Monday, June 13, 2016

Rocco's guest EJ Copperman!

MEROW! Today our guest poster is the author, E. J. Copperman


EJ is the author of the Haunted Guesthouse series, as well as several other mystery series!  His first in the Mysterious Detective Series with Crooked Lane Publishing, WRITTEN OFF, debuts today!
And now, without any further adieu: E.J. Copperman!

Thank you, ROCCO!
The first thing you have to understand is that writers are crazy.
Our job, first and foremost, is to make things up. And the better we can think of stuff to make up that nobody has made up before (or at least this month), the more novel (you should pardon the expression) the work will appear to be.
So our minds never stop looking for new things to make up. That’s the job and we know it. You might be taking a walk on the beach, watching the ballgame, making dinner, making love, playing Life, living life, walking the dog, doing the downward dog or lying in bed before sleep.
When we’re doing all that, we’re also working. If something happens that might be interesting (re: useful), we’ll be sure to make note of it. If we remember it the next morning, you can assume it’ll show up in our work somewhere.
So when the casual notion of a character I’ve written showing up at my door and announcing him/herself happened into my fevered brain—and it was just an idle thought, in the middle of doing something else—I stopped whatever the hell that was I was involved with and started thinking about it. How would I react if Alison Kerby or Samuel Hoenig called on the phone asking for help on her/his current problem?
Since I write mystery novels, the notion that the character would be asking for guidance on a murder was not a huge leap. I do, after all, concoct all sorts of odd problems for them to solve (in Samuel’s case, questions for him to answer; he’d want me to make that distinction). They’d expect that surely I could provide direction, if not simply an answer out of thin air.
But it wasn’t the character’s perspective that I found interesting. Although my spouse (yet another plug for an upcoming book) and a few others I’ve met would say that I am indeed a character, I’m also an author. I know how an author thinks and if one is going to spend a few months writing a book, it might as well be something the writer understands fairly well.
So what would I do if Alison or Samuel (or now Duffy Madison and his hapless creator Rachel Goldman) knocked on the door and asked me to help solve a heinous crime? In WRITTEN OFF, that’s what happens to Rachel. She writes the Duffy Madison series in which a consultant for the Morris County (NJ) prosecutor’s office works on missing person cases. And when her phone rings just after she finishes the latest Duffy Madison mystery only to be told that her caller is a consultant for the Bergen County (NJ) prosecutor’s office who works on missing person cases—and that his name is Duffy Madison—she has a situation to deal with.
I didn’t stop to consider what my own reaction would be under such circumstance because in writing the book it didn’t matter. I’m not Rachel; she reacts to things differently than I would. It’s only since I finished the book—and if the truth be told, written the second in the series—that I’ve taken the time to consider. And I know exactly what I’d do if that ever happened to me.
I’d slam the door and lock it, then hide under my desk until the phone stopped ringing.
I’m not that crazy.

E.J. Copperman is the author of the Haunted Guesthouse mystery series and the co-author with Jeff Cohen of the Asperger’s Mystery series. On June 14 E.J. unveils the Mysterious Detective Mystery series in which a crime fiction author is confronted by the flesh-and-blood incarnation of her fictional sleuth.
GIVEAWAY:  Win a copy of WRITTEN OFF!
 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! Contest ends midnight, June 18.

15 comments:

  1. Great post! I am so glad you are paid to make things up!
    +1 blog follower
    Thanks!
    JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks like a great books and series for me to read. Thanks for the chance to win.. salvatoresmom71@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think you are right about writers being crazy, although my husband is kind enough to say that I am 'complicated'! I wish you all the best; this one seems like a real winner!
    Tonette
    tonettemjs@gmail.com
    I am a friend on FB;
    I shared
    I follow on twitter;
    I tweeted
    I follow the blog

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wish I had your imagination! Your books are always a joy to read.
    Thanks for the contest.
    I am an email subscriber.
    I follow on twitter.
    I also follow on facebook
    suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love E.J. Copperman's books and am sure this will not disappoint. I follow your blog, am a friend on Facebook, and mentioned this on Facebook. robeader53@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a delightful idea!
    I look forward to reading it.

    Rocco, we are FB friends and I've linked this page to mine
    I visit regularly
    I don't tweet or have a blog
    libbydodd at comcast dot net

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great interview, Rocco. I'm looking forward to reading the first book in this new series.
    Friends on Facebook and liked Facebook post, following your blog and following on Twitter.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  8. kat8762@aol.com
    What a unique storyline! Reminds me of a Twilight Zone episode where an author greats real-life people on his dictaphone. Oh, the thoughts I love to create!

    * Follow my blog (+ 1 point)
    * Follow me on Twitter (+ 1 point)
    * Tweet about the contest (+ 1 point)
    * Friend me on Facebook (+ 1 point)
    * Mention the contest on Facebook (+ 1 point)

    ReplyDelete
  9. This book sounds amazing. Hope to be able to read and review it. Did all the above extra points. Thank you for chance
    Pennymarks@frontier.com

    ReplyDelete
  10. This book sounds awesome! Thank you for a chance to win! I follow your blog, we are friends on facebook & I shared with my cozy pals on facebook. sxygrndma48@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sounds wonderful!
    I follow on Twitter. Last checked, we were friends on Facebook.
    Thanks for the giveaway.
    Lady(dot)janel@hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  12. A fun read.
    I follow your blog by email and on FB we are friends.
    Seascapelife at gmail (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
  13. This sounds really good. Thanks for a fun post, and for the heads up on what looks like a fun book. Friends on FB and Twitter, I follow the blog by email and I shared with my cozy pals on FB! frybbe@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Enjoyed your post & thanks for the chance to win. doward1952@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. DO YOU WISH TO BE A VAMPIRE OR YOU WANT YOUR OWN POWERS AND PROTECTION COME AND BE AMONG THE VAMPIRES KINGDOM TODAY AND YOU GET WHAT EVER YOU NEED OKAY CONTACT LORD SHAKA AT ( lordshakavampirekingdom@gmail.com )
    I turn to a vampire any time i want to. i become a vampire because of how people treat me, this world is a wicked world and not fair to any body. at the snack of my finger things are made happened. am now a powerful man and no one step on me without an apology goes free. i turn to human also at any time i want to. and am one of the most dreaded man in my country. i become a vampire through the help of my friend who introduce me into a vampire kingdom by given me their email. All thanks to Lord Shaka for your empowerment if you want to become a powerful vampire kindly contact the vampire kingdom on their EmaiL::(lordshakavampirekingdom@gmail.com )

    ReplyDelete