Author Archives: Virginia Wright

About Virginia Wright

VIRGINIA WRIGHT (born Virginia Brown) is an American multi-genre best-selling author, award-winning illustrator, and nature photographer born and raised in Maine. As an artist, the cover Wright designed for Steampunk Alice by Dennis Higgins won the AUTHORSdb Gold Award (2014). She won the AUTHORSdb Silver Award (2016) from Timothy the Christmas Mouse Coloring Book. Crying Bear ranked #1 Amazon Best Seller in Children's Bear Books (2016). Buzzzzzzzz What Honeybees Do, ranked #1 Amazon Best Seller in three categories (2016). Buzzzzzzzz What Honeybees Do is the AUTHORSdb Cover Contest Bronze Award winner (2018), in the Education category. Ayuh, Another Downeast Cookbook ranked #2 Hot New Release Best-Selling in New England Cooking, Food & Wine (2018). As a multi-genre writer, Virginia's WIP is currently a romance novella. Besides writing, in her pastime, when she isn't spending time with her husband, Virginia is a foodie and restaurant reviewer. She enjoys sifting through old recipes and photographing everything she cooks and eats. She is also a nature photographer and a mixed media artist; she gets her ideas for her illustrations through inspiration that she gathers from the nature that surrounds her, which is ever-present in her designs.

Joe Cosentino | Writer, Actor, Professor – Guest Author

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This is a rather lengthy interview, so grab your coffee or a cool and refreshing beverage; as this post is worth reading on… I accidently met Joe through my virtual brother, Dennis Higgins. Dennis is a time travel author and he started writing about time travel books and movies on his blog. He did a post on a 1980 movie called  My Mother Was Never a Kid.  Joe Cosentino visited his blog post as did I, and this is how an author guest post on my blog with Joe was born. You see, Joe was an actor in the movie that Dennis was blogging about. 

  Joe CosentinoJoe Cosentino’s Jana Lane mystery series (beginning with PAPER DOLL) is about an ex-child star uncovering secrets about her past. Joe Cosentino’s favorite ex-child star is Hayley Mills. Who is yours and why? Post a comment. I will select the one that wets my appetite the most and forward your name and email address to Joe Cosentino who will email you a PDF of PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1).

      Joe Cosentino is the author of An Infatuation (Dreamspinner Press), Paper Doll, the first Jana Lane mystery (Whiskey Creek Press), Drama Queen, the first Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press-releasing this summer), and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. His one-act plays, Infatuation and Neighbor, were performed in New York City. He wrote The Perils of Pauline educational film (Prentice Hall Publishers). 

                           ********************************************************************

Graduate2

 

 

Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. His upcoming novels are Porcelain Doll (the second Jana Lane mystery) and Drama Muscle (the second Nicky and Noah mystery). 

        

 

Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com                   Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor                                                          Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen                                     Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4071647                      Joe_Cosentino Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00KRPXJP6 

IBM             

 PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery 1)  Paper-Whiskey-Facebook                                           by JOE COSENTINO                                                                                   

 

 

 

 

A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press  e-book $3.99  purchase links:    Whiskey Creek Press:  a A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press  e-book $3.99  purchase links:    Whiskey Creek Press:  http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1292 Amazon: http://amzn.to/1xGDOJZ 

Book description:

 Jana Lane was America’s most famous child star until she was attacked on the studio lot at eighteen years old. Now she’s a thirty-eight-year-old beauty and mother of two living in a mansion in picturesque Hudson Valley, New York. Jana’s flashbacks from her past turn into murder attempts in her present. Forced to summon up the lost courage she had as a child, Jana visits the California movie studio she once called home. This sends her on a whirlwind of visits with former and current movie studio personnel. It also leads to a romance with the son of her old producer – Rocco Cavoto – the devilishly handsome filmmaker who is planning Jana’s comeback both professionally and personally. Can Jana uncover a web of secrets about everyone she loves, including the person who destroyed her past and threatens to snuff out her future?

