OCC Photos – Caption This! October 3, 2006
October 3, 2006 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as OCC Photos
Caption This! October 2, 2006
October 2, 2006 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as OCC PhotosTo celebrate OCC’s 25th Anniversary, we are bringing you photos from OCC’s scrapbook. Each week day we will post a photo from the last 25 years (if Blogger cooperates) and ask that you all try and identify people in the photos, and/or write captions for the photos.
Barbara McCauley – Candid Talk With A Rita Winner
September 2, 2006 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Author Interview
To win a RITA, you have to have it all…timing, talent, tenacity…and a heart-wrenchingly good book no reader can resist.
Barbara McCauley has all that and the statuette to prove it. Her MISS PRUITT’S PRIVATE LIFE won her the RITA for Best Short Contemporary in 2005.
In September’s Orange Blossom she candidly talks about what it was like to pass the torch, the reality of the after glow and how her friends are the best part of writing.
Here in our extended interview on A Slice Of Orange she bravely talks about fear and how she gets past it.
Q – After over 30 books, do you ever learn something new about writing or yourself as a writer?
A – I’m always learning something new, about my writing and myself. My last book I let fear paralyze me and it was truly painful. I’m determined not to let that happen again.
Q – What paralyzed you? What were you afraid of?
A – Listening to the negativity, especially surrounding the “new guidelines” for the line I write for. There was a lot of “buzz†regarding the changes taking place and I began to question whether I was able to “fit” into the new parameters.
Once I let that fear in the door, it simply took over and consumed me. Doesn’t matter I’ve been doing this 15 years and I’ve published over 30 books, my confidence took a nosedive. For a writer and the creative process, this is a dangerous road.
Q – You said you are determined not to let that happen again. What are you doing to not let that happen again?
A – I do a lot of things to hold fear at bay. Just a few are: reminding myself to be my own best friend, picking up an older book and re-reading a passage or scene I enjoyed writing, taking a hard look at the book I’m writing and holding onto the initial spark that made me want to write that story, taking care of myself physically and emotionally (this would be a long list itself) re-reading “Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway” by Susan Jeffers.
Most important–it’s cliche, but true, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF.
Q – How is it working?
A – Depends on which hour you ask me. (Smiling)
If you need a suspenseful beach read for this last gasp of summer, be sure to pick up Barbara’s latest, NIGHTFIRE. And for another surefire good read, her next in the SECRETS! series, BLACKHAWK’S BETRAYAL, comes out in October.
Dana Diamond is the OCC/RWA Secretary, a columnist for OCC’s award-winning newsletter Orange Blossom, a contributor to A Slice of Orange, and hard at work on her next book.
Alyson Noël: Why I Write
August 31, 2006 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Confessions of a YA WriterRecently I attended a birthday bash (and I mean BASH!) for a very good friend of mine. And somewhere in the midst of all the laughter, small talk, and fun, someone asked if I chose to write teen fiction because I have such fond memories of high school.
To which I instinctively balked. “God no. It was horrible! I mean, you couldn’t pay me to go back!” This was followed by vehement head shaking and possibly even a dramatic shudder or two.
And then my husband looked at me, nudged me in the arm, and said, “Um, honey, but are being paid to go back.”
Oh.
So maybe he’s right. In fact, I guess it’s pretty obvious he is. And now that it was out there, spoken like a fact, it got me wondering just exactly what I was thinking when I chose to make my living writing about a time in my life which I didn’t particularly enjoy, and at times, actually found quite painful. I mean, since graduation I’d done so many other things, lived in so many other places, so what could be the reason for all this? Am I a masochist?
Luckily, no.
Because now that I find myself smack dab in the middle of the inevitable piling up of years between then and now, I can finally look back on those times and view certain events with far more clarity, and much more objectivity than I ever could’ve mustered up before. And the simple truth is, that those years shape and inform you in more ways than you think, and that the adult you later become owes a huge debt to the person you were back then.
Whether you hated high school (like me) and tend to use that time as a catalyst to get the heck out and carve a more suitable place for yourself somewhere else, or you look back at it fondly, (hard for me to believe but these people do exist) and strive to recreate that feeling wherever you go from there, there’s simply no denying that those years make an impact, and are not easily forgotten.
