Lee McKenzie McAnally's first book, The
Man for Maggie, is being released by Harlequin
American Romance in June 2007. Her second book,
With This Ring, will be out in December
2007. Here Lee answers 15 questions about writing,
books, and more, all in 15 minutes.
1. Which comes first when you're starting
to write a new book: character, setting, plot,
or theme?
To some extent this varies from book to book.
The two books that will be out this year started
with characters, but I'm currently working on
a proposal that started with the setting. I never
have a fully developed plot until I finish writing
the book.
2. Do you plot or write by the seat of
your pants?
Definitely by the seat of my pants. I often have
an idea of what the final outcome of the story
will be, but the details never reveal themselves
ahead of time. For example, the hero in the proposal
I'm working on is a firefighter, so I'm pretty
sure there's going to be a fire. As I write, there
are points throughout the story at which I have
no idea what's going to happen, even on the next
page. That generates some mild panic. Eventually
it comes to me, although I can end up writing
several scenes that have to be thrown away.
3. How do you write the first draft (longhand,
typewriter, Alphasmart, computer)?
Primarily on the computer and sometimes on my
AlphaSmart. Writing longhand is extremely frustrating
for me because I have really dreadful handwriting.
Sometimes even I can't read it. I don't own a
typewriter but if I did, I would donate it to
a museum.
4. How long does it take you to write
a first draft?
Difficult to say. I often rework scenes until
I've figured out the conflict and emotional intensity,
then move on. I've discovered that's not a good
process when working toward a deadline, so I might
have a better answer after I've written the next
book.
5. How many drafts do you usually end
up writing?
Some scenes come together in the first draft
and hardly need any work. Others have to be gone
over and over and over. So I guess the answer
would be, "Too many to count."
6. Out of all the books you've written,
which one is your favourite?
The Man for Maggie, the first book I
sold. It's a June '07 Harlequin American Romance.
I had decided to abandon romantic suspense and
try my hand at lighthearted romantic comedy. Writing
this book was a lot of fun, and I think it shows.
7. What's the best book you've ever read?
I've always been a voracious reader, so I don't
think I can pick one as the best. I grew up at
a time when parents weren't compelled to teach
their children the alphabet or how to read before
they started school, but my mother read to me
a lot. Learning to read for myself was my sole
reason for wanting to go to school, and I vividly
remember being able to read a Dick and Jane
primer for the first time. "See Spot run."
There's still something magical about those words!
8. What's the most useful book on writing
you've ever read?
The Complete Writer's Guide to Heroes &
Heroines: Sixteen Master Archetypes by Tami
D. Cowden, Caro LaFever and Sue Viders.
9. What's the most useful writing advice
you've heard?
Don't form an emotional attachment to the words
you've written. I have a tendency to go on and
on, and yet I used to find it very difficult to
cut anything. Now I create a separate file for
each project and call it Extra Stuff. When I cut
something, I paste it in there, just in case I
need it. Interestingly, I have never once gone
back to retrieve anything from those files, but
knowing they're there is a comfort.
10. Which character do you wish you had
created?
Stephanie Plum.
11. What prize or award would you most
like to win?
The pullet surprise? But seriously, aspiring
to win an award is a bit like a false economy.
The best we can do as writers is to write the
kind of books we're proud of and the kind of books
we love to read.
12. If you hadn't become a writer, what
might you have become instead?
I love science and have done a fair bit of research
as a paleontologist. Crime scene forensics fascinate
me, as do ornithology and marine biology. I have
taken graduate courses in plate tectonics from
three of the most prominent geologists in North
America, and studying the recent earthquake activity
in the south Pacific would be a great way to understand
our own rather precarious circumstances here on
the west coast. I also think working as a private
investigator would be a lot of fun, but that could
be a factor of watching too much television.
13. What's the nicest compliment someone
could give you about one of your books?
It made me laugh. Or, I couldn't put it down.
Or both.
14. What's the worst thing about being
a writer?
Not earning enough money to buy a Mercedes SLK.
15. What's the best thing about being
a writer?
Spending all day at home in my PJs and realizing
I'm not glamorous enough to have a Mercedes.
Sheri Radford is the author of Penelope and
the Monsters, Penelope and the Humongous
Burp, and other upcoming books in the Penelope
series. Visit Sheri on the web at www.sheriradford.com.
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