

Winner will be chosen at random using random.org.  Don’t forget to mention all you’ve done in your comment. Good luck!

Next week:  Linda O. Johnston, author of the "Pet Rescue" mysteries!

In June:
Michelle Rowen, Hannah Reed, Nancy Gideon and Juliet Blackwell returns!

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend! dont' forget to honor our troops!


ROCCO
Incredible Blogging Cat

Our guest today.....NYT bestselling author FERN MICHAELS

Meow!   My guest today is NY Times bestselling author Fern Michaels!

Photo credit: M2IFOTO©2006

FERN MICHAELS is the USA Today and New York Times bestselling author of the Sisterhood and Godmother series, The Blossom Sisters, Tuesday’s Child, Southern Comfort, Betrayal, Return to Sender and dozens of other novels and novellas. There are over seventy million copies of her books in print. Fern Michaels has built and funded several large day-care centers in her hometown, and is a passionate animal lover who has outfitted police dogs across the country with special bulletproof vests. She shares her home in South Carolina with her four dogs and a resident ghost named Mary Margaret. 

Visit her website HERE
and now....Fern!

R:  Welcome Fern.
F: Glad to be here, Rocco!

R:Tell us a bit about yourself and how you became interested in writing.

F: Kind of simple really, my husband told me to get off my ass and get a job. With no car, that was kind of hard to do. Because I was a heavy reader I thought if I wrote a book I’d make a million dollars right off the bat. There’s a lot to be said about being young, dumb AND stupid.

R: Tell us about your new release, BLOSSOM SISTERS.

F: I think its a great book. I never really did a book from a male point of view so I wanted to try it. It worked for me. I'm partial to grandmothers because my own was such a big part of my life. It was great fun combining the two of them and yet a challenge as well. I love a challenge.

R: Which of your many series was your favorite to write?

F: The Sisterhood

.

R: Do you have a favorite character?

F: I do. Every single character of the Sisterhood. I could never pick just one. I labored over each character until I knew each one inside and outside. Each of them is as near and dear to me as my own family.

R: Do you have an “how I got my agent story you'd like to share? How did you feel when you got the call your first novel had sold?

F: Actually I got my first agent out of the yellow pages. Boy, was she a dud. We parted company at the speed of light. When I got the call that the publisher wanted to buy the book I was representing myself. I was so giddy I thought I was going to pass out. Because . . . the first novel I had submitted came back rejected the day before but I had already mailed out the second one. Had I gotten the rejection sooner that would have been the end of my writing career, I would not have had the guts to mail out the second one.

R: What's a must have for you when you are writing? What aids the creative process?

F: That's kind of hard to answer. I'm dyslexic so I need to focus so that means I pretty much need quiet but with soft music playing in the background. I find that’s soothing and helps me to concentrate. On my desk I have chips, gummy bears, peanut butter M&M's and of course Coca Cola along with my 10 pound Yorkie who sleeps next to the computer. The challenge is to write 5000 words a day and consume all the goodies by quitting time.

R: If you had access to a time machine, which historical moment would you travel to and why?

F: Probably the 1600's. The time when the pirates sailed the seas. Think Errol Flynn as that swashbuckling pirate in the movies. I know that dates me but, hey, it was exciting at the time.

R:　 If a movie were to be made of one of your books, which one would you want it to be and who would you pick for the lead?

F: For All Their Lives. George Clooney for the male role and Katheryn Winnick for the female role.

R: What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

F: That I'm a junk food addict and sort of a pack rat.

R: What is the craziest thing you've ever done?　

Rode a zip line on my 50th birthday. Scariest moment of my life but I did it.

R: What do you hope readers will most take away from your writing?

F: That you can do whatever you set your mind to. If you persevere, you will prevail.

R: Are you a plotter or a pantser

F:  I am a plotter

R: What are you working on at the moment/next

F:  A Sisterhood book titled, Kiss and Tell; a follow-up Sisterhood book titled, Wild Card

Just for Fun:

Favorite Guilty Pleasure?

Three scoops of pineapple coconut ice cream on a wafer cone

.

Night or Day? .

Day

Dog or Cat? (answer carefully)

Both.

Beach or Pool?

Neither.

Steak or salad?

Salad

Favorite Drink?

Pina Colada

Favorite Book?

Every single book written by Robert Ludlum

Favorite TV Series?

NCIS

Favorite Movie?

Casablanca. I think it is the greatest love story ever.

