Twenty Questions with... C.R. Everett

Merry Christmas!!

I hope you've all had a truly wonderful Christmas, and got everything you hoped for. If you've been following my blog tour, you'll already know that Christmas was very nearly cancelled for real in the ABR household, thanks to the norovirus that my children felt necessary to share with my in-laws. Whoops!

But I'm not here to talk about me today, I am delighted to welcome C.R. Everett, self-published author of Love, Carry My Bags onto my blog. So, grab yourself a mocha and join us as we begin another round of twenty questions…

ACT ONE – all about you…

C.R. Everett was born in Northern Illinois and has lived in various places over the years, currently residing in Utah. For twenty years she worked in finance, but today devotes her time to writing. She lives with her husband, two kids, Shiba Inu, and cat. When not writing, she updates her website, connects with her readers, does the mom thing, or cleans up after unruly pets. In her free time she enjoys reading, usually at the gym while on a treadmill, baking, taking walks, enjoying nature, and going to Starbucks. Mocha is her favorite.

1) Have you always been a writer, even when you were doing the finance day-job, or is it something you fell into?

I’ve always written, but started getting serious while still working my finance job, squeezing it in on weekends or days off.

2) Do you have a particular writing style or ritual?

Not really. I write on my laptop wherever I feel like it…on the couch, at my desk, at Starbucks, while on travel. Sometimes urgent ideas come to mind and I have to scribble them on a napkin or gum wrapper.

3) Is there a book or an author that has influenced you in your writing?

There’s an older book for kids called Magnifi-Cat by Carolyn and Edmund Sheehan that I’ve never forgotten, about a self-sacrificing cat. It made me cry when I was eleven. I also adore The Thorn Birds and believe it has seeped into my pores.

4) Can you tell us three things about yourself that we probably don’t already know?

1) I got a ‘B’ in Private Pilot Ground School. 2) My dad wrote to the Queen of England when I was young, inquiring about her Corgis and we actually got a reply. I had a Corgi at the time and was a huge Corgi fan. 3) I visited the SPAM museum in Minnesota last summer.

5) What five luxury items or gadgets would you hate to be without?

My computer! Moose slippers (they are so cute). My Acura. Kindle. Starbucks card.

6) The festive season is in full swing, with Christmas already behind us as we turn our attention ahead to the new year. Will you be joining in the madness of New Year’s resolutions for 2013?

No. I try to be good all year.

ACT TWO – all about your new release…

Scroll down for buy links

Camryn Johnson’s world is turned upside down when long lost love, Reese Dahlgren, re-enters her life at a pivotal point in her already challenging marriage. She faces an excruciating predicament: choose between a broken home for her daughter or a broken life for herself.

After escaping the clutches of her Bible-bashing mother and moving in with her remarried mainstream minister father, religion-confused Camryn (dressed in Holstein livery) first meets high school basketball star, Reese, at the 1984 Harvard Milk Day Festival bed races on the streets of Harvard, Illinois, “Milk Capital of the World.” During the festival, she discovers a small-town dirty little secret: sleeper KKK live there.

Camryn already knew about the Klan uniform in the parsonage attic.

Reese has baggage of his own. He lives in the shadow of his otherwise no-good, pro-basketball playing brother, Ryan, his alcoholic father’s favorite. Unable to cope, he unwittingly backs Camryn into a corner during his air force enlistment—love him from afar, or leave him.

Enter ADHD afflicted, aerospace engineering student, Glenn Conroy. Persistent and savvy, he woos emotionally insecure Camryn and wins her heart. Or does he? When Reese re-enters her life, further disrupting her miserable, still undiagnosed, ADHD marriage, Camryn turns to best friend, Megan, for advice, but refuses to believe Megan’s suggestion that she’s caught in a “simple” love triangle.

Camryn unveils hidden mysteries and secrets as she embarks on a life-changing journey of revelation and forgiveness, transcending doormat qualities inherited from her mother, and in the process finds what creation and crucifixions are really all about.

7) Congratulations on your recent release of Love, Carry My Bags, what was your inspiration for writing Camryn and Reese’s story?

I’m pretending you didn’t ask that. Ask me what superpower I’d wish for instead. I’d wish for Wisdom so I’d know the correct choices to make, things to say, and things to do at all times.

8) Did the story flow from your finger tips or did some scenes take a bit of cajoling?

For the most part, the writing flowed. Some of the editing was tedious. I’d fuss an embarrassing amount of time over a sentence or a comma.

9) I see Love, Carry My Bags is your debut, how long did it take for the initial spark of the story to make it onto the page and then what prompted you to self-publish?

I thought about writing it for a year, took four or five years to write it, and another year or so to edit and agent-hunt. Finally I decided I could continue throwing my energy into finding an agent or I could throw my energy into getting my novel out into the world and that’s when I decided to self-publish. I’d heard of other people being successful. I knew I had a good book, so why not?

10) Do you have a favourite paragraph or sentence that you would like to tantalise us with?

“. . . I want to spend every last moment on earth with you. I want you to move here and live with me for the rest of our days, but I’m not ready for marriage and I don’t know when or if I will be.” I cried harder, feeling that I had closed, no, slammed this wide-open door shut.

11) Over to you, what can you tell us about Love, Carry My Bags, to make us rush out and buy it? (Although admittedly, I already have my copy and look forward to reading it)

Love, Carry My Bags is for those having a lost love or challenging relationship or who love an inspiring come-from-behind story. You’ll laugh and cry (some say at the same time). Bring tissues.

12) What can we expect from you next? Is there something you are working on right now?

I’m thinking about releasing a very short story that I wrote about why disastrous things happen. Beyond that, I have a “companion” novel in mind for Love, Carry My Bags that hopefully I can wrap up next year.

QUICK FIRE ROUND – it’s pop quiz time…

13) Plotter or pantser?

Some of each.

14) Secret Seven or Famous Five? (please tell me you know them!?)

I haven’t read either. Should I crawl under a rock now?

15) Digital books or print books?

Both are lovely.

16) Tea or coffee?

BOTH!

17) Cats or dogs?

Cats, especially after the canine demon escaped and ran all over the neighborhood.

18) Extrovert or introvert?

Introvert

19) Save or spend?

Save

20) Facebook or Twitter?

Facebook. Speaking of, that’s how I met you. Best wishes on your new release! [Thank you!]

And... that's a wrap!

Thank you so much for taking part, and sharing your new release with us.

You can find C.R. Everett online here:

Website     Facebook

Buy it now...

Love, Carry My Bags ISBN: 978-0-9882641-0-6

Amazon

Amazon UK