IJF asks: What have you just finished?

If you mean, what have I just finished reading? Well, I'm so very busy writing that I do not have much time to read, just for pleasure. I do an enormous amount of reading for research... but that's just too boring to talk about!

The last bit of reading I did for 'me time' was a book called The Stolen Village by Des Ekin. It put to rest an amazing story in Ireland's history from the 17th-century when pirates out of Algiers ransacked an entire village in County Cork, Ireland (that’s in the very southern part of Ireland). Over a hundred men, women and children from County Cork were taken and then sold into slavery in Northern Africa under Islamic rule. Being of Irish ancestry with roots that go back to County Cork, and elsewhere in Ireland, this part of Irish history has always fascinated me. Des Ekin writes this book as a non-fiction novel, of sorts.... Come to think of it, when I read for my own time, I usually read non-fiction novels. I am a fan of Erik Larson, to o. One of his books, A Devil in the White City, is a favorite of mine. I am very stingy about loaning it out!

IJF asks: What book(s) have been life changing for you?

This is a very thought-provoking question... I pondered on this for a long time and changed my mind several times. All in all, the one title that resonates with me is the classic children's book: The Little Prince. I remember tidbits of wisdom from it, such as (and I paraphrase here) "It is only with the heart that one can see wisely, for that which is essential is invisible to the eye." Powerful words!

Other books I recall at specific times, for a purpose of inspiration, these include: Kliban's Cat Cartoon books for a good laugh. Edgar A. Poe's poetry... "The Raven" reminds me not to fall into despair! Also, The Book of Common Prayer from the Anglican Catholic/Episcopal tradition. In fact, I used one of the prayers from this book in book 1 of my cozy paranormal mystery series: A Ghost of a Chance, when I needed one of the characters to say a few thoughtful words at a burial service, and I wanted it said in a non-denominational phrasing.

IJF asks: Can you tell us your best fan encounter story?

Not really. You see, that would mean I have would have to favor one fan over another! Recently I added "Reader's Reviews" to my web site in order to give readers of my books their due respect. I thought, why not? If I am going to publish on my web site reviews from industry professionals, that readers deserve to have their opinions read, as well. But, getting back to your question. How about if I reverse the question and tell you about my WORST Fan Encounter?

I used to write a column on California history for a very popular publication, it had a circulation of over two million and came out monthly. It seemed like after each edition came out, I would get telephone calls (forget about the fact that my number is 'unlisted'! Fanatic people pay no attention to that, at all!) and I would be nice, answer questions as briefly as possible and then get off the phone ASAP ("I'm sorry, UPS just rang at my door, gotta go.").

So, when a lady called after a recent edition of my column and she said she lived in Long Beach, CA -- over a hundred miles from me -- I didn't think anything of it. Yes, she wanted me to take a look at an unpublished book she had written, she valued my thoughts, and so on. I always explain I never read or comment on any other person's writing unless I have been approached to professionally review a book and even then I only agree to when I know I have the time to give the published book my undivided attention. Then I explain that at present time I am too busy.

Okay, so my brief but polite explanation almost always gets the point across... but not this time. Nearly a month went by and I had gone out shopping, came home with several bags of groceries. I walk through my living room, across the dining room and into the kitchen. There on my kitchen table is a huge manuscript package... no writer mistakes what one of these looks like. I call to my husband who is out in the back yard to come help with putting groceries away. We were doing just that and I ask him about the manuscript.. He knows absolutely nothing about it! To make a long story short, the crazy women from Long Beach drove all the way to my little mountain village, walked right into my home--while my husband was out back--and dropped off her 'book' onto my kitchen table!