Favorite Actor:

Matt Damon

Favorite Actress:

Susan Sarandan

Dirty Martini or Pina Colada?

That's easy. Pina Colada

Hawaii or Alaska?

Hawaii

Finish this sentence: If I could meet anyone in the world, past or present, it would be

Harry Truman

___________________

If I had just one wish, it would be_

No need for battered women’s shelters and more animal shelters._________________________

_______________

If I could trade places with anyone in the world, it would be

No one. I like who I am and would never want to be anyone else.___

___

Want to meet Fern in Charleston?

Enter the "Meet Fern Michaels in Charleston" contest: the winner and a freind will receive  an exciting trip to Charleston, SC to have lunch with #1 NYT bestselling author Fern Michaels, tour the historic town, get a Fern Michaels tote bag filled with signed editions and go on a $500 shopping spree!

AND A CHARACTER WILL BE  NAMED FOR THE WINNER IN A FUTURE FERN MICHAELS NOVEL!

to enter:
On Facebook:
Visit @OfficialFernMichaels or @KensingtonPublishing

Online: visit fernmichaels.com or kensingtonbooks.com/Fern

Via Mail:
Download a copy of the entry form at kensingtonbooks.com/Fern

Entries must be postmarked by August 30, 2013!

For prize details and full contest rules, visit www.kensingtonbooks.com/Fern


May 23: Maggie Shayne
May 28:  Linda O. Johnston!

JUNE:
Gena Showalter, Michelle Rowen, Hannah Reed!

MEOW!

ROCCO
INCREDIBLE BLOGGING CAT

Guest Poster: GEOFF RODKEY!

ACTION SEQUENCES: LIKE JOKES, ONLY WITH MORE BLOOD

 

Hello, Book/Cat/Etc. People! I'm Geoff Rodkey, author of the comedy-adventure-mystery-coming-of-age series The Chronicles of Egg -- which, while marketed to middle graders, seems to go over as big with adults as with kids, so if you're in the mood for an Indiana-Jones-meets-The-Princess-Bride adventure story with a lot of humor, excitement, and even the occasional poignant moment, please check it out. I promise you won't regret it.

Toni asked if I'd like to contribute a guest post on the occasion of the release of New Lands, the second book in the series, and while I'm allergic to cats, I did think it might be interesting to share something I discovered in the process of transitioning into writing books from my prior career as a screenwriter.

During the first 15-plus years of my writing career, I mostly worked on comedy scripts for film and TV--my first paying job was an episode of MTV's Beavis and Butt-head, and I later wrote such movies as Daddy Day Care, RV, and the Disney Channel's Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas.

The Chronicles of Egg series was a departure for me not just because they were books, but because while there's plenty of humor in them, they're primarily adventure stories. When I started working on them, I wasn't sure how big a challenge it'd be to write the story's many action sequences: the narrow escapes, pirate attacks, and fights to the death that our unlikely 13-year-old hero has to navigate. 

As it turns out, though, when it comes to creating set pieces--those extended sequences in which either the tension or the jokes build, from one moment to the next, until they reach a satisfying climax--the process is the same whether you're writing action or comedy. In both cases, structure is critical--a good sequence is like a story in miniature, with its own beginning, middle, and end, and with each element connected by a change in stakes or circumstance.

For example, early in the first book, Deadweather and Sunrise, someone tries to push our hero, Egg, off a cliff. When the attack doesn't quite succeed, Egg's left hanging by his fingers. That's the beginning, and it's followed by a series of actions and counter-actions: Egg buys time with a distraction while searching for a foothold…then dodges a kick to the head, but loses his grip and finds himself dangling upside down by one leg…his attacker pulls a knife…the knife draws blood…while trying to avoid a second, fatal strike, Egg shifts his weight too far, and the entire side of the cliff begins to give way…. The tension rises at each turn until the climax, in which Egg either plunges to his death or outwits his adversary.

(Spoiler alert: he doesn't plunge to his death. If he did, I'd be stuck with a 90-page book and a dead protagonist.)

The identical structure's at work in a comedy sequence I once wrote for the movie RV, in which a beleaguered father played by Robin Williams realizes the septic tank of his newly rented RV is full, and if he doesn't figure out how to empty it, his family won't be able to use the bathroom for a week. In this case, the sequence begins when Robin's character pulls into a campground dumping station and starts the complicated process of emptying the tank--which, if not done correctly, will lead to raw sewage winding up in places where you REALLY don't want to see raw sewage.

