Our Interview with Caroline Crosby!

  

                                   Bio

I was born in New York City, grew up in Boston, lived in Los Angeles and Denver and now live in central Virginia with my husband.

My background includes degrees in English, psychology and counseling, together with study of western and eastern history and spiritual beliefs. I have used practical genetics in cat breeding and learned enough about electronics to earn my General Class amateur radio license. My main career has been as a computer software engineer. All of these fields apply to this book.

                               Bio provided by author

It was our pleasure to get the opportunity to meet Caroline and learn more about her journey to becomming an author! Caroline has had a full and diverse in learning different aspects of education and life. So please give a warm welcome to Caroline!

1.      What makes for a good hook in your stories? Where does your inspiration come from?

There are several hooks in my story. The main one is the concept that, from early colonial days, a small group of people have secretly ruled America. This idea is certainly not original; the usual suspects for this role are the Knights Templar and the Masons, with a nod to Skull and Bones, Rhodes scholarship holders and the Trilateral Commission. Every now and then someone mentions space aliens in this context. In this book the secret rulers are descendants of a few psychics who fled from England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony to avoid charges of witchcraft.

 Another hook is the idea of a heroine who is a warrior but whose only “swearing” is an occasional “damn.” I’m equally tired of reading about updated Victorian maidens who need protection and of crude butt-kicking female fighters.

 I enjoy reading both conspiracy stories and occult stories. Though I don’t remember the exact moment this story came into my head, I’m sure it was inspired by reading in these genres.

Are you an organized writer? Do you do things like take notes and make lists of characters?  Or do you free write and work it out as you go?

I would say I’m half organized and half disorganized. My online Favorites list contains many articles that have been or could be useful in my writing.  I have  notes on characters and plots and taken pictures of some of the locations where the story takes place. I decide the general story line and free write from there.

What is your normal writing day like? Do you write when you are inspired or do you have a schedule?

In general I do my writing in the early evening, but I have written at just about any hour of the day or night.

Who is your favorite author and how did they inspire you to write?

Margaret Mitchell is my favorite author. Her beautiful prose and wonderful characterization inspired me to attempt to reach her standard.

It’s easy to see that you have a passion for writing but is there any part of it you don’t like?

I definitely don’t like sending out query letters that are often not even acknowledged and, if they are, only by a form letter.

6.   Do you make time to read and if you do what are you reading right now?

Yes, I try to read at least one 300 plus page book per week. Right now I’m reading books in  the Dune  series (both Frank and Brian Herbert). It seems that just about everyone in these books has their own conspiracy.

How did you get started in writing in the sci/fi fantasy genre? Is there personal life experience in the writing?

My favorite book as a child was Alice in Wonderland, a fantasy. I started writing sci/fi and fantasy in college. Some of my life experiences show up now and then, but it is revised to be more interesting.

Your books have been published with Amazon.com, Does this mean you see the publishing industry headed this way?

The publishing industry is headed this way right now. Publishing on Amazon is free and the stigma against self-publishing is disappearing. From the reading point of view, aside from having to remember to keep the battery charged, I enjoy its light weight, search ability, built-in dictionaries and other features. Not to mention the low cost of kindle books—with a high royalty percentage for the author.

I wasted almost two years sending out queries, with no positive results. People who read part or all of The Other Covenant said they liked it. With this new avenue of publication opened, I decided to take advantage of it. I haven’t sold many copies yet, but I can wait. No one will take my book off the shelf to make room for another, so I have plenty of time.

That is not to say that I would refuse a good offer from an established publisher! I would like to see my books on the shelves of a bookstore and have a real chance of having them made into movies.

Do you have any online sites where others can read more of your writings?

Not yet, but I plan to build one.

  Do you have any more stories in the works? What kinds of stories do you plan to write next?

The Other Covenant is the first volume of a trilogy. I’m working on the second volume and have done some work on the third.  I might try my hand at science fiction sometime in the future.

11. Who would be your first choice to play Elizabeth Mitchell  in your book titled, "The Other Covenant (Vow of Seven)"?

I really can’t say, since I haven’t been keeping up with movies and television dramas, but I would love to see it made into a movie.

12. If you could meet anyone from any time who would it be and what would be your first question?

I’m afraid I can’t really answer this question because there are many people I would like to meet and many questions I would like to ask. Julius Caesar and Queen Elizabeth I are two of them. I would like to ask them what their true motives were for some of the things they did.