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An Interview
With ER!-eBooks Rock! just keeps getting better. This week I've the privilege of interviewing Janet Mills, author of historical and contemporary romances. Ms. Mills' novels, Sundance, Best Of All, and The Sweetest Gift, are available from Starlight Writer Publications. Janet, Best Of All, your contemporary of the three has received rave reviews, including four star reviews from both Sime~Gen and GenrEZONE. Please, tell us a little more about this story and what inspired you to write it. JM- BEST OF
ALL takes place in a fictional town based on the real
town of Mariposa, California where I lived as a teen in
the 70s. I had an incredible ER!-Sundance and The Sweetest Gift are both western historical romances (one of my personal favorite genres:-)) Sundance was one of the top 5 finalists for Best American Historical of 2000 in Affaire de Coeur's Reader/Writer Poll. That's huge! Congratulations! For those who haven't read Sundance, what's this novel about? JM- Thank you! SUNDANCE is also near and dear to my heart (as all my stories are!). I had an idea for a heroine who had escaped a painful marriage and just wanted to start over somewhere new, and a dashing hero who would hire her as his sister's tutor and companion, then I threw in plenty of conflict along their way to romance. I named the woman Callie (short for California) after a relative of mine because I've always loved that name. ER!-The Sweetest Gift is your newest release from Starlight Writer Publications. How would you say you've grown as a writer since your past novels? JM- THE
SWEETEST GIFT took fewer revisions during the editing
process, so that showed me I had polished my craft. I've
learned a lot since I first began writing years ago.
Every book is a stepping stone to the next one. I find
that now when I sit down to write, I'm not so compelled
to go back and revise what I wrote the previous session.
I'm usually pretty satisfied with it after a
"tweak" here and there.
ER!-Do you have a favorite scene in The Sweetest Gift? JM- Yes, when Jade and Landon kiss for the first time in a moonlit meadow. She's running off in the night, he's following her, and the kiss is the last thing either of them expect to happen. She's too stubborn to tell him that she liked it, so instead she says she's had kisses from barnyard dogs she enjoyed more than that, which infuriates him. I love her spunk! That scene is a turning point for both characters. ER!-Is there a book out there that you're just dying to write but for some reason haven't? JM- Several years ago I started a western historical romance with my strongest heroine yet. She is a female tie-hack (cuts railroad ties during the winter) living in the Wyoming mountains in the late 1800s. She hires the hero to work for her. Every now and then I take that story out, dust it off, and add a chapter or two, but then something stops me and I don't get back to it. SOMEDAY, I want to finish it. If/when I do, it will be the longest time I've taken to write a book. ER!-What would you say has been your biggest writing challenge? JM- Finding the TIME to write. I teach 4th grade (24 darling 10-year-olds!) and that keeps me extremely busy. I also am a managing editor, editor, and copy-editor in my "spare" time. Writing takes a lot of time away from my family, so I try to do it when they are occupied with something else. I spend a lot of my summer at the computer. ER!-Is there anything out there that you'd like to do, but haven't yet been given the opportunity? JM- I've toyed with writing children's books and have started one (a time travel into Wyoming history), but I tend to have my young characters gazing into one another's eyes, etc. like in a romance! It is difficult to write for a young audience when all the fiction I've written for years has been geared toward adults. My students want to read my books, but I've told them they have to be 18!! I'd love to be able to read a book I've written to my class. Maybe THIS summer.... ER!-Is there a book that you've written, but we'll never see? Why? JM- I wrote the beginning and ending of a story several years ago, never finished the middle, and I have not felt the need to go back to it. Writing as much of it as I did satisfied whatever it was inside me that insisted I "tell" the story. It was very dark, not my style of storytelling at all. The heroine went through something horrible at the beginning, but she does meet her Knight and gets her happy ending. I doubt that book will ever see the light of day, and it doesn't need to. ER!-Why did you decide to write in the electronic industry? JM- My
stories didn't seem to fit the niche NYC publishers were
looking for. I kept writing anyway, and when a writer
