Nora Roberts told me this about writing

It’s just plain simpler to write what you know. Before I started writing, I didn’t really get that, but once you start to get into detailed descriptions, it’s much more authentic to have experienced places and even types of people that one writes about. I’ve often thought, of course the other answer would be to write something like sci-fi and you can just make everything up!

I once went to a book-signing for a very well-known NY Times Bestselling romance author (Nora Roberts) and was disappointed as a reader to hear her say that she looked stuff up on the Internet for research, while that may be true, it’s more romantic and fantasy-like to imagine an author actually experiencing those things they write about! That’s why, I say, if you don’t know about something, that’s ok, just get out that and learn about it!

Catherine Burr is the author of 17 books and publisher of 120. Read her blog posts for tips on writing and the publishing life. Follow her on Twitter at @catherineburr.

Why Series Help Sales

As a little girl, I was a huge fan of series books before I really understood what that meant. I read every “Boxcar Children” book. We had this book ordering club, where you could order books every month, and the day those books arrived into the classroom and on my school desk, was always like Christmas.

As authors and indie publishers, as you take your career into your hand, think about how you can create your books into series. Why not sell 5 books instead of just 1? That’s how people buy series, they buy one, if they like it, they’ll buy the books to follow.

But, you need to make sure you have your series books come out in a timely fashion. Waiting too long between releases and you’ll lose your audience.

As publisher, one of the first things I would do, is to see and creatively direct how a new relationship with an author could turn their books into a series. Usually, the author would pitch me one book to start, and my brain would go into overtime (if I loved their work, and hedged a bet it would sell), on how to create a series.

Selling a series, you sell not just one book, but the entire series, and that makes good sense.

I have a friend, Winona Rasheed, founder of Sugarberry Press, she has a series of books, Broken Voices, and When Silence is Not Golden; both books are about Ella Rose, and Winona calls these books, “sister” books because they are tied together. I think this is brilliant, unique and creative.

Some of the award-winning, bestselling series I directed are between 5 books to 30 books each, in a series, and have sold thousands of copies.

I also co-wrote a book, Motherhood is not for Wimps (50,000 print copies sold), and was offered to write a column for the online entertainment magazine, The Celebrity Cafe, based on motherhood and family humor, which I did. So, out of one book, the idea (and title) was turned into a series of columns (Motherhood is not for Wimps), which I wrote for over a year, and was multi-nominated for several Blogger’s Choice Awards. Then… those columns I wrote were the basis for the bestselling book I penned, Motherhood Moments.

Then… I was honored to be included in the book, Merry Wives and Others: A History of Domestic Humor Writing, as a top domestic humorist (alongside Dave Barry and Erma Bombeck) in the United States. Wow, see how, from one book, one idea, can take you places you never dreamed or imagined?

So, keep your mind open to all the possibilities that may arrive in your in-box, or better yet, go out and grab and create your own success ring.

The bottom line of thinking about when you begin your publishing journey, is to think more widely than just one book, think series. Promote the series and you are promoting all the books in that series, and that can add up to a lot of sales.

Me, every morning!

 

 

Are Critique Groups Stupid?

Every time I hear a writer talking about a critique group, I cringe. As a publisher, the last thing I ever wanted to hear was what a “critique” group thought about someone’s manuscript. Here’s a hint: DOESN’T MATTER. Yes, I’m shouting!

I once had an author who adamantly opposed all and any editing to their book that my company was publishing because they said that their critique group had “edited” the manuscript and deemed it in no further need of editing. Oh boy.

Ever since then, I’ve been bitter about critique groups. You can have a critique group critique your manuscript until there is no coffee left and at the end of the day, unless your critique group is publishing your book, it just doesn’t matter what they think.

End of story.

Thank you for letting me vent. Move along now.

Oh by the way, I very well may rethink my POV. Just had to get that in, in case one day I change my mind, which has been known to happen now and then. 😉

 

Once a writer, always a writer?

I bet people probably frequently ask you if you’re writing a new book (I say this because if you’re reading this, you’re probably a writer), what you’re writing, when your next book will come out. Right?

My question is this, “Once a writer, always a writer?”

In 1996, my first book was published. That was 18 years ago! My most recent book came out 2 years ago. Total, I’ve had something like 14 books published, written a year’s worth of columns for The Celebrity Cafe.com, and published 120 books through NLP. That’s a lot of words.

