#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Mandy Eve-Barnett 

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I’d like to welcome Mandy Eve-Barnett to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Ensuring I get my story plot, character description, dialogue, scene ideas onto the page before they disappear into the ether. We have all experienced the ‘I’ll remember it’ phenomenon.
Easiest thing about being a writer: When I am in the zone and actually writing and translating the ‘movie’ in my head into words. I have multiple characters past, present and future clambering in my head at all times.

Things you need for your writing sessions: Primarily peace and quiet with good light and the house to myself. I rarely have music playing. I have a dedicated study, which has made such a difference to my process. It is full of inspirational items, copious notebooks and folders for every book idea, as well as reference and research items, and a comfortable chair.

Things that hamper your writing: Deadlines, freelance projects, and book promotion efforts and other life commitments.

Last best thing you ate: A grilled salmon dish at a fancy restaurant. It was perfect – succulent, flavorful and fresh. I miss fresh seafood and fish desperately living in landlocked Alberta, Canada after having daily access when I lived in England.

Last thing you regret eating: A takeout Chinese shrimp dish I ate many years ago in England, which gave me food poisoning. The pain and repercussions were excruciating.

Things you always put in your books: I discovered after researching a deep dive into my story themes that every single book has love within it in all its forms, not just romantic but sibling, parental, friendship and environmental.

Things you never put in your books: Any sort of abuse of animals or children. They are all innocent and worthy of our utmost protection.

Favorite places you’ve been: Top of my list is Rome and will be forever more. I felt my soul had found its home. It is so full of history but also a modern place to live. The food, the siestas, and the way of life is perfect. The Insectarium in Montreal, which is an astounding exhibition of one man’s lifelong collection of the marvelous insects of the world. Paris, is iconic and a wealth of art, literature and romance.

Places you never want to go to again: Las Vegas. It was awful - dirty, noisy, demeaning and a disgusting focus on greed.

Favorite things to do: Time with my grown kids is the top of my list, they are extraordinary people I am proud to call my own, exploring and being in nature, frequent road trips, and, of course, reading and writing (no surprise there!).

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Going to America anytime soon. Self explanatory.

The coolest person you’ve ever met: Princess Anne. She would attend horse trials every summer in the English village I lived in. She is so down to earth and pleasant. Nigel Havers (English actor) he hosted an annual cocktail party and was charming and personable.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Davy Jones (The Monkees) passing him on my local high street years after the fame of the group. His boyish looks had faded, but it was still a thrill.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: Actually it was several asking me to write a sequel to my medieval fantasy novella, the Rython Kingdom, which I thought when I wrote it, was a standalone. They were so enamored of the characters and location, they wanted more, so, of course I obliged and wrote Rython Legacy. Subsequently, I came up with an idea for the villain of the piece and gave her, her own novella, Malgraf’s Dawning later on.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: It was actually while I was being interviewed on a New York radio station. I was asked if I could write the Rython saga going forward to modern day due to the magical powers of the main character’s skipping a generation. This would have meant engaging in a mammoth writing task. I declined and thanked them saying I had too many other story ideas to ‘get out there’.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: In high school I created a perspective artwork piece using a very large notice board taken off the school corridor wall. It was a corridor of black and white square tiles going into the distance and papier-mâché entrails at the end. This project and several other art pieces resulted in an offer to go the Royal College of Art in London, UK until my art teacher advised them I was only twelve.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: I’ll be honest here most of my stories don’t turn out the way I think they will – my characters always come up with a better perspective, or plot and I’m happy to detour.

My favorite book as a child: The Story of Hiawatha, which I received as a prize from the Brooke Bond National Travel contest for an art piece I entered at the age of seven. I still have the book event though the spine is tattered, it is a precious keepsake.

A book I’ve read more than once: Ferney by James Long. It is the ultimate reincarnation love story and Galley and Ferney are real people to me inhabiting a place I see in my mind’s eye due to it being so familiar. I wrote my own reincarnation novel, The Twesome Loop as homage to it.

Your favorite movie as a child: This is a really difficult question, I have so many. Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and The Sound of Music, these were an era of fanciful stories and I loved them. We all need magic in our lives. I think that is why my narratives have such twists in them, it is the unexpected that makes constructing a story so much fun.

