Title: CWD Member Interview – Susan J Bruce

Each Thursday we will be interviewing one of the members of Christian Writers Downunder – to find out a little bit more about them and their writing/editing goals.
Today's interview: Susan J Bruce (aka Sue Jeffrey)

Susan J Bruce with her greatest supporter - her husband Marc.

Question 1: Tells us three things about who you are and where you come from. 

I'll start with where I come from. I was born in Scotland but emigrated with my family to Australia a long, long, time ago. We arrived in Brisbane but spent some years moving up and down the Queensland coast with my dad's work, before settling in Brisbane. 

As a kid I had three loves: books, art and animals. Mum and I used to tempt stray kittens with food then catch, tame and re-home them. I was chuffed to complete my first solo kitten-catch when I was eight years old. Mum and Dad didn't believe me when I told them at six o'clock one morning that I'd caught a little silver-tabby tomcat. 'Go back to bed, dear,' was Mum's response. So I did. When I woke up again an hour later, Dad couldn't work out why there was a feral kitten in the kitchen. 

I didn't realise it at the time but I guess it was inevitable that I would study veterinary science. The thing most people don't know is that I nearly studied journalism. I often wonder what my life would have been like if I'd made that call? I think I would have enjoyed the challenge - and I might not have let my love of fiction slide like it did through my years of study and learning my science-based profession. 

But veterinary science suited me well. I moved to South Australia for my first job and discovered (after initial ultra-high levels of  stress) that I had a flair for the work. I enjoyed the interaction with the people and animals and later worked part-time in clinical roles even while I explored other fields such as church-based pastoral work and teaching part time at TAFE.  I think I'm one of those people who thrive on diversity 😁. 

The story of how I began writing is for another day but my love of words and a desire to learn the craft of storytelling led me to complete a Master of Arts in Creative Writing at Tabor in Adelaide and to complete a young adult (YA) novel as part of that process. It was a sometimes difficult, but always awesome, process and I have to give a shout out to the Tabor Humanities staff and all my fellow students. I learned so much and also that I have so much more to learn. When I finished that degree and needed some time to replenish my creative juices, my husband bought me a set of good acrylic paints. It took me more than six months to begin using them and to my surprise I discovered I could paint - you guessed it - animals 😃.

I'm still seeking publication for that YA novel (it won the unpublished manuscript section of the 2018 Caleb Prize) and have been involved in other projects along the way but a few months ago the veterinary clinic where I was working, closed. Some health issues have made it hard to find the right kind of work. That's not so great financially but my three great loves - books, art and animals remain - and now I can spend more time on all of them. 

Hey, I guess those are my three things. Funny how often we are closest to our true selves as children.

Question 2: Tell us about your writing (or editing/illustrating etc).  What do you write and why?

My desire is to write, mainly for the general market (both YA and adult), in a way that encourages and inspires the reader. I want to uplift people, bringing hope where there is no hope and laughter where there are tears. I can't do that on my own but I believe that God can, through me. As authors we have the privilege of going with readers into their most secret places. Places where the troubles of the world are pushed away and where adventures can teach us how to slay our own kinds of dragons. 

I have found it hard to define the genre of my writing but animals tend to photo-bomb my pages. My writing group once challenged me to write a story that didn't contain animals and when I read it to them they laughed because I'd failed miserably. That is probably why they asked me to be the editor for our group's short story anthology, If They Could Talk: Bible stories told by the animals (Morning Star Publishing) which was an awesome project to work on.

If They Could Talk: Bible stories told by the animals

I've tended to be a genre butterfly (you can read about that here) and enjoy writing all kinds of stories but in the last couple of months I've realised that most of my ideas for longer works involve mystery and suspense. I love beautiful prose but a good story is also important to me, preferably stories of overcoming, suspense and intrigue. My WIP is a time slip romantic thriller and I have an idea for an amateur-sleuth mystery which I think will be a lot of fun to write - so stay tuned.

Question 3: Who has read your work? Who would you like to read it?

If They Could Talk is marketed to Christians who want to see God's word from a fresh perspective. But as I've said above, I really want to write for the general/mainstream market. Maybe it's that genre-butterfly tendency but I'd like to reach both adult and young adult readers who like suspense and mystery, flavoured with romance and hope. 

Question 4: Tell us something about your process. What challenges do you face? What helps you the most?

