#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Gregory Phillips

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I’d like to welcome author Gregory Phillips to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Things you need for your writing sessions: A cup of strong black tea. Other than that, I can write anywhere as long as I’m feeling inspired.

Things that hamper your writing: Distractions. For the most part, distractions are mental, and a successful writing session depends on getting your mind in the right place to enter the world you’re trying to create.

Things you love about writing: When a story gets moment and just takes off. When the characters start to feel so real that it feels like you’re watching them and simply writing down what you see, rather than creating it from your own head. That’s when I get really excited about what I’m writing.

Things you hate about writing: Terrible to admit this, but I kind of hate editing.

Words that describe you: Joyful, positive, optimistic. This is how I try to live each day and I hope my books can transmit some of this outlook back to my readers.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Great question! Deliberate and sometimes slow-witted. I’m the guy who thinks of the perfect comeback ten seconds too late. Probably a reason why I’m drawn to the written word.

Favorite foods: At this time of year, strawberries! I just picked up some amazing strawberries from my local farmers’ market and I can’t get enough of them.

Things that make you want to gag: Mayonnaise and sour cream. I just can’t and I don’t understand how y’all put that on everything!

Favorite music or song: I’m a real classical music nerd. Hard to pick a favorite but I’m currently enamored with Prokofiev’s second violin concerto.

Music that drives you crazy: Directionless jazz.

Favorite beverage: A dry gin martini with olives.

Something that gives you a sour face: A dirty vodka martini.

Favorite smell: Evaporating rain on a warm summer day.

Something that makes you hold your nose: Fabreze. It’s worse than whatever you were trying to cover up with it.

Something you’re really good at: Dancing. I love partner dancing, especially tango and salsa and like to think I’ve gotten pretty good at it.

Something you’re really bad at: Creating visual art (painting, drawing, graphic design). My lowest college grade was in drawing class even though I never missed a class or assignment.

Things you always put in your books: Hope and aspiration. Everyone needs more of this and there is room for it even in the darkest stories if you know where to look.

Things you never put in your books: A pet peeve of mine—novels about novelists. So many authors do it and it annoys me, though in an ironic and hilarious way.

Favorite books (or genre): I’m not particular about genre as long as a story pulls me in. A few favorites are “East of Eden” by John Steinbeck, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Ernest Hemmingway, “Housekeeping” by Marilynne Robinson and “Written on the Body” by Jeanette Winterson.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Ones that adhere to a formula. I won’t call out any authors by name but there are those who seem to plug characters into a mold that works. However, that’s not how life works and I find myself quickly bored by a formulaic novel.

Most embarrassing moment: There are definitely highs and lows in life as an author. Most embarrassing was when I was doing a signing outside a book store and one person came. It was at a busy shopping center and people were passing by, avoiding eye contact because they seemed to feel sorry for me. Embarrassing at the time, but I get a good laugh about it now.

Proudest moment: The first time I won a literary contest. It was the moment that launched my career, really, but it also felt validating after all the years of work to get to that point.

About Gregory:

From a prolific literary family, Gregory Erich Phillips writes aspirational stories through strong, relatable characters that transcend time and space. Readers frequently describe being transported into the world of his stories. His most recent novel, “A Season in Lights,” won the Grand Prize in the Somerset Awards, and was named the book of the year by The Write Review. This continuing the award-winning tradition of his first two novels, “Love of Finished Years” and “The Exile,” each of which won a major award. Gregory is also an accomplished tango dancer and musician.

Let’s Be Social:

http://gregoryerichphillips.com/

https://www.facebook.com/gregoryerichphillips

https://www.instagram.com/gregoryerichphillips/

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with D. C. Gomez

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I’d like to welcome author, D. C. Gomez, to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Favorite summer treat: Narrowing down my favorite summer treat is such a hard question. I’m a fruit fanatic, so summer is my season to indulge. Some of my favorites are Rainier cherries, watermelons, frozen grapes, and persimmons.

