Interview with Smoky Trudeau

O met Smoky through the Vanilla Heart lists. She's one of my fellow writers there and writes both fiction and non-fiction. I think she moves from one side of her brain much easier than I do.


1. What's your genre or do you write in more than one?



I’ve published both literary fiction and nonfiction books. My passion is fiction writing; I have two novels out, Redeeming Grace and The Cabin. I’ve written two books specifically for writers, Front-Word, Back-Word, Insight Out: Lessons on Writing the Novel Lurking Inside You From Start to Finish and Left-Brain, Right-Brain: 366 Writing Prompts and Exercises. The former is based on my years of teaching fiction writing workshops; the second is daily exercises to keep your muse challenged. My most recent book is Observations of an Earth Mage, a collection of photos, essays, and poems about my experiences in the great outdoors.

2. Did you choose your genre or did it choose you?



A little bit of both. I started my professional writing career as a freelance feature writer, but I’d always wanted to write a novel. Redeeming Grace started out being more of a romantic novel, but the characters had different ideas. It ended up being a literary examination of the way the Bible can be misconstrued, misinterpreted, to the detriment of women. I had no idea this was what I was going to write about when I set out to write the book! But I’m very proud of the way it turned out, and proud of the statement it makes. The Cabin is more of an historical time travel novel, but I don’t consider it fantasy, like most time travel novels.

3. Is there any genre you'd like to try? Or is there one you wouldn't?



Even though there is science fiction I enjoy reading, particularly the science fiction of my youth—I’m talking Ray Bradbury and Robert A. Heinlein, at the risk of dating myself—I have no desire to write in that genre. Today’s sci-fi readers want much more action, much more technology than the sci-fi writers of old, and I simply don’t enjoy reading modern sci-fi as much. I’m not a big action fan. I think I’ll stick to my literary novels and my earth-centered nonfiction writing. That’s what most of my fans prefer, anyway.

4. What fiction do you read for pleasure?



My current favorite is Jose Saramago, the Portuguese Nobel-Prize winning author. Death With Interruptions was absolutely the best book I ever read. I also enjoyed his The Gospel of Jesus Christ—quite a novel take on the Jesus story, no pun intended. I loved Helen of Troy by Margaret George, and Nefertiti by Michelle Moran. I adored The Forest Lover by Susan Vreeland, the fictional account of the life of Canadian artist Emily Carr. I guess you could say my literary taste is wildly varied.

5. Tell me a bit about yourself and how long you've been writing.



I was born and raised in the Midwest, and started out studying to be a clinical social worker. When I was thirty-two, I was struck by lightning and nearly killed. During my long recovery, I started writing professionally for my hometown newspaper. Freelancing afforded me the opportunity to work when I felt well enough, yet enabled me to not work when I was sick and hospitalized with lightning-related issues. I’ve been writing professionally now for about twenty years! I was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2003, for my short story, “The Last Flight Home.” I moved to California two years ago to help my daughter pursue her dream of becoming an actress, and a few months after my move, met my husband, Scott. Together we go on grand adventures throughout California, which I chronicle in my blog on Xanga (authorsmokytrudeau.xanga.com). Kimberlee Williams at Vanilla Heart Publishing suggested I compile my blogs and other nature writings into what became my latest book, Observations of an Earth Mage. After three nonfiction books, however, I’m ready to return to fiction writing, and am just now starting to write my third novel.

6. Which of your characters is your favorite?



That would have to be Cora from The Cabin. Cora is thrown into the modern era from pre-Civil War Virginia, losing her husband and two children in the process. But she adapts, and through that adaptation helps orchestrate a daring plot to save her daughter and the man her daughter loves from a terrible fate, changing her family’s history in the process. Cora is the woman I would like to be: brave, intelligent, and quirky.

7. Are there villains in your books and how were they created?



Luther in Redeeming Grace, could be considered a villain. He is Grace’s father, and after the death of his wife and two of his children, he slowly goes mad. He becomes verbally abusive to Grace and physically abusive to Grace’s little sister Miriam, spouting Bible verses as justification for his actions. Luther is definitely evil, although Grace still has compassion for him. She remembers the kind and loving father he was before tragedy hit the family. And that, to me, is what makes an antagonist believable: they have to have redeeming qualities. There are good qualities in the most evil of people; Hannibal Lechter of The Silence of the Lambs, for example, murdered people and then ate them, yet he loved good art, good music good literature. Putting a glimmer of good, no matter how small, in your villains is always a good idea.

8. What are you working on now?



I’ve just started a brand-new project with the working title, The Madam of Bodie. I don’t want to say too much about it right now, because it is just in its infancy.