Procrastination is my nemesis. I also have a chronic illness that makes me sore and fatigued most days so I'm not as productive as I'd like to be. I'm working on ways to combat this, like establishing a better routine and really appreciating the good things I have, like my awesome husband, who supports my crazy desire to be an author. It's easy to get depressed when life throws rotten onions your way but I'm learning the value of switching my thinking. Hey, I get to write and paint 😃. What an awesome privilege it is to be a co-creator with God.

Question 5: What is your favourite Writing Craft Book and why? 

There are so many - I can't think! As a newish writer Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird encouraged me and showed me how to persevere. More recently, Story Genius, by Lisa Cron helped me refine my ability to craft story. 

Story Genius by Lisa Cron

It's not a craft book but late last year I had the privilege of attending a Margie Lawson writing immersion on the Gold Coast. Margie is an international writing coach and her focus is on crafting awesome prose. If you can get to one of her immersions you will be inspired and empowered.

Question 6: If you were to give a shout-out to a CWD author, writer, editor or illustrator – who would they be?

That would be my friend and mentor, Rosanne Hawke. When I was in Rosanne's classes at Tabor I'd get this glow-in-God feeling as if there was nowhere I'd rather be than in that place, at that time. Rosanne always went the extra mile for all of her students. In the years since graduation Rosanne has remained a good friend and has encouraged me repeatedly not to give up.

Question 7: What are your writing goals for 2019? How will you achieve them?

To begin with I'd like to find a home for my YA novel and get my website up and working. I'd like to finish my WIP, at least in second draft form, by the middle of the year and indie publish a short story collection. I also want to begin work on the amateur-sleuth mystery that's brewing but I have another YA novel that's been buzzing around in my back-brain so we'll see which one wins.

How will I achieve this? Bird. By. Bird.

Question 8: How does your faith impact and shape your writing?

One of my favourite quotes on this topic comes from philosopher Jacques Maritain. 'If you want to make a Christian work, then be a Christian and simply try and make a beautiful work, into which your heart will pass; do not try to "make Christian".' 

This is what I strive to do as I write to encourage, not just Christians, but ordinary people, made in God's image, who don't yet know him.

Reference: J Maritain, Art and Scholasticism - Chapter VIII. Downloaded from  https://maritain.nd.edu/jmc/etext/art8.htm on 02/01/19

Susan J. Bruce, aka Sue Jeffrey, spent her childhood reading, drawing, and collecting stray animals. Now she’s grown up she does the same kinds of things. Sue has worked for many years as a veterinarian, writes stories filled with themes of overcoming, adventure and belonging, and loves to paint animals. Sue won the ‘Short’ section of the inaugural Stories of Life writing competition and recently won the 'Unpublished Manuscript' section of the 2018 Caleb prize. Sue is the editor of 'If They Could Talk: Bible Stories Told By the Animals' (Morning Star Publishing)and her stories and poems have appeared in multiple anthologies. Her e-book,'Ruthless The Killer: A Short Story'is available on Amazon.com. You can check out Sue’s animal art on Facebook.

CWD Member Interview - Mazzy Adams

Each Thursday we will be interviewing one of the members of Christian Writers Downunder – to find out a little bit more about them and their writing/editing goals.

Today’s interview: Mazzy Adams

 Question 1: Tells us three things about who you are and where you come from.

Who am I?

I’m an evolving story—with a title change along the way. I have poetry, short fiction, creative non-fiction and spiritual devotions published under my real name and as Mazzy Adams, the penname I adopted about four years ago. If you’re curious, you can read more about my evolution into a writer here and about why I chose my penname here. 

I’m also a word addict. I am totally hooked on those incredible lettered delicacies that pepper pages, tantalise tongues, trip through teeth, evoke a million images and emotions, flood curious minds with knowledge and wisdom and release springs of love, hope, compassion and understanding from responsive hearts. Not to mention, words can be oh so much FUN to play with! 

Photo above: My shape poem, Maple Music,was listed as chosen by the judge in the 2013 Poetica Christi Press Poetry competition and published in their 2014 Anthology, A Lightness of Being

Where do I come from?

I’m Queensland born and bred and, after a five year dalliance with Northern Beaches Sydney, New South Wales, my husband and I settled in Toowoomba to raise our three amazing children (I look at them and marvel). I’ve also been blessed with three wonderful grandchildren. Currently, I help my Maths/Science genius husband support my writing habit by working as a creative and academic writing tutor and manager in our Education Consultancy.

