The Readers' Writer

T. Greenwood has authored seven novels to date. Her work in literature has taken her into the classroom where she has taught creative writing to students at the University of California San Diego, George Washington University in Washington, D.C., at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland and for San Diego Writers, Ink. A Vermont native now residing in San Diego with her husband and daughters, Greenwood still returns to Vermont each summer. She is also an avid and aspiring fine arts photographer whose passion for understanding and capturing the elegance of light and dark has melded to her writing.

“Grace” is Greenwood’s latest release and a classic example of how two arts – photography and literature – can come together to create a poignant and creatively detailed journey inside a contemporary family on the brink of self-destruction. Within this dramatic novel, Greenwood infuses what on the surface may seem to be a cacophony of issues; such as hoarding, bullying, shoplifting, parental bias, and loss of control. Yet, Greenwood masterfully intertwines the individuality of the characters, their personal crises, and the mental life preserver each finds to stay afloat as their world plunges into murky depths.

“Grace” is at times a dark tale of a family on the abyss of desperation. But this is where Greenwood’s artistic eye captures the light and manipulates her prose to unveil that even in the shadows live beauty, hope, understanding, and triumphantly…love.
On a personal note, I think “Grace” is an amazingly written tale.
http://www.tgreenwood.com/

Q) One question that seems to arise in some readers’ minds regarding stories like “Grace” is how much of the author’s personal life was infused into the work. So, how much of T. Greenwood’s life is in this story?

A) This novel, like all of my novels, arises from an inherent curiosity about the world rather than a need to articulate my own personal experience. The spark of a novel for me is always some sort of question, and I write the novel to find the answer to this question. In the case of “Grace,” the question was, What would bring a man to the point where he would be aiming a gun at the back of his own child’s head? Obviously, the opening scene of “Grace” is not one that I have ever experienced firsthand. However, my own life does inform everything I write. I am a parent, and so much of this story is about motherhood (and fatherhood). The empathy I feel for each of my characters comes as a direct result of my ability to relate (in even the smallest ways) to each and every one of them. Lastly, the setting (while fictional) is based on the area in Vermont where I grew up. I have returned to this setting again and again in my novels.

Q) Hoarding, bullying, shoplifting for attention or to counter insurmountable anguish, and the character Trevor’s use of photography as a cry for help are a myriad of issues. Why did you incorporate so many topical problems into “Grace”?

A) This was not a conscious decision. These issues grew from the characters all having a shared need to possess something. Elsbeth shoplifts because she feels deprived of things; stealing trinkets relieves her (if only momentarily) of this sense. Pop hoards things because he is really trying to hold on to his past. Kurt too is trying desperately to hold onto his life (his house, his wife, etc…). Crystal has lost something she can never, ever get back. And for Trevor, photography allows him to capture the fleeting beauty he is able to find in his dark world.

Q) While I see “Grace” as a watershed for your passions, how do you view your melding of these two arts into your story?

A) I have always wanted to incorporate photography into a novel. And I truly believe that art has the power to save people. Art, for Trevor, validates his perception of the world. It gives him a lens through which to understand it as well. I care deeply about my own photography, and I wanted to be able to give this gift to one of my characters. Trevor was the perfect (and most deserving) recipient.

Q) You once referred to “Grace” as an “ensemble novel.” What did you mean by that?

A) “Grace” does not belong to one character. It is really the story of four people: Kurt, Elsbeth, Trevor, and Crystal. But it is also the story of a family.

Q) You have a preference for using small towns as the backdrop for your stories. In fact, Two Rivers, where this story takes place, is a return to the town where the novel “Two Rivers” took place. Why smaller, rural communities?

A) I grew up in a very small town in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. I find small towns to be fertile ground for fiction. There’s a sense of connectedness in a small town that doesn’t seem to exist in larger cities. There is also less transience. People stay in small towns. This has allowed me to create a credible fictional world for my characters. I have now set five of my novels in Vermont. And many characters make repeated appearances in these books.

Q) Any parting thoughts for your fans and those yet to discover your books?

A) I think that my novels offer a glimpse into a place that not many people know well. And the characters who live there are as real to me sometimes as my own family and friends. I am eager to share their stories with anyone willing to listen to them. And that is why I continue to write.

While exploring the raw and magnetic music of Babs Martin, I came across a video titled “Magus” by Cyndi Dawson. The work is Dawson’s poetry set to a calming melody.

“This is the dream of the holy man, of the man of sorrow, who waits by the split sea like Moses.”

I wanted to know more about the author behind the words and visual concept, which led me to Dawson’s book of poetry “Outside Girl.”

In “Outside Girl,” Dawson takes us into the off-the-grid NYC club scenes of the eighties, into the filth of bathrooms with junkies feeding their habits, false bravado thumped by those needing to fit in, the genuine lost souls, the hopes and dreams that will be left behind, and the beautiful hearts of those who will emerge from that era a little tattered, but all the wiser and stronger for the experience.

Dawson shares that world from her own experiences, her own viewpoint of the life she was living. As a “word rocker,” Dawson has performed her poetry to music in clubs around the world, always growing, always – in her terminology – evolving.

I think that’s one of the things that made her word artistry stand out for me. Dawson views life as a personal evolution. Because, after all, if we aren’t evolving, we’re stagnating.