A summer treat that makes you gag: Summer is the season for crawfish in Texas. We have tons of local vendors selling them around my town. I’m the weird kid that can’t stand the textures of it and would gag trying to eat them.

Favorite summer beverage: I’m crazy about Horchata. It’s a traditional Mexican drink made with rice. To me, this is just a perfect summer drink.

A drink that gives you a pickle face: Regardless of how many times I tried it, I still can’t stand sparkling water.

Best thing you ever grilled in spring: The best thing I have ever grilled was chicken and beef kabob. I spend a summer during high school making/selling them as a fundraiser for a club at school. By the end of the summer, my best friend and I were pros. To this day, my family loves it when I make it. Too bad it takes a bit to prep.

Your worst kitchen or grilling disaster: I love experimenting in the kitchen. One year I tried to make making a tiramisu from scratch. My kitchen looked like a tornado hit it. I had a messed everywhere, and somehow, I could not make the crazy dessert taste right. After that, I had a new respect for the dessert.

Best summer vacation memory: The summer before getting deployed to Iraq, my then boyfriend and I took a cruise. It was a four-day cruise to that stopped in Playa Del Carmen. I had never been on a cruise before, so that vacation was full of first-time experiences.

A summer vacation disaster that you’d rather forget: A vacation disaster happened a few years ago. I had the brilliant idea of taking my parents on a road trip from my town in East Texas down to Galveston. Somehow, I manage to forget how much my parents hated road-trips. I was so excited to take them to a beach that underestimated the six-hour drive in a tight vehicle. We will drive nowhere for long periods of time again.

Most favorite place to write/edit in the summer: Favorite place to write in the summer is my local bookstore. There is an energy of excitement in the air that is contagious. I enjoyed sitting with my laptop at the café and watching people shop around and just browse the books.

The worst place to write in the summer because of all the distractions: This might sound odd, since I enjoy writing in busy places. I have a hard time concentrating when I visit my family during the summer. Every year, I take all my notes with me to work on my books, but it never happens. I’m distracted by the things my family has going on.

Favorite thing to do on a summer evening: Summers in Texas can be murderous with our heat index. The evenings, on the other hand, are the perfect time to take long walks around the park. This is a fun way for me to relax and let go.

Least favorite thing about summer: The humidity in Texas is probably my least favorite thing. When all you have to do is step outside just to sweat, you know it’s too hot and sticky.

The thing you like most about being a writer: What I love the most about being a writer is being able to create new characters. The initial process of developing a story is so much fun for me. I enjoy playing with scenarios and new characters.

The thing you like least about being a writer: The marketing side of being a writer is probably the hardest for me, and my least favorite. It’s the part that pushes me out of my comfort zone. While not my favorite, it is still part of the process and I take it seriously.

The thing that you will most remember about your writing life: The one thing I would remember more about my writing journey is the amazing community of readers and writers that I have met. It has blessed me to connect with incredible people who love books and have embraced my works. I’m extremely grateful for this community.

Something in your writing life that you wish you could do over: If I could do something over in my journey, I would have started sooner. It took me a while to conquer my fears and take the leap to publish.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: To this day, joining the U.S. Army is probably the most daring thing I have ever done. I was a junior in college when I enlisted. To this day, my family is in shock that I joined. I was the first person in my family to do it.

Something you chickened out from doing: While I joined the Army and had an incredible experience. I discovered I’m terrified of heights. Information that would have been useful prior to enlisted in Airborne School. During the training, we practiced jumping out of a 34-foot tower. I learned quickly that jumping out of a plane was not in my future. That was the first program I was happy I did not complete.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: The nicest thing a reader has ever told me was that my books helped them during difficult times. They could escape the tension of their everyday life and laughed along with the adventures of my characters. Their words humbled me.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: A reader once asked me if I was following them around and capturing their life story on the page. Considering they were referring to my book Death’s Intern, an urban fantasy tale based on the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, I had to blink. I really wasn’t sure if this person was serious about the claim or just messing with me.