Question 2: Tell us about your writing (or editing/illustrating etc).  What do you write and why?

What do I write?

I’m a PAGE—Poet, Author, Genre non-conformist, and Encourager—or Essayist if you prefer. At times, I’m PAGES, either because I’m writing Spiritual devotions, or I’m being long-winded, at which time the E stands for Editing and the S stands for Strike that/Slash and burn/Stalking typos and grammar gremlins or Scratching my head and tearing my hair out.

I've also written a New Adult Thriller. (Throw Ludlum’s Jason Bourne into a bowl with a biblical worldview. Sprinkle with quirky acronyms and gospel allegory. Add a dash of Calvin and Hobbes’ Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat’s philosophical humour. Bake with a fertile imagination. Enjoy.)

Despite my concerns, the suspense of writing the novel didn’t kill me so I expect I’ll survive the Indie Publishing learning curve. Then, Licence to Die will be a living, breathing, deadly intriguing debut novel available in paperback and e-book—before 2019 expires.

Why do I write?

Because I can. And because I can’t not write. The urge to collate words with intention and purpose has become both a passion and a divine commission. And it’s FUN! (Yeah, even when I’m tearing my hair out.)

Question 3: Who has read your work? Who would you like to read it?

Readers of the dozen Australian, US, International print and online anthologies in which my poetry, CNF, short fiction and devotions have been published.

Also, my compassionate, encouraging, and helpful Quirky Quills writing companions. Several Beta Readers and my Editor have read the novel as a WIP.

While my children were young, I managed to woo and entertain enthusiastic audiences with my drama sketches and puppet plays (especially during the lolly meteor showers and dust storms), but technically they were hearers and viewers, not readers.

Who are my target readers for Licence to Die (and other works-in-progress I’m percolating)?

That mysterious and wondrous group recently recognised in their own right as New Adults; 16-25ish, they’ll have conquered—or be in the process of conquering—the trials and tribulations of senior schooling, university study, earning a living, or generally nailing Introductory Adulting—or giving it a good bash. Also, Advanced Adulting students (25-106ish) who remember what it was like to be a young adult, and can cope with adulting being used as a noun and a verb, not just an adjective (You’ll be relieved to know I haven’t nouned or verbed the word ‘adulting’ in the novel).

Question 4: Tell us something about your process. What challenges do you face? What helps you the most?

Process? It usually starts with a couple of words, a line of poetry, or a sentence that intrudes upon my everyday activities or my attempts to go to sleep, and gives me no rest until I’ve written it down. Many of my published pieces (and my novel) began life as ‘quick writing exercises’ for my Creative Writing degree. I focus on the ideas that have promise and those that are downright demanding till I give in and write them, like Licence to Die. I either go with the flow, or formulate a plan which I modify, as flow and coherency directs.  

Challenges? The poet in me likes to slip ‘writerly’ masterpieces into the mouths and minds of my characters, which I then have to delete for POV authenticity. Sigh! Like so many writers, balancing the financial budget also creates challenges.

I am most helped by the assurance (and reassurance) (and re-reassurance) of the Holy Spirit that this is what he wants me to do. Frequently, he uses other Christian Writers as his mouthpiece in this regard.

Question 5: What is your favourite Writing Craft Book and why?

I found Manuscript Makeover by Elizabeth Lyon invaluable in managing and simplifying the complex structure of my novel. I also appreciate the wealth of quality wisdom and advice available online. In terms of influence, I found Janice Elsheimer’s The Creative Call helped me realise the hand of God had written ‘writer’ into my DNA long before I learned how to read his writing.

Question 6: If you were to give a shout-out to a CWD author, writer, editor or illustrator – who would they be?

Absolutely, Nola Passmore—writer, editor, Quirky Quill and my most significant influencer. Some people won’t let you down, or won’t let you let yourself down. Nola is one of these rare and precious friends.

.

Also, Iola Goulton—not only for her recent, excellent work as copy editor for my novel, and her informative blogs, newsletters and social media links to all things writing, editing, publishing and marketing, but as a significant early influencer who, along with Anusha Atukorala, sent me out from my first Christian Writers Conference believing I had writer’s stuffing inside me—and it wasn’t all fluff. (Now you’re singing, ‘Winnie the Pooh, Winnie the Pooh, funny little tubby all stuffed with fluff’, aren’t you?)

Question 7: What are your writing goals for 2019? How will you achieve them?