A TV show or movie that kept you awake at night as a kid (or as an adult): I made the mistake of watching Psycho, (the original) it had a profound effect on me and installed a real fear into my mind, I didn’t sleep well for a long time, or take a shower without the bathroom door open!

About Mandy:

Mandy Eve-Barnett is an Edmonton Best Seller, multi-genre author, writing children’s, YA and adult books. With eleven books published since 2011, and one more launching in September 2026, and another nine in various stages of completion, her writing life is full. This does not include her writing in numerous anthologies and magazines, and a variety of non-fiction projects through her freelance business as well as presentations and panelist positions at various writing conferences.

Mandy draws on over 10 years’ experience as a multi-genre author, freelance writer and writing community advocate. She is the current Secretary of The Writers Foundation of Strathcona County and Scouting Manager for Relatable Media. And past President of the Arts & Culture Council of Strathcona Council and past Secretary of Alberta Authors Co-operative. She hosts the local Writers Circle monthly meeting and creates weekly writing prompts for the WFSC website.

Mandy has been blogging since 2010 and has over 3,500 subscribers and visitors from 209 countries.

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#WriterWednesday with Author Sandy Malone

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I’d like to welcome Sandy Malone to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Getting the uninterrupted time to write

Easiest thing about being a writer: Writing

Words that describe you: Enthusiastic, optimistic, and friendly

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Chatterbox and overcommitted

Something you’re really good at: Planning parties and attracting fun groups of people

Something you’re really bad at: Saying no

Last best thing you ate: warm Krispy Kreme donuts

Last thing you regret eating: too many Krispy Kremes

Favorite music or song: Yungblud “Zombie”

Music that drives you crazy: The Jimmy Buffett channel on XM – my husband listens to it constantly on road trips

The last thing you ordered online: one of those mattress toppers that’s supposed to make your bed feel like a fancy hotel (it worked, btw)

The last thing you regret buying: Cosmetics (any of them) off TikTok. I gotta stop scrolling late at night.

Things you’d walk a mile for: A friend who needs me

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: Drunken members of the wedding party

Things you always put in your books: Cops and weddings

Things you never put in your books: Spicy sex scenes – I have six teenage grandchildren and five of them are boys. I don’t want them to avoid looking me in the eye on holidays.

Things to say to an author: I cannot wait for your next book.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book: Do you use AI to make your covers or write your books?

Favorite things to do: Read a book on the beach and travel with my husband

Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing: Probably planning weddings professionally again

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Getting my pilot’s license

Something you chickened out from doing: Nobody can get me to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: I’ve been called “the Elin Hilderbrand of Jekyll Island” – I’m a huge fan of Elin Hilderbrand, and I’ve read all of her books

The craziest thing a reader said to you: Messages warning me not to kill off certain characters who are important to them

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: Probably opening my own flower shop on Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, after the local florist refused to do what my brides requested.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: RealityTV. I had no idea that I wouldn’t be able to do real work for clients while I was filming Wedding Island.

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books: All the crazy weddings we planned

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not: I’m not my main character, Tally Davis. She’s a compilation of me and all the wedding planners I ever worked with.

The first 8-track, record, cassette, or CD you ever bought: Berlin – Love Life, it was a record and then I bought the tape for at the beach because we didn’t have a record player down there.

A type of music that’s not your cup of tea: Reggaeton.

My favorite book as a child: I read the entire Bobbsey Twins series in second grade. VC Andrews as I got older – I was obsessed with the Flowers in the Attic series.

A book I’ve read more than once: The Charm School by Nelson DeMille

Your favorite movie as a child: Wizard of Oz and E.T.

A TV show or movie that kept you awake at night as a kid (or as an adult): Dumbo and Bambi – I never liked shows where they killed off the mommy.

About Sandy:

Author Sandy Malone is best known for starring in TLC's reality TV show "Wedding Island" and writing hundreds of wedding advice columns that were published in BRIDES, WeddingWire, and HuffPost. She wrote a DIY wedding planning book in 2016 that was traditionally published, and she released her new fiction series - Gem of the Golden Isles - in April 2024. She has also ghostwritten books for well-known reality TV stars (including a Real Housewife). Most recently, she was editor of The Police Tribune.