Last year brought the untimely death of my husband’s twin brother, who’d battled pancreatic cancer for a year and a half, (and to whom I’ve also dedicated my third novel, Laguna Cove, as well as to the son and daughter he so sadly left behind). And while I won’t even attempt to find the words to describe this completely devastating time, I will say that when news of his passing reached a group of their former junior high school friends, they sprang into action, organizing an impromptu memorial in Richard’s memory.
I held my husband’s hand as we walked into the house where several of his old friends waited, where we flipped through old photos, skimmed over yearbooks, ate hot pizza, drank red wine, laughed at fond memories, and eventually released a stream of red balloons, watching as they drifted off into the evening sky, bidding a silent farewell.
Some of these people drove a long distance, some even boarded an airplane just so they could be there. For us, the trip was a mere hour and forty-five minutes up the 405. And as I sat beside my husband, leaning into his shoulder, listening to old stories, told by a diverse group of junior high school friends who hadn’t seen each other in the thirty years that had passed, I thought about my own old circle of friends, and how even though we may not speak all that often, I’m happy to say that quite a few of them are still in my life.
I guess I write teen fiction because it’s the last time you feel so protected yet yearn to be free, you want to fit in but long to find your true self, you hate waking up for school but fear the day when you’ll no longer have to, and you are truly on the verge of so many exciting new “firsts” that you’re in such a hurry to check off, yet you’re also aware that once you do, it’s hard to go back.
But I also write teen fiction to honor the memory of the person I was then, as well as the friends who stood beside me, and who were far more important than I realized at the time.
A few days ago, my husband received a phone call from an old summer camp buddy he hadn’t heard from in years. Apparently this guy had been reminiscing about his old group of tight knit friends, and was planning a reunion so they can all get together again.
By the time my husband hung up, he’d already RSVP’d.
Alyson Noël
“Laguna Cove” a new novel by Alyson Noel
www.alysonnoel.com
www.myspace.com/alysonnoel
www.alysonnoel.blogspot.com
Kathleen Beaver – Golden Heart Winner!
August 3, 2006 by A Slice of Orange in category Interviews tagged as Dana Diamond, interviews, OCC News
Triple threat Golden Heart finalist Kathleen Beaver (w/a Kate Carlisle) has talent. How else do you explain 3 Golden Heart nominations in 3 different categories?
Color me impressed.
What’s even more impressive is how incredibly warm, kind and intelligent she is. She also has a great sense of humor…which is probably what helped her manuscript SNOOPING IN STILETTOS win the Golden Heart for Best Novel With Strong Romantic Elements.
Here she talks about her Golden Heart winning manuscript, SNOOPING IN STILETTOS, the real-life mystery that inspired it, what has changed since her win, and who she forgot to thank in her acceptance speech.
Q – What can you tell us about your winning Golden Heart manuscript, SNOOPING IN STILETTOS?
A – SNOOPING IN STILETTOS is a chick lit mystery and here’s the pitch: Suicide by BMW? Or murder? When L.A. attorney Berry McKenna finds her best friend, Deanna Coburn, dead in the driver’s seat, she knows it was murder. After all, Deanna had just gone on a fabulous shopping spree, and what woman in the known universe would kill herself after buying a gorgeous pair of boots? Now Berry’s got to convince delectable detective Ethan O’Reilly to start looking for a killer, but Ethan’s a hard sell, so Berry must search for truth and justice on her own—even if it kills her.
Q – What do you love about the story? Or what do you think makes this manuscript stand out as an exceptional story?
A – My heroine, Berry, has a great attitude and stands up for what she believes in. She loves her friends, she loves her mom, she actually believes in the system and she’s determined to find justice for her girlfriend. And of course, there’s a really cute hero that I truly love.
Q – Did it surprise you that SNOOPING IN STILETTOS won? Why or why not?
A – Surprise me? How about SHOCKED the HELL out of me! Honestly, I knew it wouldn’t win. First, because it was up against so many other great books in the category, and second, because it’s a fairly straightforward first-person mystery and I just figured a book like that didn’t stand a chance. I’m incredibly happy I was wrong!