Pg 2 Excerpt from AN INFATUATION by Joe Cosentino …

Pg 3 Excerpt from PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1):  

Pg 4 Hummus Recipe by Joe Cosentino

 

 Joe Cosentino the Actor 

Joe Cosentino4ABC TV …

Actor Q & A with Joe Cosentino

  1. How many books have you written so far?

 Eight-and-a-half, but only two have been published so far. The other seven should be published soon, but not soon enough for me. I can’t wait! PAPER DOLL (the first Jana Lane mystery/romance novel) is published by Whiskey Creek Press/Start Publishing. PORCELAIN DOLL (finished) and SATIN DOLL (which I am writing now) should follow. AN INFATUATION (an MM Bittersweet Dreams romance novella based on a one-act play I wrote) is published by Dreamspinner Press. A SHOOTING STAR and A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS should follow. The first Nicky and Noah MM comedy/romance/mystery novel, DRAMA QUEEN, will be released by Lethe Press this summer. DRAMA MUSCLE and DRAMA CRUISE should follow. My mother said to me, “Don’t you have anything better to do than write all those books?” I wonder if Shakespeare’s mother said that? Hah.

 

  1. Were you an actor or writer first?

 As a kid I played make believe constantly. “Let’s put on a show!” was my motto. Thankfully my parents and teachers indulged me (rather than committed me-hah). Eventually I became an actor working opposite stars like Bruce Willis (A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM in regional theatre), Nathan Lane (ROAR OF THE GREASPAINT in dinner theatre), Rosie O’Donnell (AT&T Industrial), Holland Taylor (ABC-TV movie MY MOTHER WAS NEVER A KID), and Jason Robards (Commercial Credit Computer commercial). Morphing into writing plays and now novels seemed like the perfect progression. I use my knowledge of show business to tell shocking, riveting, and entertaining stories.

 

  1. What inspires you to write? When & how do you get the ideas & do you immediately note the ideas down in a diary or elsewhere?

 I never get writer’s block. There are stories in my head constantly. My challenge is figuring out which ones to write. Like many writers, I keep a pad and pencil on my night table and wake up constantly to write down ideas. Sometimes they are terrific ideas. Other times they make no sense. I can’t figure out where they come from.

 

  1. Could you offer any advice to unpublished writers?

 Write every day. I love reading and writing stories with engaging characters who I want to spend time with. I recommend letting your characters talk to one another and seeing what happens. I prefer mystery suspense novels that drop lots of clues leading to the murderer. I also recommend incorporating many other characters with secrets into the story. A writer should create an entire world of suspense above and beyond “who done it.” When a reader finishes a book, he/she should be satisfied that the various parts equaled the whole, rather than the author pulling an ending out of the hat.

 

  1. Which other author’s books, do you feel, come close to your style of writing?

 Many readers have compared PAPER DOLL to an Agatha Christie or a Mary Higgins Clark novel. They’ve compared AN INFATUATION to Armistead Maupin. I am incredibly flattered and hold on to those comparisons dearly!

 

  1. Do you prefer listening to music or having it silent when writing?

The only sound I like to hear when writing are the voices in my head, and boy do they have a lot to say.

 

  1. Did your acting, directing, or teaching theatre become an influence in your writing?

 A number of reviewers and readers mentioned my writing is theatrical and cinematic. They love the humor, mystery, romance, drama, surprises, and plot twist and turns. I think that comes from my background in acting, writing plays, and directing plays, as well as teaching acting. AN INFATUATION began as a one-act play. I believe my novels would make terrific films. So come on, producers, make me an offer I can’t refuse!

 

  1. Do you reach out to your viewers if so, how?

 I absolutely love hearing from readers. I’ve received so many beautiful and touching emails from readers who say reading AN INFATUATION changed their lives and they will always cherish it. I’ve also received quite a number of messages from both men and women who are begging for the next Jana Lane mystery. I love hearing that! So in addition to my web site, I am quite active on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter.

 

  1. Are you an author who likes to cook? If so, please include one of your favorite recipes.

 I’m a hummus fanatic. I’m also a fan of healthy and simply prepared food. So here’s my hummus recipe. Blend in a blender 2 cups of drained canned chickpeas, 6 tbsp of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, 1/3 cup of sesame tahini, 1 tsp. of plum paste, 2 cloves of cooked garlic, 1 tsp. of liquid amino acid/unsalted soy sauce. After blending for 1 minute, top with toasted sesame seeds and toasted seaweed bits. Serve with organic unsalted vegetable chips.

 

10. Do you have a next work in progress? Tell us about it.

 In the first Jana Lane mystery novel (PAPER DOLL), ex-child star Jana Lane learns amazing secrets about everyone from her past, including who killed two people. She also embarks on a forbidden romance. In the second Jana Lane mystery novel (PORCELAN DOLL), Jana makes a comeback film while embarking on yet another romance, and uncovering the murderer of two individuals on the film. I am currently writing the third (SATIN DOLL), where Jana travels to Washington, DC for business and personal reasons. Of course she solves two murders there as well. Each Jana Lane mystery has lots of juicy secrets that are revealed and a shocking ending. Enjoy! And let me know what you think!

