Meet Tom Grace!

Meet Tom Grace the wonderful author of the bestselling novel Bird of Prey along with many other novels including his most recent release The Secret Cardinal. I got the chance of interviewing Tom, and during the process I was convinced that he was some type of super-human author, but when he said he liked to write in silence, I realized he was indeed human. Anyways, here are the results -

Heather: To start off, tell us a little bit about your background:

Tom: I was born and raised in Michigan, where I reside with my wife and five children. Professionally, I am an architect in private practice, and the focus of most of my work has been high technology research facilities. I have run in several marathons and enjoy scuba diving and the martial arts. As a child, my primary forms of entertainment were reading and drawings, and to have woven these interests into a profession is something that continues to amaze me.

Heather: How long have you been writing?

Tom: I've been writing for fun since I was a teenager. I wrote for and was an editor on my high school yearbook and newspaper. In college, I focussed on architecture but received a nudge from a professor who was so impressed with a paper I'd written in grad school that he said I could have a career in architectural writing if I wanted it. That planted the seed in my head that I could actually get paid to write.

Heather: What started you writing for publication?

Tom: Its second nature for an architect to think of a project as an activity that lasts months or years, so I'm very long-term goal oriented. When planing out the things I wanted to accomplish in life, I listed "Write a novel" just to see if I could hold a coherent thought in something longer than a term paper. The opportunity to take on this goal arose in the early 1990s when, over a year's worth of lunch hours, I wrote the first draft of debut thriller Spyder Web. In writing that 300,000 word slab of prose, I discovered that writing thrillers is very entertaining. At this point, I was still writing for my own amusement and few people knew about this hobby of mine. After a few major edits, one of which involved a sex change for a major character, I let my father and brothers read that version of the book. The response I received was: "I've paid money for books worse than this," which is high praise in my family. That's what got me thinking that perhaps I could get my book published. I sold Spyder Web in 1997 and have been writing professionally ever since.

Heather: Do you have a set time when you write, or just whenever you get the urge?

Tom: I primarily write at night, and with my children's activities becoming more complicated, that pushes late into the night. I still noodle out ideas at lunch and whenever I can spare a few moments on the computer.

Heather: Who is your favorite author?

Tom: Mark Twain holds a special place in my library, if I have to pick one. There are many authors whose skill with the language I greatly admire.

Heather: Have you ever had writer's block, and if so how do you get rid of it?

Tom: I don't believe in writer's block. I never get it. My problem is turning it off.

Heather: What do you recommend to aspiring authors?

Tom: I have one college level english course in my background. What I know about crafting a story, I learned from the masters. I heartily recommend that any aspiring writer read everything they can get their hands on. Some writers are great with dialog, others with setting or mood. In my own mind, I'd read enough thrillers that my brain reached critical mass and I believed I could actually write a novel. Had I know it would be so much fun, I would have started sooner.

Heather: How do you invent your characters?

Tom: When creating the plot, I begin to see what types of people I need to make the story work. I base my characters on experience--people I know or aspects of characters I've encountered in other books.

Heather: I know a few authors who keep records (almost like police records) of height, weight, background, etc., of their characters, do you keep tabs on your characters, and if so, what do you usually make note of?

Tom: I do keep cheat sheets on my characters, just to keep the details straight in my head. It's embarrassing to have your copy editor remark that so-and-so was a blond in chapter 2 and a red-head in chapter 38.

Heather: Some authors say that they feel as though his or her characters are real, do you feel this way, and what do you think about this?

Tom: The hero and heroine of my novels are based on my wife and me, so there is some level of reality at work here. Thriller writers often project something of themselves onto their protagonists, and I admit to a bit of Walter Mitty syndrome. My characters don't tell me things, but I know them well enough that I can tell when a bit of dialog or an action seems out of character for them.

Heather: Do you have anything in the works?

Tom: I'm working on a few ideas.

Heather: What would you say is the neatest thing you know?

Tom: That when children are born, they look all gray and lifeless, but then they take those first breaths and their skin glows with life. I've seen this happen five times and it just amazes me.

Heather: What was your favorite part about writing your book?

Tom: Seeing how different the finished story is from the original concept. I love the happy accidents, those little nuances you discover along the way that make the story better than you imagined.

Heather: Has music ever inspired your writing?

