Ask the Author: Susan Andersen
Answered Questions (6)
Susan Andersen
I truly don't remember for Notorious, because I started it a long time ago, then set it aside when the bottom dropped out of the romantic suspense market to reinvent myself to stay employed. But my usual process is just getting little sparks of ideas or having a character scratch in my brain and talking it out with writer friends until I ultimately stumble across an idea that resonates.
Susan Andersen
Sometimes it's the merest spark of an idea for a character, other times I'll hear something on NPR or read something in a paper or overhear a conversation --Hey, I'm a writer--it's my JOB to eavesdrop --. Truth is, though, the original writing is the hard part for me and I'm a pantser by nature, so it's one part inspiration and 9 parts planting my butt in my chair and watching that cursor blink "Loser, loser, loser," on a blank screen until something finally shakes loose in my brain and I start to type.
Susan Andersen
I have always wanted to write something set in the 1920s so I have (barely) just begun that. Bunch of stuff got in my way but I'm hoping to get back into it this week.
Susan Andersen
Persevere. It sounds simplistic, but it's not. I've seen good writers give up and just walk away and honey, it may take time to get where you're going in this business, but you won't get squat if you simply quit.
It took me 8 years to get published but my husband gave me the biggest compliment of my life the day I received my umpteenth rejection and I said (ok, wailed) "Do you think I'll ever get published?" He said, "Hell, yeah. You're too stubborn to ever give up." Built me right up, I'm telling ya. He took one of my biggest character faults and turned it into a good thing.
It took me 8 years to get published but my husband gave me the biggest compliment of my life the day I received my umpteenth rejection and I said (ok, wailed) "Do you think I'll ever get published?" He said, "Hell, yeah. You're too stubborn to ever give up." Built me right up, I'm telling ya. He took one of my biggest character faults and turned it into a good thing.
Susan Andersen
Making my own hours and--this is the biggie--NO COMMUTE! That's not small spuds, since I live in Seattle where someone thought it was a good idea to not only run the freeway through downtown but bottleneck it down by several lanes.
Susan Andersen
When I get blocked it is generally because I went south somewhere in the last couple chapters and my subconscious is telling me I will not move on until I get my crap together. My job then is figuring out where I went wrong and fixing it. Once I do, it doesn't get easy, exactly, but at least I know I'm back on track.
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