Can you, for those who don't know you already, tell something about yourself and how you became an author?
I’ve always loved to read, and as a child, I loved making up stories. I didn’t know I wanted to be an author until my Grade 4 teacher, Mrs. Hache, told me I had a knack for writing stories. After that, becoming an author was my dream career. I didn’t know what genre I wanted to write, so I just wrote silly stuff until I hit Grade 6. After reading a Harlequin Romance, I knew I wanted to be a romance author. I’ve been writing on and off since then, honing my skills and listening to advice from more experienced authors, or in some cases, editors who sent me rejection letters. If it wasn’t for one kind editor taking an extra five minutes to give me a personal rejection letter and give me a few tips on how to improve my writing and storytelling skills, I don’t think I would have made it this far.
What is something unique/quirky about you?
I’m a creative type, but I also love sciences. Give me a book on how the body works, and I’m engrossed for eons. I’d probably read it from cover to cover and be disappointed it was finished. I love learning about things like anatomy and astronomy.
Where were you born/grew up at?
I was born in a small town called Bridgewater on Nova Scotia’s South Shore, and I grew up in a small community called Crousetown, which straddles the Petite River. I spent most of my childhood either swimming at the river or one of the three main beaches – Crescent Beach, Risser’s Beach or Green Bay Beach – when my family wasn’t camping in the Annapolis Valley or going on day trips. The Atlantic Ocean played a huge part of my childhood, between spending so much time on the beach and my father working at the Fish Plant in Lunenburg (home of the Bluenose II).
What do you do to unwind and relax?
I like to watch videos about Star Wars, Star Trek, and science on YouTube; listen to heavy metal music; watch movies, and do graphics design for my books or just for fun.
How to find time to write as a parent?
It’s not easy, but it’s a lot easier now than it was when my son was little. He is on the autism spectrum and does not know the meaning of “quiet time”. The only time I could write when he was small was when his father took him shopping or down to his grandmother’s house for a few hours. I wasn’t able to start writing full time until my son was in school full time, and even then it was tricky. I didn’t finish my first full length novel until he was in grade 3, and that had to be revised and rewritten several times before I got the formula right. Thankfully the older my son got, the better he is at listening and being quiet to an extent. He is sixteen years old now, and I’ve written while he was home, some of my best work to date.
Describe yourself in 5 words or less!
Quirky, shy, creative, opinionated, and goofy.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
It was after my son started school, and I was able to start writing more. Before that, I was an aspiring writer, after that, I became a full-fledged writer.
Do you have a favorite movie?
Yes, I have several. I am a huge Star Wars fan, and I love pretty much all of the movies I’ve seen so far, with the exception of Solo. I haven’t seen that one yet, but I hope to sometime soon. I also love Valmont, The Fifth Element, Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs, the 1931 version of Dracula, Carrie (1976 adaptation of the Stephen King novel), Cujo, and the original Species. I am also a fan of the made for TV movies from the Canadian TV show, North of 60. I love all five of them, but my favorites are Trial by Fire and In the Blue Ground.
Which of your novels can you imagine made into a movie?
Away to Me because it’s so full of drama, and shows the power of love.
As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
My mascot is my cat. Our old cat Amber used to sit on top of my clunky old Dell monitor when I was writing, and she’d flip her tail across the screen. Unfortunately she passed away in 2018, but we adopted another cat, a rescued Maine Coon cat Marnie, five days after Amber’s passing, and Marnie has turned into my new mascot. She’s more famous than I am. People love her to bits.
What can we expect from you in the future?
At the moment, I’m in the middle of trying to write the next three installments in the Feathered Tartan series. Story #3 is on the go at the moment – I hope to finish that this spring – and so is Story #5, but that will have to be completely rewritten because I’m establishing a timeline in Story #3, and there will be inconsistencies in #5. I’m also getting ideas for Tri-Town 3 – which I hope to set in Mahone Bay or Lunenburg – and a standalone novella.
How did you come up with the title of your first novel?
Believe it or not, it’s a song title - Stricken by Disturbed, my favorite band. I was listening to their album 10,000 Fists one day, and the song came on. I happened to hear the lyrics to that song, and thought it could have been written about Ewan and Marti. So I changed the name of the story at the last minute before submitting it to eXtasy Books. The rest is history.
Who designed your book covers?
Stricken was designed by Syneca Featherstone of Original Syn.
Away to Me and Under Your Scars were designed by Martine Jardin.
Sweet Child of Mine was designed by Angela Waters.
I designed the one for COVID’s Arrow.
If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?
No. I wouldn’t change Sweet Child of Mine for the world. It’s my best work to date.
Did you learn anything during the writing of your recent book?
Yes, that less is more, and deep point of view is a necessity for creating a great story. You develop the character by their actions and how they are feeling, and explain why things are like they are.
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