S.C. Hutchinson's Blog

To those I owe books to:

I am going to re-send paperback copies to you. I recently discovered that the post office in the town I PREVIOUSLY resided in was tampering with my mail. I cannot prove which individual was doing it, but I had other PERSONAL things that did NOT make it where it was supposed to go to. I no longer reside in that town, and have discussed the issues with the post office of this town. I have their assurance that this will NOT happen with them. So, please message me at: stephanie.comalander@gmail.com and send me a mailing address. I do have the names of those I owe books to, so please be honest.

I realize I'm a newer author and still unknown in many circles, so I didn't expect tons of questions from adoring fans just yet (but one can hope). Sooo, I enlisted the aide of one of the individuals who have actually read the first two books of The Highland Stones Series to come up with some questions. Perhaps if you've been wondering as well...stay tuned. She might have asked one you were thinking.

Well, here is the Q & A:

1. do you have a way you come up with your plots or do you just write?

Actually, it's kind of funny. You hear writers who sit there and actually WORK at writing. The work only comes during the editing/revising portion for me...Usually, I get a spark of an idea like a phrase or scene that pops in my head and I create a story around it.

2. how did you come up with the names for your characters?

In short--baby book names. I look up something that I think fits the image of the characters I see in my head and choose one. It's the same way I named my daughter. LOL.

3. who did you use for inspiration when you described your main characters? That's really hard to say. The characters I imagine aren't actually in existence as far as actors I find attractive. I"m sure the characters exist somewhere other than my imagination, but I've yet to see them.

4. what was the hardest thing you encountered when writing the first book? MARKETING. Without a question, marketing is THE single hardest thing (IMO) when writing. When I write, I take myself to a fantasy world...almost an alternate reality. So, it's like a movie in my head that I'm putting on paper. Sometimes, I encounter 'technical difficulties' when 'freeze-framing' a scene so I can adequately describe it, but other than that...it's like my own mental yoga.

5. did you always plan on the plan on the plot twist in book two? Oh yeah! Once I got 3/4 of the way into book 1, I was wondering how the heck I was gonna make book 2 exciting. So, I decided to REALLY give the reader a mental acid trip with NO drugs. If you think book TWO was 'mad hatter-ish', wait until book 3! I REALLY get into the grit there!

6. do you think you'll ever revisit the characters after book three? maybe a novella? I may. One of my fav authors, Charlaine Harris, did a novella to wrap up her Sookie Stackhouse Series. It was a True Blood Epilogue and told about each character that survived until the end. I read it twice. Granted, I may not use her format, but I'd probably write something.

7. do you use music for inspiration when you write? and if you do have you ever considered making a playlist on spotify?

Actually, I listen to music at random. Being a musician (hobby), I'm inspired by lots of music at random, but I have no playlists. I've often written on my laptop while sitting by a fire in my fire place or sitting on the back porch just listening to the sounds of living in the country.

8. will book three bring any new characters?

It may. I'm still writing it and haven't completely decided on whether I'll introduce one or not. I do think there's a strong possibility, though. However, I would like to say that a few characters who have been in the background will come forward a bit more.

9. how did you come up with the idea of the stones?

Well, I know this is kind of funny, but it is what it is. I grew up in the 80's. I remember being 12 or 13 and watching 'Romancing the Stone' with my mom. Awesome movie, btw. Anyhow, in my head, I could see something mixed with that, Indiana Jones, and Scotland....thus The Highland Stones came to fruition!

10. what is/ was your biggest inspiration to write this series?

This series came about once I received the acceptance letter from both Dorrance Publishing and Page Publishing in regard to my YA series. That meant I was successful in creating a quality manuscript. However, I couldn't WAIT to see the fruits of my labors and wanted something published yesterday! I decided to try my hand at romance. I still hadn't had a story line at this point, but a few days later I was laying in bed playing Spider Solitaire on my phone when it hit me--I wanted to write a werewolf-involved romance. I jumped up and started penning my thoughts down (which created the poems I wrote for the beginning of the books). Then, I turned one phrase into a book.

One of the most asked questions when I tell people that I am an author is 'where can I get your books?'

Well, the easy answer would be to tell them of the many platforms my books are available (which I have at the end of this post). LOL.

However, the thing is that I kind of hate doing just that. I like to tell people so much more. I don't want them to just 'get' my book, read it once, and shelf it. I want them to be able to open the pages to an alternate reality where things that aren't 'normal' do exist. I want them to enter a world where 'strange' is perfectly okay and acceptable. I want to allow an escape, though a temporary one, from the struggles of daily life.

We all struggle with life from time to time. The thing is that oftentimes we fail to allow ourselves to escape citing 'silliness' or 'childishness'. YET, at the same time, many groups in society try to tell us that we should look at things the way we did as children or with a child's heart. How the hell can we do that if we don't allow ourselves the escape into our imaginations?

So, readers, please don't just 'get' my books. Enjoy them. Love them. Get to know Hadrian and Adeline. Get to know Amelia and Julian (The Dark Series coming in Winter 2015). And do not be scared to contact me and give constructive feedback. Sure, I have tons of stories to tell you--many of which will be books. HOwever, I"m not a mind reader. I don't know that you want more of Hadrian's background if you don't tell me. LOL.

Well, Enjoy.

Links to get 'Mending the Heartbreak':


Apple iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id91...

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/MendingtheHeartbreak

Kobo.com: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/eboo...

Inktera.com: http://bit.ly/Mending-the-Heartbreak

Scribd.com: http://bit.ly/Mending-the-Heartbreak-...

Amazon.com: amzn.to/1ACOZnS


Links to get 'House of Bruce':

Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/HouseOfBruce

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1vr6oQ0

Scribd: http://bit.ly/1vpnUEZ

PInktera: http://bit.ly/1rnvlwg

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1pCwKJ8

Apple iBooks: http://bit.ly/1tbDmjy

Greetings everyone. I finally decided to add Goodreads beyond that of being an avid reader. I'd like to bid you all 'welcome' and hope you'll stick around for a while.

At the moment, I'm sitting in town with my daughter having a glass of Iced Sweet Tea. I hope you'll join me with a cup of whatever tickles your fancy and engage in a discussion.

Sometimes, those who self publish really struggle with getting their name out there and the whole concept of marketing. It is difficult, but well worth it--or so I'm told. I rather enjoy writing as much as I enjoy reading. I hope you do as well.

I would also like to invite you to check out my website and see some of the fun we have. Here is the link: http://stephaniecomalande.wix.com/ste...

If it doesn't work, just copy and paste into your browser. Also note that if you subscribe, you will NOT be spammed and your email address will NOT be shared with anyone at all. I firmly believe in privacy.

So, have you read my books, yet? If not, check them out. I am going to make 'Mending the Heartbreak' a permanent freebie in regard to Amazon kindle version at some point today. I hope you'll be ready. If you enjoy it, please download or order House of Bruce.

Anyhow, I must close now. I hope you'll keep in touch as I look forward to hearing from each of you and will respond as soon as possible.

With all love,

Stephanie