But what I want to know is this, at what point does a writer stop writing?

Once a writer, always a writer?

People ask me all the time if I’m writing a new book, when it’s coming out, what I’m writing. They want details! And, I just shrug and say, “I’m working on it.” I don’t have details to give them. I have two unfinished novels, that I made about half-way and a quarter way written, then stumbled for words, stumbled for plot lines. Pretty soon, my stumble turned into a big giant red stop sign. It’s at that point where I feel like I’m not even a writer anymore.

If you follow me at all, you know that I have my real estate license. Has that changed my view of who I am? Maybe. I’ve been struggling with trying to get back into writing again. I made changes in my life and career to do just that. But have I written anything substantial? That remains to be seen.

I think there is SO much about publishing that has turned this writer off in the last few years. Publishing before “self-publishing” came along, used to mean something. It  meant something to be published. But, it seems to my POV, with self-publishing came unprofessional behavior, half-baked books, authors who threaten (in person even) reviewers, and so much mud-slinging on mud-slinging “book” sites, that I use that as a self-excuse of what causes my desire to distance myself from publishing and the written word.

But, those are all excuses and the bad part is, I know that!

I truly hope you all are working on books, writing your behinds off, if you are “indie” (what used to be self-publishing), use quality people (yes, hire them), to help you with covers, editing, promotion, whatever it takes to be professional.

When I have another book written, will I feel like a writer again? If I never have another book published, am I still a writer? Maybe the thought of not being a writer, will get my fingers to push the keyboard, but…

 

 

Why you should watch your sales, and if YOUR Pub doesn’t tell YOU, that sucks

If you are a self-published author or author of an indie press, or any press for that matter, you really need to watch your sale stats. I know what you’re thinking, I’m already doing my website, uploading, editing, Twitter, social media, and all that. But hey, you wanted to be your own boss! You wanted to be self-published, so you need to do the work. Just that simple.

So, here’s the thing. You need to watch your sales, every day. And here’s why. After awhile, you’ll know how many books it takes to sell to make a best seller list. Best seller list? Yes, if you have “categorized” your book properly on, say for example, Amazon, you can land on a best seller list, and if you’re not checking your sale numbers, you wouldn’t even know.

Use it to your advantage. Once you make a best seller list, let the world know. Twitter, Facebook. Follow by example. One of my authors, Winona Rasheed says that, I “make her feel like a celebrity,” when she makes a best seller list. Good! She is a celebrity.

I also know that Winona, for example, is going to Tweet, Facebook, and promote herself once I’ve passed the information on to her. As a publisher, an author who does this, is gold. If you are your own publisher, you have to be on both sides of the coin and do it all.

I log in every day and look at the sales numbers. And when I see that a certain number of books sold, I high-tail it to the ranking area on the book’s page (i.e. Amazon), and I screenshot it, and I write up a blog/press release, and send out a notice to the author, Tweet it… All before I’ve finished my morning cup of coffee.

And, as a publisher and cheerleader for my authors, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Follow me on that Twitter thing. @catherineburr

Follow our company on Twitter @newlinepress

About Me

I’m telling you, I can write an entire novel, but when it comes to writing an, “About Me,” FORGET ABOUT IT! (yes, I’m shouting there!)

I don’t know about other writers, but I find it very difficult to encompass a biography into a couple of sentences. Some are brilliant at it, and I, well, I have trouble with it.

Any-who, here is my latest (tongue-in-cheek) attempt.

What do you think?

Catherine Burr is a bestselling author of 14 books, publisher of 118, and has pretty blue eyes.

I was born in a small apple orchard town in Eastern Washington, and at the ripe age of 3, we moved from Vancouver Island to sunny California. I graduated from Saratoga High School and attended West Valley College, San Jose State University, Hayward State University, San Jose City College, and De Anza College. By the way, “attended” means although I went to college for years, I left without a diploma on my wall. English classes came easy to me, but I wanted to be a nurse! In hindsight, I should’ve stuck with what came natural to me!

After college, I opted out of classrooms and became a full-fledged career woman until I exchanged the career for marriage and family. We raised our family in Saratoga and loved every minute of being parents.

Kids make great material!

In between diapers and carpool, I wrote and wrote and wrote. I had a notebook and my little son wrote in it, “How many stories are about us?”

