A. I pull them out of a hat. I wish. The truth is, a piece of a story idea can come from anywhere, you just have to be prepared and looking for it. I watch lots of TV, mostly court TV, read the newspaper and ask lots of questions. If a story idea hits me, I write it down. Sometimes I use it right then and brainstorm a situation around it, sometimes I put it away, knowing it might spark a bigger idea later on. Another thing I do quite often, is come up with a catchy title. It’s amazing how many ideas a prospective title can create. It also helps that I’m an adventurous person and I enjoy putting an odd spin on things. Sometimes just focusing on an emotion, can generate a great idea for a book.

A. Only in my dreams. The evolution of a book can stretch on for a long time. I feel lucky that my current release only took 17 months from getting the call that the publisher wanted it, to having it on the shelve in the book store. It’s a long process. First there are revisions to the original manuscript. If you’re lucky, your editor accepts the revised copy, if not it comes back to you again for further revision. Once the revised copy is accepted, the manuscript comes back to you again as an unjustified page proof. At that point you can only make minor changes to it. Once those changes are done, it goes back to the publisher. In my case, the next thing I received was a copy of the book. There are probably different scenarios with different publishers, but that was my experience with my publisher.

A. That would be a resounding, NO. It’s a myth that an author sells a book and jettisons to fame and fortune. Most authors start at the bottom and work their way up to higher advances. Celebrities are about the only first time book writers who receive large advances, mainly because they already have name recognition. Beginning authors have to build that recognition one good book at a time.

A. I generally have my butt in the chair at nine, five days a week. I get up on the hour to move around and I’m usually done by three in the afternoon. My average is ten to fifteen pages a day, and sometimes I can produce an entire chapter if I’m on a roll and the story is really intense.

A. I penned a novel as a teenager, but it was pretty awful. I didn’t write again until the end of 1995. In 1996 I joined a writers’ organization and really began to learn the mechanics of writing. Most of what I do is instinctual, and I believe that comes from hours of listening to bedtime stories and fairytales, read to me by my mom. Stories are living breathing entities, which is why I never got tired of hearing them over and over again. One of the best things you can do for your children is read to them.

A. There are countless how to books out there. Just pop into your local book store and go to the writing section. You’ll find everything you need to get started. That’s the hands on stuff, but you’ll also need an exciting story idea and you can’t purchase that for 14.95. It has to come from your imagination, but be prepared for lots of hard work. Writing isn’t easy. You have to believe, you have to be patient while you learn your craft. Many give up, just short of their goal. You can never give up. Good luck in your endeavors.

Smiles, Jan