Wednesday 23 January 2013

Writing Buddy Wednesday: C.T. Green


Today, my special guest is fellow DarkSider, C.T. Green. I've known C.T. now for a few years and she has a wicked sense of humour and is fun to have around (you'll see that below).




Thank you for having me Miss Helen : )


Your debut release is Dream Lover published by Momentum (congratulations!).  Can you describe this story for us?

Dream Lover is a hot, sexy, summer romance with a touch of the paranormal (‘cause I can’t resist the dark side : D). So, my heroine Cate is lost in the Australian bush and she puts the blame squarely on tall, dark and irresistible Reece Johnson’s shoulders (why not blame the hunky hero I say? It is, after all, his fault he’s so deliciously compelling).

Reece, my hero just happens to be the guide for their hiking group as well as a long-term acquaintance of Cate’s. While he has never seemed remotely interested in her, Reece brings out the wild cat in Cate. In the wicked heat of Antipodean nights secrets will come out... But you’ll have to read the book to find out if they tear Reece and Cate apart or bring them together forever ; )




What is your typical writing day like?

Juggling housework, The Bruce (my husband) and four children, including one of the littlest Darksiders, Miss 9 months, means I have to fit writing in around other things. We have a fantastic nanny who comes in three times a week so I can get some writing done and I usually try to fit some in after the kids have gone to bed. I keep work hours - 9am to 5pm and I work on weekends too, but as I’m breastfeeding I have had to learn to be flexible with my day. I used to have a routine...but it left and never came back. It’s probably in the Bahamas with my Muse.
   

Are you a plotter? Pantser? Or somewhere in between? 

I used to plot the wazoo out of my work (which is quite hard...you need a wazoo for a start). If it could be plotted I’d be plotting (and stroking my fluffy white cat..mwahahahahaha!).

Plotting is not to be confused with potting, which is entirely different, but something I also do. (Sadly I don’t read my stories to my plants, that would be just weird). At any rate I found that being an ardent plotter stifled my ‘voice’. So I pantsered my next ms but found I still needed to plot some parts of the story so it made some kind of coherent sense and someone might like to read it. So I now say I’m a panstering plotter. (Sounds a bit naughty.)


What are you working on now? 

I’m currently working on three manuscripts as well as finishing the final in a series of short stories. I’ve found that swapping manuscripts when I hit the wall (writer’s block) means I can fool myself into believing I’m super productive. Just kidding. It does help and I don’t find swapping worlds as hard as I’d thought it would be. The one thing I’ve realised is, I can’t write a timid heroine. I tried to write one character as a nurse who dredges up a bit of bravery to rescue the hero. By the second page she was working for Homeland as a black ops agent and not letting the hero give her any shi...trouble.



Who or what inspired you to write?

My Nan loved writing and always wanted to be one. She lived with my sister, parents and I for our whole lives and we were close. I’d like to think she’d be proud of the fact there’s now a writer in the family. She always had an eye for a handsome man (especially one with a firm...um...bottom) and I think (hope) she’d have taken great delight in my stories.

I also found, after my evil ex left that I’d been away from my career for so long (looking after children) that my resume was years out of date. I’d been in advertising for ten years and wanted a new career that would also allow me to be home for the children after school and during holidays.

I’d written stories - as most writers do - during my adolescence and adulthood and I’m kicking myself I didn’t do it earlier.

So it came down to writing or teaching...Hmmm teach a class of kids all day or write about gorgeous heroes and kick-ass heroines? Making that decision was such a struggle!

 Plus my parents are teachers and I’m naturally a rebel.
   

What are you currently reading?

I’ve just finished Shadow’s Claim, Kresley Cole’s first Dacian story. This is linked to her Immortals After Dark series. I want to be Kresley Cole when I grow up. Sigh.


You are a contest queen, with your manuscript, Halo, being placed in many competitions. Do you recommend competitions to newbie writers?

I think contests can be great for feedback, both good and bad. Some judges are incredibly helpful and insightful (even when they’re marking you down). You’ll get the odd judge who...isn’t polite (one called my hero bi-polar and insane). But it does help with toughening you up when it comes to your ‘baby’ and critical readings of it. I entered contests initially for feedback and to see how my ms was received in different markets (like the US). Now I’m targeting specific contests in the hope of getting in front of editors/agents whose eye I’d like to catch (cheaper than taking out an ad on a billboard near their homes).

(Folks, just for a taste of the competitions, go to http://www.ctgreen-author.com/awards.html)

~~~
Thanks for visiting the Taverna, C.T.

You can find C.T. on her website, blog, and on Facebook.

Get Dream Lover from iTunes or Amazon.






7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey, C.T., routines are soooo fickle. You think it could at least send a postcard.

Yeah, baby!

Hats off to you being clever enough to work on 3 mss at once. :)

C.T. Green said...

Yes, proving to be just as fickle as the Muse - hence the reason I think they’ve run away together... *g*

Eleni Konstantine said...

I think my routine has run away with yours, C.T.!

Greta said...

Well, that was a fun interview. Thanks for sharing.

Jenny Schwartz said...

I bet your Nan is proud. Lovely interview and congrats on the release of "Dream Lover"!

Jess Anastasi said...

Great post, ladies! CT, I can't believe someone called Arras bi-polar and insane! Haven't they ever read an emotionally complex character before?? So jealous you have a nanny... might need to invest in one of those myself :D

Eleni Konstantine said...

Thanks for popping in Greta, Jenny, and Jess!

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