Indie Publish Licence to Die, acquiring new and necessary skills in the process. Start pushing up the word count for the next novel. I hope to achieve this one step and one day at a time.

Question 8: How does your faith impact and shape your writing?

I’ve been a Christian believer from my childhood. I survived life’s wild, stormy weather long enough to become a writer because Jesus Christ is my anchor. We’re tethered together in love and trust. Just as nothing can separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus, so nothing can separate Christ in me from the words that I write. Sometimes that connection is overt and obvious. Sometimes it is as inconspicuous and deeply layered as the rock beneath the ocean’s currents.

As Galatians 2:20 says, ‘I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.’ Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

That sounds like a licence to die, don't you think? And also freedom to live (the ultimate sequel). 

Mazzy Adams is a published author of poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction. She has a passion for words, pictures and the positive potential in people.

Website: www.mazzyadams.com 

Email: maz@mazzyadams.com

On Writing Suspense

Jenny Blake | @ausjenny

Today we have Sandra Orchard visiting us talking about Suspense. Welcome Sandra. 

So you think you might like to write a suspense? 

Well, I’m Sandra Orchard and in the last seven years, I’ve had 16 novels—romantic suspense, mysteries and cozies—traditionally published. And here are my top five tips to help you get started. 

1) Know readers’ expectations of your subgenre 

Writing genre fiction is all about meeting readers’ expectations. So . . . the first thing you need to do is figure out what kind of “suspense” novel you’re writing. 

For example, if it’s a suspense with romantic elements, don’t pitch it as romantic suspense, because a true romantic suspense has both a full suspense plot, and a full romance plot that are intertwined throughout the story. And publishers such as Love Inspired Suspense know their readers want both the emotional satisfaction of a romance and the adrenalin of a suspense, and the odd romantic element tossed into an otherwise riveting suspense won’t cut it for their readers. 

And a mystery is entirely different again. In a mystery, the protagonist sets out to solve a crime that has already been committed. Readers approach mysteries with the anticipation of solving a puzzle along with the sleuth. Whereas, a a suspense is more like a coil that tightens around the protagonist. She’s in a race to avoid being the victim of a crime and the reader is more concerned about how much damage the villain will cause if he’s not stopped. Thrillers may be all of that with high action to boot.

2) Research, research, research

The more you know about the elements you wish to include in your story, the more authentic it will read. If you say, she smelled cordite after a pistol was fired, every reader who knows anything about modern guns will know you didn’t do your research. Research crimes, technology, occupations, personalities, even settings. 

Tension is often heightened in the details.

3) Use Setting to Up the Suspense

Use all five senses to immerse the reader in the action, to foreshadow and to drop clues. But … don’t stop the story to convey description. Same goes for all the other research you’re itching to include in the story. Keep description active, sprinkling it in as the story unfolds. Choose strong verbs and nouns that show the mood of the pov character to do double duty of both heightening suspense, as well as showing the character’s internal conflicts. 

For example, in my debut novel Deep Cover, I give readers this glimpse of the opening scene: 

Rick glanced skyward and prayed for a miracle. A lone backhoe loomed on the horizon, silhouetted against the steel gray sky, its tires caked in mud. Too bad the machine wasn’t big enough to dig him out of this mess. 

Notice the word choices: Loomed, steel-gray, dig, mess—they show his frustration without ever saying he’s frustrated and they ratchet up the stakes for him. 

4) Craft your Villain well 

A common mistake among beginning crime writers is to create two-dimensional, slow-witted villains. The villain’s motives should be as realistic and believable as your main characters’. Your villain’s background must be as well fleshed out as your hero and heroine’s. In my opinion, a well-characterized villain can totally justify his actions in his own mind. He needs to be a worthy opponent. Also, give him a redeeming quality.

5) Play fair

Facts are facts. You can’t pretend they’re not, just to make your life easy. That said, it’s okay if everything in your story isn’t 100% possible, but within your story world it does have to be plausible. 

Moreover, you must play fair with the reader. That means logic counts, and you can’t pull a convenient explanation or twist out of the blue; you have to set it up first. Every detail you’ve written matters, especially in whodunits. As the adage goes, if she’s going to shoot the gun hanging over the fireplace in ch 18, you better have shown it in ch 2. 

Bonus Tip: 

Up the tension and urgency in a scene with short sentences and short paragraphs, even a single word. 