An Infatuation by Joe Cosentino

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 AN INFATUATIONinfat-facebookd

by JOE COSENTINO

a novella from Dreamspinner Press

e-book $4.99

purchase links:

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6009 

http://www.amazon.com/Infatuation-Joe-Cosentino-ebook/dp/B00SZ9618S/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422674484&sr=1-1&keywords=an+infatuation+joe

With his ten-year high school reunion approaching, Harold wonders whether Mario will be as muscular, sexy, and tantalizing as he remembers. As a teenager, it was love at first sight for Harold while tutoring football star Mario, until homophobia and bullying drove Mario deep into the closet. Now they’re both married men. Mario, a model, is miserable with his producer wife, while Harold, a teacher, is perfectly content with his businessman husband, Stuart. When the two meet again, will the old flame reignite, setting Harold’s comfortable life ablaze? How can Harold be happy with Stuart when he is still infatuated with his Adonis, his first love, Mario? Harold faces this seemingly impossible situation with inimitable wit, tenderness, and humor as he attempts to reconcile the past and the future.

 File Size: 340 KB

  • Print Length: 106 pages
  • Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
  • Publisher: Dreamspinner Press; 1 edition (February 4, 2015)
  • Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00SZ9618S

 Excerpt from AN INFATUATION:

One Friday afternoon I accidentally ran into my hero in the boy’s locker room. I’d had enough of the big guys banging me into gym lockers, pushing me into cold showers, and hanging me from the gym ropes. So I was on my way to give Mr. Adoni a note from Dr. Dlorah excusing me from gym class for the remainder of the school year (due to my highly contagious disease being studied by my doctor in Guatemala, where he could not be reached for the next year).

The locker room smelled of an odd combination of soap, cologne, sweat, and desire. Mario was getting ready for football practice, standing at his gym locker without a combination lock on it. Nobody would dare to break into it (Except for me that one time I smelled his jock strap. Okay maybe it was a few times, but not more than ten.). Mario slid his T-shirt (red today) over his thick, black hair and threw it on the nearby bench. No longer harnessed by cotton, his arm, back, chest, and neck muscles swelled to full size. I was half hidden behind the adjoining row of lockers, wearing my usual green and blue flannel shirt and brown corduroy pants. Mario, who wasn’t looking in my direction, said something really beautiful to me that I will never forget. “Hi.”

“Did you just? Oh. Hi. Hello. Good afternoon. Nice to see you. I mean, change with you.” I looked down at the floor (but cheated a bit) as Mario kicked off his boots, slipped off his jeans then threw them in the lucky locker. His red underpants (briefs) revealed ample manhood. This is better than the newspaper’s underwear ads!

“Good gym class today with Mr. Adonis, I mean, Mr. Adoni.” Did I just say that? “Harold High.”

“Hi.”

“High.” How can I get my pulse down to 260?

“Hi.” Mario reached into his locker for his sweat clothes.

Shouldn’t people be doing that for you? “Oh, my last name is High. Like a kite.” How can I stop my arms from waving like an airport flagger on speed?

“Mario Ginetti. Like nothin’ else imaginable.” Mario smiled, revealing a row of perfectly white teeth, and held the sweat clothes in his hands as if he was mortal.

“I know. I watch your body play.” Why can’t I stop talking? “I mean, I watch you play … football … on the field … in your football outfit.” I feel like Michelangelo with his David!

As Mario put on his sweats, I continued to sweat.

“I’m voting for your body … I mean I’m voting for you for president of your … our … the student body.” I need my jaw wired shut. “I’m your lab partner in Chemistry class. Ms. Hungry’s class … I mean Ms. Hunsley’s class.”

His olive-colored face glistened as Mario’s face registered recognition—of me! “I thought I knew you from somewheres. Hey, thanks for doing the lab reports.”

“It’s my honor … I mean my pleasure. It’s fine. If you need help putting up posters for your campaign, I can … ”

Having just tied the laces of his sneakers, Mario stood absolutely still. He looked at me as if he was staring into my heart and somehow knew what I was feeling. “I gotta take a wicked piss.”

Can I watch?

“Thanks for helping me out, Buddy.” He slammed the locker door and left.

He called me, Buddy! My heart was as soft and silly as putty that Mario held in the palm of his hand like his soap on a rope.

