inspiration Archives | Margaret Locke

Happy #WriterWednesday!

We’re just a few days away from Christmas (for those who celebrate it), so I’m bringing you an early present in the form of a mini-interview with Tina Susedik, author of books “where love abides through time.” Wahoo! Who doesn’t want THAT?

So grab that hot chocolate, kick up the feet, and take a break with Tina and me. 🙂

What inspires you to write?

Just about everything inspires me to write. I can’t imagine what it would be like to travel, go out to dinner, go for a walk, take a shower, etc. without thinking about writing a story, or having story ideas come flying at me. I’ll have to live to be two hundred to write all the ideas I have.

What one piece of advice do you wish you’d had when first starting out?

I wish I’d known how hard writing is. Not just writing the story, but the editing, editing, editing. Sometimes I’ve read my stories eight times before they go into print.

I also wish I’d known how hard it is to promote my work and how much I’d hate that part of the business.

Name two things people don’t know about you:

I’m also a photographer. I love taking pictures of old barns, birds, and nature. I also write under a pen name: Anita Kidesu.

One more thing: There is a scene in Never With a Rich Man that takes place in a restaurant. This scene actually happened to my (now husband) on our first date. Thankfully he asked me out again. The scene that follows, though, didn’t happen to us – we were only 18 at the time!

A Bit About Never With A Rich Man:

Cassie Jordan has been lied to, cheated on, and passed over for a promotion. All by men. She was tired of men. She didn’t need a man, and certainly not a rich man. Then she met Hogan Wynnters, and ordinary salesman – or so she thought.

Hogan Wynnters is part owner of a family business and has the kind of money Cassie despisese’s tired of women coming on to him because he’s rich. He decides to never tell a woman about his financial status until she gets to know him as a person. As an undercover FBI agent, he uses his knowledge of antiquities to find the people who are bringing stolen WWII artifacts into the country. Unfortunately, the woman he’s falling for is in the crosshairs of the FBI.

Can they work through their preconceived notions and find true love?

Find Never With A Rich Man on Amazon: https://amzn.com/B01MAXTN9A

A Bit About Tina:

Tina has been married for over forty years and lives in northern Wisconsin. After careers in accounting and teaching (not necessarily at the same time), she found her career in writing is what fulfills her the most. Besides Romance, she writes children, military, and history books. When not writing, she loves camping, hiking, photography, reading and playing with her five grandchildren. She also writes as Anita Kidesu.

She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Wisconsin Romance Writers of America, and PAN (Published Authors Network).

Want to connect further with Tina? Find her here!

Website | Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads | Pinterest

Thanks so much for joining us, Tina!

Welcome to Writer Wednesday!

Today we’ve got Catherine Chant rockin’ the house – which is especially apt, considering she writes rock ‘n’ roll romantic fiction and stories with paranormal twists for young adults. How cool is THAT?

Read on to learn more about Catherine and her latest work – and I hope you’ll leave some love in the comments. Because authors need groupies, too! 🙂

Red heart shapes on a handwritten old journal.

What inspires you to write?

I think I’m going to be in the minority when I say I’m not the type of writer who feels she has to write (like that I’ll die if I couldn’t). I’m creative in so many different ways that if writing were no longer an option, I’d find another outlet and be okay with that.

So why do I write if I don’t have to? I write because I enjoy it. It’s that simple. I like telling stories. I like starting on a path and seeing what’s around the corner. I enjoy discovering the unexpected, and I would love for readers to come along for the ride. I’m constantly inspired by the question of “What if…?”

[ML: So glad I’m not the only one who feels that way – though if I did, I think I’d get a lot more written.]

Close up of fountain pen on old letter

What one piece of advice do you wish you’d had when first starting out?

When I was in elementary school, the teachers would tell my mother that my assignments were sometimes late because I spent too much time looking around the room to see what other kids were doing.

I made that same mistake when I started writing. Sometimes it’s disguised as learning from others, which is fine, but if you pay too much attention to what other writers are doing, it’s easy to forget to work on your own stuff. Write for yourself first and don’t worry so much what everyone else is doing.

What’s your favorite romance novel of all time, and why?

This is a hard choice. I’ve read and loved a lot of books. But I’d have to say that the romance that stands out the most in my mind after all these years is Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I read it when it was first published back in 1991 and it just struck a chord with me. The history, the emotions, the romance. It has it all. That book made me fall in love with the whole time travel genre and inspired me to write my own. Before that moment, I’d mostly read gothic romances.

chef at work

Name two things people don’t know about you.

1. I always say I’m a horrible cook (it’s been a running joke in my family since I was a kid–I was majorly inept in Home Ec class), but I’m actually not that bad. I don’t much like cooking, though, so I’m happy to have everyone believe I’m horrible at it and that’s why I don’t cook more.

2. Before I got into writing, I was an artist. I drew and painted pictures all the time. Looking back, I probably should have gone to art school and become a graphic designer, but my parents wanted me to have a “practical” career, so I went to a traditional four-year college and studied math and held a technology job for 15 years. Now I’m back in the arts, so I got here eventually.

A Bit About Nothing Stays the Same (young adult time travel romance)

How far would you go to save someone’s life? Leah and Brennan are going all the way back to 1973.

One Choice Changes Everything…

In 1973, The Beat Detectors are the hottest TV pop band to hit the airwaves since The Monkees, thanks to the appealing vocals of rising teen idol Ronnie Basford. But behind the scenes, not everything is rainbows and unicorns. Ronnie realizes much too late that one bad decision can ruin your whole life.

Forty years later, Ronnie is dead from an apparent suicide and his sixteen-year-old son Brennan wants answers. He needs to understand how it all went so wrong. When he finds himself dropped back in time, to the set of his father’s TV show, he’s determined to redirect the course of his father’s life and create the happy ending Ronnie deserved.

Soccer star Leah Reinard has been crushing on Brennan Basford for ages. When they end up at the same summer job, she thinks the fates have finally aligned in her favor. That is, until Brennan suddenly disappears from existence. One day he’s there, the next day, he’s gone. And no one but Leah even remembers him. Can Leah find Brennan in time to stop him from ruining both their futures?

Available from Amazon.com: https://amzn.com/B01IASDPV4

A Bit About Catherine:

Catherine Chant is an active member of the Romance Writers of America (RWA) and a Golden Heart® finalist. She writes rock ‘n’ roll romantic fiction and stories with paranormal twists for young adults. Catherine is currently working on a new young adult suspense novel, and the next book in her Soul Mates series.

You can connect with Catherine at her website CatherineChant.com, on Twitter @Catherine_Chant, on Facebook CatherineChantNovels, or on Instagram Catherine_Chant

Thanks so much for being here, Catherine – I’m thrilled you chose to be a guest. 🙂