An Interview with Sharon Pape

Interview With Author: SHARON PAPE:

By Pamela James

MM2: Sharon, give us some backstory on your writing career? 

Like many other authors, I started writing early in life. I was five when the school librarian put my first little story on display in the library. As an adult, my first novel was  published by PocketBooks and condensed in Redbook Magazine. It was the first paperback original they’d ever condensed. (I’ve recently re-released that book under the title For

Everything a Season.) Two other paranormals followed, before my life took an unexpected turn with the   diagnosis of breast cancer. Once I was well again, my surgeon and I started a non-profit to provide peer support and information to newly diagnosed women. After ten years, the organization didn’t require as much of my time, and I stepped down as president to return to my first love -writing. This time around I’m writing cozy mysteries with a paranormal twist.

MM2: Where do you call home?

Long Island has been my home since the age of three.

MM2: Where is your favorite place to write?

I have a study in my house, with a floor to ceiling bookcase on one wall. I love working surrounded by books. My computer sits on a beautiful, old-fashioned trestle desk, where  my electric typewriter once sat.

MM2: What is the most important advice you received about writing books?

Apply the seat of your pants to your desk chair even if a million other things are luring you away.

MM2: Tell us about your book?

My first series of cozy mysteries is called the “Portrait of Crime Mysteries,” because the main character, Rory McCain, is a police sketch artist who starts her own private investigation firm. Her partner, Zeke Drummond, is the resident ghost of the old Victorian house she inherited from her uncle.

Alibis and Amethysts is the first book of my second series, “The Crystal Shop Mysteries.” I’m also working on a third series about a magick shop in upstate New York, with the working title, Magick and Mayhem. (Sound familiar?)

MM2:  What would your characters tell us about you?

They’d probably say they like working for me, because I give them lots of pizza, ice cream and cake to eat. They might also say that I enjoy putting them in harm’s way, as well as in funny situations, which they don’t necessarily find all that funny.

MM2: Give us a little insight about your writing day?

My writing day varies a lot, because I often have migraines and have to work around them. My ideal schedule is something like this: I write for a few hours in the morning, take a break to run errands and for pesky necessities like food and doctor appointments, then write for a few more hours in the late afternoon and evening. If I encounter a plot problem, I go to the gym. For some reason, doing an aerobic workout frees my mind to solve problems. The old two birds, one stone philosophy.

MM2: How do you de-stress at the end of the day?

I read for pleasure and watch some television shows, generally the more creative ones. I’m a sucker for shows that take you on a voyage of imagination, shows based on the premise of “what if?”

MM2: Here are some fun get to know you questions: What is your favorite meal, place to vacation, dessert, movie/s, song and some place you wish you were right now?

A place I wish to be right now? Right here where I am with my husband. I have great friends nearby, my daughter lives four minutes away and my son lives fifteen minutes away. Where else could I be any happier?

MM2: Is there someone you would like to thank? Maybe a writer's group, family etc...?

Thanks to: My husband, who has always supported my writing efforts and is the first of my trusted beta readers, my daughter, another beta reader, who sees the forest as well as the trees, my mother who has, as most mothers do, always believed in me, and my dear friend Vivian, who has the most remarkable insights into plot and character.

MM2: What would you like to say to your readers?

To my readers: A huge thank you!! Without readers, writers are basically just talking to themselves. A special thanks to the fans who take the time out of their busy lives to let me know how much they’ve enjoyed my books!

MM2: Leave us with one of your favorite quotes?

Favorite quote: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” George Eliot.

http://sharonpape.com/

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