Sandy got her journalism degree at The Ohio State University and was a reporter and editor for major news publications, including the Wall Street Journal, before she returned to her hometown of Washington, DC, for a career in public relations and government affairs. She began planning destination weddings professionally after her own was nearly a disaster, and ended up planning more than 500 weddings in the Caribbean in 11 years with her retired SWAT-commander husband. After Hurricane Maria wiped out her wedding business, Sandy went back to writing full time.

Sandy and her husband, Bill, live on Jekyll Island, Georgia, with their coonhound Sherlock. Christmas on Jekyll is her fifth fiction novel. She’s working on a new series titled Under the Oaks for release in 2026.

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Why Details Matter

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I’ve been a technical writer or managed technical writers and software testers for more years that I’d like to admit. I often teach workshops to show why details matter when you’re writing.

One exercise that I like to do if I have lots of time (and a tarp and tablecloth) is to have two volunteers. One is going to provide the instructions for creating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and the other is going to do the assembling. The only catch is that the assembler can only do what the other person tells him/her. There’s no interpreting or making assumptions. It usually doesn’t take very long for the person providing the instructions to realize he/she is not specific enough and that key details are missing.

I have had assemblers put the jar of peanut butter on top of the loaf of bread. (No one said to remove the lid or to take the bread out of the wrapper.) I also had someone spread the peanut butter with his hand because no one said to use a knife.

This exercise is quite entertaining and often messy, but it does highlight the need for providing the right amount of details to set the stage for your readers. Whether your story follows a linear timeline or not, readers need to have enough information to navigate your tale.

You also need to be careful not to leave out key details. This creates plot holes and inconsistencies that leave your readers wondering or frustrated.

But here’s the catch, writers need to be careful not to provide too many details that the story is bogged down. You don’t want huge dumps of backstory, and you also don’t want to provide every step like a recipe. It’s a conundrum for writers. You need to find the amount that is just right for your work without skipping too much or weighting down your story with too many details. One good test to check for either is to see if there are parts that you skip over or get bored with. You’re either missing something or that section needs some edits to make it more concise.

Beta readers or critique groups can also help you find parts of your story that need to be revised.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with A-M Mawhiney

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I’d like to welcome A-M Mawhiney back to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Things you need for your writing experience

I need a silent environment, my laptop, my IPad (for research), a thesaurus, and a notepad to jot down ideas “for later.” I have a studio with a desk facing a large window that overlooks the backyard where I write. Once I close the door, I am in a quiet environment, and the ideas begin to flow.

Things that hamper your writing

Being interrupted when I am deep in the “writing zone” sets me back as I can’t easily re-capture the flow. Like many authors, time is another barrier to my writing. At times life is hectic. Expected and unexpected events occur that take me away from writing. But I would rather be busy than bored, and I can re-schedule writing time.

The last best thing you ate

I have a favorite restaurant in Creston, a small town in British Columbia, Canada, where I visit with relatives annually. There, two weeks ago, I enjoyed a delicious crepe filled with steamed salmon in a rich cream sauce.

The last thing you regret eating

I was served a Thai chicken dish by a family member a few years ago. He had used a jar sauce and cooked the chicken and vegetables perfectly. When I took the first bite my mouth burned with the intense level of “heat.” I put down my fork and signalled to other family members to wait until the chef took his first bite. It turned out the sauce had a warning label showing four red peppers, which meant the sauce was extremely hot. While many people enjoy this level of “heat” it was too much even for the chef!

Things you’d walk a mile for

I routinely take brisk walks for my health, often more than a mile. It keeps me energized, clears my brain and, most importantly, keeps me healthy.

Things you want to run screaming from the room

It’s surprising how often in a social setting that someone will make a passive-aggressive comment, trying to make it sound like a neutral comment or even a compliment. I don’t like to be around that kind of negative energy and would like to flounce out when I encounter it, even when it’s not directed toward me.

Things you always put in your books

I have used social and environmental themes in all three of my books.

Things you never put in your books

I cannot imagine any of my books ending tragically. So far, at least, all three books end on an optimistic note.

Things to say to an author

If you have an opportunity to tell an author that you’ve read their book, almost every one of them, no matter how famous they are, will be appreciative of your comments. If there is an opportunity for a longer conversation than a quick “fan rave,” you might find some authors will request critical feedback, asking if you didn’t like anything about the book.

