Writing and Reading

Wowie, wow, wow, wow! (another tribute to Mr. Walken). I’m tellin’ you, this blog tour has exhilarated me to the point of death. And yet I’m not dead. I wonder why. Because the authors of this age, my brethren, my people, my peeps, my brothers, my sisters, my warriors of the written word!!

(A BRAVEHEART WAR CRY)

You all fuel my body and soul with literary power. That is why I am not dead. I live on…in ALL OF YOU. Oh, yes. It’s true.

So we’re on to the third day of this tour, and I’m featuring the one–the only–the lovely–the sweet Karen Cioffi-Ventrice. The next two days will be about her. This is her tribute. Her homage. Enjoy her. Immerse yourself in the essence that is her and her words.

Here I have a bio and synopsis as well as her book cover!

Bio:Karen Cioffi and Robyn Feltman are advocates of education, reading and the environment. Two of their favorite sayings are:
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained”
“You must be the change you want to see in the world”Karen Cioffi is an author and freelance writer. She is also the creator and manager of Virtual Book Tours as well as co-moderator of a children’s critique Yahoo group, Intense Writing. She has two grown daughters and two very young grandsons. She spends much of her days learning her craft, researching and writing. A portion of it is also spent on emails, follow-ups, Virtual Book Tours and Intense Writing. She is a member of the Children’s Writing Coaching Club where she does some of that ‘learnin.’ Author Cioffi lives with her husband, Donald Ventrice, in New York City.

A little late in the day, but you know me–I lead a busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy life.

BUUUUUUUUSY.

But, you know, Pat knows that too well. That’s the life of an author. Word. And speaking of words, here’s her interview!

=======================================

Pierre: I came across an article once with questions to ask to find out if you are a writer. If you can answer yes to three of them, that means you’re a writer. For our interview, I’d like to ask you these questions.

Bertram: I’m ready.

Pierre: Do you have the ability to tell what a character in a book, play, movie or TV program is going to say long before it’s actually said; or the ability to tell what’s going to happen to each character before the story is half-over; or the desire to rewrite the ending of the story before it’s over?

Bertram: I usually know early in a book what the ending will be, but that has nothing to do with being a writer and everything to do with being a reader. After having read more than 20,000 books, I seldom find a story or a twist that hasn’t been done before. That’s when I write, I’m more interested in telling a good story than in trying to be original. As for the rest of your question: no, I never have any desire to rewrite the ending of a book. A book is complete in itself. I accept it as is, even if I hate it.

Pierre: Does it irritate you that professional critics often don’t understand the most basic elements of the books, movies, plays or stories they are critiquing?

Bertram: No. I don’t read critiques. And even if I did, it wouldn’t bother me if they didn’t understand the basic elements. Sometimes it seems as if the author doesn’t understand the basic elements.

Pierre: When you sit down to write a story or to describe a character, does he or she take on a totally unexpected life or “say” something you never consciously intended?

Bertram: No. My characters never do anything I didn’t intend. They are my creations and are totally dependent on me for their very being.

Pierre: Have you ever had difficulty “killing off” a character in your story because she or he was so intriguing and full of possibility for you, his or her creator?

Bertram: No. For me, story is sovereign. Everything must serve the story, and if the death of a favorite character will serve the story, then that’s the way it has to be.

Pierre: Have you ever been unable to sleep because a character or story was creating itself in your mind; or awakened from sleep because a character or story needed your consciousness to develop itself; or stayed awake and focused for hours while you were driving, walking, run or pretending to work as a story wrote itself in your mind?

Bertram: No. When I lose sleep, it’s because of real life concerns, not bookish ones.

Pierre: Did you ever write or create a story and afterwards discover that it fit a genre you had never written in before; or created a character who was totally unlike anyone you had ever known, and yet was totally believable?

Bertram: I’m not sure that this question fits with what I write. Though they are being sold as mystery/crime, my books are basically genreless in that they encompass many genres — suspense, mystery, romance, thriller, bits of science fiction. And while my characters may not be like anyone I know in real life, they encompass bits of characters I have read in books or seen in movies. Is it possible to write a character totally from scratch? I don’t think so — everything we do and have ever done is part of us, and comes out in the work in some way or another.

Pierre: Do you consider the finished stories you have written to be creations you value somewhere between children and friends; yet do you yearn with each new story to “get it right this time?”

Bertram: I work on each book until I get it right; so no, I have no such yearnings. Each book is what I want it to be. As for my finished books being somewhere between children and friends — not really. More Deaths Than One and A Spark of Heavenly Fire have been released, which means that they no longer belong to me, and I no longer feel a connection to them. Like all books, they now exist complete unto themselves.

Pierre: Do you have mental list or a computer file or a spiral notebook with the ideas for or outlines of stories that you have not written but intend to one day?

Bertram: I do have a file, but it’s mostly ideas a friend suggested and I don’t intend to write the books. Ideas come slowly to me. It’s a good thing, because I also write slowly. I can’t imagine writing a hundred books like some authors do.

Pierre: Have you ever had the experienced of a family member, acquaintance or friend being totally amazed at the world you created in a story you wrote and then regarding you differently; and then did you feel as if you had “exposed” yourself?

Bertram: Since no family member has yet read one of my books, no. As for feeling exposed, I don’t know how I’ll feel. Actually, I do know — it won’t matter. As I said, I no longer see the books as having anything to do with me.

Pierre: You didn’t answer “yes” to at least three of these questions; so according to this survey, you’re not a writer. There is another test. It’s been said that a writer writes; always. Do you?

Bertram: No, not at all. For me, writing is a choice, not something I am compelled to do. Right now, I am more interested in promoting my books, so that must mean I’m a promoter, not a writer.

Pierre: Yet you now have two books published.

Bertram: There is that.