The best summer job you ever had: The best summer job I ever had was a program sponsored by the city of Salem. They hired me to work at the local access TV station that was newly opened in the city. It was the place I felt in love with storytelling. That was the summer between my freshman and sophomore year.

The worst summer job you ever had: The city of Salem also sponsored the worst job summer job I ever had, ironic. They hired a group of high school students to do manual labor at an alternative school that was being renovated. I learned how to set sheet-walls and even ceiling tiles. After that summer I appreciated the hard-work it took to renovate a building and working in hot painful conditions. It made me realized I did not want to do that when I graduated high school.

About D. C.:

D. C. Gomez is an award-winning USA Today Bestselling Author, Podcaster, motivational speaker, and coach. Born in the Dominican Republic, she grew up in Salem, Massachusetts. D. C. studied film and television at New York University. After college, she joined the U.S. Army, and proudly served for four years.

D. C. has a master’s degree in Science Administration from Central Michigan University, as well as a Master's in Adult Education from Texas A&M- Texarkana University. She is a certified John Maxwell Team speaker and coach, and a certified meditation instructor from the Chopra Center.

One of D. C. passions is helping those around her overcome their self-limiting beliefs. She writes both non-fiction and fiction books, ranging from Urban Fantasy to Children’s Books.

#ThisorThat Author Interview with Matthew Hughes

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I’d like to welcome author Matthew Hughes to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite summer traditions: swimming in the municipal pool in Kitchener, Ontario, in the dog days of the 1950s, even though the pool was too full of screaming, splashing kids to actually swim

Something summer-related that you’ll never do again: going to the be-ins in Vancouver’s Stanley Park in 1967. Those days are gone.

Favorite summer beverage: ice-cold Guinness

A drink that gives you a pickle face: weissbier. It always gives he heartburn

Best summer memory: 1968, when my wife and I first got together. There’s nothing like young love in the summer.

Something you’d rather forget: 1958. My father took us on our first ever camping vacation, so we could be away while his brother burned down our house to get us out of a mortgage dad couldn’t pay. I had to be dressed by the Red Cross relief people.

Your favorite thing to get from the ice cream truck: Creamsicles, 1950s vintage.

Some dessert that you wish you’d never bought: Sorry, I’ve never met a dessert I didn’t like.

Most favorite place to write/edit in the summer: House-sitting in Tea Gardens, NSW, Australia. I shared a back porch with a Sylvester-type cat, overlooking a tropical garden.

The worst place to try to write in the summer because of all the distractions: house-sitting an apartment overlooking the Anarchist’s Quarter in Athens: searing heat, machine-gun- toting “special” police, nightlife that went on until 3 a.m.

The thing you like most about being a writer: I have a fragmented psyche, but it mostly all comes together when I write.

The thing you like least about being a writer: I spent most of my career as a freelance speechwriter, and sometimes I had to write speeches I very much disagreed with. Encompassing the world view of the speaker left a bad taste in my mind.

The thing that you will most remember about your writing life: winning the Arthur Ellis Award from the Crime Writers of Canada. Total surprise. I had no idea I was even on the shortlist.

Something in your writing life that you wish you could do over: George R.R. Martin asked me if I wanted to be one of his Wild Cards co-authors. I didn’t have the confidence to say yes.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Northern Alberta, 1968. I was an eighteen-year-old kid running a rec center on a remote Metis colony. I’d got a guy to put in a juke box so we could have dances on Saturday night. But one of the dances turned into a brawl. I shoved my way through a dozen fist-swinging and boot-flying brawlers to shield the juke box from damage

Something you chickened out from doing: waiting for a midnight train in Foggia, Italy, I saw what looked like Mafiosi punching and slapping some frightened guy. Nothing I could do.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: [Your] books make me feel like a mouse whose pleasure centres are being deliberately tripped in a scientific experiment upon its brain.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “It’s a privilege to meet you.” I replied, “Not a privilege, but I’m shooting for ‘It’s a pleasure.’”