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book

Pointing out typos and minor editorial issues once a book has been published is something no author I know of appreciates. They’ve already found them.

So far, I have never had the experience where a person’s comment about my book has made me see red. I can imagine, however, a situation where someone goes on at length making nasty comments about an author’s writing. That would make their comments reveal more about them rather than about the book or author. It might, then, be tempting to write them into a murder mystery.

Favorite places you’ve been

In the 1990s and 2000s, I spent lots of time in various parts of the U.K. where I established enduring friendships. It is my favorite place to visit, and I hope to return sometime soon.

Places you never want to go again

Restaurants with loud music with a thumping bass. Most people I know who go out for a meal want to socialize with family, friends, or handle business with colleagues. Yelling over loud music is not the least bit enjoyable. I return to restaurants where I can have quiet conversations.

Favorite books (or genres)

I read lots of different genres but recently have enjoyed fantasy, speculative, historical, and science fiction.

Books you wouldn’t buy

I tend avoid autobiographies by famous people whose personal lives have been filled with endless drama.

Favorite Things to Do

I love spending time with my immediate and extended family and with friends, summers at our cabin by the lake, reading, writing, travelling to new and favorite places, watching basketball, and playing the piano.

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

I am not good with heights. I would rather do almost anything to avoid jumping off a cliff into deep water, even when I know it is safe to do so. I’m convinced I will hit a rock that no one else, ever, has encountered or will be carried away by an unexpected flash flood even though there had never been one before.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done

After a break of over sixty years, this year I’ve rediscovered the joy of playing the piano. It is astonishing how quickly this came back to me. It is also helpful for my current writing, as the MC in my work-in-progress was child prodigy.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it

I bought a knitting kit several years ago that taught me many new knitting stitches, with a new pattern for each block. In total there were 45 blocks. I imagined a beautiful blanket to gift to someone special. But when I started to put it together, I realized I hadn’t been consistent with the sizing for each block. I wound up with a 3x5 baby blanket instead.

Some real-life story that made it into one of your books

I was socially awkward as a child. I knew I didn’t do well in social situations and would have anxious thoughts flood my mind whenever I had to join a group. Some of my characters’ emotions and mental images described in each book are loosely based on my own childhood experiences.

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not.

I have had a few readers of my third novel, Fugitive Rifts, look at me in surprise when they meet me because I look nothing like a basketball player. In fact, I am the first person to say I have no athleticism at all. The basketball scenes with one character are based on my years as a basketball fan. Trust me, no one who knows me would ever think I had played basketball.

About A-M:

At age eight A-M Mawhiney announced she wanted to be an author. It only took sixty years. Her career, first as a social worker and then as a university professor and senior administrator, ended with her retirement in 2018. She began writing again during the first lockdown in 2020. To her surprise she found herself writing her first novel, Spindrifts. which was a finalist in the 8th annual Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writers’ Prize and shortlisted for the Whistler Independent Book Awards in 2022. Its sequel, Spelldrifts, was released in 2023, and her latest book, Fugitive Rifts, was published in July 2025. When she isn’t writing A-M enjoys reading, taking in local basketball games, time with family and friends, and travelling. She lives in Sudbury, Ontario with her partner Dave.

#WriterWednesday Author Interview with Shamayne Olivia

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I’d like to welcome author, Shamayne Olivia, back to the blog for #WriterWednesday.

Last best thing you ate: I had some delicious carrot cake at my niece’s baby shower.

Last thing you regret eating: Tuna salad, which I once loved, but for some reason it doesn’t taste the same to me anymore.

Favorite music or song: I have so many good memories from my adolescence in the seventies and coming of age in the eighties. I love classic rock and alternative rock from those years.

Music that drives you crazy: Although I enjoy several genres of music, I can’t handle most country music except for the classic country artists. It drives me crazy when I’m in the dentist’s chair. LOL

The last thing you ordered online: I have started a tradition of buying personalized books for my grandchildren and grandnieces and nephews. I recently ordered one for a grand-nephew who arrived in March.

The last thing you regret buying: I ordered a pair of pants then realized I already had the same pair in my closet. I cleaned out my closet after that mistake so I guess not all was lost.

