Today, we have author Lynn Romaine visiting us to answer a few questions about her writing life. Welcome Lynn! Let’s dive right into the questions…
Thank you for joining me today for my Writer’s on Writing series!
What is your brainstorming process for a new book?
It starts as a story I work on at night before I go to sleep. I run one scene for a week or two and then add another scene and pretty soon I have a plot for a book. I usually start writing the next one as I’m finishing up the current one, adding chapters whenever I want a break from the editing. The title has to come first or very early on, as well as the characters names. Without those two things, I can’t proceed very far into the story.
Can you explain your typical work week day?
I am very lucky to do creative financing – I work at home doing p.r.n. medical transcription which means I can work as much as I want. I usually work four hours in the afternoon and write at night. I never write in the morning – not in the mood and can’t imagine how I’d get in the mood. Rarely but once in a while I may get up in the middle of the night, especially if I need to write a sex scene.
Tell us about when you made the decision to write.
I always dreamed of writing fiction (I wrote academic essays) but thought I had no stories in me, which is very funny since I’ve been telling myself stories since I was five to comfort myself; I just never wrote them down until seven years ago. I was in a course about intimacy and we were supposed to write down something we never told anyone—mine was that I wrote stories in my head. The seminar participants suggested I write it down. Within four months I had a whole book. A month later, I had a book contract with a small press.
What suggestions do you have for aspiring writers?
Write-write-write – treat it as something one masters over thousands of hours rather than a gift – and keep writing. But only if you love it. Take risks and submit even if you think the writing is no good. And finally, join a critique book.
Tell us about what you’re working on right now and what we can expect from you in the near future.
My third book, Long Run Home, comes out on September 18, 2009 – in a week, with The Wild Rose Press. I am also in the midst of contract discussion of the rewritten 1st book (I’m much better now with so many more hours of writing), my 2nd book is being submitted for recontracting and my fourth book, Night Noise, is being edited and I’m in the midst of querying agents. Finally, the fifth book, The Reckoner, based in Canada, is in the early stages (about 80 pages). And then, of course, there is marketing to do on Long Run Home. I’m setting up 10 book signings around five states and getting my PR materials ready.
What a great interview. Thanks again for joining us, Lynn! For those of you who would like to purchase Lynn’s work, please visit The Wild Rose Press Website. Stay tuned until next week!
Lynn’s Bio: I started writing fiction later than most in that some friends encouraged me to write after I shared my secret world of making up continuing stories in my mind since I have a little child – to keep my mind busy when I was afraid. Hence, while I’ve written quite a bit of nonfiction, I’ve been writing fiction only for seven years. I live in Bloomington Indiana, have a master’s degree in information science and have created an organization, Red Pants for the World, to promote and support young girls in difficult circumstances (especially Afghanistan) living created lives and pursuing their dreams.
Tags: writers on writing
Best of luck with your writing. Carol
I loved both Blind Spot and Leave No Trace. I can’t wait to read Long Run Home. Good luck with the book signings.
Linda
It just goes on and on, hopefully!