The best summer job you ever had: working with my dad and uncle framing up for pouring concrete foundations.

The worst summer job you ever had: ten- and twelve-hour days in a factory that made school desks. I stood in the box car at the end of the production line, stacking boxes of desks – two to a box – that weighed 96 pounds each. I weighed 135.

About Matthew:

Matthew Hughes writes fantasy, space opera, and crime fiction. He has sold 24 novels to publishers large and small in the UK, US, and Canada, as well as nearly 100 works of short fiction to professional markets.

His latest novels are:  Barbarians of the Beyond, an authorized companion novel to Jack Vance’s Demon Princes series, and Baldemar, a fix-up of a series of stories that originally ran in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and two anthologies.

He has won the Endeavour and Arthur Ellis Awards, and has been shortlisted for the Aurora, Nebula, Philip K. Dick, Endeavour, A.E. Van Vogt, Neffy, and Derringer Awards.  He has been inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association’s Hall of Fame.

In order to live on the earnings of a modern midlist author, he has given up having a permanent address to become a full-time housesitter.  In the past fifteen years, he has lived in twelve countries and passed through several more.  He has no fixed address.

#ThisorThatThursday Interview with Julie Bates

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I’d like to welcome author Julie Bates to the blog for this edition of #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite summer traditions: freezing and canning. I like making strawberry and blackberry jam. I also make pretty good apple butter. Summer is also my time for getting large stacks of books from the library and working on crafts like knitting and quilting. I love being home and having time to do the things I love.

Something summer-related that you’ll never do again: Anything that involves long periods of time outdoors. I am not a good DIYer.

Favorite summer beverage: A large Chick fil A lemonade

A drink that gives you a pickle face: Dr. Pepper

Best summer memory: Among my favorite memories stems from my early childhood in Michigan. My dad worked for GM and left for work before we went to school. Afternoons he’d come home tired, so weekends were a treasure. In the summer we would pack up and go to Point Huron and play on the beach all day. Then we would go to a nearby restaurant where they served shrimp and fries in a basket lined with a red checked napkin. I still love almost anything to do with water.

Something you’d rather forget: Summers are HOT here in NC. One time I tried a huge garden and completely overwhelmed myself. I fought bugs, ground hogs and clay soil all summer, not to mention weeds from hell. I keep my gardening small and contained these days.

Best thing you ever grilled in spring: Chicken breast or burgers.

Your worst kitchen or grilling disaster: Do not ever use sesame oil in a wok! I very nearly set my kitchen on fire. My exhaust fan was charcoal and smelled awful.

Most favorite place to write/edit in the summer: I have a chair near a window where I can watch the birds. In my dreams I will renovate our back porch into a sun room and hang out in there.

The worst place to try to write in the summer because of all the distractions: The living room. My husband keeps the TV going constantly and it drives me cuckoo.

Favorite thing to do on a summer evening: Go star gazing

Least favorite thing about summer: The HEAT!

Favorite place to visit in Virginia: Colonial Williamsburg

Somewhere you’ve visited way too much. Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt: Amusement Parks. I outgrew those when my son reached adulthood.

The thing you like most about being a writer: The freedom to create my own world, painting an imaginary canvas in all the colors of the rainbow with words and thoughts and feelings.

The thing you like least about being a writer: deadlines. I always feel there is more I should have accomplished, done better, researched more. I can drive myself batty with details.

Things you will run to the store for in the middle of the night: Coke zero, chocolate, missing ingredients for what I plan to cook for dinner.

Things you never put on your shopping list: collard greens, liver, sardines

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Riding a roller coaster

Something you chickened out from doing: Mountain climbing. I’m fine with hiking but I’m not crawling up a bare rock face.