Things you’d walk a mile for: I would walk any distance for my kids and grandkids.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room: This is easy because it just happened when I saw a mouse run through the living room and I screamed as I ran to another room.

The funniest thing to happen to you: This was funny after the fact, but while at a park with friends recently, we were laughing and telling stories when a kid’s baseball came our way and hit me in the back of my head. The next day while in our backyard and sitting around our fire pit, a stray football came over our fence and again, hit me in the back of the head. No injuries, I couldn’t believe it happened twice in the same weekend.

The most embarrassing thing to happen to you: While attending John C. Riley’s one man show, Mr. Romantic, he came into the audience with a mic and a rose and walked right up to me. Without prompting me with a question or anything else, he put the mic in my face and I froze and didn’t know what to say. With the whole audience watching, I was so embarrassed.

The coolest person you’ve ever met: I’ve seen a lot of cool people in Austin, but only have met a few. After seeing the musical, “Head Over Heels,” I met Kathy Valentine from the Go-Go’s.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video: Shelley Duvall from Popeye and The Shining. She lived in our town and shopped at the same store as us. She looked completely different from her acting days.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done: I did a DIY project of sponge painting my dining room in the 90’s! It actually looked really good at the time.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it: I thought it would be fun to decorate cakes and cupcakes for my kids. I could never get the hang of it and they never turned out like the pictures.

The first 8-track, record, cassette, or CD you ever bought: I love music and started listening to music in the sixties as a child. I remember my dad taking me to the record section of a department store when I was four years old so I could buy The Monkees album with my birthday money. I never stopped buying music after that.

A type of music that’s not your cup of tea: I would have to say modern country music again.

My favorite book as a child: The book Edie Changes Her Mind was my favorite. I read it every night and held onto it throughout my life. I still had it in a box when my kids were born.

A book I’ve read more than once: I like reading mysteries, but can’t think of one I’ve read twice for obvious reasons.

Your favorite movie as a child: Disney’s Fantasia mesmerized me. I loved the colorful movement, dancing, and songs.

A TV show or movie that kept you awake at night as a kid (or as an adult): The Twilight Zone and Night Gallery on Friday nights when I was young. I still remember one that probably traumatized me for life. It had to do with a bug crawling into someone’s ear as they slept. Yeah, that was something I wish I’d never seen.

About Shamayen Olivia:

Shamayne Olivia is an author, speaker, coach, and facilitator passionate about guiding women through transformation and self-discovery. With a gift for creating safe and empowering spaces, she helps women navigate through life’s pivotal emotional transitions with courage, clarity, and renewed purpose.

Her work is rooted in her own journey of healing and awakening in midlife, which inspires her to support others in reclaiming their voices, honoring their stories, and embracing their true selves. She understands how isolating change can feel, and she believes no woman should have to walk that path alone. Creating spaces where women can feel seen, supported, and empowered to rewrite their own stories, she invites them into connection, compassion, and authentic transformation.

When she’s not writing or leading workshops, Shamayne finds joy in family time, traveling, exploring nature, live music and theatre, major league baseball, and practicing yoga. Simple practices that remind her to stay grounded in gratitude and wonder for each new chapter.

Her hope is that every woman who encounters her work discovers the same truth she has embraced: it’s never too late to reclaim your identity.



Plotter, Pantser, or Something Else?

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I hated doing formal outlines in English class. It felt too overblown and detailed when all I wanted to do was write. When I wrote my first mystery series, I was pretty much a pantser (I wrote by the seat of my pants).

I wrote myself in a lot of corners and had to go back and rewrite large swaths of chapters to make sure the mystery flowed. I also had days when I was stuck and didn’t know what to write next. It took me over five years to write the first novel. I knew I had to write faster, and I had to find ways to make that happen.

I’ve been in IT for the past twenty years, and I decided to apply some of the tools to my writing life. I love spreadsheets and project plans. Since I have limited writing time, I have to make the most of each session.

Now, before I start a new book, I spend a few weeks plotting out the entire book chapter by chapter. It’s an outline, but it’s a narrative of what happens in each chapter. I make sure I have motives, clues, and a story that flows. When I start to write, I have each segment defined. I also do a lot of my research during this time, and that keeps me from getting bogged down when I’m writing. I usually stick to my outline, but there are times when I change something, so my paper copy always has some handwritten notes and scratch outs.