Your Turn: 

Share a suspense writing tip or something you often see in suspense novels that drives you batty.   Or ask a question and I’ll do my best to answer it. 

Today's post is cross posted at Australasian Christian Writers

Sandra Orchard—winner of the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, the National Readers’ Choice Award, the Daphne du Maurier Award of Excellence, and several Canadian writing awards—leaps off the garden trails of her herbal-medicine-researcher-turned-amateur-sleuth (Port Aster Secrets) series, to the museum corridors of her plucky FBI art crime agent Serena Jones, in A Fool and His Monet, Another Day Another Dali and Over Maya Dead Body. She’s also contributing to several multi-author cozy mystery series with Annie’s Fiction. When not plotting crimes, Sandra plays make-believe with her young grandchildren or hikes with her hubby and husky near their home in Ontario, Canada. 

Connect at: www.sandraorchard.com 
http://www.Facebook.com/SandraOrchard 
https://www.pinterest.com/AuthorSOrchard/

Read Outside the Box by Nola Passmore

Author:      I’ve just written a groundbreaking novel that’s bound to be a bestseller.

Publisher:  What’s so innovative about it?

Author:      There’s this teenage girl who falls in love with a vampire.

Publisher:  Um … it’s been done before.  You’ve heard of the Twilight series?

Author:      Is that a TV show?

Publisher:  It’s a series of young-adult novels that’s sold millions.

Author:      I don’t read much fiction.  Most of it's not to my taste.  But my novel is different.

Publisher:  How do you know it’s different if you’re not reading in the area?

Author:      Just take a look and you’ll see what I mean.  

                  (Author shoves manuscript under publisher’s nose).

Publisher:  Oh it’s an historical novel?

Author:      No, contemporary.

Publisher:  Then why does the teenage girl sound like someone out of an Austen novel?

Author:      I like Pride and Prejudice and I thought I’d do something similar.

Publisher:  With vampires?

I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that if you’re a writer, you ARE reading in your genre.  If you’re not, you may face the pitfalls of our hapless wannabe-novelist. 

Now I’m going to go out on a bigger limb and suggest that you should also be reading OUTSIDE your genre.  If you have eclectic tastes in literature, that won’t be a problem for you.  However, a lot of us tend to stick within the confines of our preferred style.  We only read murder mysteries or romances or Christian biographies or Amish steampunk.  It’s comfortable in our little genre box.  We know what to expect.  We don’t have to do any unwelcome stretching.  We don’t get lumbered with a book we’re not going to enjoy.  Why try the baklava when you can eat the lamington?

But what if you peeked out of your genre box and sampled a different taste?  There are at least three benefits.

It exposes you to other possibilities.  You may find another genre or sub-genre that you enjoy reading.  You may even try writing in that genre and discover you’re good at it.  I spent eight years struggling with watercolours before stepping out and doing an acrylics workshop.  I had instant success and have even sold one of my paintings.  If I’d never looked beyond by watercolour palette, I wouldn’t have discovered that I’m better suited to acrylics and mixed media.  You could make a similar discovery with your writing.

It helps you to engage with a broader readership and learn what sells.  Do you have a Christian message that you want to get out to a mainstream audience?  How are you going to do that if you don’t know what themes and styles are popular in mainstream literature?  Do you want to write a fantasy novel with universal themes?  How are you going to do that if you’ve never read a novel set in a different kind of world than your own? A popular catchphrase at the moment is ‘join the conversation’.  If you read outside your genre, you’ll be able to participate in more of those conversations. 

It can help improve your writing in your preferred genre.  Here are some of the strengths of different genres that we can apply to our own manuscripts.

• Suspense/thriller – hooks the reader by getting straight into the action; has good pacing that keeps the story moving; ends each chapter with a page-turning sentence or phrase.
• Romance – develops characters we care about; delves into relationships and family issues; offers hope.
• Science fiction/fantasy – stretches the imagination and shows what’s possible; builds a world that supports and enhances the story.
• Literary fiction – uses beautiful language; adds layers to the plot through nuance; explores deeper themes; provokes thought.
• Historical fiction – uses background research to enhance a story; shows how to use setting to create the story world; explores the past through the eyes of the present; experiments with alternative interpretations of history.
• Memoir – shows how to take the main character on a journey; connects with the reader emotionally; explores universal themes.
• Creative non-fiction – shows how to make facts entertaining and accessible.
• Poetry – reduces ideas to their essence; expertly uses language and imagery for maximum impact; allows for expression and exploration of different forms.
• Humour – relieves stress and entertains; provides lighter moments for more serious works; can be used to critique and question systems or ideologies (e.g. through satire).
• Children’s literature – stretches the imagination; shows how visual and textual material work together; helps us to get in touch with our own inner child; explains key concepts simply; explores values.