Paper Doll by Joe Cosentino

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Paper-Whiskey-FacebookPAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery 1)

by JOE COSENTINO

a mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press

e-book $3.99

purchase links:

http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Doll-Jana-Lane-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00THKODUC/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1423704577&sr=1-10&keywords=paper+doll+joe

 

http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1292

 

Jana Lane was America’s most famous child star until she was attacked on the studio lot at eighteen years old. Now she’s a thirty-eight-year-old beauty and mother of two living in a mansion in picturesque Hudson Valley, New York. Jana’s flashbacks from her past turn into murder attempts in her present. Forced to summon up the lost courage she had as a child, Jana visits the California movie studio she once called home. This sends her on a whirlwind of visits with former and current movie studio personnel. It also leads to a romance with the son of her old producer – Rocco Cavoto – the devilishly handsome filmmaker who is planning Jana’s comeback both professionally and personally. Can Jana uncover a web of secrets about everyone she loves, including the person who destroyed her past and threatens to snuff out her future?

 File Size: 1156 KB

  • Print Length: 253 pages
  • Publisher: Whiskey Creek Press LLC (March 5, 2015)
  • Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00THKODUC

Excerpt from PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1):

 

No longer postponing the inevitable, she rested back on the tree stump. As Jana peered out at a tree with a yellow ribbon tied around it, she thought of how her life had been held hostage during the past twenty years. With eyes sealed tightly shut she blurted out, “They’re like flashbacks. I see myself at the studio on the set of my last film—on the final day of shooting.” She moistened her lips. “We’re outside in Lot C. After my father, playing the town sheriff, makes me an assistant sheriff, I strike my last pose on my horse, Ginger. She bucks underneath me, but I control her until Mr. LeClerc, the director yells, ‘Cut!’ Hank, the trainer, helps me off my horse. A few speeches are made. My agent, my sister, Mr. Cavoto—the studio head, and his son are there. Everyone applauds. As usual—”

“—you walk inside to your dressing room with your agent.”

She opened her eyes. “How did you know that?”

He bit at a blade of grass. “I just assumed.”

“You really are good at this.”

Another satisfied nod from Jackson led her eyelids to close again.

“My agent, Simon, waves at someone who passes us in the hallway. Then a flash hurts my eyes. I think it’s a photographer. Simon approaches him, scolds him I think then leaves me alone…and this part of the dream occurs over and over again…”

“Tell me.”

After a shaky breath, she said, “A masked figure in black appears in front of my dressing room door. I’m forced into a dark corridor…pushed down onto the floor…we struggle. His touch is angry but somehow…familiar. I try to scream…but…nothing.” She opened her eyes.

“Then what?”

“Then Jana Lane—the girl who swam the rapids, climbed Mt. Everest, parachuted from a plane to save the world from mad scientists in her movies—wept uncontrollably in a psychiatric hospital for nearly a year while the masked man got off free.”

“How do we know it was a man?”

She replayed her nightmare and came to a realization. “I guess we don’t.” Her eyes suddenly swam in tears. “Jackson, the years since I left Hollywood, I’ve been hiding. Housewife, mother, community fundraiser—they’re shields, so I don’t have to face an assault and breakdown from when I was eighteen years old…or face something worse.” She wiped her face with the back of her hand. “Maybe I should see a shrink again.”

Jackson diagnosed in his best German accent. “You don’t need a shrink. You have me.”

“I wish I had Brian, too.” She knew Jackson would understand.

Jackson helped her to her feet, and laid a pansy in the palm of her hand. “Brian will come around.”

“So will the F.D.R. Benefit,” she said, happy to change the subject. After a nervous glance at her watch, she added, “Let’s get to work.”

* * * *

The room was cold and full of ominous shadows. As the viewer waited in anticipation, the most famous child star in history filled the screen nearby.

Jana Lane, at eighteen in Sugar and Spice, was dressed in a canary and brown leather cowgirl suit and matching boots. With determination beaming from her face, she pushed a kidnapper off a cliff and lifted her little friend, Timmy, onto her horse. After she sped Timmy down the mountain to safety, her father—the sheriff—kissed her on the cheek and proudly presented her with an assistant sheriff’s badge. Jana remounted her horse, Ginger, and waved her cowgirl hat triumphantly as Ginger stood up tall on hind legs.

As Jana’s celluloid face filled the room, restless fingers lifted a glass of liquid and sent it crashing into orange droplets against the screen.

Eerie laughter transformed into a hushed voice. “It’s time to play again, Jana. The first time was sweet, but the second time will be so much sweeter!”