I ran next door to ask neighbors if they had seen this mystery person. One neighbor described her perfectly and got information on her car. The lady had been quite chatty in trying to find me, she even tried to get the info from our local postmaster, who tried calling me to warn me, but I wasn't home and my husband missed the call. To make a long story short, the lady had distant relatives up here on the mountain and had described where they lived to our postmaster. My husband hopped into his car and drove the mile away, found the lady standing in the front yard talking with her distant relative. My husband got out, handed her manuscript to her and told her in no uncertain terms to back off. I might add, the lady was 'indignant' (her words) at my husband's fury, assuring him that I was her friend and I was expecting her book. At that point, my husband told her he was in the room when she had called and he knew darn well that I had been polite and tried to be polite in my explanation and that I was not her friend, let alone interested in her writing. He then told her that her personal description and that of her car was being turned over to the local sheriff, which it was. We never heard from her again. I might add, that only in a small village, such as where I live, have I ever heard of 'fan' incidents like this. There's only 1000 people living here and while I have had bears sleep on my front porch, this incident was far more scary!

How did you get interested in the paranormal?

Difficult question to answer. Just very recently did I become aware of the word PARANORMAL… I always thought of it a Supernatural, or plain Ghostly. Anyway, I always have been interested in spirit visitations… what others might call as ghosts as long as I can remember. This goes along with the Celtic point of view and practice of Christian Spirituality. Life is shared by numerous energies and beings… spirits, or ghosts, are just another part of life. Given that a spirit can become part of your life, for a moment or longer, it is best to treat them with respect and covet the positive relationships that one may experience with a spirit being. In my case, I reach out to my ancestors and loved ones that have passed on. I avoid negative spirits.

Have you ever seen a ghost?

I have had shadow spirits visit me… ghosts with a purpose to their visits for a positive reason that impacted my life for the better.

Have you ever been on a ghost hunt?

No. And I do not have an interest in going on a ghost hunt. If a situation came up that I was asked to help out in an investigation because of some unique knowledge I might have about an incident or situation… and I felt that my participation would truly help, I would volunteer. But, I’m not looking for invitations.

Elizabeth, I heard you talk about something called "Quiet Wakefulness" when you were a radio guest recently. It seemed to me the topic came up near the end of your interview. I was wondering if you could say a little bit more about this fascinating topic. How did it come to your attention?

Quiet Wakefulness is that period of in-between sleep that most people experience to one degree or another. Once upon a time, when electricity and alarm clocks did not rule our world, people fell asleep in accordance to their natural lifestyles. They went to bed at dark, or shortly after because candles and kerosene were expensive. And they needed to be up at the break of dawn to attend to farms, livestock, whatever.

Consequently, most people actually slept for a longer duration…a good ten hours. In a Quiet Wakefulness, biorhythms dictate a period when our mind wakes up to a stirring of the senses… though we do not become fully awake, we are in a brief period (about an hour) of quiet wakefulness… a rare situation when our physical self, mental self and emotional self are in complete balance. And in this state of perfection, a person quite possibly is more apt or open to experiencing a spirit visitation. In Celtic living, one would say that the veil is thinnest in these rare moments. Today, because most adults live by a set period of sleep (and alarms), the perfection of quiet wakefulness is nearly or entirely eliminated.

I first became aware of the study of this in a thesis written by a professor in Virginia. Then I did further research and wasn’t the least surprised to learn that quiet wakefulness was a common reference in America and the British Isles prior to electricity. The author Robert L. Stevenson (sp?) wrote about it as "the perfect hour."

Imagine a time in your life when you can follow your own rhythms about when to sleep… Chances are you will experience a Quiet Wakefulness!

Hey Elizabeth, I know you have been doing a lot of promoting the new book lately, have you done a lot of paranormal talk radio shows?

