Saturday, February 11, 2006

Stella at a signing at Borders, Redmond Town Center, Redmond, WA

Julia Quinn, Susan Andersen, Stella Cameron

Today I did a signing at a local Borders and encountered a great group of people with a mass of questions. A lady asked: "How do you feel about your family members reading your books?" She elaborated that she wondered if it would be embarrassing to have people you know see into your mind.

Good question.

The answer is quite complicated. My father was the most definite example of reaction to my writing. He didn't approve of my writing anything. He called me a "scribbler" which is an oddly old-world term, and didn't think women should put themselves in the public eye at all. My husband, son and one daughter all read my books and enjoy them. Jerry does a good deal of research for me because he enjoys that. Our second daughter doesn't care for genre fiction.

But the questions was, "How do you FEEL about family members reading your books." It might just as well have applied to friends and acquaintances, I think. And I feel just fine! I'm a blessed person who has been able to do what she likes best for a living. No, it isn't always easy. Fiction= 1 writer, 1 computer (or whatever), and thin air. Fortunately some of us have all these stories whizzing around waiting to be told, but that doesn't instantly get them down on a screen and from there into a book. I'm working toward the end of another Toussaint book at the moment and I hardly sleep because I live with the characters and the plot now. Yep, I feel just fine about folks reading what I write because I give it my all.

Susan Andersen, Stella Cameron, Debbie Macomber Lois Faye Dyer, Katherine Stone

What about you as readers? Are you a proud displayer of whatever book is on the hob at the moment? Do you like to discuss what you're reading with others and maybe even say, "you might enjoy this?" Or does that only happen when you're reading WAR AND PEACE or the latest translation of a Garcia Marqeuz?

Confession time--I read WAR AND PEACE TWICE. The first time I didn't get it because I couldn't keep the names straight. Then I watched the PBS special and read the book at more or less the same time. I got it then! Guess some of us need more help than others.