Q – What do you think it is about SNOOPING IN STILETTOS that readers love?
A – SNOOPING is told from a first-person point of view, so it was important that readers find Berry’s attitude appealing. I’d like to think she comes across as funny and maybe a little snarky and self-deprecating. She’s also a good friend and willing to fight for what she believes in. It was also important that readers could relate to the victim, Deanna, so I had to sneak in a few flashbacks to introduce her and make her seem real and likeable. And did I mention the cute hero? Love him!
Q – Was there any one thing you remember a critique partner, family member or friend did or said that helped you make SNOOPING IN STILETTOS into a Golden Heart winner? If so, what?
A – The best advice I got was from Maureen Child who told me to trust my voice and don’t get bogged down wondering what an editor will like or hate. Just be true to myself and write the damn book.
Q – If you could dedicate SNOOPING IN STILETTOS to anyone who would it be? Why?
A – I’d dedicate this book to my wonderful husband Don who has more faith in me and my writing than I sometimes have in myself.
Q – Did you do any research for SNOOPING IN STILETTOS? If so, what kind of fascinating and/or surprising facts did you learn while researching the book?
A – It’s not exactly research but I have a story about how I got the idea to write this book. I used to work in a Family Law firm and our client’s soon-to-be-ex-wife had made at least 10 half-hearted attempts to commit suicide throughout the divorce proceedings. Of course, one day she finally succeeded, but it wasn’t clear whether she actually meant to do it, because when she turned on the gas in the Bentley, somehow a spark ignited in the engine and the car caught on fire and she was burned to death. There were signs that she struggled to escape but the carbon monoxide apparently had slowed her down and she didn’t make it. It was very creepy. My boss went with our client to the wife’s house and her attorney was there, running the show, bossing the police around and generally being a pain in the butt. Turns out, the wife had re-written her Last Will and Testament and made her attorney one of the main beneficiaries. So…suicide? Or murder?? I prefer to think it was murder, of course!
Q – Your acceptance speech was short, sweet and heartwarming. How were you feeling up there? Is there anything you forgot to say or anything you’d like to add?
A – Well, thank you for the compliment on my speech, but I must admit I was in complete shock and had absolutely nothing prepared. I remember thinking, “Talk slowly. Don’t forget anyone. Don’t cry.†So naturally, I burst into tears! (laughing) Then I woke up at three o’clock the next morning and starting re-writing the speech in my head…over and over and over…sigh. And yes, I really wish I’d remembered to thank my fellow Golden Heart finalists for their support and friendship. I know they’re all going to sell because they are all so talented. It’s a great group and we’re all on an e-mail loop together, so I hope we’ll be able to continue to keep in touch and get together at future conferences.
Q – Has anything changed for you since your win?
A – No, and I’m so annoyed! I’m waiting by the phone for all those agents and editors to call, dammit! (laughing) No, nothing’s really changed so far, but I now have something wonderful to tell those agents and editors who have my manuscripts in their To-Be-Read piles, so that’s something. And I have a lovely new piece of jewelry. It’s a Golden Heart. I love it!
Q – Who was the first person you called? What did you say?
A – I literally ran out in the middle of the awards ceremony and called my husband. I just said, “I won.†And he was so excited, it was great!
Q – Does the win seem real yet? If so, when did it feel real? When and what hit you that made it finally feel real?
A – After I won, I really had to pinch myself. A few times during the rest of the ceremony, I’d suddenly get tears in my eyes when I remembered that I’d won. The thing is, I know that winning the Golden Heart is no guarantee that I’ll sell my books, but at that moment when they called my name, it felt so good to be recognized and validated for all the years I’ve been writing and working toward publication. It was a sweet moment for me.
Dana Diamond is the OCC/RWA Secretary, a columnist for OCC’s award winning newsletter, Orange Blossom, a contributor to The Writers Vibe and hard at work on her next book. For more on Dana and her interview with Kathleen Beaver, be sure to visit Dana’s blog at: www.danadiamond.blogspot.com
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