Today I’m excited to have prolific writer Jennifer Conner as my guest! Jennifer and I have known each other for years, ever since she left me alone on the fifth floor of a dilapidated old building during an earthquake here in Washington State in 2001…(okay, it didn’t exactly happen that way, but that’s what I like to tell people 🙂 ) She’s the person I credit with dragging me to my first writer’s group and urging me to get involved, something for which I can’t thank her enough. And, she’s an all-around terrific person who gives buckets back to the indie community. So now, without further ado, heeeere’s Jennifer…

D: Hi Jennifer! Thanks for joining us. Tell us a little about yourself and what you write:

J: I’ve been a professional author for eight years. I write contemporary romance, paranormal romance, historical romance and erotica. I have three full-length novels, 2 novellas and 30 short stories in print. I also help run an indie publishing company, Books to Go Now.

D: When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

J: I’ve written since I was young. As I grew older, I wanted to feel passion about something. Writing was that for me. 

“…I like to write the length I feel the story should be…”

D: Tell us about your new short story, I’LL BE SEEING YOU THROUGH TIME in two sentences.

J: It’s 1942, the world is at war when Glenn steps through a time portal and  finds himself in 2013.  Can the Dimension Keepers find a way to reunite them, or will Glenn and Jewel be ripped apart by the fabric of time forever?

D: Love time-travel stories! What compelled you to write this one? 

J: In my mother’s old photos, I found a portrait of a young man my mother was engaged to marry. His destroyer was torpedoed in the South Pacific and he was killed. I wondered how different her life would have been if he’d survived and come back to her. I decided to give them a happy ending.

 

D: You have over 30 short stories available online. What do you like about the form? Dislike?

J: I like to write the length I feel the story should be. That’s the fun of being with an indie publisher. I get to write the story ideas I have and make it the length it needs to be to tell a good story.

 

D: Many of your stories are about the protagonist overcoming hardship and/or disabilities. Why did you choose to go in that direction with your characters?

J: What fun are perfect people? I love good angsty characters. In my novel, SHOT IN THE DARK, Devan is a police officer who was shot and now walks with a cane. In my REGIMENTAL HEROES series, the men have PTSD after returning from war in an era when they had no name for the disorder.

D: Do you ever include your own life experiences in your plots?

J: Of course. 🙂 As the writer’s creed goes, watch out or you’ll end up in my book! My Christmas novella, DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR contains many real life horror stories that happened when I owned my own catering business. Grooms with guns. Workers slipping and breaking their arm with 600 people waiting to be served.

D: Yikes. Reality is so much stranger than fiction, isn’t it? What are you currently working on?

J: I am working on a paranormal romance called Fighting the Fire, about a Native American girl who has uncontrollable powers and starts fires. Who else to help her other than a hunky fireman? 🙂 Also, I am going to start a series revolving around dogs.

“…Like most writer’s journeys, my road’s been rocky…”

D: Tell us about your road to publication. What words of wisdom would you like to impart to writers who are just starting out?

J: Like most writer’s journeys, my road’s been rocky. My words of wisdom would be, don’t let others get you down. Believe in yourself, and if you work VERY hard, you can become a good writer.

D: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

J: Richer and famouser 🙂  No, seriously, still writing no matter what!

D: Where do you see the publishing industry in 5 years?

J: I think the indie publishers who actually work with authors to achieve their success will displace the large houses. Self-Publishing will have better standards and higher quality work. Those that are ready will self-publish. And great stories will still be told. People still love a good book and read as much as they ever have.

D: If you could travel back in time (or forward) where would you go?

J: Victorian England if I could be rich and part of the elite crowd. But, with no modern plumbing, central heating, modern drugs or dentistry, it would have to be a short visit.

D: I hear that! Thanks so much for visiting with us today, Jennifer. Good luck with your new release!

Find out more about Jennifer by visiting her website, blog, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter.

And here’s a little taste of I’LL BE SEEING YOU THROUGH TIME: Book 2 of The Dimension Keepers Series:

It’s 1942 and the world is at war. It’s difficult, but engaged couple Jewel and Glenn know they must say goodbye. Tomorrow, Glenn is shipping out to the South Pacific. That is, until he stops by the Second Chance Bookstore on the way back to the base.

Suddenly, Glenn finds himself in 2013 with the woman he loves half a century away.

Can the Dimension Keepers find a way to reunite them, or will Glenn and Jewel be ripped apart by the fabric of time forever?

Excerpt