Good day, Genevieve. Please tell us about yourself—you know, all that stuff that makes you interesting!
I was born, grew up, and still live in New York State; Upstate New York to be exact. For fun? What’s fun? Haha, no actually, I write, do photography, travel, do crafts, paint, and play with my one year old niece.
I don’t have a day job at the moment, but I do edit and do cover design such as this one
for other indie authors, so I guess that impacts my writing a little bit, since I always seem to compare their work with mine.
I would have to say that I love cats the most, in the way of pets, though I do have a soft spot in my heart for horses, but when I was growing up I had a dog named Grizzly- she was part German Shepard and part Black Lab; we named her Grizzly, because she looked like a Grizzly bear cub when she was a puppy. I don’t have any pets now, but my brother has 3 so I’m all set!
People always ask me my favorite color, and it’s hard to answer with just one. I love all of the colors of the rainbow! However, if I am forced to choose just one, I would have to go with my standard answer and say orange. I don’t know why, but I like it (which is weird, considering I’m a redhead).
My favorite movie is hard to pinpoint as well, but as I sat here watching the cursor blink at me, I realized that I could never answer anything besides Back to the Future 1, 2, and 3 (though 3 is probably my all-time favorite). Of course, that might have something to do with my enormous crush on Michael J. Fox. Now, while I have this big crush on him, he is NOT my favorite actor. My favorite actor would have to be Zac Efron—post High School Musical. As for actress, that’s even harder to decide. There are so many great ones out there: Halle Berry, Julia Roberts, Queen Latifah, Keke Palmer, Reese Witherspoon; but, I think the one I will have to choose is Diane Lane. She is so fantastic at what she does, that I forget I’m watching a movie. I’ve watched Under the Tuscan Sun and Must Love Dogs like 26 times each.
Since we are talking about me being a writer, I thought I’d mention that my favorite author is Darynda Jones.
When and why did you begin writing?
A lot of people already know this, because I have mentioned it in previous interviews and on my fan page, but I was bullied growing up. At first, it was nothing major and I was able to ignore it, but during my Junior and Senior year of High School, things got worse; much worse. So, to express my feelings without doing something drastic and being expelled, I started to write. First, it was just in a journal and I would just scream and swear and punch the bloody hell out of the bullies, then it escalated into writing scenarios where I killed the bullies, but, eventually, I got to the more subtle revenge and started to write them into stories where I dated my crush’s best friend, turned them into toads, etc.
After all of that, I realized how much I loved to write and tell stories, even ones without revenge, so I went forward with it and before you know it, two years after I had graduated High School (sadly, the bullying continued after graduation for a while, until someone stood up for me and I eventually stood up for myself) I was published!
While those first two books of mine don’t see much action, because they are no longer for sale, I am still immensely proud of them and always will be. While my writing continues to get stronger and stronger, those books were my turning points and my start. I will never forget them.
What is your genre?
Normally, I write romances, but I also delve into other genres through pen names. I won’t tell you which or what names I use, because that’s the whole point of pen names right? Let’s just say, I do it all.
What’s your process? Seat of pants, well-devised outliner?
I don’t really have a process. When I want to write a story, I give myself a deadline, put on my rings (which I need to have one or for some reason stuff doesn’t flow—weird) and start to type. In that same vein, I have to type fast as well; which most people don’t understand how I can type as fast as I do. My record is 208 words in 3 minutes with only 1 error.
Wow! I topped out at 125. What other writer inspires you? Your work?
I get asked this question a lot, and I’m not really sure that anyone inspires my work, per say, but I do have a lot of inspirations when it comes to why I write. Darynda Jones, Nora Roberts, Morgan Kearns, James Patterson, Sherryl Woods, Debbie MacComber, etc.
Ah, yes. Nora/JD is a goddess in my little writing world! What is your favorite work by you? And why is it your fav?
My favorite book would have to be Love Claus, because it is the first book I have published since 2010 and I really love the story. When I re-read it, I almost don’t remember writing it, because I was so attached to the story and the characters.
That is a lovely bright Christmassy covery! Where does your character inspiration come from?
Character inspiration is tricky, but it comes from a lot of places; dreams, people I know, things I see, etc. Basically, anything that inspires can create a character. However, most of my characters “come to me”. The characters are the ones with the stories, I’m just the fingers to type it to the world.
What’s your best/worst experience as a writer?
Best experience: Having fans! There is nothing like that feeling you get when a fan emails you and says, “When is the next book coming out? Is it finished yet?”
Worst experience: I recently got a 2 star rating on my short story, “Fairan”. I was bummed for a while, but my diehard fans helped keep my spirits up and reminded me that you can’t make everyone happy.
That is good advice but can be difficult to accept at first. Best/worst writing advice you ever got?
Best: keep writing.
Worst: None.
Oh, good! No one ever told you to write what you know. (Laughing here) What is your latest work (cover/purchase links etc.)?
I am currently working on a short story under one of my pen names, but then I am starting a new series of books called The Birds of Paradise series. The first one will be called “Catching a Cardinal” and it will be a romance with a few twists—like evil magic and forbidden lust.
As for what of my work is currently available, that would be “Love Claus” and my short story, “Fairan”.
What do you want your fans to know about you and your work?
I love to write. I know that I am not as good as some of the other authors out there, but that’s okay. I write in my style and the stories I want to write. If someone doesn’t like one of my books or stories, that is their preference, and I have nothing against them. I can’t please everybody, but I am eternally grateful for those that I do please. Without readers and fans, writers would be nowhere; just a bunch of people typing away on keyboards. My words would have no meaning, if I had no readers.
Tell us something about yourself that your readers don’t already know.
This is another question that I get asked a lot and, honestly, I can’t think of anything. I’m pretty much an open book with my readers, because there isn’t much in my life or about me that is interesting enough to keep quiet about. I’m just an average girl, living in an above-average world, trying to make it one day at a time with my below average brains.
Where can readers find out more about you and your work?
Linda Rae Blair, Author 