What follows is same sort of steadily increasing tension through action and counter-action -- the discharge hose is missing an attachment…a well-meaning idiot offers Robin a replacement…the replacement doesn't work right, making the problem worse…a second well-meaning idiot arrives, offering even more bad advice that dramatically increases the pressure level in the hose… -- until we reach a literally explosive climax.

Full disclosure: the end of that sequence is pretty gross, even to me. The phrase "a geyser of sewage spurts like an oil strike" seemed a lot funnier when I wrote it than when I actually saw the result on a movie screen. But a lot of audiences seemed to like it. And it did provide me with the unique pleasure of composing an email to my mother that read, "Spent the day writing an eight-page poop joke at the behest of the Sony Corporation."

Oddly enough, I can only think of one ironclad rule that separates action and comedy: in a comedy, you can rain down all sorts of trouble on your character's head (including, but not limited to, geysers of raw sewage), but you can never, ever draw blood. For some reason, blood is the only bodily fluid that's universally unfunny. Even the Three Stooges, whose entire shtick was beating each other senseless, never once so much as nicked themselves shaving. Go figure.

For more action and comedy--along with a pinch of mystery and a dash of romance--pick up a copy of Deadweather and Sunrise. It's a fun, thrilling read, and I promise there isn't a single poop joke in the whole book.

(There aren't any poop jokes in New Lands, either.)

Thank you for a great post, Geoff!

Folks - dont' forget to pick up your copy of New Lands! 

you can order it by clicking any one of these links:

http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780399257865

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/new-lands-geoff-rodkey/1113599149?ean=9780399257865

http://www.amazon.com/New-Lands-The-Chronicles-Egg/dp/0399257861

On Deck:

May 17: Fern Michaels

May 21:; Maggie Shayne

May 28: Linda O Johnston

the winner of our Janet Chapman giveaway is: Susan P! Watch for an email from janet!

Wow!

ROCCO

Incredible Blogging Cat

A SMASH-ing weekend! Not for fans of this NBC show, Meow!

Meow!  ROCCO here!

As most folks know, I'm a big Broadway fan (what cool cat isn't?) so i did so look forward to watching SMASH with the human on Monday/Tuesday/Saturday nights (when ever the heck we could find it) and watching talents like Christian Borle (Peter and the Stargazer) Megan Hilty (Wicked, 9 to 5) and Jeremy Jordan (Newsies) belt out tunes, all the way following this drama about the launching of two Broadway musicals.  (I do believe every cast member sang and danced except Anjelica Huston!)  this show is - ahem, was - the cat's meow.

I say was becasue as of May 10,2013, SMASH (along with 15 other shows) became a part of television history - which is a sad shame, really.  It was quality entertainment, easily on par with GLEE, and provided this cool kitty with an hour of great esapism (if you think I dind't imagine myself dancing along with Hilty and McPhee, you're nuts!).  It saddens me that May 26 will be the end of this drama. I do so hope they don't leave too many loose ends, as most shows do when they rush to end a series.  SMASH had TONS of loyal followers, myself and the human included (see sidebar to see just how loyal).

We can only hope that, in the tradition of Cougar Town and Medium, another station will pick up this outstanding show.  C'mon, don't you want to see McPhee, Hilty and Borle sing some more?

Sure you do.  Meow.

For details on saving SMASH, be sure to click HERE
I'm off my soap(litter??)box now. tomorrow back to our regularly schedueld author blogs and interviews.

tomorrow:  GEOFF RODKEY

ROCCO
Incredible Blogging Cat

in the hotseat...Janet Chapman!

My guest today is NY Times bestselling author Janet Chapman!

Janet Chapman is the author of twenty contemporary and paranormal romance novels all set in the state of Maine, where she lives with her husband, surrounded by wildlife that she finds both entertaining and inspiring.  Best known for her Highlander Series (a family saga of twelfth century warriors rebuilding their clans in modern-day Maine) and her equally magical Spellbound Falls Series, Janet also has several contemporary novels set on the coast and in the mountains.  With over three million books printed in six languages, her stories regularly appear on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller’s lists.

            When she’s not writing, Janet and her husband are camping, hunting, fishing, and generally rubbing elbows with nature.

and now...I interview Janet!

R:  Meow, welcome to the blog, Janet

J:  Thanks, ROCCO!

R:  Tell us a bit about yourself and how you became interested in writing.