As I was in motherhood mode, I soon couldn’t contain my writing a secret any longer, and with that notebook filled with my motherhood humor stories, my first book, Motherhood is not for Wimps, was published and sold over 49,999 print copies. It was especially popular in Utah. Oh, and the book was rumored to be a “Oprah” pick, but someone said it was on “Regis and Kathie Lee” as a “Mother’s Day pick.”

Being the talented writer that I am, I couldn’t contain myself to one genre, and when I dropped my eldest off at college, I sped (a euphemism) home and proceeded to write my first novel. I really didn’t know what I was doing, and by the grace of God and a wonderful editor, my first novel, Silicon Secrets, was not only completed, but it was published and if that darn thing didn’t become somewhat popular. There was even a Hollywood screenplay written. I’m not making that up!

Life being what it is, at some point, I wrote a series of short stories of women empowerment. I called these, “The Marriage Files.” And people wonder where writers get ideas from? Well, if one of my stories, An Inconvenient Attorney, didn’t spend the better part of a year on Amazon’s Best-Seller list for Marriage and Family books.

How I started a publishing company, New Line Press, was that my beloved novel editor passed away, and one of my publishers suggested I start a company, and they’d serve as my mentor and initial backer. They helped me get New Line Press off the ground, and oh yes, I actually had worked for a publisher and also a graphic arts company for years, so I did have publishing experience. I mention this, because inquiring minds like to know.

At New Line Press, we started off publishing print books, until this thing called e-books came along, and then all heck broke loose in the publishing world, and from 2004 until present day, my head about spun off from all the changes and wild times in publishing. We mostly focused on short romance stories called “Quickie Reads,” until I had the inclining to write children’s books, and so we added NLP Kidz.

I am probably missing mentioning some of my books I’ve written (ok, currently I have something like 14 books published). Too many titles to mention here, but you can look on my book page!

I’ll wrap this up here. We live in the Sierras of Northern California, in a tiny country town, and love it. My husband (whom I met at 13 over a game of volleyball), and I have lots of rescue pets, and if you follow me on any of the many social media outlets, you know that I’m talking mostly about my cat, Shadow, who has an entire 5-book series named after her, (and who then proceeded to run away and take up residence with the neighbors!) And, of course, there is Max, the dog that will go inside everyone else’s house, but ours! And, last but not least, viral Miss Penny Pug.

Besides Canada and California, I’ve also lived in Tuscon, Arizona, which was beautiful but super hot, and for a time, we divided our time in between Amador County and St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands (I aways say the entire name, cause it sounds cool). We now live full-time in Amador County.

Well, this was supposed to be a short, “About Me,” but, well, you know, I’m a writer… And that is why I can’t write a short bio!

PS. Follow me on that Twitter thing!

If

Thought for the day.

If you don’t live a life of joy, what kind of life do you live?

Thankful for you

I am very blessed to have 21 books (including ebook and print versions) on Amazon and to have published 117 books.

I have wanted to do nothing but write books my whole life. When I was 13, I wrote a book for my sister, a book of essays and poems. There’s something about the written word and words in general that I love. I love searching my brain for a word to describe something. I love to take a scene and then close my eyes and think of the words to describe the scene.

When my kids were little, I kept a diary of life as a mom. Once my son wrote in it, “How many of these stories are about us?” Well, they all were! I turned those stories into several books, “Motherhood is not for Wimps” and “Motherhood Moments.”

When my eldest child started college, I literally dropped him off at the university, drove home and started writing. My other son was still in high school and when he’d see me in my den writing away, he’d say to me, “Should I order a pizza for dinner?” Yes! What a kid he was. With great family support, I finished my first novel, “Silicon Secrets” and low and behold if it wasn’t published and it was well received.

I followed “Silicon Secrets” up with 2 more novels (Desires and Deceptions and Orchids to Die For), and also started a publishing house along the way and published 117 books. Like I said, I love books.

One day, out of the blue, I wrote a children’s book, then another, then another, until I had 7 children’s books published.

I have to admit, it’s a bit easier when you are your own publisher!

I am back writing novels again, oh, I forgot to mention I also wrote more parenting humor and women’s fiction stories and books along the way. One book spent 52 weeks on Amazon’s top 100 Bestseller list. It was mostly in the top 20, but varied over the course of a year.

I thank my readers and everyone who makes my life with books possible with my entire heart. You are appreciated beyond words!

Love,
Catherine.

