As I get caught up and back into writing, blogging and…umm…real life….here’s an interview with author Susan Palmquist for your reading pleasure 
I’ll be back to posting next week. In the meantime, enjoy Susan’s interview!
Guest Blogger: Author Susan Palmquist
A Sterling Affair, Wild Rose Press
When did you know you were a writer and that writing was what you wanted to do?
I’m ashamed to say it was the lure of money that first attracted me to writing. And yes, if you know anything about the writing business, you’re probably thinking she’s joking, but I’m not. I was staying with one of my mom’s aunts and her next door neighbor was a writer. She just happened to say that she’d just received a royalty check for a book she’d written twenty years ago. I thought, wow, that doesn’t sound like a bad deal, collecting money that long after you’ve done the work. I might have to try that too. I started writing short stories and got rejection after rejection and yes, no money. But by then I was hooked and couldn’t stop writing if someone had paid me to quit. I can honestly say if I won the lottery, I’d still write every day.
What is the best part of being a writer?
I’m the type of person who gets bored very easily, so writing is perfect for me. No two days are ever the same.
What is the worst part of being a writer?
The rejections and cranky editors.
What is your typical writing routine?
As well as writing fiction, I’m a full time freelance writer so I like to keep the two jobs separate. Most of the time I write my non-fiction stuff on the desktop computer and then in the evenings, switch to my laptop for my fiction. And I always write with music playing in the background. Depending on where I’m at with a novel or what genre I’m working on, determines what I listen to. When I’m working on my first draft, I’ll listen to artists like Peter Gabriel, U2, Tears for Fears. When I get to the final edit, then I’ll switch to just instrumental music, some classical, some New Age. And I have a CD that helps with creativity that I often listen too when I’m writing.
Are you a pantser or a plotter?
I’m both. Some books I think about for months before I start writing them and I’ll make notes and plot outlines. But for some books, ideas pop into my head and I start writing and the whole thing takes off from there. A Sterling Affair and The One and Only were both written with me just winging it, while Death Likes Me took more plotting. Maybe the mystery genre requires you to be more of a plotter.
Do you have a secret for busting writer’s block?
I had what I thought was writer’s block for many years. It was after my dad died and I couldn’t get back to my regular writing routine. I thought it would pass but it dragged on and on and I almost considered just quitting. However, one day I realized what the problem really was. When my dad was ill I’d been thrown off my regular writing routine. My advice is get into a regular writing routine and stick with it no matter what. Be tough on yourself. Even if you write for just 30 minutes a day, do it. And don’t be afraid to just write anything and everything that pops into your head. Sometimes that anything and everything turns into a work of art and a published book.
Thanks so much Susan!
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