J: I’ve been an insatiable reader all of my life, and only wrote when absolutely forced to in high school and college—that is until age forty, when I suddenly got the urge to write a book!  So I sat down and wrote the story in my head, not having a clue what I was doing.  Then, after I enjoyed reading the book, I stuck it in the closet and wrote another one.  Did it several more times, then decided I might want to see if I could actually get published.  Six years and a few conferences later, I sold CHARMING THE HIGHLANDER—with the promise to write two more highlander books.  Haven’t been able to stop writing since!

R:  OK, your latest Spellbound Falls book, HEART OF A HERO, has a cat almost as gorgeous as myself on the cover! Tell us a bit about that series and that book.

J: After eight Highlanders of Pine Creek, I spun off that series to Midnight Bay, where I met this very magical wizard named Maximilian Oceanus, which I then brought to Spellbound Falls.  Needing to live near saltwater, Mac started rearranging the mountains and created an inland sea up in the northern Maine wilderness.  THE HEART OF A HERO is book four of this series, and Nicholas (no last name) is a mythical warrior from ancient Atlantis.  But being a practical-thinking Mainer myself, and despite the books having magical elements, the series is firmly anchored in modern time with ordinary people anyone can identify with.  The fun for me is watching these powerful magic-makers struggle with the universally human emotions that come with falling in love, having children, and being part of a community.

          As for the cat on the cover, try to picture a six-foot-seven, two-hundred-thirty pound mythical warrior being bossed around by a herd of six cats!

R:  Hey, I can picture that, meow!

R: Which of your many series was your favorite to write?

J:  I love my highlanders so much, apparently, that I’ve brought several of them to Spellbound Falls—because, hey, Maine is only so big and the magic is all connected.  Then again, I’ve enjoyed writing my straight contemporary romances as well.

R: Do you have a favorite character?

J:  Can I just say that I love men in general and all my heroes in particular?   That’s the fun of being a writer; I get to write these men the way I like them!

R:  You’ve also been part of an anthology. Do you prefer novels or short stories?

J: Definitely novels.  My time-travel novella, MAN FROM THE MOON in LADIES PREFER ROGUES felt more like a prologue for an entire series to me.  A twenty thousand word story needs just as much setup and background as an entire book in order for it to work, and I do have a tendency to populate my stories with several strong handsome men.

R:  Do you have an “how I got my agent” story you’d like to share?  How did you feel when you got the call your first novel had sold?

J: Networking at conferences proved quite helpful to me, and I was given my agent’s name from a friend.  The only problem was, this agent didn’t have email and I was told to call her (which is something aspiring authors are told never to do!).  I called, she asked to see the manuscript, and I was blown away when she called me three days later and said she would represent me.  She sold it—and two more highlander books—two weeks after that.  To put it mildly, I was shaking with fear; I didn’t have two more books, because of all the books in my closet, CHARMING THE HIGHLANDER was the only time-traveling, magical story I had ever written.  (I had mistakenly thought I was a contemporary author, yet here I am sitting down to pen my seventeenth magical—but still at its essence contemporary—book.)

R: What’s a must have for you when you are writing? What aids the creative process?

J:  Oh my!  I must have absolute silence when I’m writing.  And I can only write at my desk, on my keyboard, in my space.  I have a studio across the street from my home, and nobody dares come knocking.  It sits right on the lake, but I have all the blinds pulled, because I am very easily distracted.

R: If you had access to a time machine, which historical moment would you travel to and why?

J: The romantic me would travel to any time when life was simpler and the landscape unaltered, but the practical-thinking me wants electricity and indoor plumbing.  And I really love my iPhone and being able to Facetime.

R:  If a movie were to be made of one of your books, which one would you want it to be and who would you pick for the lead roles?

J: They all feel like movies to me already, but I would especially love to see Spellbound Falls made into a movie—likely because I would love to see those mountains move and whales breaching on my inland sea.  For Mac’s role, I wouldn’t mind having … oh, so many great guys to choose from!  But honestly?  I don’t over-describe my characters in my books, because everyone has a different image of their perfect hero and I don’t want to ruin it for them.

R: What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

J: Hmm…  Well, I’ve never been a rocket scientist or a trauma surgeon, but I do all those things my characters do when it comes to living in Maine.  I hunt, fish (winter and summer), sail, drive a large SUV (we have to share the road with logging trucks), and camp.  And I definitely love my woodstove.

