Q & A with Avon author Candis Terry

I'm so excited to have one of my very favorite people on the blog today. I've known Candis for many years--she was my very first critique partner.

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

It’s amazing to be here with you today, my friend!

For those who don’t know me, here’s a brief rundown of what planet I come from. I was born and raised near the sunny beaches of Southern California and now make my home on an Idaho farm. I’ve experienced life in such diverse ways as working in a Hollywood recording studio to wiping sheep noses to working as a graphic designer. Only one thing has remained constant: my passion for writing stories about relationships, the push and pull in the search for love, and the security one finds in their own happily ever after. Though my stories are set in small towns, my wish is to give each of my characters a great big memorable love story rich with quirky characters, tons of fun, and a happy ending.


In February 2011, after 22 years of working at becoming a published author I sold my first contemporary romance, SECOND CHANCE AT THE SUGAR SHACK, to Avon Impulse.

Q Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person? (I already know the answer to this, and I'm trying not to laugh...)


A Anyone who knows me is probably laughing because they would say I’m as far from an introvert as possible. The truth is I’m not as much of an extrovert as I would like everyone to believe. Yes, I can talk to anyone I pass on the street (and usually do!), but when I step into a crowd of people I don’t know, I do have to muster up some Cowardly Lion courage.


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


A For me the hardest part is to promote myself, which is completely expected of authors by their publishers more than ever. No longer can we just write a book and stay behind the curtain. I know how I feel when I’m barraged with an author’s self-promotion. It’s often a huge turn-off. So how do we discover that fine line between “Gee, I’d really like you to check out my book. I worked really hard on it and I think you might like it.” Or “Hey, buy my book, buy my book, buy my booooook! Because you know, I’ve got to be able to afford to put dinner on the table.”? And how do we step out of our comfort zone to constantly talk about ourselves and our work? I don’t know the answer. And hey, I live on a farm so shoveling manure is probably not all that interesting.


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 The most recent experience was at the Emerald City Writer’s Conference this past October. After 22 years of trying to become published, I decided it might be a good idea to pay it forward and give a workshop on all the mistakes I’ve made over the years. Again, being in front of an audience and talking about myself just makes me cringe. I hope I did okay. The most important thing to me was trying to give new writers some helpful insight. I don’t have all the answers, but I have a couple of really dumb things I’ve done that I know delayed my ability to sell a manuscript. I had to convince myself that the people in the audience were not there to laugh at me. They were there to learn. Which made it totally okay to laugh at myself.


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


A Don’t take yourself too seriously, just be yourself, and smile. Sorry, that’s three tips.

Over the years I’ve been in many situations that made me say “What the heck am I doing here and how am I going to make it through this?” One example is when I lived in California and I worked for the company who did all the publicity materials for the Jimmy Stewart Relay Marathon which took place in Griffith Park. The president of the company sent a few of us to represent the entire company. Eeek. No pressure.


I found myself at the Beverly Hills Hotel in a room with stars like Jimmy Stewart, Charleton Heston, Robert Wagner, OJ Simpson (pre-murder days) and even Scott Baio (Chachi) from Happy Days. No kidding. I have pictures to prove it! There were assistants working the room that would bring the star to you. You didn’t have to go up to them and ask for an autograph or anything to get a moment with them. Imagine when I found myself shaking hands with Charleton Heston (aka Moses)! Any speck of extrovert I possessed completely vanished. The only thing that got me through that night was knowing those people would never remember me and they didn’t care who I was. So I was able to laugh and enjoy myself (and say stupid things) because, if they weren’t going to take me seriously, why should I?


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


A I’m thrilled to share a blurb from ANY GIVEN CHRISTMAS. The story was a blast to write as Dean, the hero, was just bigger than life (not to mention super sexy). You can go to my website http://www.candisterry.com/ for an excerpt of ANY GIVEN CHRISTMAS and also for an excerpt from SECOND CHANCE AT THE SUGAR SHACK, the first book in the Sugar Shack novels. The books are available as an e-book and also as a print book on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and most everywhere e-books are sold.


Here’s the blurb!


Dean Silverthorne’s mother may be dead, but she still has matchmaking to do.


When an injury dashes NFL Quarterback Dean Silverthorne’s Super Bowl dreams, he heads back to Deer Lick, Montana with a chip on his wounded shoulder and more determined than ever to get back in the game. He loves his kooky family, but his trip home is nothing but a very brief Christmas visit.


His game plan didn’t include an instant attraction to Emma Hart, a feisty kindergarten teacher who seems to be the only person in Deer Lick not interested in the hometown hero. Or his dearly departed mom popping up with mistletoe in hand and meddling on the mind. Now Dean can’t help but wonder if there’s more to love than life between the goal posts.


Q Where can my readers find you on the web?


A I’d love for readers to visit me at my website http://www.candisterry.com/. I’m also on Twitter @CandisTerry and on Facebook.


Thanks so much for having me here today!


Happy holidays to everyone!