San Francisco through the eyes of locals

My son, Daniel Burr, has some photos in SF Gate Blog. Check them out! http://t.co/gBUhiq010W

You can follow Daniel Burr’s photos at Instagram.com/Daniel_Burr

Writer Tips

Writing Tips

▶When writing your novel, try using layers for each chapter. Write the first layer as a draft, then with each draft, add senses, descriptives, and details. The first layers, you may be writing in a hurry because the words are coming to you fast and furious, let the creativity flow and get the words down without worrying about details.

▶After you complete the first draft, you can go back and add details, for example, the first draft perhaps you just said someone’s eye colors were “blue,” in the second draft you can be more detailed, “her eyes were as blue as the Caribbean sea.”

▶Don’t let details hold you up in your writing. Keep the flow going.

• Currently Reading: Mama’s Bible

About the Blogger: Catherine Burr is a bestselling author of over a dozen books and as CEO at New Line Press has published over 115 books. Her short story, “An Inconvenient Attorney” spent 52 weeks on the Amazon.com Bestseller List.

Peruse Catherine’s authored books.

Follow Catherine Burr on Twitter @catherineburr.

Running for Success

Every year in San Francisco, the hard core run the Bay to Breakers race, literally from one side of the city, up and down steep hills, across town, to the other side. It takes feats of strength, endurance, and fortitude (a great metaphor for life!)

The race is 7 1/2 miles and they ran it with thousands of others and the sky was clear and the sun bright and warm. Beautiful day.

Catching up with Catherine

If you are new to reading Catherine Burr books or have read me before, I want to give you all an update on my writing and my books and let you know what’s new!

In 2012, I had 7 children’s books released, to bring my total published commercial books to 13! As background, of course you know that I am the author of 3 novels, Silicon Secrets, Desires and Deceptions, and Orchids to Die For (co-author), and 2 parenting humor books (Motherhood Moments and Motherhood is not for Wimps, co-author), in addition to numerous short stories (An Inconvenient Attorney), and other books.

But being the prolific writer that I am, I always wanted to write a children’s book, and one day when I went for a walk, I came home with an idea for a grown up short story, and as I was writing it, I realized that it sounded more like it would make a great children’s book, so I changed it mid-stream and that book (The Cat With No Name) turned out to be the first of 5 books in the Shadow Cat Series.

So, before I knew it, I had 5 children’s books published. But that was just the beginning of my children’s author career!

I was inspired after thinking about my years teaching Sunday School (I received certified Catechist training) and I wrote 2 children’s books about God’s Love, they are God Loves Me (pink for little girls) and God Loves Me Too (blue, complete with a spaceship on the cover) for little boys.

Catherine Burr books

My son and display of my books at Barnes and Noble

Before I could blink, I had 7 children’s books published! It’s funny how life works out. All of my life I wanted to — at some point, write children’s books, and then it just happened. All from taking a walk that day.

Another cool venture that I have been doing, is I have been running a publishing house, which I founded in 2004. Through the pub house, we published 115 books, 10 of which were my titles.

I have loved every moment of publishing until I felt that writing bug, and I stepped away from active publishing of new titles (other than my own) to focus on writing and just hanging out with my husband and taking care of business; which means gardening and going to meetings for fun, living a small town life, savoring every moment, and taking our rescue dogs, Penny Pug and Max, to the lake or down to Lowe’s or around the country, where we reside.

Our children are grown up and I love nothing more than to go visit them in the Bay Area. One son is a prosecutor (I love to watch him in court), and the other, a nature/urban photographer (I love to look at his photography).

My husband and I are back full-time to our Northern California mountain cabin after living in the Caribbean for several years, and it’s kinda nice to spend quality and quantity time here, it’s a different kind of paradise than the Virgin Islands, but a paradise nonetheless.

My view everyday in St Thomas, Virgin Islands

My view everyday in our mountain cabin

Long story short, I am writing a new novel. Remember, most of my writing is spurred by where I’m at in life, so don’t be surprised to see some cowboy boots.

As I look back on my writing career, one may wonder how I’ve had so many books published both for me and for others. I’ve worked very hard, sometimes 18 hours or more a day, often working late into the night.

And I’ve been somewhat lucky.

I believe when a path is meant to be taken and if we are receptive, doors open and we end up in a room, a room filled with our dreams coming true.