Yes, as a matter of fact, many of the radio interviews I have done and have upcoming are within the paranormal community. For instance, this coming Sunday I will be the guest on Crossroads Paranormal Radio, there’s a link to it on my web site. And while not all the radio interviews I do are in the paranormal realm… it is not just by a ghost of a chance that the paranormal community is enthusiastic about my novels. In the beginning I approached the paranormal community with the concept that my series of cozy mystery novels has a ghost as a main character and that this concept could go into the mainstream readership and at the same time, appeal to those who believe in ghosts. I knew that the paranormal community would appreciate the fact that I treat the ghosts as real people in the story and plot and not as a trendy novelty. Also, true to the cozy mystery description, my novels are G-rated, meaning you can put the book down and not fear who might pick it up. This G-rated aspect is critical to me, I want anyone with the adult level reading ability to enjoy the books and also be able to relate to having had, or be open to having, a ghost/spirit visitation in their life. People of all ages should be able to bring up the topic without fear of ridicule.

Elizabeth, we've put Ghost of a Chance on Storycasting.com, so you and your fans can "cast" it - whether for the big screen, or just as a guide to other readers. Authors routinely get asked about "who do you see in the movie", but I also wondered if, instead of a blockbuster, you would be happy with a smaller "art house" production, using an "indie" director?

WOW! I haven’t the foggiest notion whom you are, but Thank You! Just so you know…I went right over to storycasting.com and joined, you can find me under the name of EEagan-Cox.

I get asked about casting the story often, just in regular conversation from my sibs and others in my circle of friends and family. To be honest, each character in the series is a composite of real people I know. Shannon Delaney, the hub of the series is multifaceted in her character components and visual description by the many young women in my circle, especially my numerous nieces. Sister Rosario Santiago…whom by the way, I’ve never indicated what Christian denomination she is a member of… is inspired, in part, by a woman I once worked with, whom I called the Un-Nun because she was a former nun. The male leads… Alex Blackthorne and Zach Zavala, at any given moment that I write about them… they are a variety of men… very difficult for me to cast.

One of the most intriguing characters is the retired San Diego police detective, Francisco Zavala. He invented himself. When I wrote the scene in A Ghost of a Chance where Francisco first appears, I had no idea he would be there, he just happened, as I sat at my keyboard and tip-tapped away. I had not given so much as a moment’s thought to him. Francisco quite literally appeared from thin air. I will confess that Francisco and myself share a passion for a good cup of coffee!

I keep a character profile and description sheet on each lead character and their family background, including Atlas, the Irish Wolfhound! So, I suppose in casting any particular character, I would have to check the proposed actor/actress against the character description I have on them.

Indie or blockbuster you ask? May I counter with my own query: Can we keep if G-rated or at least PG? That said, I, like any author would want a movie or TV script to stay true to the original plot and so forth. Special effects would be a concern, especially in the ghost scenes. All things considered, including my feeble understanding of the biz, I would think that an Indie production would allow for more artistic handling of the story and hopefully stay true to my author’s concept.

So when "Spotted Coyote" is finished, will you be giving us the publication title? I hope, I hope!!

Of course!

As a member of the Irish clan, what do you do for St. Patrick's Day?

I try to repay a kindness. This morning I did a little research and located the postal address for a person who left a positive review of A Ghost of a Chance on a major retail site. I sent them a little note of thanks explaining that an Irish heart never forgets a kindness. And I tucked inside the note one of my magnetic business cards, which, by the way, are not for sale. Then I top of the day’s end with a cup of black coffee and a liberal spot of Bushmills Irish Whiskey. And I say a prayer of thanks to all those who have gone before me. Of course, throughout the day, my clan and I have been swapping Irish jokes via e-mail!

I'm wondering... in book 1: A Ghost of a Chance, the lead character, Shannon Delaney is made aware of her ability to see into the past and to use these skills to solve mysteries. And in book 2: A Ghost from the Shadows, Shannon's paranormal ability takes some twists and turns as she learns to accept it and her spirit guide, the ghost. In upcoming books, will Shannon's paranormal ability continue to get stronger?

At present I am writing book 3 and Shannon is becoming more aware and comfortable with her intuitive intelligence to speak to the past and she is settled in her relationship with the ghost that is her guide. So, in light of this, yes, I would say she is becoming stronger in her paranormal ability.

