Welcome to the Summer Heat Blog Tour, 2013
I am delighted to welcome Jennifer Garcia, aka Forbes Arnone, to answer a few questions about herself and her work as an author.
When did you first discover the desire to write was so strong in you?
I think it was when I was little. I used to fill notebooks of lyrics, poems, and small stories. I did not realize how much I missed it until I started again after I raised my young family.
Do you usually write in the same genre you tend to prefer to read?
Yes, I love romance novels and I tend to write romances.
When reading, do you prefer traditional printed books or ebooks?
I prefer ebooks. After reading ebooks only lately, I recently had to read a printed book and found it very uncomfortable to hold. I know that sounds awful. How lazy, right? But ebooks seem to be more convenient and I can take a lot more with me on just one small device.
Have you been influenced and/or inspired by another writer, or writers?
Yes, the beginning of last year I found a book, The Shoemaker’s Wife by Adriana Trigiani and fell in love with her writing style. I bought all of her books after that and read every single one of them. Her stories are written with many descriptions about the people, their clothing, the locations, and the homes. It’s something about how she does it that makes me feel as if I’m in the story. I can picture everything so clearly.
Another author that I recently found is Alan Brennert. I think his story telling style is a bit like Adriana Trigiani’s that is why I clicked with it so much.
Do past or current events in your life have an influence on your writing?
Absolutely, I may take a scene from any point in my life and build a whole story around it. Other times it may be something that happened around me in a time that is no longer and I want to capture it.
Have you got a favorite author, who stands well ahead of all others?
Adriana Trigiani is by far the author that stands well ahead of the all the others for me.
Have you got both printed and digital books published?
I will. *insert big cheesy smile* This summer I have two books coming out. The first one, In My Mother’s Footsteps, is releasing July 2nd and it is a novella that I worked on for a beach read compilation. The stories will be sold as an anthology and individually. The second book, My Mr. Manny, is releasing August 26th and it is a novel.
Do you try to write to satisfy what is fashionable, or do you write pieces that you would want to read?
I write what I would like to read. I find it difficult to write something I am not feeling just to be “in.”
How do you fit writing into your life? Do you have set times for writing?
Sort of. I write best when I am alone and the house is silent except for reruns on the TV. But that rarely happens, so I usually write at night after dinner and homework is done. It is mostly when my twelve year old goes to bed.
Do you keep every jotting of ideas, just in case they might be developed at some later date?
Not really. If an idea hits me hard, I try to work it out in my head first to see if it’s something I can even do (make a story out of). So, I’ll take the idea and run scenes over and over in my mind until I think it may or may not work. Once I have a scene or a synopsis then I’ll write it down.
Do you write freeform or do you faithfully plan every piece meticulously before you start on a piece?
I do not outline. I’m too lazy. I feel that it takes too much of my time to write the outline when it may not be valid once I start writing. So, I write the scenes in my head and just write, and sometimes the characters change course and write their own scenes.
When writing, most authors now use a computer of some description. Which do you find more satisfying: writing using any means available, using a computer, using a typewriter or using a pen/pencil?
Everything I do involves a computer. I have not written things in a long time. I think my hand would cramp if I tried. So, I stick with what I can do, type.
Have you ever been somewhere and discovered a copy of a book that’s extremely difficult to find, and drooled over the discovery?
No, but I was in Bath, England at the Jane Austen museum and in the gift shop they had a first edition of one of her books. Anyway, I wanted it so badly, but my husband thought spending that much money on a book was ridiculous. So, I just drooled over it for a while before he dragged me out.
If you’ve had books published in print form, have you ever come across a copy of one of your own books by accident?
Not yet, since my books are not out yet, but I hope to when it is my time.
What is your greatest ambition in writing?
I hope to entertain people, make them feel good. I would love them to walk away from one of my books with a profound feeling of attachment to it. I have felt that before and there is nothing like it in the world. Finding that book that hits all of your cords and sticks with you. That is what I want to do.
Where can readers find out more about your works?
My blog is the place I use to update everyone on the progress of my books. My novella just posted on Goodreads and I, excitedly, posted it on my blog for everyone to see. I’ll do the same with the cover reveal and all of the other fun stuff.
Blog
Goodreads
Facebook Page
Twitter
Amazon Author’s Page
Bio:
Jennifer Garcia’s (aka Forbes Arnone) love of travel began when she traveled to the West Coast to visit her father at the age of three. Her home until she was sixteen was a small coastal town near Boston. She currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband, two sons, and two dogs.
Her lifelong love for reading and writing was put aside for many years while she made her way in the world and nurtured her young family. Even though she is older, and life never seems to settle, she’s finding her way while attending college full-time in pursuit of a B.A. in English Literature. She also runs a business, and is still caring for her family. Believing she can do it all, with the help of her family, she worked on her first novel during the late hours of the night while balancing the rest of her life during the day. Her hard work paid off, as her first novel, My Mr. Manny, will be published August 2013.
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