friend told me about Starlight, I ER!-If you weren't a writer, what would you be doing? JM- I have no idea! I guess I'd have a lot more time on my hands, and I'd find something to fill it. Really, I can't imagine not writing. I've gone through dry spells where I don't write anything new or I can't bear to look at a blank computer screen, but I've always come back to writing. ER!-Of all the characters you've written about, who would you say is most like you? And why? JM- The
heroines in all my stories are like me in some way. In
BEST OF ALL, ER!-What's the non-writing world like for you? Is there a husband, a boyfriend, slaves hidden in the basement? Children? JM- I have
a handsome and loving husband who I am thankful for every
day. I know that sounds corny, but there you go. I've
told people that I created ER!-Many readers wonder what's
going on in an author's head, and here's the part where
we find out<g>. JM- I am a classic Libra, constantly striving for balance and harmony in my life. ER!-(Finish this sentence) On a Saturday night you'll find me... JM- Curled up on the couch with my husband, watching a movie. ER!-If I were a cartoon character I'd be... JM- One of those little girl chipmunks, going on adventures with Alvin, Simon and Theodore (and my husband Andy, of course). ER!-If I could have one wish, I would wish... JM- For everyone I love to live a long, healthy, happy life. ER!-What kind of car do you drive? JM- A 2000 Buick Regal, dark green, very comfy with lots of extras. ER!-What kind of car do you *want* to drive? JM- I'd love to have an SUV or a flashy little sports car someday (I know, they're opposites!). ER!-Answer the following
questions as quickly as possible, but feel free to expand
on any of your answers (Hey, it's not a test).: JM- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. (Probably because it is a western, it's historical, and it has romance.) ER!-Favorite song? JM- "I'll Still Be Loving You" by Pat Bunch, recorded by Restless Heart ("our" song) ER!-Favorite snack? JM- Dark chocolate. ER!-Favorite book? JM- LaVyrle Spencer's MORNING GLORY (Her book, HUMMINGBIRD, inspired me to write my first western historical romance) ER!-Typewriter or computer? JM- Computer, and make that a Macintosh. I love my Mac. ER!-Soup or salad? JM- Depends on the soup. If it's clam chowder, then salad for sure. With Ranch dressing (not Lite!) ER!-Pre-planner or blind leap? JM- A little of both. I can go from one extreme to the other (that Libra scale thing). ER!-Turkey burger or steak? JM- Neither. King crab legs! ER!-Slacks or jeans? JM- Jeans. ER!-Boxers or briefs? JM- I prefer him in bikini briefs. ER!-Are blondes really more fun? JM- I'm a dark brunette and Andy has light brown hair, so I'd have to say NO. ER!-Have you ever held anyone hostage? JM- Sure, hasn't everyone? ER!-If no, would you? JM- When and where appropriate. ER!-Do you believe in love at first sight? JM- How about love at first touch? When I slow danced with Andy the night we met at a birthday party, I instantly felt something very strong, warm, safe and wonderful...and we've been together ever since. ER!-Are aliens real? JM- I just returned from a trip to New Mexico, and we stopped at the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell. Although I've never had a close encounter of my own, reading about other people's sure makes it seem possible that something is out there... *insert Twilight Zone music here* ER!-If you could vote members off of Gilligan's Island, who would get the boot first? JM- Ginger. ER!-If Godzilla and Superman got into a street fight (no weapons allowed), who would win? JM- Superman, hands down. ER!-What is one thing about you that very few know? JM- I am obsessive/compulsive. And now they know. ER!-What is your greatest fear? JM- Of losing someone near and dear to me. ER!-If you could be anyone (dead or alive) who would you be? And why? JM- I'd be me at a younger age (20s) if I could've met my husband sooner. But I believe things turn out the way they're supposed to (Que sara, sara and good things come to those who wait, etc.) so I'm happy where I am right now. ER!-And finally (and you can take your time on this one:-)), what's next for you? Your next book? Writing venture? Goal? JM- I want to write a children's time travel series where the kids go back into Wyoming history. If I can just get the romance out of my head long enough to do it... And I want to finish the tie-hack story. I recently sold my fourth romance to Starlight. ONE MORE LAST CHANCE will be out sometime next year. My writing goal is to have all my books in print as well as available electronically, and I've recently received a contract from SWP to put SUNDANCE in print. I can't wait to see that! |