Hummus Recipe by Joe Cosentino

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When coming up with Joe Cosentino’s questions for his guest author post, I asked him if he was an author who likes to cook? If so, I asked him to include one of his favorite recipes. He obliged me, with a ‘hummus’ recipe. Yum!

I love hummus, Joe.  I make a similar recipe and I use organic blue corn tortilla chips and dip them in freshly made hummus. Thanks for including yours! 

-Virginia

Joe Writes:

 “I am a hummus fanatic. I’m also a fan of healthy and simply prepared food. So here’s my hummus recipe.” 

Blend in a blender:

  •  2 cups of drained canned chickpeas
  •  6 tbsp of fresh-squeezed lemon juice
  •  1/3 cup of sesame tahini, 1 tsp. of plum paste
  •  2 cloves of cooked garlic
  •  1 tsp. of liquid amino acid/unsalted soy sauce 

After blending for 1 minute, top with toasted sesame seeds and toasted seaweed bits. Serve with organic unsalted vegetable chips.

Back to Joe Cosentino’s Guest Author Blog Post…

Joe Cosentino | Writer, Actor, Professor – Guest Author

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This is a rather lengthy interview, so grab your coffee or a cool and refreshing beverage; as this post is worth reading on… I accidently met Joe through my virtual brother, Dennis Higgins. Dennis is a time travel author and he started writing about time travel books and movies on his blog. He did a post on a 1980 movie called  My Mother Was Never a Kid.  Joe Cosentino visited his blog post as did I, and this is how an author guest post on my blog with Joe was born. You see, Joe was an actor in the movie that Dennis was blogging about. 

  Joe CosentinoJoe Cosentino’s Jana Lane mystery series (beginning with PAPER DOLL) is about an ex-child star uncovering secrets about her past. Joe Cosentino’s favorite ex-child star is Hayley Mills. Who is yours and why? Post a comment. I will select the one that wets my appetite the most and forward your name and email address to Joe Cosentino who will email you a PDF of PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1).

      Joe Cosentino is the author of An Infatuation (Dreamspinner Press), Paper Doll, the first Jana Lane mystery (Whiskey Creek Press), Drama Queen, the first Nicky and Noah mystery (Lethe Press-releasing this summer), and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Eldridge Plays and Musicals). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. His one-act plays, Infatuation and Neighbor, were performed in New York City. He wrote The Perils of Pauline educational film (Prentice Hall Publishers). 

                           ********************************************************************

Graduate2

Joe is currently Head of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and is happily married. His upcoming novels are Porcelain Doll (the second Jana Lane mystery) and Drama Muscle (the second Nicky and Noah mystery). 

        

 

 

 

Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com                   Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor                                                          Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen                                     Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4071647                      Joe_Cosentino Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00KRPXJP6 IBM              

 PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery 1)  Paper-Whiskey-Facebook                                           by JOE COSENTINO                                                                                   

 

 

 

 

A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press  e-book $3.99  purchase links:    Whiskey Creek Press:  a A mystery/romance novel from Whiskey Creek Press  e-book $3.99  purchase links:    Whiskey Creek Press:  http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1292 Amazon: http://amzn.to/1xGDOJZ 

Book description:

 Jana Lane was America’s most famous child star until she was attacked on the studio lot at eighteen years old. Now she’s a thirty-eight-year-old beauty and mother of two living in a mansion in picturesque Hudson Valley, New York. Jana’s flashbacks from her past turn into murder attempts in her present. Forced to summon up the lost courage she had as a child, Jana visits the California movie studio she once called home. This sends her on a whirlwind of visits with former and current movie studio personnel. It also leads to a romance with the son of her old producer – Rocco Cavoto – the devilishly handsome filmmaker who is planning Jana’s comeback both professionally and personally. Can Jana uncover a web of secrets about everyone she loves, including the person who destroyed her past and threatens to snuff out her future?

Pg 2 Excerpt from AN INFATUATION by Joe Cosentino …

Pg 3 Excerpt from PAPER DOLL (Jana Lane mystery book 1):  

Hummus Recipe by Joe Cosentino

 

 Joe Cosentino the Actor 

Joe Cosentino4ABC TV …

Actor Q & A with Joe Cosentino

  1. How many books have you written so far?

 Eight-and-a-half, but only two have been published so far. The other seven should be published soon, but not soon enough for me. I can’t wait! PAPER DOLL (the first Jana Lane mystery/romance novel) is published by Whiskey Creek Press/Start Publishing. PORCELAIN DOLL (finished) and SATIN DOLL (which I am writing now) should follow. AN INFATUATION (an MM Bittersweet Dreams romance novella based on a one-act play I wrote) is published by Dreamspinner Press. A SHOOTING STAR and A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS should follow. The first Nicky and Noah MM comedy/romance/mystery novel, DRAMA QUEEN, will be released by Lethe Press this summer. DRAMA MUSCLE and DRAMA CRUISE should follow. My mother said to me, “Don’t you have anything better to do than write all those books?” I wonder if Shakespeare’s mother said that? Hah.

