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Hi Susan! Thanks so much for being with me today.
Your time travel romance, THOROUGHLY MODERN AMANDA, was just release in paperback--I can't wait to get my copy! Can you tell me what your inspiration was for the book?
Thoroughly Modern Amanda was inspired by my first time travel romance, Erin's Rebel. This prior book was released in 2009 and Amanda Montgomery was one of the minor characters, the small child of the hero, Will Montgomery. Erin's Rebel is set during the American Civil War and I decided to project Amanda into the future into the year 1881 where she's all grown up and ready for her own romance. The hero is from our time and is a construction worker who wants to refurbish an old Victorian home--the very home that Amanda's potential suitor is building as he hopes she'll accept his marriage proposal. Besides Erin's Rebel, I was also inspired by those lovely Victorian homes still in existence today. Always wondered what it would be like to live in one.
I love old Victorian homes! It's my dream to have one someday...gottta keep writing to make that dream a reality!
Next question: What is THE most important thing writers can do for themselves to get an agent/publisher in today's market?
I don't have an agent, so can't answer that one, but to find a publisher, a writer has to do his or her research to learn what types of stories a publisher is looking for and angle the query to that publisher. Then write the best book you can, revise, edit and proofread before sending it off. The wait time can be excruciating, but you just have to move ahead on that next book and forget about the submission for a while.
If you could have done anything differently with your writing career so far, what would it be?
I definitely would have gotten serious about writing at a younger age. Otherwise, the path to publication, which started with writing courses, then joining Romance Writers of America, and taking advantage of their wonderful workshops, is the only way I think I'd be where I am at this point.
Who are your writing role models, and how have they influenced you?
I've read so many books throughout my childhood, teens and into my married years as a young mother, that I can't pick one or even two writers who influenced my writing. I think it was all the writing I absorbed over the years, starting with series like 'Nancy Drew' and Cherry Ames' then on to science fiction and gothic romances. I read a lot of mysteries and thrillers, too, along the way. When I discovered time travel romances, I was hooked on that genre and those books and stories influenced my first novel-length romance, Erin's Rebel. I loved books so much that I wanted to create my own characters and settings to move readers the same way I'd been moved by all those writers who filled my life with wonder, fun and adventure over the years.
What's one fact about you that most people don't know.
That I'm a big science fiction geek. I actually thought about writing science fiction or futuristic romance, but don't quite feel qualified to write in that genre. For now, I'm sticking to historical and time travel romances and am thinking of starting work on a contemporary baseball romance series in the near future.
Yay! Another Sci-Fi fan! I can't wait to see "Ender's Game"--one of my personal favs!
Okay, I know people will want to check you out online. Can you give us your website links and contact information?
Website: http://susanmacatee.com
Group blog: http://
Twitter: https://twitter.com/
Thank you again for being my blog guest today, Susan!
Don't forget to comment below for a chance to win a signed copy of Susan Macatee's new paperback, THOROUGHLY MODERN AMANDA.
Happily My Ever After,
Dylan