Today I’m interviewing debut novelist, Linda Cassidy Lewis, and giving away a copy of her eBook. I met Linda through her blog about two years ago. We connected as writers, and in 2010, within a few months of each other, we both made the decision to become Indie Authors.
Linda’s debut novel, The Brevity of Roses, is the story of a man in search of something he can’t quite put his finger on. I don’t want to say too much about his relationships with two very different women because I’m afraid of being a spoiler, but let’s say this is a probing look at a man exploring his inner life and seeking his place in the world. This well-crafted story follows the journeys of Jalal, Meredith, and Renee.
Linda has built a large and loyal following on her blog as she writes about her fiction, her poetry, occasionally her family, her reading, and her art. Yes, Linda is not only a writer, she’s also a visual artist who did the cover art and design layout for her novel.
Cathryn: Congratulations on the launch of your novel, The Brevity of Roses. How do you feel now that it’s out in the world?
Linda: Odd, actually. Not the way I thought I would. I was apprehensive before it came out, but now it’s almost like it’s not connected to me. Maybe I just need this distance to be able to move on to the next book.
Cathryn: How long did it take you to write Brevity? What part of the process did you enjoy the most, and why?
Linda: I wrote the meeting of Jalal and Meredith as a short story almost three years ago, but it kept speaking to me, so I kept writing. I thought it was finished twice before I finally finished. So going from short story to polished novel took 30 months. I’m truly going to have to step up the pace for the next one.
Cathryn: When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?
Linda: I started writing my own “books” as soon as I learned to read, but I never really thought of writing for publication until all my children were grown. Being Mom was my career.
Cathryn: On your blog, you write a lot about what inspires you, and how you don’t like writing to prompts. Can you tell us a little about your writing habits?
Linda: Most of the time, a story has to play in my head for a while before I’m ready to write it. I’ve had stories gestating in there for years and they still aren’t ready to be born. But sometimes I have a dream or waking experience that hands me a nearly fully-formed story. I listen to the dialogue, I watch the action on my mental screen, and only then do I write it out. I think the reason I don’t care for writing prompts is because they make me force the process, and that rarely works for me.
Cathryn: You also write poetry. How does that influence your novels?
Linda: My poetry is not very good, but it’s the way I try to concisely convey a feeling, and I think that translates to my novel writing. As writers we’re always looking for that one precise word to take the place of ten, and writing poetry helps me do that. It also helps me be more aware of the rhythm of my prose—to hear the beats and recognize when the sentence clunks. Hopefully.
I read one of your poems, and I disagree. I love how you describe the rhythm of prose.
Cathryn: What new project are you working on now?
Linda: My next novel will be the backstory on one of the secondary characters in Brevity. She has a hard life, and my challenge will be to keep the story real, but not so depressing no one would want to read it.
Sounds intriguing, I’m sure you’re up for the challenge!
Cathryn: What advice do you have for other writers?
Linda: Learn grammar and story structure, read a book or two meant to inspire writers, but quit looking for the golden how-to book that will make you a great writer. It doesn’t exist. Just write, write, write. Seek critique from other writers you trust, consider their comments, use what you can, and then write some more. And read great writing. You can’t learn to write without reading.
Thanks for visiting, Linda, it was fun chatting with you, as always!
Thank you for this review with Linda, and I like the points about learning the grammar & selecting exactly the right word. I have read so much lately about indie authors who don´t proof-read their works before publishing, and it is sooo stupid to destroy your career (and harm the reputation of other indie writers) in this way as everybody should be able to find a beta-reader or two.
I agree. Essential ingredients: beta reader, editor, copy editor
I’ll follow your lead, Cathryn, and reply individually. Thank you for interviewing me. I hope this gets you new interest in your book too.
I agree, Dorte. Some avenue for feedback is available to every writer. A few typos, is excusable, but some of the indie writing, I’ve seen is horrible. Good luck winning.
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I didn’t know the origin of your book was a short story. One that I’m working on began similarly. That’s really inspiring to hear how you let your characters grow and take over in a way. Congratulations on your success and thank you for letting us get to know you more!
