I’d like to welcome author Skye Alexander to the blog for #WriterWednesday.
Things you need for your writing sessions: A least an hour or two of uninterrupted, quiet time. In the morning, a cup of coffee; late in the afternoon, a glass of wine. And the company of my beautiful Manx cat Zoe.
Things that hamper your writing: People wandering around the house, making a racket. Lately I’ve had a lot of construction guys doing repairs and they’re distracting. My ex-husband used to just burst into my office––even if I put a Do Not Disturb sign on the door––never understanding that once the train of thought pulls out of the station, there’s no calling it back.
Things you love about writing: Pretty much everything. I love doing research. I love hanging out with my characters. I really love it when the story flows through me effortlessly and I’m just the designated typist.
Things you hate about writing: When the Muse decides to take the day off without letting me know ahead of time.
Hardest thing about being a writer: Being alone so much, although it’s a necessary part of the job.
Easiest thing about being a writer: I don’t have to commute, wear a business suit and pantyhose, or deal with bitchy coworkers.
Something you’d like to do: Go on a tour of England’s sacred sites.
Something you wish you’d never done: Gone out with some of the guys I dated when I was younger and less discriminating than now.
Things that make you happy: Hanging out with my friends, playing with my cat, sitting by the ocean, watching sunsets, dancing, writing, reading, playing my drum, music, flowers, art.
Things that drive you crazy: Truck drivers who ride my bumper at 75 mph, neighbors who let their dogs bark for hours on end, waking up at night with a great story idea and forgetting it by morning.
Things you always put in your books: Music. Colorful locales. At least one cat per book. At least one character who’s gay. Interesting and/or obscure historical information (my novels take place in the mid-1920s). For example, the first automatic gates were devised by an Egyptian inventor named Heron nearly 2,000 years ago––he also designed a coin-op dispenser for holy water. How could I resist putting that in?
Things you never put in your books: Child or animal abuse.
Things to say to an author: I always try to say something positive and encouraging, especially to new authors. If they ask, I offer constructive suggestions. I also tell them writing isn’t easy and urge them to stick with it through disappointments and frustrations. I’ve heard that Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury got 60 rejections before a wise publisher brought it out. It’s one of the most highly acclaimed novels in American literature.
Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Don’t give up your day job. I really hated your book/protagonist/plot. (However, one of my beta readers told me she hated the ending of the third novel in my Lizzie Crane mystery series and her criticism inspired me to write a much better one.) Whether or not the author kills you off fictionally in a book, remember that anything you say to a writer is fair game and may appear in some form in a future novel.
Favorite places you’ve been: Barcelona, Florence, Rome, Stonehenge, Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, the Greek islands. I also love Maine and the North Shore of Massachusetts where the first four novels in my Lizzie Crane series are set.
Places you never want to go to again: Some of the rough neighborhoods in Boston, Houston in the summer, Bosnia, Acapulco, the New York subway, any NASCAR race.
Favorite books (or genre): Historical fiction, historical mysteries
Books you wouldn’t buy: Books about war, books with a lot of violence in them (although I really like Dennis Lehane’s books, so go figure), westerns, contemporary romances.
People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): The Dalai Lama
People you’d cancel dinner on: Kim Kardashian
Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Hitchhiked around Europe for six months with my sister when I was twenty-one, with no itinerary, no cellphone, no contacts.
Something you chickened out from doing: Firewalking
The nicest thing a reader said to you: Recently I got a real, paper letter from a high-school girl who said reading one of my books gave her confidence and helped her connect with her personal power. Compliments like that are my favorites because one of my goals is to encourage young people––especially young women––to value themselves, to pursue their dreams, and to think for themselves.
The craziest thing a reader said to you: I don’t know if this person was really a reader, but she posted a negative review on Amazon about me for a book I didn’t write. Sometimes readers suggest changes they think I should make in my books. One told me the house in which the third novel in my Lizzie Crane mystery series is set should have a mile-long winding driveway. I pointed out that the historic mansion, built in the 1700s, is located in the heart of Salem, Massachusetts, where all the grand houses are only steps to the street and each other––I lived a few blocks from the actual house for eight years. Not satisfied, she replied, “Well, it doesn’t sound like a mansion to me.”