A rocker at heart, Dawson (from the Cynz’s Facebook page) “and longtime musician friend Henry Seiz joined forces, grabbed fellow musicians Matt Langone, Bob Stockl and Patrick Schoultz, and put together what is being talked about as 'the closest thing to the sound of 1977 CBGB's since 1977'” - the band Cynz. Cynz is a hard hitting stage from which Dawson’s lyrical prose melds with skilled guitar licks, a solid bass foundation, and Stockl’s percussion perfection.

One of their most popular songs to date? “Evolution,” of course.

‘Actress’ Cyndi Dawson has appeared on Law and Order, Advil commercials and other film and TV projects. Her poetic prose has appeared in over fifty anthologies and magazines, as well as two other collections she published, “Dream Sequences” and “Inside of Outside.” As a performance artist, Dawson has enthralled international audiences. And yes, “artist” most accurately describes Dawson. She is a painter of words, and life is her canvas.
http://www.myspace.com/insideofoutside
“Magus”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ftd8zSp7hA&feature=related

Q) You founded the poetry and music venue 'Poets and Angels Music and Poetry Series.’ Would explain for our readers what that venue is?
A) I wanted to create a safe space where people could explore their work without having to be a 'professional' writer. I found a perfect cafe in town where i live and they gave me free reign to start the series up. Since I worked with musicians doing my poetry pieces, it evolved into a poetry AND music series. It was very organic. We all allowed it to become it's own animal, so to speak, and it was a beautiful one.

Q) I read a blurb that you once stood in for Madonna. When and why?

A) I was an actress in the 80's, and my agent called me one night and said I was to be on set 6am for a movie as a stand in. I asked for who, and she said, 'Madonna'. Well, you know Madonna was HUGE at that point. I was a dancer so our bodies were very similar at that point, though I look nothing like her in the face. But as her stand in they could use me to set up shots and to do shots where she would have been filmed from behind or running, etc. This film was 'Who's That Girl'.

Q) You truly are a language artist wielding a verbal brush sometimes caustic, other times graceful and serene. Poetry isn’t known for its ladders to success. Why devote so much of your life to it?

A) Art yields little financial success, almost as a rule for most. I can only say that, like breathing, it is essential for living to someone like myself. I've written poetically since I was a child. I think my thoughts in poetry. I have mild aspergers so learning how to outwardly reveal my emotions in a safe way made writing the same as oxygen for me. I am very comfortable writing or moving my body physically as a mode of communication.

Q) Which leads us to this question – in your mind, what is “success”?

A) Success is when something you do that connects you in a positive way to the world gives you great satisfaction. It's obviously not about the money to me, although how I admire those who DO make their living doing what it is they love. That's a bonus, but not necessarily success.

Q) Performance art and small clubs allow for interaction with the audience. Do the people who come to your Cynz’s performances inspire your work, and if so, how?

A) Absolutely. The interaction with the audience can make or break a performance. It's an alchemy of energy. You try and bring everything you've got to every show. I've never experienced a dead audience at any of our shows so far, whether we had 100 or we had 20 people. They all move towards the stage and you can see it in their faces. We are definitely experiencing some shamanic exchange of purge during our performance. I often think the audience NEEDS me to cut loose and get that scream out. It's OUR scream, together!

Q) Any parting thoughts for readers not yet familiar with your poetry?

A) Jair-Rohm Parker Wells wrote that gorgeous music for 'Magus'. I've worked with some wonderful musicians over the years.

As for my words, I think the one thing I try and create is a set of 'unrules'. Craft is important. I hope more young writers learn how to edit and workshop. I am a 'street poet' but I still try and make sure every line is essential, that the piece doesn't go on too long just for my own ego, and that it isn't so written for myself that a reader couldn't grasp any of it. In that case, keep a journal of your work, but don't necessarily post it places. I find younger writers posting 2-3 times a day just to get comments and the work wasn't well thought out in regards to editing or crafting to make it really great. So- yes, no rules in terms of free style poetry, but having said that, at least take more time on your work to make sure it's not the best expression of the message you want to speak and/or share with readers. I write from where I live. Not every word is in chronological order, but most of my work is gleamed from my life or thoughts pertaining to bits of mine and/or another's.

I find if you write from a place of truth, there's a sense of urgency in the words you just can't fake. And the reader knows this.

“A Vacation on the Island of Ex-boyfriends.” Heaven or Hell?
Heaven for the reader of this refreshing collection of short stories by debut author Stacy Bierlein. For the two friends who land on such an island, maybe the answer lies somewhere in the discovery that both words begin with “He,” and there aren’t any signposts beyond the women’s hearts, desires, and dreams. Of course, a little feminine guile never hurts either.

Each story within “A Vacation on the Island of Ex-boyfriends” is itself an introspective look through the keyhole of a woman’s intelligence, strengths, and the weaknesses that both mold and damage her. Yet, through Stacy’s wit and heartwarming storytelling ability, the reader will gladly follow these characters as they travel their individual journeys in search of that elusive happy ending we all believe we deserve and yearn for. Is the grass greener on the other side? Was what we wanted always within reach, but too close to see? Would we really risk our life for love? Does destiny exist and find us no matter how far we run?

Stacy isn’t new to the literary scene. A southern Californian, she edited the award-winning anthology, “A Stranger Among Us: Stories of Cross Cultural Collision and Connection,” and coedited “Men Undressed: Female Writers and the Male Sexual Experience.” She is a founding editor of the independent press Other Voices Books, and co-creator of the Morgan Street International Novel Series. Her articles about writing, publishing and the arts appear on various websites.