9. What's your latest release and how did the idea arrive?



Well, I already told you about my latest book release, Observations of an Earth Mage. I have a short story called “Breakfast at the Laundromat” in Vanilla Heart Publishing’s new Passionate Hearts anthology. I love this story and its characters. I got the idea at the laundromat. We live in a teeny tiny cottage with no place for a washer and dryer, so my husband and I have to take our clothes out to wash. We really enjoy people watching while we are there, and the story evolved from there.

10. Tell me about your latest book and how it came about. Enclose the opening of the book around 400 words.




I don't usually write—or read—romance novels. Somehow, they always seemed slightly silly to cynical me. People finding their soul mates—as if soul mates really existed! Really, give me a break ...

But then ... I met my soul mate. And suddenly, romantic stories don't seem so silly to me. Oh, I'm not talking bodice rippers—I still have no use for those. But stories with a strong element of romance, or the possibility of romance, now appeal to me greatly.

Then my publisher requested that I submit a short story to their upcoming Passionate Hearts anthology, and surprise! I find I actually even like to write romantic stories!

Here's an excerpt from "Breakfast at the Laundromat."

“Damn!” She thrust her coffee into his hand, jumped up, and dashed to the end of the row of washers, where soap suds were oozing from the top and puddling on the floor like little cumulus clouds that had somehow gotten lost and wandered into the laundry. The machine was banging loudly and wobbling so badly he thought it would sashay right out the door. She lifted the lid; the wobbling and banging stopped. He could hear her muttering something as she reached in and started pulling out what looked like an enormous purple chenille snake from the washer. She’d pulled at least six feet of the purple viper out of the machine before he realized it was a bedspread that had gotten twisted and tangled around the agitator. He set her coffee on the folding table next to the Thermos, crammed the last bite of coconut donut in his mouth, and went to offer assistance.

“This is why I’m doing my wash here instead of at home,” he said, reaching into the machine and tugging loose a pulled strand of chenille that was wedged under the agitator. “Big chunks of material like bedspreads are too heavy to wash; I broke the agitator on my washer doing living room drapes. You have to send stuff like this to the cleaners when they get dirty.”

“Oh, pish-posh,” she said, untwisting the tangled spread, shaking globs of soapy bubbles loose from its folds. “I wash mine here at least every couple of months. You just have to rebalance the load in the machine every so often while it’s washing.”

She crammed the bedspread back into the machine and shut the lid. After a moment, it started spinning again, this time with a minimal amount of banging and wobbling on the machine’s part.

He picked his way among the clouds of suds that had escaped from the washer and returned to his chair. He assumed she was right behind him, but when he turned he saw her bending over the piles of suds and scooping them up in her arms as if they were piles of autumn leaves. Using her backside to push open the door to the parking lot, she stepped out of the laundry and let the suds fly in the breeze. She slipped back inside, once again marched over to the washer, again scooped up a pile of suds, and again sent them sailing outside. By her fourth trip to the parking lot all that was left of the suds clouds on the laundromat floor was a tiny ribbon of water inching its way toward the floor drain, and the clouds themselves whirled through the air above a shiny new Lexus convertible and a rusty green pickup truck in the parking lot. She whirled and danced among the suds clouds until they drifted off toward the street.

Characters - Astrology - Saggitarius

Here goes with character traits for Saggitarians to help develop characters.

Saggitarian Sun or the inner person --These people are jovial, bright, hopeful and generous. They are generally self-reliant and out-spoken. There frankness can lead to problems. A Saggitarian heroine or hero is ambitious and not easily discouraged. They like liberty and out-door activity. Their strong will can present problems for they will not be driven.

Ascendant - Outer self. This is the face shown to the world. The Saggitarian hero or heroine is very independent and will not be ordered around. They can be impulsive and out-spoken. The hero or heroine can be found with their foot in their mouth. He or she can be nervously energetic and quick to make decisions. They have foresight especially in regards to business. He or she can appear blunt and abrupt. They can be high-strung. This hero or heroine likes animals.

Moon -- the emotional nature. This character can be benevolent and humanitarian. He or she can be sociable and loves to travel. They often change their residence frequently. This is a quick worker who may find themselves in the public eye either in a positive or negative way. The hero or heroine can benefit through women.

Inspiration day -- More on Vogler

Vogler's second step on the journey is the Call to Action. What reading his book has done is to make me think about what I do either instinctively or by careful planning. I do work on several levels. To me this call is a trigger. What triggers my hero or heroine or both to take a step toward a goal and why they want to reach that goal. What triggers them to move. Is there a new man or woman in their view? Is there a problem that must be solved and are they the right ones to solve them? This sort of thing is what I use when I do the two sentence synopsis. A simple question stating the goal and can it be reached.

