What can you tell us about your new release, Her Silent Shadow? The set contains 13 psychological thrillers by WSJ, USA Today and Amazon best-selling authors. The stories run the spectrum for style and topics but all are engaging. What or who inspired you to become an author? I’d kept a log of strange things that I experienced over my years in medicine, thinking I’d use them for writing a book someday. My kids got tired of hearing me say, “someday I need to write a book with all this stuff” and finally told me “just do it already!” So I did. I’d enjoyed writing when I was younger and found I still did, so ended up writing a number of novels. It’s been fun! What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read? Some that come to mind are Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy, Hong Kong by Stephen Coonts, Jackdaws by Ken Follett, Memorial Day by Vince Flynn, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. All had great characters. Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask? Michele Obama. All kinds of things! Mostly, I want to understand her experiences as a black woman training in law and what it was like during her First Lady days. What’s your favorite thing about writing? My favorite part is creating the first draft when all I focus on is being creative. People have often asked how I think of things to write and I tell them, when I’m in the groove, it’s like watching a movie in my head. I don’t consciously “think” about what to write – it just flows. The greatest challenge for me is typing fast enough to capture all the action! What is a typical day like for you? I’ve recently retired so “typical” still isn’t established. I’ve built my own house in the past 18 mos, wrote and published 2 books at the same time (I’d never do that again!). With Covid about, I’ve limited much travel or socializing but still volunteer for such things as working on fixing up homes for homeless Veterans (working with Operation Renewed Hope Foundation) and have recently come out of retirement to work at a Covid vaccine clinic. Oh yeah…I’m still writing, too! What scene from Her Silent Shadow was your favorite to write? My story contribution to the set is, Edge of Reality. My favorite scene is when Amanda Bass, the daughter of the main character, is attacked by 3 drunken thugs when she is leaving her college dorm. She kicks their asses! A theme throughout my books is strong female characters. I love giving them the power to be resilient and self-directed! Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by? The Golden Rule. Simple, but powerful and if one keeps it in mind, it can be a guide to making good decisions when interacting with others.
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