Getting a Handle on Doing Research: An Interview with George Garrigues

Your background prior to writing your books was journalism. What drew you to writing books?
I write nonfiction; I don’t make stuff up, so it’s just like when I used to be a reporter, except I don’t interview the characters in my books, ‘cause they’re all dead.

I have written two print books before I began with the eBook editions: One was based on the letters and unpublished manuscript left to me by my father, newspaperman C.H. Garrigues; it’s called, He Usually Lived With a Female. The other was for Arcadia Publishing; Los Angeles’s The Palms Neighborhood.

Why did you choose crime stories?
Readers are interested in crime. One of the first lengthy books I ever read was Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. But of course, recently I’ve turned my attention in another direction, which I’ll tell you about below.

How do you choose what stories you’ll write about?

I used Newspapers.com to choose my topics. It’s simple: Just search for some combination of words like “Crime of the century” or “wealthy widow + murder” or “arson + murder + coverup” or “upscale neighborhood” + “mysterious death.” You’ll have more leads than you can handle.

What type of research do you do in writing your book?
Newspapers.com. Ancestry.com. Google Books. Print books already published about the crime, the era, the social milieu, and so forth.

How long does that take?

I aim for months, but sometimes it takes years. I stop researching when the book is published.

Do you have someone else assisting you with editing or research?
Yes, my daughter helps in the research, and she does the editing and the promotion. She is a writer herself. My ex-wife, another editor, also did one of my books.

Tell me about the process.
I usually wait until I have a book completed before she gets it for editing. Otherwise, it’s the old story of “Only a fool shares his unfinished work with another person.”

What advice would you give authors in doing research for historical facts for fiction and non-fiction books?
Keep good records. I usually save my online research or photos I have by beginning their file name with a date; for example “1899.10.15 Smith is slain” or “1910.02.03 Jones photo NYT.”

What made you choose the indie route for publishing?
Right now I can see my own book in print (or in pixels) after several months’ work of researching and writing. (Or years.) But at least I am assured of seeing it out there, and putting it on the market for others to see and enjoy.

What has been the most challenging part about putting together your books?
I am used to writing, so that is not a challenge; it is really the most enjoyable part of the whole endeavor. Second-enjoyable is editing, winnowing, sifting, deleting.

The challenge about self-publishing is getting the thing onto the reader’s screen or into his physical library. I have decided to use a professional conversion surface for both. Even though I use Scrivener to help compose and organize, I won’t use its conversion feature because I am simply not expert enough to do so. Besides, my most recent books have a surfeit of illustrations, and I don’t want to be mucking around with them and the manuscript when an expert can do it much better than I could.

What tips could you offer indie-authors in putting together a book?
Keep well organized. Use file names that mean something to you. (Like my tip about dates, above.)

What’s the best encouragement you’ve had in your writing?
When my daughter told me (recently) that I was a good writer. Before then, it was when I cashed my paychecks from my newspaper employer or employers.

We have all experienced rejection. How have you learned to write past it?
I just figure my offering wasn’t what the editor or publisher was buying at the time. I had that experience just recently, so I’m reworking that particular idea to my own satisfaction and will self-publish. Then it’s just between me and my prospective reader.

What has surprised you the most in writing/publishing?
My surprise relates to other eBook authors: Many of them don’t know the first thing about writing, nor the English language, nor editing and sometimes spelling. One eBook I dipped into was darned good writing, except the author kept misspelling “cavalry” as “calvary,” which, as we all know, if the place where Jesus was crucified, and it takes a capital letter.

Also, I am surprised at how many people write without any concern at all for making their writing understandable to the reader.

Oh, yes: All the clichés!

As far as general publishing goes, I think most publishing houses are excellent, and I am positively impressed by the care taken with covers, typography, and all that goes into good, traditional book making. 

 
What frustrated you the most?
Trying to figure out how to put a manuscript into shape for production without hiring a professional (which I finally had to do).

What do you know now about writing you wished you had known sooner? 

I wish I had known about ProWritingAid, a great software that has really helped to spiff up my writing.

