1) When
and why did you decide you wanted to be a published author?
My mother, Leslie Talley, is a writer. In fact, her debut novel, Make Old Bones, is coming soon from Wild
Child Publishing. When I read her book, I thought, I could do this! But I had no idea what to write about. For years,
people would tell me they knew someone who looked exactly like me. I’d respond,
“I must’ve been cloned!” Then story ideas poured into my head, and Carbon Copy was born.
2) What
is the best and worse thing you have learned from an editor/agent?
Best: My mother told me a
tip she’d read to avoid writer’s block: “Stop when I know what will happen
next.”
Worst: A speaker at a writers’ conference
said, “Don’t join a writers’ group because you might get bad advice from a
bunch of unpublished writers.
3) Favorite
author/s?
Margaret Mitchell,
Sue Grafton, James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Danielle Steel, V.C. Andrews,
Charlaine Harris, Anne Rice, and of course, my mother, Leslie S. Talley.
4) What
is your typical day?
I mostly write on Thursdays and Fridays
when I’m not working my day job as a CPA. While my sons are in school, I take
advantage of the quiet time. I write about 5 or 6 hours on each of those days.
Writing at least one or two chapters per week allows me to meet my goal of
writing at least one book per year until I die. Monday through Wednesday I work
my day job as a CPA. Then I pick up my kids from school and tote them to
various activities: Karate, Football, Cub Scouts & Boy Scouts.
5) Share
your blurb or short excerpt from your latest release with us
Lilly Allen has brains, beauty, and a trust fund.
She's living in New York City and her career as a reporter is taking off. She's
hoping the love of her life, Grier, will propose soon. She has it all, or so
she thinks. Grier Garrison, Create Life executive, is running the company while
his father, Dr. Michael Garrison, is in the ICU awaiting a heart transplant.
Grier knows the truth about Create Life and its shady side business. He fears Lilly
and her twin brother, Luke, are in danger.
While working on two unrelated stories, stolen
newborns and cloning, Lilly discovers a shocking connection. Horrific things
are happening, but who is behind it all?
6) Who
would you cast to play your hero & heroine in a movie?
Julia Stiles or Scarlett Johansson portrays my heroine, Lilly Allen.
Matthew McConaughey or Bradley Cooper would play my hero, Grier Garrison.
7) Did
you plan this book? Or write it as it came?
I had the big
picture in mind when I started writing Carbon
Copy, but all the details conjured as I wrote.
8) What
surprised you the most when you became a published author?
The sense of accomplishment is phenomenal. It thrilled me to see the book cover, buy link and book
blurb for Carbon Copy on Wild Child’s
website, amazon, and Barnes & Noble. Pretty awesome!
9) Do
you have a dedicated writing space? What does it look like?
I write at home in my formal living room with a laptop in a comfortable
wing-back chair with an ottoman and my Florida Gator fleece blanket. I keep
this room immaculate so I’m not distracted by a dirty house.
10)
What’s next for you?
More stories from my Elements
of Mystery Series. The title of each novel will contain an element from the
Periodic Table of Elements. I’m currently
writing, Silver Lining, the final
book in the Carbon Copy trilogy.
Plus, I have 3 more books under contract with my publisher: Tin Roof, the sequel to Carbon Copy; my romantic/suspense, Body of Gold; and my most creative book
is Copper Cauldron which features St.
Michael the Archangel and a family of witches with one green eye and one blue
eye.
On the first of each month, Terri also posts free
short stories on her blog. Follow her at http://www.territalleyventers.blogspot.com/as she weaves
her way through the Periodic Table of Elements.
Carbon Copy
by Terri Talley Venters
BLURB:
Lilly Allen
has brains, beauty, and a trust fund. She's living in New York City and her
career as a reporter is taking off. She's hoping the love of her life, Grier,
will propose soon. She has it all, or so she thinks.
Grier
Garrison, Create Life executive, is running the company while his father, Dr.