About Julie:

Julie Bates grew up reading little bit of everything, but when she discovered Agatha Christie, she knew she what she wanted to write.  Along the way, she has written a weekly column for her local newspaper and published a few articles in magazines such as Spin Off and Carolina Country.  She has blogged for Killer Nashville and the educational website Read.Learn.Write.  She currently works as a teacher for special needs students.  She is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Southeastern Writers of America (SEMWA) and The Historical Novel Society.  When not busy plotting her next story,  she enjoy doing crafts and spending time with her husband and son, as well as a number of dogs and cats who have shown up on her doorstep and never left.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Katherine Lawrence

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I would like to welcome Katherine Lawrence to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Things you need for your writing sessions: Paper, pencil, laptop.

Things that hamper your writing: Noise, negative self-talk.

Things you love about writing: I love my ideas, my images, my inventive language, my honesty on the page, and the way writing puts me in touch with my true self.

Things you hate about writing: Discovering a typo AFTER the book has been printed.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Promoting my books.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Giving a reading.

Things you always put in your books: Details, specific moments, all six senses.

Things you never put in your books: animal cruelty.

Things to say to an author: “Love your book! I’m giving a copy to everyone I know.”

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: “I could’ve written that.”

Favorite places you’ve been: Canoe trips in northern Saskatchewan, specifically the Churchill River.

Places you never want to go to again: Las Vegas, bingo halls, casinos, shopping malls.

Favorite things to do: Writing, sharing food with the people I love, hiking, canoeing, reading a good book at night in my terrycloth housecoat.

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: My taxes.

Things that make you happy: Writing.

Things that drive you crazy: Not writing.

Most embarrassing moment: Discovering a piece of spinach had been stuck to my front tooth while I was talking to a CEO about business.

Proudest moment: The launch of my five books: Black Umbrella; Stay; Never Mind; Lying to Our Mothers; and Ring Finger, Left Hand.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Marry my husband.

Biggest mistake: Working in jobs that bored me silly.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Write my young adult novel in verse, Stay.

Something you chickened out from doing: Sitting bedside with my dying father. I waited until his final hours.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: “I’m your biggest fan!”

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “I don’t read poetry.”

About Katherine:

Katherine Lawrence is a writer who loves troubled characters, poached eggs for supper, a messy desk, and green wool socks. Read her young adult verse novel, Stay, or any of her award-winning books of poetry: Black Umbrella; Never Mind; Lying to Our Mothers; Ring Finger, Left Hand. Katherine lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the trapezoid-shaped province above North Dakota. She has an MFA in Writing, is a former writer in residence at Saskatoon Public Library, and coaches emerging and established writers.  www.katherinelawrence.net

Let’s Be Social:

Website: www.katherinelawrence.net


#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Lynn Cahoon

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I’d like to welcome the fabulous Lynn Cahoon to the blog today for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: Chocolate, lap blankets, and a pile of books

Things you need to throw out: Books I’ll never read (okay, not throw out but give away), items from my past that don’t hold any meaning now, papers that I think might turn into a story, someday.

Things you need for your writing sessions: a computer (desk or laptop), my one page outline, a cup of coffee. (I really don’t think you need a lot of ‘setting’ stuff to write. I’m a Nike girl. Just do it.)

Things that hamper your writing: Being tired, too many things on my mind, people talking, music I like to sing along to, or on the other end - too quiet of an area.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Some days writing. Some days not letting the haters get in my head. Writers tearing down other writers.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Telling the story that my characters want to be told. Supporting other authors in their journey.

Things you never want to run out of: Stories. Sugar. Flavored sparkling water.

Things you wish you’d never bought: anything with fake sugar or flavoring. Frozen meals. A certain book I won’t mention that I wanted so much to be amazing. LOL

Words that describe you: Kind, ambitious, inquisitive, loving

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Obsessive, timid,

Favorite foods: Homemade goodness. Fried fish. Mashed potatoes.

Things that make you want to gag: Beans, hot chilies, bad food makes me sad.

Favorite beverage: Flavored sparkling water

Something that gives you a sour face: Sweet Tea

Favorite smell: Jasmine.

Something that makes you hold your nose: Women with too much perfume. They give me migraines.

