RebeccaGood day dear readers! I have a fantastic new author interview to share with you! This will be the start of a full summer of fun that I have planned for ya’ll!! Author interviews, several book reviews on some great books coming up, and of course, our summer reading program! What a time we are going to have! Now, of course, there are some opportunities to win a prize here and there as well, so keep your eyes peeled and make sure that you keep an eye on the book blogs here to find out how to win!!
So here is our FIRST GIVEAWAY – Comment on the blog and let me know if you are a book club member or not, to be entered to win 1 of 2 copies (US residents only please) of Molly Campbell’s books!!! Now, lets dive into learning more about the fabulous Molly Campbell, and her works!
Background:
Hi! I am a two-time Erma Bombeck Award winning writer. I have blogged for what seems like a lifetime. I also am an artist (of sorts, and the link to my art shop is at the end of this interview). I am the author of three books: one that I self-published, Characters in Search of a Novel, and two novels published by The Story Plant—my first, Keep the Ends Loose, and my second, Crossing the Street, just released.
What are your ambitions for your writing career?
Every author wants to be a bestseller. Me, too.
Which writers inspire you?
It goes almost without saying that Erma Bombeck is a huge influence. I love humor, and I write humorous novels that cover serious subjects. I read books all the time, and my favorite authors change depending on what I am reading. I love the humor of David Sedaris, Lisa Lutz in her Spellman novels, Nora Ephron, Fannie Flagg and Bill Bryson. But I also love “serious” writers such as Lauren Groff, Anna Quindlen, Ellen Berg, Elizabeth Buchan, and Joanna Trollope.
What is your current book about?
Crossing the Street is about a disillusioned writer of erotic fiction (there isn’t any in the book, don’t worry!), Beck Throckmorton. Beck is resentful of her sister, she doesn’t like children, her BFF is 83 years old, and Beck is lonely and bored. One eventful summer she meets an amazing little girl, and her world turns upside down.
Where do your ideas come from?
I bet all writers put pieces of their lives into their books. I certainly do. Cats, food, and family feature prominently in Crossing the Street. An accordion (my husband is an accordionist, but that’s another story) is featured in Keep the Ends Loose. In my next novel, there is a Pit Bull. There is a Pit Bull sleeping next to me on my sofa as I type this!
What is the hardest thing about writing?
Plot. I love characters, and I could create them all day. But plot is another matter. I have a hard time with that, and I have learned the hard way that I can’t just meander around and let the book write itself. I have done that and had to rewrite manuscripts many times over. I now spend weeks and even months brainstorming about my characters and thinking the story through, then outlining. It saves much rewriting time. It takes me about two years to write a book. Hard!
What genre do you write in?
Keep the Ends Loose was both Young Adult and Women’s Fiction. Crossing the Street is Women’s Fiction. I wish I could write a great mystery, as I love reading them. But I just don’t have the skills to create a crime and then solve it. Sherlock Holmes I am not!
Where might people find your work?
My personal blog is www.mollydcampbell.com. Characters in Search of a Novel is available on Amazon. Keep the Ends Loose and Crossing the Street are available at all online book outlets. My art shop is http://www.cafepress.com/notexactlypicasso. I also write for Literati Magazine on Medium.