One aspect of the story I am torn about is that I haven’t decided (as yet) to expose a bit more about Shannon’s relationship/connection to the ghost, I’m not sure if book 3 is ready for that aspect of Shannon Delaney! The reveal about Shannon and her connection to the ghost may have to wait for book 4.

What was your inspiration for Shannon, and the stories in general?

Shannon, herself, is a faceted character drawn from numerous different women I have known. Her profession, that of a business/publicity writer is from my own background because I need to be able to write about her career with intelligence from a known perspective, in other words, my own real life experience. The resemblance between Shannon and myself ends with the career aspect. All other parts of Shannon’s personality are dream components of what I would like her to be.

She is named Shannon after the River Shannon in Ireland. In Celtic lore, water is assigned a female energy and in Ireland, the River Shannon is perhaps the most famous river in all of Ireland, equal to the Mississippi River in the U.S. Although Shannon is young, in her mid-twenties, I wanted her to have a backbone of strength that in essence and in symbolism would provide an anchor for what is to come in her life.

As far as the story line goes… I knew that if ever I was to write fiction (I am published as a non-fiction author, which was another lifetime ago) that I would write a cozy mystery series and include a ghost as a main character… this was a given. Based on my own paranormal experiences I wanted to present the ghost concept in a mainstream fashion, hence the cozy mystery choice. By its well-defined nature, a cozy mystery is G-rated, making it available to teens on up, at least as far as content and reading ability goes. If this is confusing, think of classic cozy examples, such as Agatha Christie’s novels. The plots are my own based on years of research and writing about California history and American history of the Victorian era. The elements of Victorian era sleight-of-hand magic are because I have always been fascinated by up-close magic. In the Los Angeles area there is a real magic castle, owned and operated by an official society of professional magicians. Entry to it is by invitation. I have been lucky enough to visit the castle twice. And the performances are amazing…very up close and personable.

Getting down to the bone of my inspiration is an answer I gave to one of my sibs who asked why I was so driven to write. My answer remains the same: It is blood memory, I write to quiet the voices of my ancestors. I dream write most of the novel. This concept is difficult to explain. Most people have heard of the old phrase, "I’ll sleep on it" Well, that is what I do. During the day I write and then I let the story unwind and reveal itself to me, in my dreams. This is very much the Quiet Wakefulness I mention in a Q&A above.

Where do you write, & do you write everyday?

I actively write Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays. Fridays I summarize and plot. Mondays I research and edit and revise. I tend to fashion my schedule to mesh with my husband’s work schedule, he needs to be out of the house for me to concentrate, so most of the time I work traditional day hours… as far as writing goes. When it comes to promoting… that can happen on any day and at any time!

We live in a three-story home on a mountain in an alpine forest. The third story is a loft over our great room. This loft is my office and our only extra space for storage, most of the time it is cluttered. I have a tree-house view from up here, though most of the time I don’t see it because I have my head buried in the keyboard or focused on the ‘puter screen.

How did you find an agent, & get published?

I have used non-traditional techniques for agent and publisher shopping. I know many people advise going the route of using the major writer’s market resource, that well-known book that is a bible in this industry, which I will not name here. However, this is how I do it:

Go to the largest brick and mortar bookstore in your area and study the shelves that have the category of books that you want to find an agent or publisher for. Example, if you have written a cookbook, go to that section in the bookstore. Look for cookbooks that are like yours in tone, length and style. Find the mastheads (usually always in front) and start making a list of the publishers that have published cookbooks that are like yours. While you are looking at the cookbooks, look at each author’s dedication… most authors will mention their literary agent somewhere in the dedication. This is especially true with the first book in the author’s series. If you do not see what appears to be an agent’s name in the front matter, look in the back.

Once you have the list of prospective publishers or agents, get on the Internet and search for their web site. Agents and publishers nearly always list submission guidelines and will say if they are accepting proposals.