Last best thing you ate: Fried Green Tomatoes at Magnolias in Charleston SC.

Last thing you regret eating: Sugar. I need to kick the habit.

The last thing you ordered online: Vitamins and olive oil

The last thing you regret buying: Candy. I say I’m not going to eat it and yet.

Things to say to an author: I love your books. I loved the story. I wanted to be your character. I buy everything you write.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I found a typo on page 14. I didn’t get the character’s motivation. Can you make your book free?

Favorite places you’ve been: I have to say Haiti was beautiful. And the water was warm and salty.

Places you never want to go to again: I tend to find beauty in every place I visit, even for a short time. That being said, I don’t love being around a lot of people all the time. 

Favorite books (or genre): Time Travel, women’s fiction, mysteries, paranormals

Books you wouldn’t buy: War books, male centric thrillers, books without a happy ending

About Lynn:

Lynn Cahoon, author of THREE TAINTED TEAS, a Kitchen Witch mystery, is a NYT and USA Today author of the best-selling Tourist Trap, Kitchen Witch, Cat Latimer, Farm-to-Fork, and soon to release, Survivors’ Book Club mystery series. No matter where the mystery is set, readers can expect a fun ride. Find out more at her website www.lynncahoon.com

Three Tainted Teas, a Kitchen Witch mystery

Aspiring witch and culinary entrepreneur, Mia Malone, must dispel a deadly plot to wreck her clients’ wedding in this charming continuation of New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon’s Kitchen Witch Mystery series.
 
Business is bubbling at Mia’s catering service and cooking school, Mia’s Morsels, but toil and trouble are not far behind. Mia just accepted her toughest gig yet: last-minute wedding planner for Magic Springs’ own Romeo and Juliet. Though the small town is fairly accepting of magic, two families have been locked in a vicious feud spanning generations. Unfortunately for both families, they’re about to become in-laws! Amethyst and Tok are excited to wed in a few weeks and somehow Mia must ensure the event is flawless.
 
But when she goes to pick up paperwork from the couple’s previous wedding planner, Mia discovers the woman murdered in an apparent attempt to stop the contentious union. Now, not only is Mia a prime suspect, as the new planner she may also be the killer’s next target. Backed by her squad, her charms—literal and figurative—and a protective amulet from her Grans, it’s up to Mia to save the star-crossed couple’s wedding, her professional reputation…and maybe even her life!

Book Links:

Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09BKCDVWF/

Apple - https://books.apple.com/us/book/three-tainted-teas/id1579116103

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/three-tainted-teas

BN.com -  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/three-tainted-teas-lynn-cahoon/1139909716?ean=9781496730336

 Let’s Be Social:

Goodreads -http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5857424.Lynn_Cahoon

Twitter - https://twitter.com/LynnCahoon

Facebook -https://www.facebook.com/LynnCahoonAuthor

Website - http://lynncahoon.com/

Amazon author page - http://www.amazon.com/Lynn-Cahoon/e/B0082PWOAO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Linda Norlander

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I’d like to welcome author, Linda Norlander, back to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday! Congratulations on your latest novel.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Continuous self-doubt. Is my writing good enough?

Easiest thing about being a writer: Conjuring up stories to write about.

Something you’re really good at: Keeping the gas tank full in the car. I have a great fear of running out of gas. (Ever watch the cemetery scene in “Night of the Living Dead?”)

Something you’re really bad at: Making pancakes—they are known as Grandma’s burnt breakfast

Something you wanted to be when you were a kid: A cowgirl—of course I needed a horse which I didn’t have

Something you do that you never dreamed you’d do: Manage a website

Something you wish you could do: A better job of managing a website

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Always being on time. I would love to be more spontaneous but this little voice in the back of my head keeps nagging me, “To be on time is to be late.”

Things to say to an author: This is Nobel Prize quality writing.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: I slept through your first chapter.