This is the process that works for me. It gives me a plan for each writing session where I’ve done the basic research and already worked for the plot holes.

You need to find a process that works with your style and schedule. Give it a try to see if it makes you more productive.

#ThisorThatThursday Author Interview with Jon Sealy

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I’d like to welcome Jon Sealy to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!

Hardest thing about being a writer: You have to wear a lot of hats (author, proofreader, project manager, salesperson, accountant).

Easiest thing about being a writer: You don’t need special equipment, safety training, or nice weather to do it.

Things you need for your writing sessions: A good night’s sleep.

Things that hamper your writing: Noise. Ideally, I’m writing in a carrel by a window in an otherwise empty university library.

Things you always put in your books: Three of my four novels to date have a plotline around stolen cash.

Things you never put in your books: I don’t think I’ve ever written about a wedding, which surprises me now that I think about it.

Favorite places you’ve been: I enjoy the outdoors, so Ireland, the Chattooga River, the Minnesota Boundary Waters, and the Colorado Rockies.

Places you never want to go to again: I don’t think I ever need to go back to Nashville.

Favorite books (or genre): I enjoy detective novels and nonfiction about history, science, or theology.

Books you wouldn’t buy: Although I enjoy crime fiction, I’m not all that keen on true crime nonfiction.

The nicest thing a reader said to you: I had an aunt going through cancer treatments say that one of my novels was a welcome distraction to help her get through it. These days, that might be the only reason I keep writing fiction, the idea that a novel can be a gift to someone going through something.

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “Are you going to write a sequel to The Whiskey Baron?”

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books: My next novel, The Night Hawk, is about a dead roofer. My current house is in a new-construction neighborhood, and a few years ago, I heard this tremendous whoomph from two doors down, followed by a bunch of guys yelling. My stomach dropped because it sounded like a construction worker had fallen off a roof. Thankfully, it was only a pallet of shingles sliding off, but the next time I sat down to write, I reached for the nearest idea: What if a guy had fallen? What if it wasn’t an accident?

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not: My first novel, The Whiskey Baron, is about a bootlegger in a 1930s cotton-mill village, and I think some people have assumed I had an old bootlegger in the family. I do have some family who worked in the Carolina cotton mills, but the bootlegger came about because I needed a plot.

The first 8-track, record, cassette, or CD you ever bought: My cassette tapes are long gone, but I think the first one I got was one of Garth Brooks’s albums from the early ’90s.

A type of music that’s not your cup of tea: I’ve cycled through enjoying most genres (except polka). These days, I don’t care for music with bad psychic or spiritual energy.

My favorite book as a child: Beverly Cleary’s Dear Mr. Henshaw

A book I’ve read more than once: Richard Ford’s The Sportswriter

Your favorite movie as a child: Maybe The Sandlot

A TV show or movie that kept you awake at night as a kid (or as an adult): Tim Burton’s first Batman gave me nightmares.

 About Jon:

Jon Sealy is a Southern crime novelist, book editor, and communications consultant in Richmond, Virginia. He is the author of four previous novels, including The Whiskey Baron. His next project is the Detective Luke Steele mystery series, starting with The Night Hawk (forthcoming September 2026). To start the series, readers can download a free novella, Chasing Keys, from his website at jonsealy.com/free.

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Free novella: jonsealy.com/free

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Facebook: facebook.com/JonSealyBooks

Why Writers Need to be Readers

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When a teacher told us to read silently in class, I was the happiest kid. I have been a reader for as long as I can remember. Most writers are readers, too, but every once in a while, I encounter a new writer who says he/she doesn’t read very much.

Here is why reading is important to writers:

  • It improves your writing skills.

  • It’s research.

  • It expands your vocabulary.

  • It broadens your horizons and allows you to experience new things.

  • It gives you an insight into what books are being published and how genres are classified.

  • It stimulates your brain and reduces stress.

  • It boosts your critical thinking.

  • It improves your imagination.

  • It enhances your communication skills.

  • It helps you concentrate.

  • It improves memory.

  • It develops independent learning skills.

What are you reading for fun?