You will need to have a proposal ready before you ever consider contacting an agent or publisher. Don’t waste their time if you are not prepared to send out a query letter and a proposal…this is a must-do that cannot be ignored.

I have always approached agent and publisher shopping this way (instead of using the aforementioned book) because this industry can turn on a dime and a listing in a book may be outdated. It is always best to get the most current information via a web site for the actual source. Also, by visiting the bookshelves in a store, you’ll get an idea what your competition is and if it is the market you want to delve into. This same type of comparative shopping can be done Online, but going into a store gives a hands-on perspective to the whole business of book publishing.

How many books can we expect in the series?

I don’t know. Honest! Neither the publisher nor I have capped the series. I have at least two more books (books 4 and 5) swimming around in the sea of gray matter in my head.

Hi, Elizabeth. I'm responding to your post on LinkedIn. I'm in your group. Okay, so I am hooked on your answer to the question about finding an agent/publisher. Those are good ideas. Do you have any other suggestions for a wanabee author. I am looking to break into YA books.

Well, you don’t say which group! Just teasing. I’m in several groups on Linkedin and I posted to all of them inviting people to come here!

YA books? One of the best ways to find out which publishers are publishing what in Young Adult literature is to ask a librarian. I was a school librarian, so you have to trust me on this… Librarians (at city and county libraries and at schools) receive tons of publisher catalogues on a seasonal basis. These are "wish books" for librarians because librarians no longer have much time to actually meet with publishing sales reps… those days are gone! The publishers’ catalogues are the primary venue used to order books for the libraries. When I was a librarian I always had a stack of them on my bedside table…at night, before going off to sleep was the only time I had to thoughtfully peruse them and make a wish list.

The catalogues are a treasure-trove of info for authors looking for a publisher: 1. The catalogues are sent out ahead of the buying season, rather like shopping for swimsuits in January. 2. You’ll get a sneak peek at trends in publishing, especially in regard to a publisher starting a new line or imprint. 3. Study all the catalogues you can get your hands on and you’ll have an excellent overview of the entire industry. 4. Web sites are always listed and not just for retail and sales purposes, look for the editorial connection to the publisher’s web site. 5. Check out the names of authors that are heavily represented…then find the author’s web site (Google it) and peruse it for insider info…the author may even list the name of their agent! 6. The catalogues are free for the asking, so don’t be shy! I would try a school library first, and for YA specifically I would ask a librarian at middle school level. Simply explain what your goal is and ask if you may have catalogues that the librarian is not interested in. You may have to make arrangements to go and pick them up. I used to send catalogues to writer friends who would send a check ahead of time to pay for postage… which can be expensive given the weight of catalogues. My advice is to make friends with a local librarian and you might be pleasantly surprised by the results! PS: the best time to contact a school librarian is about fifteen minutes after the end of school. A face to face encounter is better than a telephone call or a mail-in request. If you cannot meet in person then I’d say it is a toss-up between calling or writing, just do not e-mail!

Have you ever been to Ireland? Do you think it has a magic about it that is more than the eye can see?

Thanks Elizabeth for a most informative article. I picked up on your interview via LinkedIn and was particularly interested in what you had to say about Quiet Wakefulness as this is something I have been aware of in my own life for many years. For me it is the time of spiritual encounters and creativity, and also a time of mental and emotional enlightenment. As for publishers and agents: my first and third publisher found me and commissioned me to write several biographies. Although I've advocated the bricks and mortar approach to other would-be writers, I'm afraid the unmentionable book did it for me when I was signed up with Curtis Brown in London. I'm fairly new to the concept of online promotion - set up a website nearly a year ago - and would love to know more about IJustFinished and Blog Radio. Any info you can give would be gratefully received. Thanks. Mel Menzies http://www.melmenzies.co.uk

Thank you so much Elizabeth for your interview. It was a blast!