Favorite places you’ve been: North Shore of Lake Superior and (of course) Paris

Places you never want to go to again: Las Vegas—Last time I was there I lost $20 playing slot machine poker and declared it enough! Time to flee the noise and the glitz.

People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): Bruce Springsteen, Michelle Obama and Louise Penny

People you’d cancel dinner on: Ted Cruz, Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson

Favorite things to do: Playing Boggle with kids and grandkids (I never win.)

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Figuring out my taxes. I’m happy to pay someone else to do this.

Most embarrassing moment: Hitting the wrong opening chord as the church organist, thereby making a great blat onto the Lord. (I was thankfully fired from the volunteer job shortly thereafter.)

Proudest moment: Seeing the cover design for my first mystery.

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: I rode a bicycle from the west bank of the Mississippi River to Boston Harbor carrying a sleeping bag, a change of clothes and a water bottle

Something you chickened out from doing: Repeating the above.

The coolest person you’ve ever met: Rosalyn Carter, a definite steel magnolia.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Bruce Springsteen—he’s short.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: Can’t wait for the next book.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: There’s a comma missing on page 46.

About Linda:

Linda Norlander is the author of A Cabin by the Lake mystery series set in Northern Minnesota. Books in the series include Death of an Editor and Death of a Starling and Death of a Snow Ghost. Norlander has published award winning short stories, op-ed pieces and short humor featured in regional and national publications. Before taking up the pen to write murder mysteries, she worked in public health and end-of-life care. Norlander resides in Tacoma, Washington with her spouse.

Let’s Be Social:

www.lindanorlander.com

www.twitter.com/LindaNorlander

www.facebook.com/authorlindanorlander

https://www.amazon.com/Death-Snow-Ghost-Cabin-Mystery/dp/1685121284/ref=sr_1_9?crid=2GFH1HXCRRLMX&keywords=linda+norlander&qid=1652806837&s=books&sprefix=%2Cstripbooks%2C397&sr=1-9

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Nicole Fanning

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I’d like to welcome author, Nicole Fanning, back to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

A few of your favorite things: Benji, Rocky and Loki-my fur children!

Things you need to throw out: Sentimental clothing that I will never wear again, and nearly every old phone I have every owned.

Hardest thing about being a writer: Knowing exactly what is going to happen, but not being able to share it with anxious readers because you don’t want to spoil the story!
Easiest thing about being a writer: Knowing exactly what is going to happen!

Favorite foods: Pizza, Ice Cream

Things that make you want to gag: Wasabi, Pickled Herring, Brussel Sprouts

Favorite music or song: Everything but twangy country

Music that drives you crazy: Twangy Country

Favorite beverage: TEA
Something that gives you a sour face: Sports Drinks

Favorite smell: Apple Cinnamon
Something that makes you hold your nose: Fish

Something you’re really good at: Overthinking
Something you’re really bad at: Relaxing

Something you wish you could do: Wrap Presents

Something you wish you’d never learned to do: Sailing

The last thing you ordered online: My new Ducky Keyboard

The last thing you regret buying: A five-pound bag of flaxseed. Oops.

Things you’d walk a mile for: Any canine I could cuddle.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Spiders

Things you always put in your books: Easter eggs. ;)
Things you never put in your books: Pet deaths.

Best thing you’ve ever done: Marrying my husband.
Biggest mistake: Dying my hair platinum blonde. “That was a lot of damage.”

About Nicole: 

Nicole Fanning is a smitten wife and super proud dog mom to three rambunctious rescue dogs.

She’s an old school romantic and documentary enthusiast, with a proclivity for a little mischief. She also has small obsession with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and obscure boardgames.

Her debut novel, Catalyst, is the first incendiary installment of the Heart of the Inferno Series which follows the romantic entanglement of deadly billionaire mafia don, Jaxon Pace, and his unexpected paramour, Natalie Tyler.

…And this is only the beginning!

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nicole.fanning.1

Instagram: AuthorNicoleFanning

Twitter: AuthorNicoleFanning

Website: nherownwords.com