I'm very glad I dug this book from my shelves and I'll continue to look at the steps on the journey and see how they go with my own writing. Take the time and see if they fit into your writing ideas.

My Writing life

Another interesting week. On Friday I signed the contract for Quests the third in the Henge Betrayed series. That makes four contracts in three months. I had a dry spell before so the last part of this year is productive. The signing of this contract means I have to get moving on the final book of the series. It's about 2 fifths done and hopefully before the end of the year I'll write finis.

Started a new bit on this blog on Saturday. This is the two sentence synopsis, something I do before I begin every book to help me stay on target. For me it works and hopefully other people will see that it might help them.

On the personal side, granddaughter has come for a visit and hopefully a stay with getting back to school and life in order. She's a Gemini with a multitude of talents and has a bit of trouble deciding what she wants to do with her life.

Six Sentence Sunday

Continuing with sentences from Confrontations my current work in progress. This introduces the second of the focus characters.

With a chiding voice ringing in his thoughts Val signaled his three companions forward. He closed his mind to the muttered complaints of the youngest member of the quartet. Why me? Since he was a year older than the other halflings, he'd been chosen to ride herd on the most impetuous of the Fire affinities. When Ky's courser sprinted into the lead, he groaned.

"We're off at last," Ky shouted.

Challenge for writers

There's somethng I do before starting to write a book that usually keeps me focused on the story. Note, I say sometimes. There are times I've been diverted from the story and that's usually because as what I've set out to do has evolved into more than one story.

When I started writing, I came across a book by Dwight Swain that was a great help while I struggled with learning to form my ideas into stories. I wish I had the book but I loaned it to someone and haven't received it back so I'll try to explain in my less that wonderful way and issue a challenge to fellow writers.

What one does when the ideas and characters are bubbling in the thoughts is to write what your story will be in two sentences. One is a statement and the other is a question. This is sort of a synopsis in two sentences. Here's the one I wrote for one of my latest releases, The Warrior of Bast. This was done before I began the story.

Statement - On the run from she sister's killers, Tira reads a flyer offering an escape and a chance for her to fulfill a dream.

Question - As a warrior of Bast with the help of Kashe, a warrior of Horu, can she find the missing symbols of an ancient Egypt and defeat the priests of Aken Re?

The challenge is this during the next month, write your own two sentence synopsis of the story you're working on or one you plan to write and post it on your own blog or put it in the comment section of mine. For blog followers, there may be a surprise.

Writer's Tip - Characterization

Without characters there would be no stories. I suppose one could use an object to tell a story. Tried that once with a park bench but those were in the days when I was finding my way as a writer.

Often rejections speak of the poorly developed characters, or that they are cardboard. How does one solve this. There are four areas to help in developing a character.

Social - There are universal traits. Is the character male or female, child or adult. There are certain things common to each of these areas. Where was the character born? This country, another country, in the city, a small town, a rural area. There's a difference between characters who were born in NYC, in the Kentucky mountains, or a Texas ranch.

Intellectual traits - What kind of education did the character have? Are they curious or not? Where did they go to school? Did they drop out, have a dozen degrees. Do they have a profession and how did they choose it?

Emotional traits -- How does the character react to a situation. Wgat are their feelings about where they live, about their looks. How do they react to pain, to pleasure, to friends and enemies. These traits are sparked by the emotions.

Interview with Kim

Kim is another of the obscure young adult writers. I've met her on line in this interesting collection of writers.

. What's your genre or do you write in more than one?

Right now I’m a YA author. Both of my books are YA. My third book NO GODDESSES ALLOWED is a lighter YA.

2. Did you choose your genre or did it choose you?

When I started writing EARRINGS OF IXTUMEA, I saw a fourteen-year-old girl struggling with her Latina heritage. At the time I was a bilingual teacher and searching for my own Mexican roots. It just seemed like a good match.

3. Is there any genre you'd like to try? Or is there one you wouldn't?

I’d love to write a historical romance that is kind of steamy. But not over the top. My favorite author is Diana Gabaldon. Love, love her writing.

I have to say gory, over the top violent books are not my cup of tea. Same with overly graphic sexual books that don’t leave anything to the imagination.

4. What fiction do you read for pleasure?

Anything by Isabel Allende. Also love Diana Gabaldon. Plus YA paranormals, fantasies, and multicultural books

5. Tell me a bit about yourself and how long you've been writing,

I’m a former bilingual teacher and currently homeschooling my son. I’ve been writing since I can remember. Wrote for all my school newspapers and even was a journalism/communication major.