‘World’s Oldest Romance Novelist’ Spills Her Secrets

Having sold millions of books and written 123 romance novels, Ida Pollock, UK romance writer, is 105 and still going strong. “I was born to write!” Ida declares. Ida shares the secret to her books, they are “always the same.” The books always include a woman who “has problems,” and “hero” who comes in to save the day, and of course, a happy ending!

Follow Bestselling romance novelist and children’s author Catherine Burr on Twitter.
CatherineBurr.com

The Ten Second Rule: Writer’s Tip

Many authors find it difficult to write a short blurb about their work. They can write an entire novel, but a blurb can prove challenging. As a publisher, yes we can write the blurb, and chances are we will take what you’ve given us and re-write it, but it’s so very important as an author that you can take your story and condense it into a one sentence blurb, one short sentence. Also, condense the work’s synopsis into one short paragraph. How short? Fifty words at most is best. For the sentence, use 10-15 words at most.

One way to develop this sentence is to think that you are chatting at a cocktail party or in line at the grocery store and someone has asked you about your latest book; you have 10 seconds to convince them to buy your book. Ten seconds to charm, wow, and let them know about your story. Practice this with your spouse or a friend who is willing to help you get your tag line down pat. This may seem awkward at first but it is helpful. Try it over-and-over until you have your sentence, and blurb, verbally to a point where it will roll off your tongue and it is comfortable to you. Time yourself to use no more than, 10 seconds.

For us writers who are used to spreading out our words, yes, coming up with a 10 second blurb is challenging but it is an important part of marketing your book.

@catherineburr

Interview with Winona Rasheed, Author of Spring, Where Are You?

Welcome +Winona Rasheed, author of children and YA books. Recent release, Spring, Where Are You?

Describe your writing process?

My writing process always begins in my little kitchen, with a writing tablet and a cup of coffee, regardless if I’m preparing content for my blog, newsletter or children’s books.


My kitchen for some reason is where my thought process begins when forming ideas to write about. My yellow tablet is my draft sheet that I work on before heading to my keyboard. It is on this tablet that I handwrite everything, it’s where the story content is laid out, where characters are born, titles appear and dialogue comes into play. However, the process doesn’t always happen in this order. Sometimes, research has to be done when you write on a certain topic that is new to you, as with the case of “Wohali and the Little People” to get into the heart of the storyline. With this book, I had to do research on the background of the Cherokee Indian and their beliefs. In doing so, the research added more drama, depth and insight for the fiction story while still in its draft form. The draft is full of edits, red marks and cross-outs. When I am satisfied with the draft, that’s when I take it to my keyboard, where I am ready to type and create a manuscript that also gets tweaked, because you might find that you have to lengthen or shorten a story, or you may find that you have to elaborate more on character description and plot development, as was the case with “Itchy Scratchy Spots.”

• Where did you get your ideas from for your children’s books?

 When it comes to creating as story, they say ideas are all around you, this is true. Images, conversations, situations, people, events, life experiences can bring about story ideas. For instance, “A New Home for Her Cubs” was inspired because of a TV program I was watching, Animal Planet.“Broken Voices” was inspired because of my sister-in-law’s physical impairment and “Itchy Scratchy Spots” came into being as I thought about my own children coming down with the chicken pox all at once, one right after the other.“Spring, Where are You?” was inspired from the simple fact that adult’s word expressions can be misunderstood and confusing to the mind of a six-year-old. Children and adults can relate to this kind of situation.

• Who is your favorite character in any of your books?

 My favorite characters, it is hard to choose a favorite because I love them all; after all, they are an expression of my own imagination. They seem real to me; from Wohali, Rudy, Ella Rose, Gracie to Kumani the lioness, they all are a part of me, my babies that I bought to life. When you watch a character develop from scratch, or from a planted seed in the head, they grow on you and you become one with each individual character. However, I think Kumani of “A New Home for her Cubs” would say she’s the favorite because after all, she is a lioness with humanistic traits, which is out of the ordinary and this makes her unique, plus her friend Bantu is one of a kind too.

• Tell us about your latest book release?

My latest book release is “Spring, Where are You?” I am very proud of this children’s book

 because it is self-published and I did it my way. I love doing things on my own and by myself, even though it was difficult. But the entire process put me, the author in charge of the publishing process. Spring, Where are you? Is a short story that depicts the dilemma a young girl goes through when she misunderstands the expressions of adults as they relate to the coming of spring. In this story, Gracie sets out to find spring; she wants to come face to face with it since it is suppose to be right around the corner. Gracie is full of questions and she expects for spring to give her the answers she is looking for.