What is the best writing advice you’ve received or could give?
Received? Uhh. Don’t write too long. I remember an editor taking a lengthy story I had handed him and physically cutting off the last half of it (with a sharp-edged ruler). Of course, it was a newspaper article in the inverted-pyramid style, so there wasn’t much lost except for the time it took me to write it.)

What is the next book coming out?
Liberty Bonds and Bayonets: A Marguerite Martyn Story came out as an eBook this month.

Can you give me a short synopsis?
Here’s the blurb:
Clair Kenamore was a reporter with a camera on the Western Front; Marguerite Martyn carried an artists’ sketchbook at home. They were husband and wife; World War I forced them apart.

He reported what he saw, doughboy Sammy Goldberg coming back from the trenches with seventeen German prisoners. blond French girls throwing flowers and flirting in German with boisterous American troops. Men dying.

Her imagination soared. Fashionable women wearing fanciful war-themed hats. Befuddled diners wondering how to get around wartime food regulations. Fearful women asking: Marry before he goes overseas, or wait ’til he’s home?

You smile, too: Santa Claus checks a shopping list. A uniformed cupid challenges a draft-dodger. A busybody woman peers through a periscope. Camp followers get booted. And a “peach” eats a peach.

Sounds like an intriguing book. If you’d like to learn more about this one or George’s other works, here are some links to get you started.

https://www.citydeskpublishing.com/
https://tinyurl.com/GG-Author

Choosing Writing Contests Wisely: An Interview with D.A. Brittain

What drew you to writing historical fiction with a Christian theme? 

Because of my Christian faith, studying the Bible and ancient history became a passion for me. I had, and still have a hunger to always learn more, so my writing seemed to naturally gravitate toward writing historical fiction with strong Biblical themes. 

But at the heart of what I write is a deeply held belief that reading the Word of God and developing a personal relationship with Jesus can and will transform lives. So, throughout my writing that I hope entertains, I also weave in scriptures that I pray will touch hearts and draw the reader closer to God.

When did you actually start writing your book?

I started writing Judah’s Scepter several years ago but really settled down into a regular writing schedule well over two years before it was published. But the dream of writing the book, and the beginning of writing the story started well before that.

What type of research do you do in writing a story with a historical base? Tell me about the process. 

I spend months of research by reading a lot of books, studying maps and utilizing online access to many university documents. The research never really ends for me. It continues when new ideas come to mind, and chapters are added or continue to evolve. I’ve also been very fortunate to travel and explore many of the countries and locations that I write about.

What are some of the more difficult aspects of writing a historical novel? 

I do my best to get as much as possible accurate for a particular time in history. I also strive to write realistic speech with attitudes and actions for my characters that fit the time period. With some subjects, there’s an enormous amount of information available, but on others, the information can be sketchy. So even with my best efforts, there’s always the possibility that I may not get everything right.

Have other novels been started and stopped along the way? 

While working on Judah’s Scepter, no other novels were started or stopped along the way. During that time, I was fully immersed in the world and with the characters I was creating for that story.

I see you were published by First Edition Design Publishing. What were the pluses in working with them?

I looked at a lot of other publishers before I chose to work with First Edition Design. They’re considered a hybrid publisher, meaning that they offer a lot of the same services of a traditional publisher, but at the same time allow their authors to retain all of their book rights and royalties. They also gave me the option to contribute as much or as little input as I wanted on the design of my book. I already had a cover designer and an idea of how I wanted the interior of my book to appear. 

They worked with me on that and created an eBook and high-quality print versions that I’m very pleased with. But besides all of that, it was and still is such a blessing and pleasure to work with Deborah Gordon. She is the absolute best in the business! She’s always kind and patient while making sure her authors are happy every step of the way. I can’t say enough good things about her.

Your website shows you’ve won several awards for your first book. That’s impressive. Did

you seek out the writing contests or did your publisher provide that service? 