Tom: I wouldn't say inspired, but I do listed to music when I'm writing. Always instrumental, because I can't have words flying around when I'm writing. The soundtrack to Henry V was very motivating in writing The Secret Cardinal.

Heather: Do you like to write in complete silence or does it have to be noisy?

Tom: I prefer the quiet when I'm writing. I can have noise when I'm plotting or storyboarding, but I need the quiet for prose.

Heather: What made you put your characters in the setting that you did?

Tom: The story determines where my characters end up. My last book, The Secret Cardinal deals with the real conflict between China and the Vatican, so my characters spend a lot of time in China and Rome.

Heather: Keyboard or pen?

Tom: Both. I sketch scenes and write notes longhand (legal pads and sketch books). My manuscripts are all on my computer.

Heather: What do you think is the hardest part about being an author?

Tom: Getting paid. Budgeting is very tricky if you don't know when a paycheck will. Or if a paycheck won't come. I've been fortunate to have sold foreign rights to all of my novels. It's not a lot of money, but neat to see my books in Bulgarian or Spanish. About 16 months after El Cardenal (the Spanish edition of The Secret Cardinal) was published I received an email from a reader looking for a Spanish language version of my book. I did a quick Google search to find a link for the guy and discovered the El Cardenal was on AP's best seller list for Venezuela and Uruguay. I did a little more digging and learned that my novel had been #1 in Venezuela for over 70 weeks and had been in Uruguay's top ten for 16 weeks. A few weeks ago, El Cardenal hit it's 100th week in Venezuela's top ten, and I have not received a dime in royalties. Venezuela is notorious for book piracy and it appears that my novel was bootlegged early on and even exported to other Latin American countries. On the plus side, thanks to AP's reports, I can officially say that I am an international #1 best selling author.

Heather: What do you usually do while writing?

Tom: I write, research, and storyboard. It's an iterative process. My first draft is nothing but keystrokes with no editing or spell check. I try to get this fleshed out quickly to keep the pace of the story moving. It's in the second a third passes that I take the rough diamond and polish it into a gem.

Heather: What were the circumstances surrounding your decisions to become an author?

Tom: Opportunity met desire. I knew that I wanted to write a book someday when I had the time, and the time suddenly appeared.

Heather: Some people say that you need to live life before you write a book, do you think that its experience that writes a book or imagination?

Tom: Experience is nice, and imagination is absolutely critical. I don't write what I know, but what I can research, so I get some of my experience vicariously from people who've actually done what I'm writing about. I do try to see the locale I use in my books, and actually managed to reach the North Pole as part of a science team while doing research for my third novel (Twisted Web). Don't let a lack of experience deter you from a great story idea, just go out and talk to the people who do what you want to write about. Most people are thrilled to talk about what they do. I once communicated with the Russian flight controllers who deorbitted the Mir space station, which was very helpful is writing Bird of Prey. Research is experience.


I like the colors of: dawn.
The sky is most beautiful when it's: summer.
My favorite feature of a computer is: speed.
Thing I love most in the world is: lasagna.
Thing I hate most in the world is: asparagus.
My favorite type of electronic device is: massager
My favorite thing that has been available before the year 1900: telescope.
My favorite thing that has been available since the year 1960: internet.
The oddest thing you have ever written on (hand, wall, etc.) is: eggshell.

If you would like to learn more about Tom Grace you can drop by his website - http://www.tomgrace.net

Meet Shirley Parenteau!

Meet Shirley Parenteau the great author of the new book Bears on Chairs, a wonderful childrens book. I had the opportunity of interviewing Shirley, and here's what came of it -

To start off, tell us a little bit about your background:

Heather: How Long Have You Been Writing?

Shirley: I feel I’ve been writing forever. My mother wrote feature stories for newspapers. I enjoyed reading her writer’s magazines and followed in her footsteps, first with magazine articles, then books. Currently, I’m writing picture books with a counting One Frog Sang sold to Candlewick Press in 2007 (reprinted in book club and audio versions by Scholastic in 2008) and a rhymed preschool-age picture book Bears on Chairs also with Candlewick Press published just this past August.

Heather: What started you writing for publication?

Shirley: That’s like asking what started me eating chocolate! There is a hunger for writing that I can’t resist. If I’m not writing, I feel that something is missing. I’m fascinated with the way putting words together can evoke scenes and hopefully, emotion.