• Have you ever wanted to write a novel?

I have never wanted to write a novel. I am a short story writer, the process of writing a short story is long enough for me to tackle. If I were to write a novel, it would take way too long and I think I would lose interest because of how much time you would have to take to get a novel finish. You have to have patience to work on a novel. I like it when I can write something that takes no longer than month to complete as far as the draft is concerned. That’s my deadline for getting a short story worked out. I say deadline because of my work schedule which includes; housewife, housework, homemaker, freelance writer, blogger, cook and babysitter. Creative writing is my passion and it is incorporated throughout my daily activities of being productive. When it comes to writing short stories, I sometimes do it with my jammies on and staying up until the wee hours of the morning, working on my craft, especially when inspiration strikes.

• How did you become a children’s author?

I have always written short stories, but they were intended for young adults and older and for school projects. In school, my teachers loved my short stories, which I wrote for extra credit in certain classes. But, that’s as far as my writing went. It didn’t get off the ground until I took a writing course from The Institute of Children’s Literature, writing for children and young adults. That’s where I found my passion and where I learned how to write, create and submit my work. This was about 15 years ago or longer. As I found out through the writing course, when I wrote all those years before, I was guessing at what I was doing. But my instructors let me know that I did have a future in this field, I just needed to learn how to proceed with it. That was the best thing that I could have ever done when it comes to pursing my passion in writing. It opened a lot more doors than what I ever expected.

• What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

My advice to aspiring writers is to follow your dreams, your heart and your passion. Write something every day, even if it’s just one sentence. Find something else to write about when and if you find yourself suffering from writer’s block when you are working on a particular project. Don’t waste time, give up or doubt yourself when writing is a sincere passion. Think positive and surround yourself in inspiration that will inspire and motivate when you find yourself in a writing slump. If I can do it, I know you can too.

Network with Author Winona Rasheed:

Facebook at www.facebook.com/winona.rasheed.com
Twitter @winonarasheed
website www.born2write.weebly.com

Feb 17, 2013

Live Chat HERE with Author Winona Rasheed, Blog Hop

Live Chat Blog Hop with Winona Rasheed RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW! Ask your questions in the Comments section of this blog or Tweet your questions to @catherineburr.

About Winona Rasheed: Winona Rasheed lives in the Nation’s Capital of Washington DC. She is a children’s writer as well as a freelance writer where she writes and prepares articles for companies on the internet. She loves blogging, tweeting and being on Facebook because these are the avenues in which she promotes her books while in cyberspace.

Blog Hop with Winona Rasheed: Part I, The Interview

Blog Hop Interview with children’s and YA author Winona Rasheed

Winona Rasheed Blog Hop

Describe your writing process?

My writing process always begins in my little kitchen, with a writing tablet and a cup of coffee, regardless if I’m preparing content for my blog, newsletter or children’s books. My kitchen for some reason is where my thought process begins when forming ideas to write about. My yellow tablet is my draft sheet that I work on before heading to my keyboard. It is on this tablet that I handwrite everything, it’s where the story content is laid out, where characters are born, titles appear and dialogue comes into play. However, the process doesn’t always happen in this order. Sometimes, research has to be done when you write on a certain topic that is new to you, as with the case of “Wohali and the Little People” to get into the heart of the storyline. With this book, I had to do research on the background of the Cherokee Indian and their beliefs. In doing so, the research added more drama, depth and insight for the fiction story while still in its draft form. The draft is full of edits, red marks and cross-outs. When I am satisfied with the draft, that’s when I take it to my keyboard, where I am ready to type and create a manuscript that also gets tweaked, because you might find that you have to lengthen or shorten a story, or you may find that you have to elaborate more on character description and plot development, as was the case with “Itchy Scratchy Spots.”

• Where did you get your ideas from for your children’s books?

 When it comes to creating as story, they say ideas are all around you, this is true. Images, conversations, situations, people, events, life experiences can bring about story ideas. For instance, “A New Home for Her Cubs” was inspired because of a TV program I was watching, Animal Planet. “Broken Voices” was inspired because of my sister-in-law’s physical impairment and “Itchy Scratchy Spots” came into being as I thought about my own children coming down with the chicken pox all at once, one right after the other.“Spring, Where are You?” was inspired from the simple fact that adult’s word expressions can be misunderstood and confusing to the mind of a six-year-old. Children and adults can relate to this kind of situation.