6. Which of your characters is your favorite?
So far my favorite character has to be Stephanie in CROSSED OUT. I had the same ‘tude as a teen. But not her ability though the women in my family are sensitive to the whole paranormal. Yes, some of my relatives have reported seeing a ghost or two.

7. Are there villains in your books and how were they created?
Concha, Lupe’s mother, is a big villain in EARRINGS. I wanted her to be tormented at her decision to leave Lupe when she was a child but still be willing to hand her over to her lover, Malvado in order to both gain immortality and be with him.

8. What are you working on now?
Right now I’m working on the sequel to CROSSED OUT. I hope to have the first draft done by December. I’m thinking I’m going to have to have a writing fest in the next couple months to achieve that goal.

9. What's your latest release and how did the idea arrive?

CROSSED OUT is my latest book. The idea came from my husband who asked what if it was the job of someone to make all those crosses you see on the side of the road. From there I used a personal experience I had from my murdered sister. The rest is history.

10. Tell me about your latest book and how it came about. Enclose the opening of the book around 400 words.

I couldn’t deal with Mom and her holier-than-thou attitude about decorating crosses. If she had any clue why I needed to do this, maybe she’d back off. I pushed my hair aside and looked down at the wooden beams. My box of paints and Sharpie pens lay close to my side. I had to get the design just right. Roses, or something plainer? It didn’t help that it was so cold in the garage.

Why was it so hard to help the dead go to the other side? It’d be a whole lot easier if they told me what they wanted on their crosses. Dead girl comes, asks for help, and tells me she’s into pink roses. Yes, that would make my job a lot easier.
But one thing I’ve learned is, life isn’t easy. Cliché, but true.

Figures, this was how I’d spend my time on a Saturday – sitting cross-legged on the floor in our garage, worrying about finishing a cross for some dead girl. In a few hours, Mom would drag me to Mrs. Swanson’s house for a sleepover. I didn’t really have time to decorate a cross.

And each time I tried to sketch, thoughts of the meeting drove any thought of the design out of my mind. I mean, how could I even think of helping others – albeit dead ones – when my own life was such a disaster?

I didn’t want to go. But Mom was using the whole sleepover as a way to get me to be around Hillary, whom she thought would be such a good example for me. But I couldn’t tell my mother the truth – I hated Hillary. Yes, we’d once been close, but it wasn’t as if we were BFF anymore. No, Hillary made sure of that when I’d been stupid enough to trust her with my secret. A secret that was better left hidden. No one believed the dead could talk to you.

According to my last counselor, the only way that could happen is through serious Steven Spielberg special effects..

Astrology -- Scorpio characters

The hero or heroine with a Scorpio Sun is shrewd with keen judgment. They can be critical, suspicious and skeptical. An enterprising nature that is reserved, tenacious and secretive. This hero or heroine is fond of luxuries bur is also economical. They can be plain spoken and bitingly sarcastic. There can be a tendency to be aggressive. At their best they are original, dangerous and creative.

With the face they show the world, Scorpio rising brings a reserved person who is inclined to be suspicious. They are quick witted and can deliver sarcastic remarks with ease. They are quick to take action and are positive and can be blunt. They are fond of a good fight. They make staunch friends. Scorpio rising brings and willfulness to the nature. This hero or heroine can hold fixed views. When proved they are angry.

The Moon shows the emotional nature of the hero and heroine. With Scorpio in this spot, the character is capable of vigorous activity. They have a firm self-confidence. With a Scorpio moon, the character will take care of their own. They have a fondness for pleasure and comfort. They can be forceful and masterful. They do not tolerate imposition. There is a great attraction to and from the opposite sex.

Inspirations - The Writer's journey

Years ago, I bought The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler and started to read it but for some reason I put it on the shelf and didn't finish it. While doing these things to inspire people in their writing I pulled it off the shelf and started to read.

He maps out a sort of 3 act arc. This begins in the ordinary world. This made me think about the ordinary world. This is different for each character one creates and this means one has to build a bit of the character's world before the story begins. For me this means that after I've decided what my story is going to entail, I have to think about what is going on in a character's life and what makes them want to leave this world that may be comfortable or uncomfortable. He talks about :The fish out of water." Sometimes I've used this but sometimes I've made the fist be in the water and the changes that come from without. Mrs. Miller in the first two stories of the mystery series is in her world and her world is threatened. In the third and fourth books of the series she does step out of her world and I think when I get to the fifth, she will again leave her world and in the sixth she will return to her world being disturbed by events. So reading just a few paragraphs has made me think about the stories I've written and the ones I'll be writing.