1. What was your first published work?

My first published work was titled A Complete Woman, a contemporary woman’s story in the vein of Waiting to Exhale.

2. Is there a story inside that you have seeds of but can’t seem to connect that’s dying to get out?

There are several stories inside that aren’t blooming, but I need to re-pot in other soil. One is a story is about a fantasy story of self-discovery for a female queer heroine.

3. How do you handle a rejected story?

When I get a rejected story, I usually look to see what other publication is accepting submissions. Then I resubmit it. If the story has been rejected repeatedly, I will put it back in the proverbial WIP to review later.

4. What does literary success look like to you?

Literary success to me if when I meet my sales goal for the quarter and/or the year. I would love to receive awards, but overall, I love when readers comment about my works or reach out to tell me about how much they enjoyed the work.

5. Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?

I do read my books’ reviews. When I get the bad ones, I look to see if there are legitimate or craft feedback I can take and apply to my writing. I ignore the ones that are either mean-spirited or criticize parts that I do not have control over. For the good ones, I use them to encourage myself when the black dog comes around.

6. What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?

I’m a pantser who writes long hand. The most difficult part of my artistic process is editing. It never fails that when I am reviewing my draft to revise and edit, I miss things. Of course, I hire and use quality content and copyeditors to help polish the work before I submit.

7. As in most times, the truth is stranger than fiction, what has been the hardest scene or chapter you’ve had to write, if you were channeling personal experience?

There’s a weird western story I wrote titled, “Belly Speaker.” I wrote it while going through a difficult time with an ex-boyfriend. It involved a great deal of gaslighting and resulted in a restraining order. The entire work had to be the hardest and more emotionally challenging story I’ve ever wrote due in part to the protagonist having to escape a ventriloquist’s control of her voice. At the time, I felt strong my own voice had been silenced and in some instances turned against me.

8. What inspired your latest work?

My latest work, The Ghosting of Vega Ortiz, was inspired by growing up in Appalachia. I’m from East Tennessee and I spent a great deal of my childhood in the Smokey Mountains. It wasn’t as commercial as it is now, but back in the early 1980s, it was a very different place. Ghosting takes place in a fictional holler in the mountains.  

9. If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

A: Keep going. It’s worth it. Chase those goals and believe in the validity of your dreams.

10. Best advice you’ve ever gotten from a fellow writer?

A:  Don’t try to write to the market. All that stuff was written months or years ago, so publishers may not be buying it now. Instead, write what makes you happy.

11. What is your go-to comfort horror/Sci-Fi book?

A: Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series, specifically The Drawing of the Three

12. If you were to genre-hop, which genres would you most like to try writing?

A Contemporary Romance

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