Thank you for your kind comment. Yes, it’s been nice and I’m very grateful to have my book recognized and awarded gold and silver medals in various award programs. I entered the contests on my own, but my publisher’s media department also provided a list of book award contests. They did caution their authors to research contests thoroughly before investing and participating in any of them. I agree with that advice.

Since most contests have fees, how do you determine which contests to enter?

For contests open to both traditional and independently published books, I reviewed contests held in prior years to see if some of the major traditional publishing houses submitted books from their authors. If they had, that helped with my decision to enter my book. Some of the award programs for Indie books are associated with well-respected magazines, and others with good reputations have been around for years.

What’s the best encouragement you’ve had in your writing?

My editor was always very supportive and encouraging, which meant a lot to me. And then after being published, I’ve received some great reviews and very nice emails from readers. When you spend so much of your time pouring your heart into a story that you love, you’re not always certain that anyone else will enjoy or appreciate it, so it’s wonderful when a reader takes the time to leave a nice review or write to me. I was also blessed to receive a good review from Publishers Weekly. In the world of books, that’s very encouraging!  

We have all experienced rejection. Give me an example of one you’ve had, and how you learned to write past it.

I don’t think I’ve ever felt what I would consider rejection with my writing. And if I did experience some form of that, I think I would be fine because of my Christian faith. The scripture, Romans 8:28 comes to mind. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

I’ve had some things that didn’t work out, but through it all, I felt at peace and trusted that there was a reason for perhaps a better way, or a different path up ahead. One example I could give you was that a publishing company told me I needed to make some changes to my manuscript or they wouldn’t publish it. I honestly felt the story needed to remain just as it was, so the publisher and I parted ways. It would have been nice to have my book published by this company but leaving them didn’t discourage me or keep me from wanting to write. I’m not sure anything could do that.

What do you know now about writing/publishing now that you wished you had known sooner?

That question has me laughing. I’m not sure I would have wanted to know then, what I know now! Although, I’m very grateful for all I’ve learned. What I found out is there’s a ton of work after the writing is finished. Publishing takes time. And a lot of time and work is necessary for creating an online presence, having a website, and participating in various promotional and advertising campaigns. 

Some of this, like the award and book giveaway programs, can be fun, but I’d much rather spend my time writing. I’m also an introvert at heart, so being visible and accessible to anyone in the world is something I’m still not used to doing.

What other books do you have in the works?

I’m currently working on the second book in the Judah Scepter series. As with my first novel, the new book will have biblical scriptures lightly woven throughout what will be another exciting adventure and sweet love story. This story takes place mostly in the Holy Land and thirteenth-century England. There will be strong Christian themes and a little more history revealed about the Sacred Stone that plays a small part in this story.

What is the best advice you’ve been given about writing or that you’ve learned that you would like to pass along?

Practical advice would be to try and write every day, or as often as possible.  Anything is better than nothing. Don’t worry about it being perfect. You can clean it up later. Just write! And be patient and not discouraged when you read through your first and second draft, and find yourself rewriting the same paragraph, or sentence, or sometimes changing one word over and over again like I did! 

There will be times when the self-editing never seems to end! But when it does, it’s time to hand over the final version of your manuscript to a professional editor who specializes in your genre.

On a personal note, my other advice would be to write from your heart. Write what you love. Write the book that you would love to read. And if God has given you a story to tell, go forward and do the work … do your best with unwavering faith and perseverance until you finish it! 

If I can end that thought with another quote from the Bible it would be Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

That's all for today's interview. If you'd like to get started reading a new series, here are some links to learn more. 

Website: www.dabrittain.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30812802-judah-s-scepter-and-the-sacred-stone

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Judahs-Scepter-Sacred-Stone-Brittain/dp/1506902308/

Writing in the Genre that Inspires You: Author Interview with Vanetta Chapman

I see you started your writing career with writing articles. How did you make the jump to writing a novel? 

I've always been an avid reader. After publishing 150 articles, I thought, "Hey. Maybe I could do an entire book." And then I just started writing. 

How did you meet your agent? Through a conference or sending out queries? 