In this collection of delightful short stories, Stacy serves up the ever present reminder that love is never guaranteed, there is danger in surrendering our hearts, and sometimes the leap of faith is off a cliff. But Stacy also reminds us that sometimes that leap can land us where we were meant to be all along, and the trip can be well worth the fall.
http://www.erpmedia.net/books/AVacation.html

Q) Why debut with a short story collection and not a novel?

A) I have always preferred short fiction, as both a reader and a writer. I like the challenge of the short story—the quest to achieve the emotional range of a novel but in less than 10,000 words. I like the precision and control a writer needs in shorter works. It makes perfect sense to me that many of our finest contemporary poets write stunning short fiction, an vice versa. One needs to slow down, to fine tune. Novel writing requires a certain bravery and momentum that I’m not sure I have ever been able to sustain, although certainly I would like to try. Novel writing is a longer journey into the unknown.

Q) There are highs (rave reviews and sales) and lows (poor reviews and no sales) to having your name on a book. For an author, “published” can be a blindfolded roller coaster ride. Coming from the “unseen” side of publishing – editing - is being a published author what you expected?

A) I really like this question because the blindfolded roller coaster ride description is right-on. Being a published writer is what I expected, actually, because I knew what I was getting myself into. Publishing is a difficult business from all sides and I suspect it is easier for writers to keep realistic expectations when they have previously experienced this in some way. We have all seen truly brilliant books receive very little attention—for any number of reasons sometimes beyond the writer’s control, like neglected publicity efforts or poor distribution—and basically disappear. At the same time we see books that are rushed to print without proper editorial support, books that aren’t quite there yet, hitting bookstore shelves and managing to do notably well in spite of their failings. In my case, I feel proud of my work and my publisher’s enthusiasm for it and that’s really the very basic formula one hopes to have. From there anything can happen. On a blindfolded roller coaster ride you cannot be sure if your car is slowing to come to a stop or to shoot into some kind of crazy upside-down whirl.

Q) What inspired this collection of short stories?

A) For years it seemed that my closest friends were embarking on definitive journeys—both literal and emotional ones. I wanted to get both the beauty and uncertainty of those moments onto the page. I also wanted to describe accurately the intensity of female friendships. I am surprised by how seldom I encounter deep female friendships in literary fiction. As a culture, we tend to leave this arena to genre fiction and television writing. When I described my need to get onto the page the language female friends use when alone with one another, a friend told me “Oh honey, ‘Sex and the City’ has already done that.” I thought “Sex and the City” was daring and often lovely but I didn’t think it was showing us the true way women speak to each other. I thought it was how a team of extremely clever television writers wanted New York women to speak to one another. My women had some essential things in common with them but didn’t sound like them exactly.

Q) Much has been said by reviewers (almost all praise worthy) about your characters and their choices where love is concerned. What was your purpose in creating such a kaleidoscope of characters and international locations?

A) I think I possess more than my fair share of wanderlust. I have always been a traveler and deeply interested in who people are when they are away from home. Likewise I question whether home is really a place at all. Maybe we get that wrong and home is actually another person—at the risk of sounding too precious—a person who really understands your heart.

I was thinking about wanderlust as it relates to reading habits. Most of the literature I loved when I was a child involved children embarking on some kind of extraordinary or dangerous journey. I remember a book I treasured in grade school called King of the Dollhouse, where the king was a homebody who raised eleven princes and princesses while the queen went on adventures all over the world. I loved both the king’s devotion to his babies and the queen’s relentless curiosity. I wanted to be both of them. When I was a teenager I failed to love reading the way I once had. The stories I was to read suddenly lacked that kind of adventure—everything became more serious and realistic. This isn’t true for teenage readers today of course. Today’s young adult fiction is far more impressive in range and diversity. But most of my writing peers admit to this—a time in their late teens and early twenties when their reading often failed to capture their imagination. They wondered how they could become writers when they were less than enchanted by reading. Luckily in college we discovered Kafka and Gogol and Woolf as well as contemporary writers like Donald Barthleme and Robert Coover and Richard Brautigan. Reading became magical again. Today we have brilliant writers like Lydia Millet, Miranda July, and Aimee Bender writing important adult stories that remind us why we so loved reading as children. I think I often set my stories in distant places because I want the act of writing them to recall in some way the feeling and wonder I had for characters from my childhood reading, for those very devoted kings and wonderfully restless queens.

Q) What can we expect next from you?

A) I am working on a few things now. I’m writing an essay for TheNervousBreakdown.com on demolition and architecture, a discussion of what we destroy and what we preserve. I’m preparing to interview one of my favorite authors, Josip Novakovich, about his forthcoming essay collection, Shopping for a Better Country, for The Rumpus. I’m also tinkering with a novella that is a modern-day Sleeping Beauty story. Sleeping Beauty wakes up after 100 years of sleep and is seriously pissed off that the first thing she is expected to do is to marry. She is an insomniac now. Of course this is where her real trouble begins ….

Q) Any parting comments for those readers yet to pick up a copy of “A Vacation on the Island of Ex-boyfriends?”

