Featured Author Sheila Roberts

  

 Join us today, for our interview with Sheila Roberts as she continues on her virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion.

 Christmas is fast approaching and many of the women in the town of Holly are bracing themselves for stress, overwork, and little understanding or appreciation from the men in their lives. But then inspiration hits. Joy Robertson, Laura Fredericks, and their knitting buddies decide to “go on strike” and give the men an opportunity to see firsthand what it takes to make the holidays merry and bright. Soon other women are joining in and husbands all over town are getting a crash course in decorating, shopping, and what to wear to see Santa, and are searching frantically for an interpreter to translate the mysteries of holiday recipes. The men may just come to appreciate the holidays after walking a mall in their wives’ high heels. But maybe the women will learn something, too.

 Hi Sheila,
 
Welcome to Paperback Writer 
  
I just want to say how much I have enjoyed reading this book. Will you share with us how you came up with the idea for this book?

I’m so glad you enjoyed the book. I’m getting a lot of positive response from it so far. As with all books, it started with a little germ of an idea. What would Christmas be like if the men were in charge. Now, that is a scary thought!

  
Do you have a process for developing your characters?

I wish I could say I do. I think, often there is a little of me in many of them. What would I do if? How do I feel about? These kind of questions get the creative ball rolling.

Do you plan your stories first with an outline or does it come to you as write it?

I am a big believer in pre-planning. This doesn’t mean I know every scene that is going to be in the book before I start writing it, but it does mean I have  pretty good idea of where I am going. It is like building a really good skeleton. If you’ve got a good skeleton you have something on which to hang the rest of the body.

 Do you know the end of the story at the beginning?

Pretty much.

 It is said that authors write themselves into their characters. Is there any part of you in your characters and what they would be?

Not in all of my characters, but in many. In my book BIKINI SEASON, which comes out spring of 2008 with St. Martin’s Press, I wound up having to cut a character out of the story, and that was hugely painful because she was a lot like me.
What is your favorite part about this book?
My favorite part was writing Glen Fredericks’s journey. I really enjoyed putting that character into all kinds of funny situations and watching him squirm. Writers really are rather sick people.
When in the process of writing your book did you begin to look for a publisher?

I already had an agent, and we didn’t go on the hunt for a publisher until I had a finished, polished product.
What struggles have you had on the road to being published?

Writing is not a business for the faint of heart. I’ve had all kinds of ups and downs and written different things under different names. Rejection? Been there ( a lot ). Discouragement? Done that. But it’s not always bad to get rejected. Some things we do as writers should be rejected. And those hard times and career bumps are often guidance in disguise. When a door shuts in your face, it doesn’t necessarily mean you should quit. It means you’re standing on the wrong porch.

 What has been the best part about being published?

Having readers tell me they enjoyed the book. That is a thrill.
What do you want readers to remember and carry with them after reading your novel?

I think for every book, the author has a different hope, a different goal. What I want most is for readers to enjoy this and have a good time. I would hope, too, though, that people learn to appreciate and enjoy the holidays, to make this special time of year just that, something special.
Do you have plans to write another book?

Book number two for St. Martin’s is already in the pipeline and I am now working on book number three.
Would you care to share with us how the virtual book tour experience with Pump Up Your Book Promotion has been for you?

This has been great fun!

 Where can readers find a copy of your book?

It should be available in all the big chain bookstores like Barnes & Noble, and it’s also available on Amazon.com
 
Do you have a website for readers to go to?

I sure do. I hope readers will stop by and enter my  ON STRIKE FOR CHRISTMAS contest. One lucky winner will receive Godiva

chocolates. You can also sign up for my free life improvement e-newsletter, Super You. Come see me at www.sheilasplace.com
 
Thank you, Sheila for sharing your book and characters with us today. It has been a pleasure and I hope you have had a successful virtual book tour.

Thanks so much for having me. Happy holidays!