R: What is the craziest thing you've ever done? 

J: Honestly?  Write a book!  Until the age of forty, it wasn’t even on my radar.  Going to a Romance Writers of America conference in New York City to see how one goes about getting published was way outside my comfort zone.  Otherwise, I’m a fairly quiet, boring person.

R: What do you hope readers will most take away from your writing?

J: Every author wants to tug on people’s heartstrings and make them laugh at, cry over, and get at least a little angry with their characters.  For me personally, I’m hoping to get my readers to believe that the magic really is happening all around us all the time.

R: What are you working on at the moment / next?

J: I just turned in book five of my Spellbound Falls series: FOR THE LOVE OF MAGIC (September 2013), and am now writing book six.  And then I really must write the third book in my contemporary Sinclair Brothers trilogy, because I have finally found just the right woman for Jesse Sinclair.

R: Are you a plotter or a pantser?

J: Definitely a panster.  I write like a reader; I have no idea what’s going to happen next—sometimes not even in the next scene!  (I tried plotting out a book once, but since I had it all worked out, I had no desire to actually write it.  So I threw away the cards and let the characters tell me their story.)

R: Do you have any advice for beginning writers?

J:  Sit in the chair and write.  Don’t worry that you don’t know what you’re doing; if you have a story in your head, then simply tell it.  I still don’t know an adjective from an adverb (please don’t tell my editor!).  Books cannot be written by committee.  Don’t be tempted to show your first three wonderful chapters to all your friends, because they will make suggestions on how to proceed based on what’s in their heads.  No one ever sees my story until it is a fully completed thought in my head, and before I am happy with it. 

You are a reader first and a writer second, so if you read what you’ve written and like it, then you’ve done it right.  Nobody knows what you’re trying to say better than you do.  I’ve seen so many beginning writers spend endless hours trying to please everyone in their audience that they end up with a big fat mess.  Trust yourself.  Please yourself.  Write a story that you enjoy reading.

Believe me; others will like it, too!   

Just for Fun: Campfires with friends.

Night or Day? Love to get up at 3:00 am and write!

Dog or Cat? (answer carefully) I like cats that love to boss dogs around. J

Beach or Pool? My lakefront beach.  

Steak or salad? Yes.

Favorite Drink? Spring (one we find in the woods) or my well water. 

Favorite Book? If it’s a romance, I love it! I simply refuse to read tear-jerkers.

Favorite TV Series? Big Bang theory.

Favorite Movie? Again, any romance. 

Favorite Actor: Pretty partial to Harrison Ford.

Favorite Actress: Like Wynona Judd. Adored Katherine Hepburn (on or off screen).

Dirty Martini or Pina Colada?  How about Gin and lemonade?

Hawaii or Alaska? Definitely Alaska.  Gotta go there soon!

Finish this sentence:  If I could meet anyone in the world, past or present, it would be Leonardo de Vinci.

If I had just one wish, it would be that everyone would celebrate one another’s differences rather than fear them.

If I could trade places with anyone in the world, it would be—pretty happy just being me. J

Folks, here are all the places you can find out about Janet and her books:

Website: JanetChapman.com

On Facebook: Janet Chapman (For Her Readers)

On Twitter: @JanetWrites

Now for our giveaway!

Janet will send a copy of THE HEART OF A HERO to the one lucky winner who promises to read it out loud to her cat. (Or to a dog, if only to make it jealous!)

To enter, leave a comment on this blog post with your name and email address (entries without email will be disqualified). For extra entries, you can do any or all of the below:

* Follow my blog (+ 1 point)
* Follow me on Twitter (+ 1 point) (Link: https://twitter.com/RoccoBlogger)
* Tweet about the contest (+ 1 point)
* Friend me on Facebook (+ 1 point) (Link: https://www.facebook.com/ToniLotempio)#!/

* Mention the contest on Facebook (+ 1 point)
* Mention the contest on your blog (+ 1 point)

Winner will be chosen at random using random.org.  Don’t forget to mention all you’ve done in your comment. Good luck! Open to US residents only, contest closes midnight, May 12.

the winner of our Leann Sweeney giveaway is: Barbara Thompson! Watch for an email from Leann to claim your prize!

Coming up:
May 13: Geoff Rodkey

May 17: Fern Michaels

May 21: Maggie Shayne

May 28:  Linda O. Johnston

ROCCO

INCREDIBLE BLOGGING CAT