My first published article was on traveling with a baby after driving across the country with my husband and then six-month-old son in a VW bug in the days before disposable diapers were common. I received an acceptance letter for the article on the same day as I received an acceptance for a very short story sent to a puzzle magazine…and I was hooked! Writing has been in my blood ever since.

I wrote a lot of articles for travel magazines while we tent-, trailer- and boat-camped with our three children. Then we bought seven acres and all the buildings of a nearly 100-year-old farm. The boat went into the barn—permanently as it turned out—and I began writing a humorous newspaper column about restoring the house and raising animals. While experimenting with and researching natural dyes, I found an article that inspired my first children’s book. I loved writing books which last a lot longer than newspaper or magazine articles and never looked back. Since then, I’ve written several children’s books and women’s novels.

Heather: Do you have a set time when you write, or just whenever you get the urge?

Shirley: I try to write every day, but life and bookkeeping for our family sheet metal business take time away. Even when I’m not actually at the computer, stories are constantly working out in the back of my mind.

Heather: Who is your favorite author?

Shirley: There are so many! I love Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum and for years, I’ve been in love with Martha Grimes’ detective, Richard Jury. I also love Elizabeth Peters’ fearless Egyptologist, Amelia Peabody. There are too many others to list. Reading has always been my favorite pastime.

Heather: Have you ever had writer's block, and if so how do you get rid of it?

Shirley: I’ve never had the emotional inability to write—knock on wood. If a story refuses to move forward, it’s usually because somewhere pages back I let it head in the wrong direction. I need to go back and find that spot and redirect the story to get it moving again.

Heather: What do you recommend to aspiring authors?

Shirley: Patience and a tough skin. One of the hardest things for me is to put a finished story aside for awhile. I always think it’s ready when I’ve finished the first draft and can’t wait to send it off. But after a cooling down period, I usually see parts that don’t quite work or that can be made better. With picture books, especially, every word must be right. I’d rather find a problem while it’s still in my computer than send a revision after agent or editor has spent time on the story.

The tough skin is needed because rejection and criticism are so much a part of writing. We have to get past taking it personally and realize it’s the story that is being criticized, not the writer.

Heather: How do you invent your characters?

Shirley: For me, characters evolve as the story develops. I envy and admire writers who fully develop each character before beginning their story. It’s the characters we remember, after all, even more than the plot.

Heather: I know a few authors who keep records (almost like police records) of height, weight, background, etc. of their characters, do you keep tabs on your characters, and if so, what do you usually make note of?

Shirley: My life is full of notes: grocery lists, ideas, quotes…but I can’t make extensive character sheets. When I try, I lose interest in both character and story.

Heather: Some authors say that they feel as though his or her characters are real, do you feel this way, and what do you think about this?

Shirley: They’re not real? Actually, it’s wonderful and surprising when a character comes to life and insists on behaving in a way I hadn’t consciously planned. Sometimes a line of dialogue will surprise me or make me laugh and I wonder, “Where did that come from?” Of course, when a character comes to life, it’s because the writer is really into that character, so much so that it takes on its own life. But you have to keep control of the story, whatever—they—may want to do. (smiling)

Heather: Do you have anything in the works?

Shirley: Always. Currently, my heart is with a young adult fantasy set in an imaginary Aladdin’s lamp setting. And I’m working on a new picture book.

Heather: What would you say is the neatest thing you know?

Shirley: What it’s like to soar in a hot air balloon over my own home and fields. I was lucky enough to win a ride in a balloon called Rainbow that lifted off from a nearby park. The same luck was working to send us over my home. I was amazed that I felt no sense of motion. The ground seemed to fall away, then slowly pass beneath us, as if the balloon stood still in the air.

Heather: What was your favorite part about writing your book?

Shirley: A favorite part in any book is when I know something is needed and seemingly out of the blue, an answer comes to mind—a gift from the muse. My original text for Bears on Chairs began with a bear on a chair. My editor suggested opening with just the chairs, like a stage set where something is about to happen. Since the book is rhymed with every line ending in a rhyme for bears, I was at a loss. Then a complete stanza dropped into my mind saying exactly what I needed to say.

Heather: Has music ever inspired your writing?

Shirley: Since music can be very emotional, I feel that it should, but have never experimented with listening to music while writing.

