Q&A with author Rose Anderson

Thanks for being here today, Rose. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?

First off, thanks for having me, Becky. I’m a new author with two books published through Siren-Bookstrand and several more in the works. Driven to create, I write across genres --everything from children and youth literature, to historicals and erotic romance. In between, I freelance. Yep, driven. :)

Q Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?


A Oh definitely. A painfully shy girl forced by life to grow into a marginally shy woman. I don’t think we ever really leave shyness behind. I think the truly shy person simply learns how to cope.

Q In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?


A I don’t yet know if my natural shyness has gotten in the way or not because my career as an author is so new. It gets in the way in my day to day life so it will undoubtedly meddle in one way or another. I do know doing interviews in my quest to become a known author is a bit uncomfortable. :) Every inch of self-promoting is an inch outside my personal sphere of comfort. But self promoting is important so I deal with it and carry on.

Q In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?


A Being a shy child, I always stayed in the background trying to blend in with the wallpaper so no one would notice me. I became a keen observer from the sidelines. I’m usually aware of the smallest emotional details of people when they interact with one another. When I write, I use this detail. My characters are real in their settings. They think. They empathize. They feel. My characters are the sum of my own experiences and these shy observations of others.

Q What’s the hardest part of this business for you?

A I’d hate to admit this, but since this is the shy writer’s blog I’m sure every shy person reading will understand. It’s putting my face out there and looking people in the eye to introduce myself. I have a stack of lovely, perfectly worded, business cards and my shyness keeps me from passing them out! I went out with friends recently and five other women took my cards and passed them out to people without any inhibition. It was like that old TV game show from a zillion years ago -- What’s My Line? -- where each of the three contestants pretended to be the real person from the opening intro. These terrific women were happy to pretend to be me and pass out my cards, while I was busy being uncomfortable being me! It’s crazy.

Q Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

A I’m very aware of my self-imposed personal limits. To break free of the shackles of fears and discomfort, I regularly throw myself into uncomfortable situations. For example: I’m a tad claustrophobic, so I took up spelunking (cave exploration). Sounds intense, eh? It is, but it’s like getting an inoculation. By living through a situation, I’m protected from full-blown discomfort the next time around. I’ve been forcing things on myself since my late teens.

When I was in college, I carried my shyness with me every day. A DJ radio slot came up at school so I took it to be able to speak. I mean I could speak, but I was all shy mumbles in social situations. Two things at that school helped me so much. The first was my radio show. There I made casual conversation to my microphone and played music. And all of it was done behind a closed door. No one could see me. The second was a speech class. Boy, that was brutal. I had to stand up in front of people and say things like himmel hummel himmel hummel and lalalalalala. We also had to do “spontaneous extemporanea” -- speeches off the cuff. And I’d do it all with a racing heartbeat and sweat. As uncomfortable as that sounds, I recommend it. The organization Toastmasters will help too.

Q What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?

A I do have a tip from that class. Eye contact is hard on shy people. Instead of direct eye contact in a social situation, focus on the eyelids or eyebrows of the person you’re talking to. You appear to be making eye contact but you’re really avoiding the source of pupil-to-pupil discomfort.

Q Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?

A My recent release is Dreamscape. Written in homage to Agatha Christie, this tale is peppered with clues that hint at the ending long before the last page is turned. From start to end, the story is far more than it appears. It has romance, history, time travel (of sorts), murder and lots of sizzle.

Blurb:


Unable to deny his own translucence, Dr. Jason Bowen determines his lack of physical substance could only mean one thing—he’s a ghost. Murdered more than a century before, Jason haunts his house and ponders the treachery that took his life. When Lanie O’Keefe arrives with plans to renovate her newly purchased Victorian mansion, Jason discovers, ghost or not, he’s still very much a man. Despite its derelict condition and haunted reputation, Lanie couldn’t be happier with her new home, but then she has no idea a spirit follows her every move throughout the day and shares her captivating warmth at night. Jason soon discovers he can travel through Lanie’s dreams and finds himself reliving the days before his murder with Lanie by his side. It took one hundred and twenty years for love to find them, but there’s that insurmountable little matter of Jason being dead.

Dreamscape will be in paperback any day now. The ebook can be found at most online booksellers and here: Buy Rose Anderson's Dreamscape

Q Where can my readers find you on the web?

A I’m all over the place it seems. I love to hear from readers. Drop me a line! Join my Google+ Circle, Follow me on Twitter, or just Subscribe to my Blog for updates, releases and reviews. Any good search will turn me up somewhere! Here are a few of my links:

My Blog CalliopesWritingTablet


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