• Who is your favorite character in any of your books?

 My favorite characters, it is hard to choose a favorite because I love them all; after all, they are an expression of my own imagination. They seem real to me; from Wohali, Rudy, Ella Rose, Gracie to Kumani the lioness, they all are a part of me, my babies that I bought to life. When you watch a character develop from scratch, or from a planted seed in the head, they grow on you and you become one with each individual character. However, I think Kumani of “A New Home for her Cubs” would say she’s the favorite because after all, she is a lioness with humanistic traits, which is out of the ordinary and this makes her unique, plus her friend Bantu is one of a kind too.

• Tell us about your latest book release?

My latest book release is “Spring, Where are You?” I am very proud of this children’s book

 because it is self-published and I did it my way. I love doing things on my own and by myself, even though it was difficult. But the entire process put me, the author in charge of the publishing process. Spring, Where are you? Is a short story that depicts the dilemma a young girl goes through when she misunderstands the expressions of adults as they relate to the coming of spring. In this story, Gracie sets out to find spring; she wants to come face to face with it since it is suppose to be right around the corner. Gracie is full of questions and she expects for spring to give her the answers she is looking for.

• Have you ever wanted to write a novel?

I have never wanted to write a novel. I am a short story writer, the process of writing a short story is long enough for me to tackle. If I were to write a novel, it would take way too long and I think I would lose interest because of how much time you would have to take to get a novel finish. You have to have patience to work on a novel. I like it when I can write something that takes no longer than month to complete as far as the draft is concerned. That’s my deadline for getting a short story worked out. I say deadline because of my work schedule which includes; housewife, housework, homemaker, freelance writer, blogger, cook and babysitter. Creative writing is my passion and it is incorporated throughout my daily activities of being productive. When it comes to writing short stories, I sometimes do it with my jammies on and staying up until the wee hours of the morning, working on my craft, especially when inspiration strikes.

• How did you become a children’s author?

I have always written short stories, but they were intended for young adults and older and for school projects. In school, my teachers loved my short stories, which I wrote for extra credit in certain classes. But, that’s as far as my writing went. It didn’t get off the ground until I took a writing course from The Institute of Children’s Literature, writing for children and young adults. That’s where I found my passion and where I learned how to write, create and submit my work. This was about 15 years ago or longer. As I found out through the writing course, when I wrote all those years before, I was guessing at what I was doing. But my instructors let me know that I did have a future in this field, I just needed to learn how to proceed with it. That was the best thing that I could have ever done when it comes to pursing my passion in writing. It opened a lot more doors than what I ever expected.

• What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

My advice to aspiring writers is to follow your dreams, your heart and your passion. Write something every day, even if it’s just one sentence. Find something else to write about when and if you find yourself suffering from writer’s block when you are working on a particular project. Don’t waste time, give up or doubt yourself when writing is a sincere passion. Think positive and surround yourself in inspiration that will inspire and motivate when you find yourself in a writing slump. If I can do it, I know you can too.

Network with Author Winona Rasheed:

Facebook at www.facebook.com/winona.rasheed.com
Twitter @winonarasheed
website www.born2write.weebly.com

Join Us 2/14/2013 9:00 AM PST for a Live Chat with Winona Rasheed at CatherineBurr.com

Blog Hop with Winona Rasheed: Part I, The Interview

Blog Hop Interview with children’s and YA author Winona Rasheed

Winona Rasheed Blog Hop[/caption]

Describe your writing process?

My writing process always begins in my little kitchen, with a writing tablet and a cup of coffee, regardless if I’m preparing content for my blog, newsletter or children’s books. My kitchen for some reason is where my thought process begins when forming ideas to write about. My yellow tablet is my draft sheet that I work on before heading to my keyboard. It is on this tablet that I handwrite everything, it’s where the story content is laid out, where characters are born, titles appear and dialogue comes into play. However, the process doesn’t always happen in this order. Sometimes, research has to be done when you write on a certain topic that is new to you, as with the case of “Wohali and the Little People” to get into the heart of the storyline. With this book, I had to do research on the background of the Cherokee Indian and their beliefs. In doing so, the research added more drama, depth and insight for the fiction story while still in its draft form. The draft is full of edits, red marks and cross-outs. When I am satisfied with the draft, that’s when I take it to my keyboard, where I am ready to type and create a manuscript that also gets tweaked, because you might find that you have to lengthen or shorten a story, or you may find that you have to elaborate more on character description and plot development, as was the case with “Itchy Scratchy Spots.”

