Today is Ask the Author day, but first, I want to give you the latest breaking news! :)
First off, THIS FRIDAY 2/19/2010 - ALL DAY - The VHP Readers Group will be hosting an event to celebrate the PRINT release of Unbreakable Hostage. Yours truly will be on-line all day. There will be great conversations, games, give aways and more!!! I would love to see you all there! :)
Secondly, the one and only fabulous, multi-published author and all around good gal, Chelle Cordero will be here NEXT Monday, 2/22! Holy crap, folks! She has so many incredible books out. I am HONORED to host her here as my first author interview! :) PLEASE don't miss that one! Chelle rocks! :)
Ok, now on to Ask the Author!
Q: Where do you get the inspiration for your story lines?
A: That's a good one. Sometimes they simply come to me, as was the case in Unbreakable Hostage. In other cases, the story wrote itself (very much the case in the stories in Loving Her).
Q: Your books are very deep, dark and rather depressing. Why is that?
A: That's a damn good question! LOL. I ask myself that constantly! LOL. I'm really not sure. The ironic thing is that I am a loon in real life! I'm always singing, dancing, making stupid faces, etc. I genuinely enjoy life and am very optimistic. My guess is that my writing helps my brain deal with the dark issues that lay in the recesses of my mind! LOL.
Q: What would you say is the one key thing for new authors to remember?
A: Persistence. Simple, really. Any and every author has to have some serious determination and persistence. You're going to get rejection letters. It happens. It's the nature of the industry. Don't let it get you down. As long as you persevere and keep working, you will eventually reach that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow! ;)
Ok, this last question was actually one that I hesitated to post, but I decided that since I offered to answer any & all questions, it was only fair that I answer it. The wording has been changed so as not to offend anyone.
Q: You are an open member of the GLBT community. Why do you think it is that so many actors, artists, musicians, etc. are gay? Do you think there is a correlation between homosexuality and creativity?
A: This is a sensitive subject in that it could easily stereotype people. Anyone who knows me knows that my beliefs are the antithesis of stereotyping. Do I think there's a correlation? Honestly, no. Yes, there are countless actors, musicians & other celebrities who are openly gay. But it just seems so much more prominent there because those folks are in the public eye. Look at Meredith Baxter's partner. She's a contractor. Members of the GLBT community come from all walks of life, all ethnicities, all income and status levels, etc. Just look at the gals in Loving Her. One of the blatant points in Loving Her is the fact that it's not about being a certain color, religion, personality, etc. First and foremost, we are ALL human beings. What we do for a living has no bearing on our sexual orientation. Does your job define your race or religion? No. Same here. I think it's a really interesting question, but I think we all need to be careful of stereotyping people simply based on what we see in the media.
Alrighty folks, that's it for today. Hope you enjoyed it! :) Stay tuned for more coolness! :) And don't forget to keep sending in those questions!! :)
Happy reading! :)
4 comments:
Hi Lauren,
First let me say how excited I am to be interviewed on Feb 22. Thanks so much.
I was interested in your response to the last question about the correlation between artists and the GLBT community. While I don't support stereotyping either, I do wonder if the "courage" to be open does have something to do with the artistic nature.
I went to an artists' high school in the early 70's, certainly before it was "okay" to announce oneself, and I remember a large portion of students who were true to themselves whether it was sexuality, religion, style, etc. We were taught to nurture our NON-conformity, to reach down to find our "inner muse", to be able to feel our hearts beating and to be individuals no matter what other expectations were placed on us.
I think that while actors & other artists may be in the public eye so of course it is easy to focus on them, I think it does stand to reason that artists are more open about who they really are. As it becomes more acceptable to be "out" (G-d willing that day will be soon), people will realize that there is no proportionate differences.
Hey Chelle! Good to hear from you! :)
Really interesting take on the last question. I do agree that artistic types tend to be more open, or at least open-minded. It's much more difficult when you come from a conversative or traditional background (I've noticed that those types of families tend to be not only less tolerant, but also less artistically inclined).
Like you, I hope the day comes soon when we can all just be people! :)
While I do agree with L.E. that GLBT people are in every walk of life, Chelle has a very good point as well. As an artist, my whole life is about being different, original and searching inside myself for the inspiration to create. I've always gone against the grain in one way or another and I think that experience helped give me the courage to come out as a lesbian.
I am with you both that you need to have that open mind. I think an open mind is what gives us the strength to come out.
I just don't want to see people from the GLBT community squeezed into a certain stereotype or social role. It's bad enough that we're so often viewed as circus freaks.
I use my writing as a way to point out to the world that we are all human.
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