Q: When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
A: I started reading at the age of two, because my mother read books to me all the time. She was a lover of books and a writer. I’ve always loved good stories; reading books, and watching movies. I started writing poems in high school and by college I tripped over the thought, “Maybe I could write for a living.”

Q: How and when did you make this dream a reality?
A: I’ve never stopped writing or studying the writing process, nor talking or teaching others about writing. I’ve been blessed with knowing the writer’s psyche well enough to be aware of the patterns writers go through to sabotage their own writing. I also have some different kinds of “knowing” skills that help me move deeper, beneath the surface, to bring to light what a writer already knows by doesn’t know she knows that’s keeping her from finding her writer’s voice.

Q: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned so far in your writing career?
A. Tenacity. You never know when you’ll be in the right place at the right time, doing the right activity. And because of that unknown, a writer must keep writing, without expectation. Writing is not an end to a means, it’s a lifelong process of self-discovery.

Q: What are you working on right now?
A: I’m working on rewrites of a full feature screenplay, “Hidden Portraits.” I’ve just had it reviewed again. In the late 1980’s I became a widow. I asked a lot of questions about life then, and one of those questions was a pesky little thing that would not release me, so with a yellow note pad and about 20 pages I began to formulate a story. It collected dust and it cooked in my psyche until I remarried years later to someone else who love to write stories. We pitched it and another short screenplay to several Hollywood producers, including an Emmy Award winning HBO producer, who all gave it a thumbs up! But the budget on this movie was very high, so they dropped it. Remember tenacity? Well, here’s a story I’m still working on in 2008. Sometimes something’s not done until it’s done. Viki King, the author of “How to Write a Movie in 21 Days” told me that in a telecourse offered by Stephen Simon at the Spiritual Cinema Circle. She said, “We write to answer the questions of our lives.” Viki’s a brilliant woman and has extraordinary gifts and skill to help writers.

Q: Name some authors or books that have influenced your writing life in a positive way.
A: The first book on writing that really spoke to my writer’s mind was “Becoming A Writer” by Dorthea Brande. She knew what to say to a writer. It’s a book I still pick up and read. It’s timeless. I read The Hardy Boys series and watched every Zorro episode on Disney’s Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday nights. Now, Disney knew how to tell story. Of course, Anne Lamott’s book, “Bird by Bird” sits right next to Dorthea’s book, as does “Writing Down the Bones” by Natalie Goldberg. I am a bit of a bungler when it comes to what I need to be reading or doing. I walked into a neighborhood bookstore in Florida and bumped into a table displaying several books. “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker fell on the floor right in front of me. The book’s cover was a field of purple flowers, before the movie was made, before Ms. Walker won the Pulitzer Prize. I took it home with me because it literally jumped out at me and said, “You need to read me.” I did. Isabelle Allende is another author who speaks wisdom writers’ words. There are writers who write and great writers who write great works; then there are great writers who write great works and know how to tell you how to becoming a writer. They are like the spiritual prophets who can lead you, by example, and few words, to the promised land of your own voice.

Q: What have you recently read or what are you reading right now that you would consider an outstanding work?
A: I’ve not read a great book in quite awhile. Partly because I’m reading lots of manuscripts, considering the works of other writers for my publishing company. The last really delicious book I could not put down was “The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Kidd. The anticipation of reading that book literally rippled my arms in chicken skin.

Q: What excites or ignites your soul?
A: Music moves me on so many levels and all kinds of music. If I need an emotional tone that isn’t showing up on the page, I’ll stop and find the right CD. I do dance like no one’s watching. It sets the stage and the writing flows. When writing plucks the stings of my soul, I know the words that ring true for me, will ring true no matter whose eyes fall on the page. Good writing has power that embraces all the parallels of our knowing who we really are.

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