A) I want to say how excited I am that my book has released in spring 2012—a very strong season for fiction with some notable titles by women I admire. Pam Houston’s new novel, "Contents May Have Shifted," is extraordinary. Two memoirs of note, Claire Bidwell Smith’s "The Rules of Inheritance" and Cheryl Strayed’s "Wild," discuss overcoming loneliness and so much more. Both are full of moments that made me stop and say, “Oh yes, I’ve known this feeling, I’ve just never had the words for it before.” And I’m looking forward to the release of Elizabeth Crane’s novel, "We Only Know So Much." So I hope you will read "A Vacation on the Island of Ex-Boyfriends" of course, but please do not stop there. This is an exciting year of innovative and inviting fiction.
DA Kentner is an author and journalist. http://www.kevad.net/

What readers of this column may not know is I don’t get paid to do this. Nope. Not at all. I interview authors solely to introduce readers to authors and books they might not be familiar with. So, when I meet someone else actively promoting authors and their work to readers while pushing their own books into the background, my interest piques.

Dawn Roberto hosts the popular Internet chat group Love Romances Café where authors and publishers are free to promote their books, and readers can chat live with those authors. She also hosts a blog where authors can, again, market their work. Dawn doesn’t profit from any of this. It’s a free service to readers and writers. In fact, in order to maintain the integrity of her efforts to promote reading, she created the pseudonym Raine Delight as the author of her own books. Furthermore, this interview is one of the rare times Dawn allows her two personas to sit down together.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveRomancesCafe/

Now, Raine Delight is a bit of a personality in her own right and has become known for her more than cheeky comments and rhetoric. Raine pens erotic romance. Her tales are sometimes heart wrenching, suspenseful, sometimes sprinkled with humor, but always entertaining, and, yes, the bedroom door is always open.

Raine was unveiled with the introduction of the paranormal Devon Falls series, “Sticky Magic” being the first book released. Four others followed, the latest being “Moonlight and Magic,” the story of a rare white were-tiger and the one woman who can tame his heart.
Departing from Devon Falls, but continuing to remain within the paranormal genre, Raine has now released “Fantasies Unbound.” Skye Andrews is a woman fed up with life and men, until a Faberge egg opens a doorway to a Fae Prince in search of the love that can make him whole. If you’re a reader who enjoys wonderfully told tales of open hearts in worlds limited only by the imagination, and steamy romance, Raine is waiting to share a story with you.
http://authorrainedelight.com/

Q) What motivated you to create Love Romances Café, which also sponsors reader voted annual awards for outstanding books and authors?

A) Dawn: Hi David and thanks for having me here. Actually the LR Café was at first a book club where they would read and talk about a specific book once a month. Then the person who ran it decided she didn’t have the time for it and I stepped in. In the few years since then, I changed the name-LR Café-made it a chat place for readers and authors to enjoy and try to showcase the best authors each year and tried to make it a place where readers, authors and publishers can enjoy themselves in a relaxed format. It’s a lot of work at times but I am passionate about getting books out to readers, for them to chat with the authors and for authors to meet their reading public. Because face it, I get all fan-girl whenever I talk to an author I admire and love.

Q) How did the name Raine Delight come about?

A) Raine: Well actually, I was tossing ideas around after reading really awful book years ago and when I opened the door to my inner muse, I came about with an idea but needed a name that is separate from Dawn, as I try to keep bother personalities separate. An author friend, Skylar Sinclair, offered up Raine and I came up with Delight. From then on it has been history…

Q) Why paranormal, and do you have plans to write in other genres?

A) Raine: I love paranormal genre. The skies the limit and I can indulge my inner love of shapeshifters, mages and more there. Currently I am immersed in a sci-fi universe that I am creating for a new book and plan to dive back into the paranormal world with two more new trilogies in the future. I would love to do a historical but the research is daunting.

Q) Raine enjoys a harem of men lavishing luxury upon her. Dawn is a hard working homemaker trying to hold things together within a shrinking budget, and totally devoted to her family. How much of Raine is Dawn’s escape from routine, if any?

A) Raine/Dawn: Actually now that you mentioned it that might be true. *laughs* I actually created ‘Raine Delight’ to keep my reviewing separate from writing. I didn’t want to show favoritism to publishers I was with or have a conflict of interest so to speak. And I needed an outlet, I think, for the stories that long simmered in my head and finally had a chance to be out in the open.

Q) On Dawn’s blog “Dawn’s Reading Nook” Raine’s books aren’t marketed, nor even mentioned. Why do you normally strive to keep Dawn and Raine so separate?

A) Dawn: I try to keep things in perspective and try to not show I favor ‘Raine’s’ books over anyone elses’s. I have had my persona Raine on the LRC loop chatting with readers, etc but for me as Dawn, Raine gets enough publicity on her own in her own way that she doesn’t need my help in getting sales. Will that change? Maybe, maybe not. *shrugs* When I first started writing under Raine’s name, I wanted something different than my reviewing. Everyone knows I review, love to talk to authors and readers, etc but Raine is something a bit different. She is the one aspect of my personality that is wild and crazy. She can create some sexy, erotic scenes and not bat an eye and as Dawn I blush reading BDSM stories. LOL

Q) Any parting comments for readers not familiar with your work?

A) Raine: Thank you David for having both my personalities here. Does that make me sound like a mental case? *laughs* I love hearing from readers who love Happy Ever Afters that encompass people of many different colors and find that romance is universal, and hope they take a look at my blog or my website for my books.

