1. What
were you in your life before you became a writer? Did this influence your
writing?
I’m a
physician, and I started writing because I wanted to find a fun way to
disseminate medical information and to educate and empower readers to take
ownership of their health. I also wanted to target a female audience because
women are usually the ones who see a physician. (Males generally are at the
doctor because a girlfriend/partner/spouse/mom encouraged them to go. :D)
My medical
career influences my writing. I talk to people for a living so I feel I have an
easier time writing engaging dialogue, and I hear about a whole array of
people’s experiences which gives depth to my characters. Delivering a baby
(well I’ve delivered a few, but delivering my nephew when I didn’t expect to)
crept into my writing. The other scene that was influenced by a real life
experience is in Perfectly Honest
when Mikaela’s specialty eclipses Sam’s. My husband is a surgeon, and his
specialty often garners more interest than mine when we meet someone new.
Except once. One day, in the midst of a family doctor shortage, we were at the
bank and the two women helping us were so excited that I was a family doctor
that my husband’s specialty never came up. I had to chuckle when he mentioned
that he’d noticed.
As an author,
I get inspiration for my stories from everything around me - news headlines,
snippets of conversations, lyrics of songs, watching people and putting a story
behind their body language or expression – and even from my own quirky
characteristics. Reading the last page of a book first, wanting to know the
ending of a movie, judging drivers by the color of their car – all ended up in
a story! I love the challenge of creating the storyline and figuring out how
I’m going to make things happen - with humor and a bit of the unexpected thrown
in.
2. Are you genre specific or general? Why? I don't
mean genres like romance, mystery, fantasy etc. There are many subgenres of the
above.
I love writing
romantic comedies because I love being in a fun headspace when I’m writing. I
usually read for relaxation and feel better when the book is upbeat. I think
laughter is essential to great health!
3. Did your reading choices have anything to do with your choice
of a genre or genres?
My favorite genre to read is romance because I love the
happily-ever-after endings. It was easiest to write because I was very familiar
with the plot line and story characteristics that romance readers expect.
4. What's your latest release?
I’ve
had a busy summer and released 4 hockey medical romances in my In the Game
Hockey Romance series. They are a fun group of stand-alone romantic comedies
with a bit of a mystery in each story. My latest release is Time for the Doctor: A Copper Mills
Novella. I teamed up with a group of ten other authors and we each wrote a
brand new, stand-alone romance all set in small-town Copper Mills, Arizona. I
was thrilled to be invited to write a story about one of the town’s doctors –
weaving the best part of medicine into romance! I thought it was such a cool idea to share a world with
other authors - and revisit characters from their stories. I live in Canada and all my other romances take
place in small Ontario towns. I wouldn’t have thought to set a story in sunny,
hot Arizona, but it was fun to change it up.
5. What are you working on now?
At the moment
I’m busy marketing and promoting Time for the Doctor and the other two
series I’ve written, In the Game Hockey Romance and the Perfectly Series. When
things settle down, I’m plotting another romantic comedy series with a matchmaking
doctor. I have ideas swirling in my head and can’t wait to get started.
6. Where can we find you?
I
love connecting with readers:
Website and Blog: http://www.lindaoconnor.net
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/LindaOConnorAuthor
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/LindaOConnor98
Newsletter Sign-up: http://www.lindaoconnor.net/contact/