This list is certainly not exhaustive and many of the strengths cross over into different genres.  Can you think of others?

Set a Goal

You’re more likely to read outside of your genre if you have a specific goal.  You might identity a couple of genres or sub-genres that you would like to try and then set yourself a goal to read a certain number of books in each.  Although you might want to start with something close to your literary home, I’d encourage you to aim a little broader than that – fiction, non-fiction and poetry; contemporary and historical; realist and speculative; Christian and mainstream; bestsellers and award winners; books for adults, young adults and children.

There are also many established reading lists you can use.  For the last two years, I’ve participated in the Popsugar Reading Challenge in which you read books from different categories.  Some are specific (e.g. an espionage thriller), but most of the categories are quite broad (e.g. a book with a red spine), so you have a lot of scope in your selections. I’m part of a Facebook group that discusses books we’re reading and it’s been a great way to learn about different genres and styles. I’ve come across a few duds, but I’ve also discovered many gems I wouldn’t have read otherwise.  If you’d like to try this year’s challenge, you can find the 2017 list here.

Set Boundaries

While it’s good to read widely, it’s also wise to determine the types of books that you’re not going to include.  I don’t read erotica, but I wouldn’t necessarily rule out a book with one or two sex scenes.  It depends how they’re done and their importance to the story.  I don’t read grisly horror or books with strong occult or paranormal themes because I know they affect me negatively.  However, I’m not averse to the odd ghost, werewolf or magical twist. The list will be different for everyone, but you should still be left with dozens of genres and sub-genres that you can happily explore.

Do you read outside your genre?  Has it helped in your writing?  What pearls have you discovered?  I’ll be back later to respond to your comments, but right now I have to check out steampunk titles on Goodreads.  Will I choose Beauty and the Clockwork Beast or stick with a classic like H. G. Wells’ The Time Machine?  Perhaps I’ll read them both.

Nola Passmore is a freelance writer who has had more than 140 short pieces published, including devotionals, true stories, magazine articles, academic papers, poetry and short fiction.  She loves sharing what God has done in her life and encouraging others to do the same.  She and her husband Tim have their own freelance writing and editing business called The Write Flourish.  You can find her writing tips blog at their website:  http://www.thewriteflourish.com.au  

I have a confession.

My name is Lee. And I'm an addict.

My story first starts when I was about six months old. At the time I had measles and my nanna, who had come down from Dalby to help mum look after me, bought me a present. It was one of those little plastic books with a squeaker inside, and I drove everyone up the wall with the constant noise. But, they didn't mind, at least I was happy.

When I was two-years-old, one book wasn't enough. I'd now graduated to having three, precious, 'Little Golden' books. Remember those? The cute pictures and innocuous stories had me hooked. I would sit on one book, balance the second on my head while reading the third.

Some people, bless their little cotton socks, even thought that was amusing.

Fast forward to high school and I was now writing stories, appearing in school plays and entering competitions. My drama teacher also taught me English, the subject not  the language, and just happened to live across the road from my nanna. She had a room full of books, her very own library, and I spent countless hours curled up next to her fireplace, book in hand.

Yes, I was truly addicted. To fiction.

My husband, bless his little cotton socks, thinks it makes life easier. He doesn't have to worry about what to buy me for Christmas or birthdays, and has even been known to openly support my habit.

Silly man. But then his addiction has nothing to do with fiction. No. He loves text books. In particular, anything to do with math, or computers, or conjugating French verbs...well you get the idea.

It appears this addiction can also be passed onto children.

Our son also loves to read and has his own collection of books.

Sad I know.

Does this addiction ever end, I hear you ask?

No. In fact it gets worse.

I started off reading, graduated to writing suspense, and now, own a publishing company.

Perhaps I should start a group for others similarly afflicted.

I'm sure there's bound to be one or two others like me.

Want to join me?
_________________________________

Lee Franklin lives in Western Australia with her husband and son.
She loves reading, cooking, pink (the colour not the singer) and spending time with friends.
You can find her on Facebook and at http://www.hyalinehouse.com/