Dawn: Thanks for having us here David. I love books and finally found something that I can pass on to others who love books just as much as I do. I hope readers pop in my blog and the LRC Loop for all the fun I have there.
DA Kentner is an author and journalist. www.kevad.net

At the mere mention of Feng Shui, I instantly used to fear my wife would ask for my help in rearranging our furniture. That was before my friend, publicist Imal Wagner, sent me an interesting paperback titled “Make This Your Lucky Day: Fun and Easy Secrets and Shortcuts to Success, Romance, Health, and Harmony” by Ellen Whitehurst.

To be honest, I had no idea who Ms. Whitehurst was. Obviously, I need to get out more. Millions of readers follow her articles on DoctorOz.com, ‘The Huffington Post’ and John Edward’s InfiniteQuest.com among others. She’s also a former monthly columnist for both ‘Redbook’ and ‘Seventeen’ magazines. Recognized as the country’s premier expert in Feng Shui and other empowering modalities such as holistic medicine, aromatherapy, astrology and conscious cooking, she also pens a daily inspirational tip for iVillage.com currently reaching over a half million opted-in subscribers each day.

Still, I wasn’t sure what to expect in a book called “Make This Your Lucky Day.” Then I read this question in chapter one: “What would happen if there were no money in the world and we all had to barter with one another to exist?” At that moment, Ms. Whitehurst’s logic sledgehammer hit me on my thick noggin. This wasn’t a book insisting I twist my legs into shapes my arthritic knees would never allow, or hum chants while inhaling burning fruit slices. Through everyday prose, Ms. Whitehurst was simply encouraging me to discover my self worth – my inner talents and what I love to do.

Ms. Whitehurst opens doors we all have closed at some point in our lives when necessity and circumstances demanded it. But she also reminds us that we aren’t alone in the problems that can feel insurmountable. The topics in “Make This Your Lucky Day” include career, wealth, marriage and partnership, children, and creativity. Yes, there are holistic suggestions. Primarily, Ms. Whitehurst offers some simple deviations from our established routines that could in fact change our luck… if we’re willing to take the chance.
http://www.ellenwhitehurst.com/  www.facebook.com/EllenWhitehurst

Q) What event first drew your interest in Feng Shui as a lifestyle you wanted to share?

A) Many years ago I myself was struggling with some issues and agendas that each of us might stumble upon as we go about growing and living inside our own lives. My husband and I had been trying to conceive for some time and weren’t having any success, and, then, both of my parents – who had not yet reached the age of 60 – became concurrently and terminally ill. In my efforts at figuring out alternative modalities to support my efforts at having a baby and, more importantly, in my quest to find different ways to offer my beloved folks some quality of life while they transitioned, I met and started studying Feng Shui from a wonderful teacher. But it was when I, personally, experienced the profound and magnificent shifts that can occur from embracing this ages-old wisdom that I became a crusader on the path to sharing this life-altering philosophy with anyone wanting or wishing for more empowerment, fortune, happiness and, yes – even luck – in their lives.

Q) Many of the folks reading this aren’t familiar with your techniques. What is the primary reason a working mother of three who barely has time for three sips of coffee should read your book?

A) Anyone, even a crazy busy working mother (ahem!) can really get such huge benefits and blessings simply by realizing the role that the outer environment plays and contributes to what’s going on in the inner one. And in quick and easy to understand manner, that’s essentially what the book is about. If I can share with just one person how waking up (or even going to sleep) and looking at something or someone that/who makes you HAPPY will actually have a positive influence and impact, not only on the entire day but on their entire life, well, who wouldn’t want to take advantage of a concept so simple yet a result that is so spectacular? If the working mom knew that the first thing she saw every morning could have such a tremendous impact and then did something PROACTIVELY to make her own life a better place to be by putting the laundry away and positioning a picture of a beautiful field of flowers instead, then I’ve done my job, the book will have been worth the read, and she’ll enjoy those three sips more than before she read any one page.

Q) Same question, different person. What benefit would a teen soon off to college glean from “Make This Your Lucky Day”?

A) Well, without getting too specific, although, if anyone does, that sort of information is provided in the book as well. But, sprinkled all throughout the pages of “Make This Your Lucky Day” the reader can find dictates from this Feng Shui philosophy that are culled from lessons learned from the wisdom of the ages. Some of that wisdom holds that the colors blue and green are the primary colors that should be used in a sleeping space simply because they evoke an energy of peace and calm and even healing (think hospitals and green.) As well, the use of imagery as previously mentioned can also elicit and prompt a subtle psychological/subconscious response that could be considered supportive to whatever the intention is. So a boy heading off to college should bring a blue or green comforter for his bed to allow him to ‘chill’ when the day is done and he should be placing images around him that support his dreams of the future. Of course I get much more detailed in the book (always keep a desk lamp on the opposite side of the hand you write with lest it cast a shadow that can cause headaches, etc.) but in the bigger scheme, the idea of an outer environment supporting and shifting anyone’s inner one (even a rising college kid) also supports the notion that we indeed can create our own lucky opportunities!

Q) To turn your own question against you, if you hadn’t followed the path you’re on, what other career would you have chosen? In other words, what else captures your imagination and passion?

A) I was born to write. That much I know. It’s in my DNA. And my heart and soul as well. What I would eventually write about was always a question mark, but the fact that I would write was a given. That said, I spent the first 20 years of my ‘career’ life as a successful analyst, and, then, eventually a successful commodities trader working on Wall Street. During that time I did, however, also write a nightly newswire for all of E. F Hutton’s commodity traders detailing the fundamentals and technical swings and situations of that day, so, still writing. See? Can’t shake it.