Michael Garrison, is in the ICU awaiting a heart transplant. Grier knows the
truth about Create Life and its shady side business. He fears Lilly and her
twin brother, Luke, are in danger.
While working
on two unrelated stories, stolen newborns and cloning, Lilly discovers a
shocking connection. Horrific things are happening, but who is behind it all?
EXCERPT
As
she opened the door to his apartment, Luke’s cat, Soli, meowed at her. The cat
cried as loud as her tiny vocal chords allowed. Lilly never heard such a loud
cry. Summer appeared at Soli’s side and began licking her sister’s face to
placate her twin.
The
cats must have entered Luke’s apartment through the cat door Luke built between
the shared walls. The cats liked to be together when the apartments were empty.
Soli’s
cries grew louder. Something terrible had happened to Luke! But how much did
this ten-pound feline really know? Did Soli see something awful enough to upset
her this much? Or did she simply miss her owner?
Soli
looked at Lilly and headed towards the hall. It appeared as if she wanted Lilly
to follow her down the hall. As she trotted towards Luke’s bedroom, Summer and
Lilly followed her.
Lilly
paused at the door to Luke’s bedroom, scared to open it, scared of what she
might find on the other side. She took a deep breath and opened it. As she
entered Luke’s bedroom, she scanned the room. It looked empty.
Soli
cried again, even louder than before. Lilly looked over. The cat scratched at
Luke’s closet door. She stared at Lilly, scratched the closed door, and cried
again. Then Lilly smelled something funny. Her nostrils didn’t recognize the
strange odor, but a shiver of foreboding swept over her.
Lilly
braced herself, yet again, for another dramatic door opening. Yanking the door
open, she stared into Thelma’s face and screamed. Thelma sat upright on the
floor of Luke’s closet. Her eyes were closed, and her faded “I’m with stupid”
t-shirt showed a bullet-sized hole in it. A circle of coagulated blood
surrounded the hole in the middle of her chest. Although Lilly wasn’t an expert
in medicine, she knew someone had shot the maid.
AUTHOR Bio:
Terri received
her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Master’s degree in Taxation from the
University of Florida. She is a licensed CPA and a Second Degree Black Belt in
Taekwondo. She lives in St. Augustine, Florida, with her husband, Garrison, and
their two sons.
Carbon Copy is the 1st thrilling novel in the Elements
of Mystery Series. The title of each novel will contain an element from the
Periodic Table of Elements. Terri recently finished writing Tin Roof, the sequel to Carbon Copy, coming soon from Wild Child
Publishing. And Terri’s
romantic/suspense novel, Body of Gold, is coming soon from Freya’s
Bower. For more about Terri’s upcoming releases, please visit her website http://www.elementsofmystery.com/ Terri is the
daughter of Leslie S. Talley, author of Make
Old Bones which is also available from Wild Child Publishing.
On the first
of each month, Terri also posts free short stories on her blog. Follow her at http://www.territalleyventers.blogspot.com/as
she weaves her way through the Periodic Table of Elements.
Terri will be awarding bookmarks or magnetic bumper stickers to randomly drawn commenters at each stop and a $10 Wild Child Publishing GC to a randomly drawn commenter at the end of the tour.
Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:
Thank you so much for hosting me today. Blushing at your compliments on my author photo. It's airbrushed. (shhh). I bought the dress at the outlet mall for $19 =)
ReplyDeleteGreat interview, Terri. It's nice learning a little more about you. Keep up the good work and all the best with your tour :)
ReplyDeleteI love deals like that, Terri. $19 is my kind dress. LOL
ReplyDeleteThis is a great interview! How do you manage to write for 5 or 6 hours. Just thinking about it makes my brain hurt. LOL Of course, I can edit for that long, so, um, I'm not one to talk. (g)
Marci
Thanks for stopping by Marci & Carol! The dress was $19, but the shoes I bought to go with it cost $54. (BOGO 1/2) and they're not even pictured. LOL. If it's the only chance I get to write, I take advantage of the quiet time. My goal is to write one book a year until I die. =)
ReplyDelete