I bought a Guide to Literary Agents at a Half Priced Bookstore. Starting with the A's, I marked any agent who represented what I had written to date. Then I started querying. This was in the old days (2000), so I sent everything in snail mail. I'd send 7 queries in each week. When I received a rejection, I'd send out 2 more. And yes, I had a chart to keep track of who all had rejected me, or said feel free to send something else, or whatever their response was. It took a couple of years, but finally I had several agents circling. At that point, I emailed some of their client list for references and made my choice.

How did you find your publisher?

My agent was submitting my work to all the major pubs. We had one (Harper Collins Christian Fiction) come back and say that they liked my writing but they didn't need another romance author. Would I consider writing a cozy mystery? My answer was ... OF COURSE.

Your first book was published in 2010. How long did it take to write that book? 
THAT book was a bit unique. I wrote it in 6 weeks because we had a publisher anxious for it, but they wouldn't make an offer until it was done. I don't recommend writing a book that quickly. When I was finished, I couldn't use my right arm - had a major case of frozen shoulder syndrome. 

Was that the first book you wrote?
The first book I sold was the 9th book I wrote. At that point it was taking me about 6 months per book. 

How long does take today?
Currently I have a full length novel (100,000 words) due every 3 to 4 months.

Was the next book easier to write?
I think each book has its own challenges--so they are both easier (because you have experience) and harder (because writing is always difficult).

What inspired you to write about the Amish? 

My agent asked me to try my hand at writing Amish. We'd been pitching romantic suspense and had good response but no congrats. 

Do you have an Amish family history? 
Possibly. My great grandparents lived in Albion, PA and all correspondence we have from them is in German - so it is possible that there are some Amish roots there.

Are you active in any writing critique groups?
Currently I am not involved in any critique groups. I have been in the past, but we moved to a small town and it's a bit of a drive to reach other authors.

What type of research do you do for your books? Tell me about the process.
If I'm writing a 3 book series, I always visit the location. I walk the streets, talk to the librarians and local museum folks, eat in the restaurants, and generally chat up anyone who will talk to me. I take lots and lots and LOTS of pictures. And I take home a few email addresses of folks who are willing to answer questions. I do a little internet research before I go and a lot after I get home.

Do you still go through the normal process of pitching your book to publishers?
Pretty much. I was recently thrilled to receive a 6 book contract from Harvest House publishers, and yes - I had to go through the pub committee like anyone else. My agent usually reads through my proposal before we send it. He may have minor suggestions, but he doesn't page edit or anything like that.

What does your publisher expect you to do to assist in promoting your books? 
I do a lot of promotion--basically I'm involved in all the usual places, plus I have a street team, and I've built a newsletter base. My publisher has told me several times that they're astounded at how much marketing I do and that it is one of the reasons they continue to re-sign me.

What do you know now about writing/publishing now that you wished you had known sooner?
I wish I'd spent less time worrying about "when" I'd be published and more time diligently learning the craft.

What surprised you the most in a good way in writing your novels? What’s been the most frustrating?
I guess what surprises me most is that the ideas don't dry up. I'm careful to take time off, not burn out, feed the artist well and all that. Still, I'm surprised that my brain knows where to go with a story even when I don't. And that would be the frustrating part. When I start, I have no idea what I'm doing. I usually have a character and where I want to start the story, and that's it. Even in the murder mysteries, I have no idea "who did it."

What is the best advice you've been given about writing or that you've learned that you would like to pass along?
Keep writing, keep writing, keep writing.

What other works do you have in the process? Are there any other points you’d like to cover?
I do have a whacky process that I'd love to share. I write the beginning of a novel until I'm bored with where we're going. Then I stop and write the ending. This could be an additional 3,000 work or (more often) 10-20,000 words. Once I have the ending finished, once I know where we're all going, I go back and fill in the middle. It's worked every time! And it keep the middle from sagging and slowing down.

That's all for today's interview. If you'd like to learn more about Vanetta's writing and her giveaways or special promotions here's how  www.vannettachapman.com