Q) Your son Grayson means the world to you. How has Feng Shui changed his life?

A) I wouldn’t so much say that Feng Shui has changed my son’s life since he hasn’t really known any other way. He was born to a mom who had eagerly embraced the entire philosophy before he came along. But I will say that he is a well-adjusted, happy, polite and wonderful kid who is attending one of the country’s premier International Baccalaureate programs in the county and has a deep and overriding passion for filmmaking. His eyes are set on NYU Tisch Film School for college. I tell you this because he has, at various times, had images of Spielberg, Tarantino and even Hitchcock in his bedroom. His inner world is rich and diverse and he seems grateful (most of the time!) for what’s happening in his outer one. And I attribute a great deal of that peace of his to our implementing the powers of Feng Shui. I will share one more as well, I have a great social network of friends where I live, and, as you might imagine, not everyone is as, well, um, ‘passsionate’ about Feng Shui as I am. But when they experience our everyday ordinary life, whether they are believers or not, the first time something concerning happens with one of their kids, I am one of the first calls they make. For professional assessment. So, yeah, there’s that!

Q) Any parting comments for your readers?

A.) I am passionate and pure in my motivation to share with them my expertise. For no other reason that I KNOW, unequivocally and without a single reservation that even trying ONE thing from my book will make their world a healthier, happier, more loving, prosperous and better place to be. I KNOW this. And I know as well that I am incredibly honored, humbled and blessed to be even able to make that statement. Here’s what else I know too – if just a single one of us does a single little thing to improve our own lives, we then experience the ripple/butterfly effect of improving everyone else’s life too. Immeasurable the gratitude I feel when I think about my own lucky days. Now, I want everyone else to have theirs as well.

Thank you so very much David for this opportunity. I feel your great energy and your graciousness and I am very much blessed for both of those opportunities. I hope to meet you someday but, for now, will send all my love and blessings, Ellen W.
DA Kentner is an author and journalist. http://www.kevad.net/

Daniel Palmer is a musician and e-commerce pioneer who established a commanding presence during the dot.com boom. Still, above all, he is a storyteller, and storytellers have to tell their stories. Daniel’s initial forays included romantic comedies, which didn’t catch the notice of publishers. Then he decided to write what he prefers to read – thrillers. Combining his techno-savvy with his love of edge-of-your-seat tales, his novel “Delirious” quickly found a home and has received accolades from readers and fellow authors around the world.

“Delirious” takes the reader not just into the vulnerability of technology, but the mind as well. The story is smart, fast-paced, and introduces us to a character unlike the typical hero found in thriller novels. Charlie Giles is a man plagued by mental illness, surrounded by murder, and not sure if he committed them or not. To learn the truth, Charlie has to unravel himself.

Keeping true to Daniel’s love and admiration for our changing times, he has now released “Helpless,” a thriller revolving around sexting, and the damage and horror embroiling a father and daughter caught up in murder, suspicion, and a tangle of lies that could destroy them both. What is most chilling in “Helpless” is the awareness of how vulnerable we all truly are when technology is used as a weapon against us.

Daniel’s prose is superb and designed to pull the reader into his stories and keep them there until the final sentence. And he does that with great skill. Daniel isn’t a writer to watch, he is an author to read.
http://www.danielpalmerbooks.com/

Q) You have taken technology’s perceived innocence and unveiled some horrific possibilities. Was it your intent to raise a caution flag of how technology can be used against ordinary people?

A) The short answer is—absolutely. When I started writing thrillers I saw an opportunity to combine my knowledge of how the technology works with suspense stories of ordinary people caught up in extraordinary situations. My goal with HELPLESS was to incorporate the dangers of commonly used technologies into an enthralling plot so that readers will hardly realize that they’re being educated while they’re being entertained.

Q) In both songwriting and storytelling, you have a wonderful sense of humor, which obviously isn’t allowed to shine in your thriller novels. Can we look forward to a book or two in which you turn your tongue-in-cheek style loose?

A) I sure hope so! My mom keeps encouraging me to get my romantic comedies out there. She thinks some of the passages are laugh out loud funny. Then again, she’s my mom, so she’s supposed to think I’m great. The novel I’m writing now, titled STOLEN, is a first person narrative. I thought that would give me a lot more wiggle room to be tongue-in-cheek with my prose, however, the plot has proved to be so utterly terrifying that it’s hard for the characters to do anything but stay alive and be scared! I’ve been tinkering with an idea for a series character and I would hope to be able to bring more of my brand of humor that character’s voice.

Q) You help raise money for the Red Sox Home Base program which aids veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). How did you become active in this cause?

A) I was helping my father, best selling medical suspense novelist Michael Palmer, promote his book, THE LAST SURGEON, which featured a former army trauma surgeon who suffered from debilitating PTSD. We came up with the idea to coincide his book launch with a fundraiser to support the Home Base Program since his novel dealt with themes specific to the organization’s mission. The event was a tremendous success and helped to raise thousands of dollars and increase public awareness about the Home Base Program. We continue to support Home Base and hope to do another big fundraising event at some future date.

Q) As a person very adept at technology such as social and web sites, did you consider publishing your books as e-books? In other words, why did you choose to follow the traditional publishing route?