Hi Jess, Thanks for stopping by and commenting. I also love the idea of short story characters that keep speaking, demanding to be heard more.
Thank you, Jess. Yes, I couldn’t leave it alone until the “story” said all it wanted to say.
Good luck in the contest.
I love this book, and I love Linda! She is truly an amazing writer. I wish I could borrow her brain sometimes and infuse some of my own books with her writing elegance.
Hi Candice, Thanks for stopping by. What a great way to describe Linda’s prose: elegant.
If you don’t hush, Candi, people are going to think I’m paying you as my publicist!
And borrow my brain anytime, I hardly use it anymore.
Yet another great interview Linda! I am impressed that you always have something fresh and interesting to say.
Hi Darlene, Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
I’ve been lucky, Darlene, so far my interviewers have asked a good variety of questions. I wish you luck winning the book.
It’s amazing how that variety works itself out naturally.
Interesting interview – thanks to both of you! It’s always fun to learn more about the people we ‘know’ in blog-land. I definitely agree that writing poetry is good practice for getting to know words better and how and where the best ones fit.
Thank you for reading the interview and my book. And thank you for the review.
I haven’t written poetry since fifth grade, but reading Linda’s comments, and then the comment below on Paul D. Brazill’s blog, You would say that, wouldn’t you?, I’m thinking I need to at least devote some time to reading poetry (I’m embarrassed to say how weak I am in that area).
Keith Rawson interview excerpt: “pdb: why do crime writing and poetry work so well together?
kw: I think it largely has to do with the nature of crime. Typical crime isn’t this long drawn out process where conspiracies are constantly abound. Real crime is swift and violent, random, and happens in the blink of an eye. Poetry and crime seem to work perfectly because of their nature.”
Not relevant to Linda’s novel, but I had to throw that in here because it struck me quite hard.
Mary Oliver is my favorite poet if you’re looking for someone to read.
Thanks Natasha. I’ll check her out.
Linda,
I love what you say about poetry, that act of writing it can translate into novel writing. I totally agree. One poem that keeps lingering in my mind as I work on my novel is Mary Oliver’s Wild Geese. Something about the poem, the feel of it, pushes me along in the writing process.
And, this is sage advice: Seek critique from other writers you trust, consider their comments, use what you can, and then write some more.
Congrats on your book!
Hi Christi, It sounds like that comment resonated in a variety of ways. Thanks for adding your voice.
Thank you, Christi. You just reminded me that I had meant to get a book of Mary Oliver’s poetry, but never did.
The TBR stack never decreases, does it?
Absolutely not! For every book I read, I add three more.
Congrats. This looks like a great read.
Hi Vanessa, Thanks for stopping by. Good luck in the contest!
Hello again, Vanessa. I just “saw” you at Candi’s contest post.
Good luck here too.
Great interview! I used to write poetry, but I let it dwindle. I’m thinking I should start up again, to hear the rhythm of my prose. Excellent idea.
I’d love to win a copy of Linda’s book! I read the excerpt of the first chapter, and I realize I’ve read that opening before. Was it a flash fiction story once upon a time? I liked it then, and I like it still.
Thank you, Shelli. The first chapter of Brevity was never a part of the original short story, but I submitted the current first paragraphs in the Agent Auction contest at MSFV last year, so that must have been where you saw it.
Good luck winning the book.
Hi Everyone,
Thanks for entering the contest. The winner of Linda’s eBook is Dorte H. I hope you enjoyed the contest. Be sure to stop by Linda’s website from time to time to check for future opportunities to win a copy of her book … and to join the conversation at her blog.
Congratulations, Dorte!
…a final note. The winner was chosen by a random number generator. I love those things, it makes me want to find more uses for generating random numbers!!
Wow! I love winning books
Thank you, Cathryn and Linda, for this opportunity to get to know Linda´s work of fiction.
Congrats again
Email me and let me know what format you prefer.
Congratulations, Dorte! I said that on my blog, but then realized you probably wouldn’t see it. I hope you enjoy the book.
Thank you, Linda.