• Where did you get your ideas from for your children’s books?

 When it comes to creating as story, they say ideas are all around you, this is true. Images, conversations, situations, people, events, life experiences can bring about story ideas. For instance, “A New Home for Her Cubs” was inspired because of a TV program I was watching, Animal Planet. “Broken Voices” was inspired because of my sister-in-law’s physical impairment and “Itchy Scratchy Spots” came into being as I thought about my own children coming down with the chicken pox all at once, one right after the other.“Spring, Where are You?” was inspired from the simple fact that adult’s word expressions can be misunderstood and confusing to the mind of a six-year-old. Children and adults can relate to this kind of situation.

• Who is your favorite character in any of your books?

 My favorite characters, it is hard to choose a favorite because I love them all; after all, they are an expression of my own imagination. They seem real to me; from Wohali, Rudy, Ella Rose, Gracie to Kumani the lioness, they all are a part of me, my babies that I bought to life. When you watch a character develop from scratch, or from a planted seed in the head, they grow on you and you become one with each individual character. However, I think Kumani of “A New Home for her Cubs” would say she’s the favorite because after all, she is a lioness with humanistic traits, which is out of the ordinary and this makes her unique, plus her friend Bantu is one of a kind too.

• Tell us about your latest book release?

My latest book release is “Spring, Where are You?” I am very proud of this children’s book

 because it is self-published and I did it my way. I love doing things on my own and by myself, even though it was difficult. But the entire process put me, the author in charge of the publishing process. Spring, Where are you? Is a short story that depicts the dilemma a young girl goes through when she misunderstands the expressions of adults as they relate to the coming of spring. In this story, Gracie sets out to find spring; she wants to come face to face with it since it is suppose to be right around the corner. Gracie is full of questions and she expects for spring to give her the answers she is looking for.

• Have you ever wanted to write a novel?

I have never wanted to write a novel. I am a short story writer, the process of writing a short story is long enough for me to tackle. If I were to write a novel, it would take way too long and I think I would lose interest because of how much time you would have to take to get a novel finish. You have to have patience to work on a novel. I like it when I can write something that takes no longer than month to complete as far as the draft is concerned. That’s my deadline for getting a short story worked out. I say deadline because of my work schedule which includes; housewife, housework, homemaker, freelance writer, blogger, cook and babysitter. Creative writing is my passion and it is incorporated throughout my daily activities of being productive. When it comes to writing short stories, I sometimes do it with my jammies on and staying up until the wee hours of the morning, working on my craft, especially when inspiration strikes.

• How did you become a children’s author?

I have always written short stories, but they were intended for young adults and older and for school projects. In school, my teachers loved my short stories, which I wrote for extra credit in certain classes. But, that’s as far as my writing went. It didn’t get off the ground until I took a writing course from The Institute of Children’s Literature, writing for children and young adults. That’s where I found my passion and where I learned how to write, create and submit my work. This was about 15 years ago or longer. As I found out through the writing course, when I wrote all those years before, I was guessing at what I was doing. But my instructors let me know that I did have a future in this field, I just needed to learn how to proceed with it. That was the best thing that I could have ever done when it comes to pursing my passion in writing. It opened a lot more doors than what I ever expected.

• What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

My advice to aspiring writers is to follow your dreams, your heart and your passion. Write something every day, even if it’s just one sentence. Find something else to write about when and if you find yourself suffering from writer’s block when you are working on a particular project. Don’t waste time, give up or doubt yourself when writing is a sincere passion. Think positive and surround yourself in inspiration that will inspire and motivate when you find yourself in a writing slump. If I can do it, I know you can too.

Network with Author Winona Rasheed:

Facebook at www.facebook.com/winona.rasheed.com
Twitter @winonarasheed
website www.born2write.weebly.com

Join Us 2/14/2013 9:00 AM PST for a Live Chat with Winona Rasheed at CatherineBurr.com

CatherineBurr.com hosts Winona Rasheed’s Blog Hop