A) I’ve seen firsthand how my father’s publishing team has greatly benefited his work and I wanted to emulate that success. I’m a big believer in the power of a team and I think the product I’m producing is of a higher quality because of the people working hard behind the scenes on my behalf. I’ve also spent a great deal of time trying to market my music as an independent artist, and while I’ve achieved some notoriety and success in that endeavor, I prefer having distribution and a network of supporters over going at it alone.

Q) You are married and have two children, so I have to ask. What steps have or will you take with your children to safeguard them from the internet dangers you write about?

A) My kids are too young to have cell phones or laptops in their bedroom. I’m not sure what safeguards will be available to me when they’re old enough to really bring technology into their lives. I think it’s critical for every parent to talk with their kids about the dangers of cyberspace. There are some great resources available online that offer best practices for safeguarding yourself and your kids against a variety of cyber dangers. I’ve listed many of these resources in the back of HELPLESS, but Safeteens.com is a good place to start the information gathering. There are also several software tools available to parents that help monitor their kid’s online behavior, including the highly regarded Net Nanny and McAfee’s Safe Eyes applications.

Q) Any parting thoughts for your readers?

A) I love to hear from my readers and I’m active on several social networking web sites. You can find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/danielpalmerbooks, on Twitter at www.twitter.com/danielpalmer, or on my web site. I hope folks will give a HELPLESS and read and, if applicable, that the story opens up a dialogue between parents and their children.

Megan Smolenyak is THE leading genealogy investigator in this country, and possibly the world. Many folks may recognize Megan from her numerous TV appearances on shows and networks such as Good Morning America, the Today Show, the Early Show, CNN, NPR and BBC. She has also consulted for and appeared on BBC Breakfast, Finding Your Roots, Faces of America, African American Lives, Ancestors, Timewatch, and They Came to America. This former international marketing consultant’s awards include National Genealogical Society's Award of Merit, a gold Folio Eddie, five writing awards from the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors, and four Tellys for video production.

If that doesn’t jog your memory, try these nostalgic news clips: President Obama and Sarah Palin are related. President Obama has Irish ancestry. Strom Thurmond and Al Sharpton’s families have a common past. The person who established these relationships that made the headlines? Megan Smolenyak. While such genealogical confirmations may elicit a public chuckle, or raise an eyebrow, they don’t begin to scratch the surface of the truly remarkable work this lady performs.

Our nation’s military serves, protects, and sometimes dies for us. In fact, currently there are 75,000 Americans still unaccounted for from WWII, 8,000 from Korea, and 1700 from Vietnam. Yes, there are more from WWI, the Cold War, and other combat arenas. These men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice deserve to go home.

As one of the first to utilize DNA as a means to explore heritage, Megan’s work was quickly recognized by the Unites States military, and for the past decade Megan has worked furiously and relentlessly to reunite previously unknown heroes with their families. This work has become so much a part of her that she even stood alone at the burial of the remains of a soldier she identified when no living family members had yet been located. Such is the heart of Megan Smolenyak.

Previously, Megan co-authored “Trace Your Roots with DNA,” the best-selling, how-to book on genetic genealogy. Her other books include “Honoring Our Ancestors,” “In Search of Our Ancestors,” and “They Came to America.” Now she has written “Hey, America, Your Roots Are Showing.” This book affords the reader a ringside seat as Megan recalls a number of career highlights including tracking First Lady Michelle Obama’s heritage, the Obama-Palin link, and locating the families of our fallen soldiers as far back as the Civil War. There are a few how-to tips for those who would like to perform their own family investigations. But most importantly, this book more than any other allows us to travel Megan’s journey with her and learn just how devoted she is to her work and how extremely consuming, heart wrenching, and joyous genealogy investigation can be.
http://megansmolenyak.com/index.html

Q) From international marketing to genealogy detective. What brought about that unique shift in careers?

A) I started genealogy in the 6th grade and it’s always been my first love, but back when I finished school, it seemed a fantasy to make a living as a genealogist, so I became a consultant. I enjoyed it and had the opportunity to see the world, but I reached a point where I was averaging nine months a year overseas and living the rest of life in little gasps in between suitcases. That’s when I decided to make a change and give genealogy a go as a profession – and I’ve been beyond fortunate. It still amazes me how many wonderful opportunities have come my way.

Q) As a veteran, I’m humbled and grateful for your work. As a former police detective, I understand how difficult your job can be. How did you feel the first time you actually reunited a fallen soldier with his family? I would suspect there was as much relief as joy.

A) First, please allow me to thank you for your service in both capacities. I happen to be an Army “brat,” so this work is incredibly meaningful to me. I’m just a small part of the process, but am fortunate enough to be the family’s first point of contact, a responsibility I don’t take lightly. Having located thousands of family members over the years, I’ve done it many times now, but it’s still a fresh experience each time. And I suppose the “first” that stands out the most for me is the first funeral I attended at Arlington National Cemetery. To see the actual outcome of the efforts of the Army and JPAC was unforgettable. I love that our country stands by its “no man left behind” commitment.

Q) Obviously, your work requires long hours and a lot of travel. How do you and your husband stay connected?

A) My husband is perhaps the most patient and flexible man on the planet. When possible, he tries to travel with me, but otherwise, we keep in touch by phone. And now with FaceTime on our iPads, we can see each other!

Q) Not every case is solvable, and there is always one that stays with us, the one we can’t forget or let go of. Which unsolved case is your constant companion?