Heather: Do you like to write in complete silence or does it have to be noisy?
Quiet is nice but I’m used to writing while tuning out noise.

Heather: What made you put your characters in the setting that you did?

Shirley: For the young adult novel I’m writing, the plot idea decided the setting. I learned of a way of foreseeing the future I’d never heard of before and wanted to develop a character who uses it. In my mind, the idea called for an ancient desert setting in a time of wizards and magic. Bears on Chairs evolved from an incident in a bookstore where my then-three-year-old granddaughter was placing stuffed animals on child-size chairs. I wondered, what if there were more bears than chairs? The book sprang from that.

Heather: Keyboard or pen?

Shirley: I love the ease of composing and editing on a keyboard, but I print a hard copy for revising. Words on paper seem to give me a fresh view of the work.

Heather: What do you think is the hardest part about being an author?

Shirley: Rejection of a project I’ve put my heart into. One Frog Sang was rejected by several publishers, all with very nice letters saying they liked the book but already had counting books on their lists. When the book found a home with Candlewick Press, I was delighted. Cynthia Jabar, the artist Candlewick selected, placed my text into gorgeous paintings. For my new primary age book, Bears on Chairs, Candlewick selected David Walker, an artist who created wonderfully cuddly, toddler-like bears.

Heather: What do you usually do while writing?

Shirley: I usually get my daughter’s opinion of an early draft. She’s my best and harshest critic. Even when I wince from her comments, I see how they improve the story. I may not feel her exact comment works, but she gives me a fresh approach where there is a problem. I also count on advice from a longtime writing group and from a critique partner, both through email and in monthly meetings. Writing can be a lonely business. Feedback helps!

Heather: Some people say that you need to live life before you write a book, do you think that it’s experience that writes a book or imagination?

Shirley: I think it’s both. My older sister once comforted me in a difficult situation by saying, “Everything is grist for the writer’s mill.” Those words have lived with me for a long time. But imagination is needed to turn the actual experience into a story that comes alive for the reader. Recently, my granddaughter of the bookstore bears, now age six, gave me a wonderful line that is the theme for the picture book I’m working on now. I’m lucky to have six granddaughters, four under the age of eight. I find that listening to them and seeing how their world has changed even since my own children were young can inspire fresh ideas for today’s readers. Of course, some things never change, like the need to share inspired by the bookstore bears.


I like the colors of: oceans
The sky is most beautiful when it’s: stormy
My favorite feature of a computer is: communication
I think inventors should invent a: teleporter
Thing I love most in the world is: family
Things I hate most in the world is: anger
My favorite type of electronic device is: computer
My favorite thing that has been available before the year 1900: kite
My favorite thing that has been available since the year 1960: E-mail
The oddest thing you have ever written on (hand, wall, etc.) is: mushroom

Shirley's books are avaible on amazon.com and many other places too!

Character Wednesday8

After a hectic week with a number of surprises in it, I thought this would be the perfect week to take a more in depth look at Aden Meyers. For those of you who have read the book, you know who he is and I’m sure you’re laughing at the ironic-ness of it by now. For those of you who haven’t read it, Aden is Celia’s little brother, a trouble maker. Though quite a bit of Aden’s life is in the book, you’d be surprised at how much wasn’t mentioned. Due to him only being alive 8 years (so far, he’s not dead, so don’t gasp), it’s a short story, but still, it’s interesting. It’s probably better to show you rather than tell you. So, here goes –

Aden Trevor Meyers was born in Monroe, Utah with one sister (Cecelia Meyers). At the age of 2 his mother took him to a play group every Friday at noon, until he turned 5 and started school instead. At the age of 7 Aden joined the Cub Scouts, and came out of it with 15 badges. At the age of 8 Aden became a “teacher’s pet” and also got in the local paper because he climbed a 14 foot tree to get to a friend’s cat, which was stuck between a couple of tree branches.

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As you can see, I have added a new feature to my blog, "Shelfari" it's basically a shelf filled with books that I'm promoting, and also books that I have read. I thought it was a cool new feature, you can get your own shelf too, just make sure you add "A Gift From Above" to your list of books. ;) If you go to twitter you'll see that I'm running a contest type of thing, where I'm trying to get 1,000 views of the excerpt of my book, you can go here -