There's a blog tour going on that is all about the writing process. I've been tagged to share the ins and outs of how I write. In theory, I was supposed to put the arm on a few other writers to also participate, but with the launch of a new book and leaving on vacation, that didn't happen. So, writer friends of mine, you dodged a bullet! There are four questions involved and I will do my best to answer them.
      Before I do, though, I think I should note that I came to this blog tour through Linda Boulanger. Linda is an exceptionally creative soul who writes terrific, interesting romances (like Dance With the Enemy, which can be found here) as well as being my friend and creator of all my covers. It's funny how the world works, sometimes. When I was ready to publish my first book, Feels Like the FIrst Time, I went looking for a cover artist by spending hours poring over their websites. I found someone whose work I admired, shot her an email asking if she would be interested in designing a cover for me, and was told "Nope." She was too busy. She did me the great favor of referring me to Linda, though, and the rest is history. She's designed every cover I've ever done. Okay, then - on with the questions:


What am I working on?

     Like most writers,I have about a hundred books and stories sloshing around in my head like a big pot of creative soup. I'm thinking of a horror novel I hope to write later this year. I've also got the beginnings of a dystopian society story that I hope to write in early 2015. I'm also planning the last three installments of the Second Chance Love stories that will be out in July, November and December of this year. 
     But, what I'm really working on (which means that I open the Word file every day and add at least a few words) is a currently untitled book that started its life being called Adorkable You. I got enough negative feedback from people about that title that I have raised the white flag on it and I am looking for something more suitable. I will find it.)
     The book formerly known as Adorkable You will be a high school romance set in present day. It started out with a single idea: what happens if the nerdy boy gets the beautiful girl instead of the jock? (Hmm... wonder where that idea came from!) It has evolved beyond that, though, and there are some themes and stories I'm really looking forward to exploring, such as Are kids today, with all their technology and advanced options, really all that different from the kids I grew up with in the '70s? I also want to explore the idea that so many people, including those we wouldn't suspect, are scared to show their true faces to the world. It's going to be book-length, but I am toying with the idea of releasing it in a series of four novellas of about 20,000 words each.


How does my work differ from others in its genre?


     Well, as you can see by the list of projects I have listed above, with a horror story, a dystopian novel and a romance, I can't really claim a single genre. However, if I look at Feels Like the First Time, Both Sides Now, Second Chance Christmas, Second Chance Valentines and the upcoming untitled romance, there is a theme. I like to write love stories, but I don't think I would categorize them as Romances. I hit the primary requirement of a Romance in that there is a Happily Ever After at the end, but if I look at my romantic leads in those stories (myself in the first two, Steve Larson in the Second Chance stories and Spencer Davis in the upcoming book,) none of them are traditional Romance archetypes. There's no billionaires, cowboys, or rock stars among them. There's nothing wrong with writing that type of story, but they're just nothing that appeals to me. I like to write about love - the emotion, what it does to us, how it changes us, and what we're willing to do to find it. I don't need rich, dominating bullies to do that. 


Why do I write what I write?


     I admit, I am a spoiled writer. I publish myself, so I don't have an agent or a publisher saying "We want another book exactly like Feels Like the First Time, just because that book sold really well. Instead, I get to write what I want, and my readers let me know if I'm on the right path or not. So far, my readers have stuck with me through two True Love stories, a Second Chance love story, a tale of revenge, a Christmas parable, and a story about a down and out rocker who dies and goes to heaven. I feels so blessed to have found a supportive, open-minded readership.
     I also write the stories I would want to read, and I read a lot of different genres. Mostly, when I write, I try to find the heart of the story. The emotion. I started writing Rock 'n Roll Heaven because I was interested in writing about Buddy Holly, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Roy Orbison, etc. In the end, though, that wasn't enough to sustain a story. To me, it was Jimmy 'Guitar' Velvet's story arc that carried the day. He was much more interesting to me at the end of the story than he was at the beginning. He was a better person, too, and I admit I like that. 


How does my writing process work?


     My stories always start with an idea - What if a guy that had never had anything go wrong his whole life suddenly found that nothing would go right, for instance, was the kernel of the idea behind Lucky Man. To me, that was an interesting question. However, an interesting idea, as I mentioned with Rock 'n Roll Heaven, isn't enough. It has to be married with interesting characters. I became interested in the character of Brett Mann, but even more so in Mirela. To me, that's when a story comes together.
     I mentioned that the book I'm writing started as The nerdy guy gets the girl, but I didn't get excited about actually writing the story until I thought of the character of Alexandra, known in the book as Alex. She appears to have everything going for her - great student, popular, football player boyfriend, excellent athlete - but she is a completely different person on the inside than what she shows the world. That disconnect leads to a lot of issues in her life, and that's when the story got interesting enough to write. 
     Though I occasionally write from an outline, mostly I am what other writers call a "pantser," i.e. someone who writes from the seat of my pants. Essentially, I am making it up as I go along. When I wrote Rock 'n Roll Heaven, I knew my beginning and I knew my end, but the whole middle part of the book was a mystery to me. I often feel like an observer, watching the events unfold, more than I am the creator, making them happen. When I try to force situations, they never work out very well.