A) Unfortunately, I’m not at liberty to be very specific, but there was a case involving a soldier who lost his life in Vietnam that tormented me for quite a while. He was born overseas to foreign parents, and his mother brought him to America, where she cycled through a number of locations and marriages. After he died, she returned to her home country. In the course of my research, I also discovered a previously unknown child of the soldier’s. I came up short the first time, but for whatever reasons, the case was given back to me, and I was able to resolve it. Perhaps because my father served in Vietnam, that one really had a hold of me until I got that second chance.

Q) What was it about tracking genealogy that first captivated you?

A) Back when I was in a youngster in school, we were instructed to go home one day and ask our parents where our surnames were from. When we went back the next day, we had to put our names on slips of paper in our countries of origin, and I – slightly misinformed, as I would later learn – had the whole of the then-Soviet Union to myself. Having grown up in a military family and in several countries, I had spent my life in a multi-cultural environment and didn’t realize until that moment what I strange name I had. That’s what sparked my curiosity and once I took my first steps, it became my own personal history mystery, so I quickly became addicted to the thrill of the hunt!

Q) Any parting comments for your readers?

A) Talk to your elders – and I mean soon. I’ve written whole books on how to research your roots, so could bombard you with tactics, websites and resources, but the one regret I hear over and over again is some version of, “I wish I had asked him when he was still alive.” Older relatives are living libraries and have so much to share. The databases and records will be there waiting for you. Talk to Grandma first! You’ll be glad you did.
DA Kentner is an author and journalist. www.kevad.net

BL Bonita turns up the heat while the reader turns on the air conditioner with tales of erotic romance. BL is absolutely devoted to family (her fiancé’s a retired Marine Captain) and a love of the grandeur of mountains and pristine lakes. BL was raised in a remote region of Northern Ontario where airplanes were as necessary as firewood, black bears lived a few forests down and occasionally dropped by uninvited, and where travel to a grocery store was determined by seasons, not convenience.

When BL writes about the crispness of mountain air on a nose, the crackle of glazed snow underfoot, and blazing sunsets that go on forever, such as in “Beautiful Criminal,” she pens these scenes from firsthand experience. “Beautiful Criminal’s” Gabriel Miller is a pilot, inspired by the men who flew in and out of the resort BL was raised on. The hum of the Cessna’s engine in an unblemished sky is a memory BL shares. The plane crash and Miller’s awakening to a beautiful woman in a wilderness cabin? All part of the fun, imagination, and romantic mind of BL Bonita.

BL has seen several of her stories published. One of the earliest, “Pathway to Paradise” established the setting and intensity readers have come to know and enjoy -- “From the concrete jungle to the wilds of Northern Ontario, Sianna Williams accepts a management job at a wilderness resort. Coerced to travel by boat with a man who is both unbearable and arousing, her fate is sealed when the boat takes on water. They are forced ashore to spend a night under the stars, where nothing but the wind and the wildlife can hear her passionate cries.”

If you enjoy realism infused by one who has lived it, and romantic liaisons sure to singe your cheeks, be sure to check out BL Bonita.
http://www.bl-bonita.com/

Q) How did you meet your fiancé?

A) My honey was on assignment in Congo. During his evening break he happened by a site online where I was promoting my work. He sent me a message asking if I was interested in writing his life story, that he wasn’t sure how to go about it, and after some lengthy conversations about his past I was very intrigued. We talked for several months and I began a rough draft based on our emails. We became fast friends and decided to meet. Now, this sounds corny and clichéd, but truth be told when we finally met face-to-face almost three years ago that was it. Our fate was sealed when we broke the hotel bed (hehe). He retired after twenty years in the service and now he devotes his time to airbrush art and reading my steamy books.

Q) In your mind, what’s the single most important component you place in your stories?

A) Real people. I like heroes who are not destined to be the hero, and leading women who know how to survive. For example, Gabe in “Beautiful Criminal” is a bad-boy to put it mildly and Mima wields an ax better than most men. I grew up around these character types and I believe they are interesting, often mysterious and misunderstood, which is definitely worth writing about.

Q) Curiosity: Having been raised in the remote regions, where do you and your family vacation for a change of pace?

A) In all honesty, I have yet to take a real vacation. I've lived in basically every corner of Canada, done many a road trip in my life, so I guess that's a bit like a vacation. Although I tell you, there were times I had to siphon gas to get home. LOL But soon (shaking fist) I’ll be spending my days frolicking somewhere on a hot beach where snow is just a distant memory.

Q) When not writing, how do you spend your time?

A) I love to walk, not only for the exercise but to clear my mind. Although let’s face it, a writer’s mind is never really clear. Other than that I lead a very normal life shopping for groceries in nothing but a trench coat and washing dishes in my spandex cat suit. Oh, and chasing my man down to erase the candid photos he likes to take of me on the toilet. I’ll let you decide which of those three is the truth.

Q) Any parting thoughts for your readers?

A) Keep an open mind when considering purchasing a book. I know many readers like to stick with authors they know. I’m a huge reader myself, and for me, the blurb and cover sells me—not the author’s name. You never know what you might find if you take a chance on a new-to-you author, and besides, some of the unknowns could be the next Nora Roberts. Even she had to start somewhere.

Thank you for interviewing me, David. I had a blast!
DA Kentner is an author and journalist. www.kevad.net