 

  1. Were you an actor or writer first?

 As a kid I played make believe constantly. “Let’s put on a show!” was my motto. Thankfully my parents and teachers indulged me (rather than committed me-hah). Eventually I became an actor working opposite stars like Bruce Willis (A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM in regional theatre), Nathan Lane (ROAR OF THE GREASPAINT in dinner theatre), Rosie O’Donnell (AT&T Industrial), Holland Taylor (ABC-TV movie MY MOTHER WAS NEVER A KID), and Jason Robards (Commercial Credit Computer commercial). Morphing into writing plays and now novels seemed like the perfect progression. I use my knowledge of show business to tell shocking, riveting, and entertaining stories.

 

  1. What inspires you to write? When & how do you get the ideas & do you immediately note the ideas down in a diary or elsewhere?

 I never get writer’s block. There are stories in my head constantly. My challenge is figuring out which ones to write. Like many writers, I keep a pad and pencil on my night table and wake up constantly to write down ideas. Sometimes they are terrific ideas. Other times they make no sense. I can’t figure out where they come from.

 

  1. Could you offer any advice to unpublished writers?

 Write every day. I love reading and writing stories with engaging characters who I want to spend time with. I recommend letting your characters talk to one another and seeing what happens. I prefer mystery suspense novels that drop lots of clues leading to the murderer. I also recommend incorporating many other characters with secrets into the story. A writer should create an entire world of suspense above and beyond “who done it.” When a reader finishes a book, he/she should be satisfied that the various parts equaled the whole, rather than the author pulling an ending out of the hat.

 

  1. Which other author’s books, do you feel, come close to your style of writing?

 Many readers have compared PAPER DOLL to an Agatha Christie or a Mary Higgins Clark novel. They’ve compared AN INFATUATION to Armistead Maupin. I am incredibly flattered and hold on to those comparisons dearly!

 

  1. Do you prefer listening to music or having it silent when writing?

The only sound I like to hear when writing are the voices in my head, and boy do they have a lot to say.

 

  1. Did your acting, directing, or teaching theatre become an influence in your writing?

 A number of reviewers and readers mentioned my writing is theatrical and cinematic. They love the humor, mystery, romance, drama, surprises, and plot twist and turns. I think that comes from my background in acting, writing plays, and directing plays, as well as teaching acting. AN INFATUATION began as a one-act play. I believe my novels would make terrific films. So come on, producers, make me an offer I can’t refuse!

 

  1. Do you reach out to your viewers if so, how?

 I absolutely love hearing from readers. I’ve received so many beautiful and touching emails from readers who say reading AN INFATUATION changed their lives and they will always cherish it. I’ve also received quite a number of messages from both men and women who are begging for the next Jana Lane mystery. I love hearing that! So in addition to my web site, I am quite active on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter.

 

  1. Are you an author who likes to cook? If so, please include one of your favorite recipes.

 I’m a hummus fanatic. I’m also a fan of healthy and simply prepared food. So here’s my hummus recipe. Blend in a blender 2 cups of drained canned chickpeas, 6 tbsp of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, 1/3 cup of sesame tahini, 1 tsp. of plum paste, 2 cloves of cooked garlic, 1 tsp. of liquid amino acid/unsalted soy sauce. After blending for 1 minute, top with toasted sesame seeds and toasted seaweed bits. Serve with organic unsalted vegetable chips.

 

10. Do you have a next work in progress? Tell us about it.

 In the first Jana Lane mystery novel (PAPER DOLL), ex-child star Jana Lane learns amazing secrets about everyone from her past, including who killed two people. She also embarks on a forbidden romance. In the second Jana Lane mystery novel (PORCELAN DOLL), Jana makes a comeback film while embarking on yet another romance, and uncovering the murderer of two individuals on the film. I am currently writing the third (SATIN DOLL), where Jana travels to Washington, DC for business and personal reasons. Of course she solves two murders there as well. Each Jana Lane mystery has lots of juicy secrets that are revealed and a shocking ending. Enjoy! And let me know what you think!