BLOG HOP

Good morning everyone,

Jamie Tremain has been invited to join a “Blog-Hop” that’s happening in cyber land. We will be answering four questions about the writing process. Many thanks to Linda Sundman Wiken AKA  Erika Chase who writes the Ashton Corners Book Club mysteries. You can find Linda @ http://www.erikachase.com/
 http://mysterymavencdn.blogspot.ca/ 

1)    How does our work differ from others of its genre.

Collaborators work to a different drummer than other writers who may tear their hair out in frustration when things go belly up. Liz and I as Jamie Tremain  are able to vent to each other and just one word can start the creative juices flowing. The same happens when we start the revision process and edit each others work. Collaborating doesn’t work for everyone. Our work differs from others only to the point of being two points of view ( Liz and mine) but when we write we write in the character’s voice.

  

   2)         What are we working on?  

We've just finished our third book called Death on the Alder. We’re taking a few weeks break from it and will start the revisions soon. This is my favourite part. Liz not so much. Getting the first draft finished can be nerve wracking  and we always look forward to writing The End. This book is a one off, we think, but we’ll leave it open until after the revision. Then it’s on to the second in the series with P.I. Dorothy Dennehy.

     Next is the synopsis writing and query letters. Sending to agents and publishers is time consuming but as necessary as the writing itself if you want to be published.

    3)    Why do we write what we do?
  
That’s an easy one. We write what we like to read. We like strong but quirky characters.Good plot lines with a few dead bodies thrown in for good measure. We both enjoy thrillers as well. Forensics in any form is right up Liz’s alley and I tend to read psychological suspense. Reading a variety of books in those genres helps us narrow down what we write.

   4)    How does our writing process work?

Our writing process is a hit and miss affair. Because there are two of us we like to be in agreement of what the other has written.   Most of our collaboration is done online but we do get together once a month to brainstorm and also to read out what we have written. This becomes really important during revisions.  We use Google Docs to write in real time so if we can’t get together we have long sessions hammering out the story.  It’s not for the faint of heart and you must leave your ego at the door. Trust in what the other is writing is also a big part of what we do.  

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We are happy to tag our friend from Houston , debut author Kay Kendall who writes
the Austin Starr mysteries. She will answer questions on her writing process and tag other bloggers.
You can contact Kay and visit her site Monday August 11th .

Kay Kendall set her debut novel, Desolation Row—An Austin Starr Mystery, in 1968. The Vietnam War backdrop illuminates reluctant courage and desperate love when a world teeters on chaos. Kay’s next mystery, Rainy Day Women (2015)finds amateur sleuth Austin Starr trying to prove a friend didn’t murder women’s liberation activists in Seattle and Vancouver. Kay is an award-winning international PR executive living in Texas with her Canadian husband, three house rabbits, and spaniel Wills. Terribly allergic to bunnies, she loves them anyway! Her book titles show she’s a Bob Dylan buff too.
 

Kay Kendall

Desolation Row—An Austin Starr Mystery (2013, Stairway Press, Seattle)

Rainy Day Women—An Austin Starr Mystery (spring 2015, Stairway Press, Seattle)

www.kaykendallauthor.com/

www.facebook.com/KayKendallAuthor

@kaylee_kendall

Hope you're all enjoying the summer weather wherever you are. Look for our regular interviews with our favourite authors. Line up to be confirmed.

Talk soon,
Slainte,
Pam