P.J. MacLayne

Have you ever spoken to a celebrity you really like? One you hated? Tell us about the encounters.

I live a quiet life. Like many writers, I’m an introvert. I don’t hand out where you’d meet a lot of celebrities. But I’ve got a few stories.

Way back when, when I was living in Florida, I participated in a community event that focused on family activities. It was a first time event, and was attended by a number of political figures, including the governor of Florida, Lawton Chiles. I got to hang out with him for a few minutes, and helped him make a beaded bracelet using the Florida Gators colors. (it was an activity aimed at kids and he also got some girls to help him out.) He spent a old War between the US and Russia was first lot more time then his schedule called for, and he ignored them while he joked with the kids and adults at the booth. I was most impressed by the fact that he seemed to be totally enjoying himself.

Even farther back, when the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union was first beginning to thaw  (long before the Berlin Wall fell) I got to attend a performance of the a Russian folk dance group. It was part of a college course (Russian was my language course) and our professor arranged for us to meet  with the performers afterward. Many of them were looking to increase their English skills while we were trying out our Russian. The interpreter did a lot of work that night, but we all enjoyed ourselves.

Then there was the time I attended a reading by American poet Gary Snyder. I didn’t get to do much more than shake his hand, but at least I got to meet him. I’ve also met Craig Johnson, author of the Longmire series.  Got to shake his hand too, and get a book autographed by him. I was also privileged to get a ticket to a lecture by Nelson Mandela, although I didn’t get to meet him.

I’ve also met Greg West, a Jason Aldean tribute artist. He actually worked for my husband before he developed his act. He’s a real down-to-earth guy, who is trying to make a living doing what he loves. (like so many authors I know!) He’s good enough that sometimes he gets mistaken for the real thing.  In fact, I don’t mind giving him a plug. Go check out his webpage, and if you like Jasen Aldean, check out Greg if you have a chance!  https://www.ultimatealdean.us/

The biggest celebrity I almost hung out with? John Travolta during Daytona Bike Week. (I’m not sure what year.) Me and my husband were at the old Pub 44, hanging out and having a beer, when John showed up, along with his contingent of bodyguards. (he lived in the area at the time.) Unlike some other people, we didn’t try to force our way over to him to get an autograph.

In a way, I felt bad for him. He didn’t appear to be having any fun. How could you, when every time you turned around you had someone trying to force their way close to you? When every move had to be cleared by your “people?” I can’t imagine living like that.

Oh, here’s a bonus one. Sister Joan Chittister, a social activist, spiritual leader and author, was one of my teachers in high school. She was our choral director and also taught other classes

And there you have it. My brushes with celebrities. Who’s on your list?

August 20, 2018

Have you ever spoken to a celebrity you really like? one you hated? tell us about the encounters.

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Blogger

What is your biggest fear? What random and innocuous thing makes your skin crawl?

“I don’t like spiders and snakes…”

But that isn’t true. While I’m not a big fan of spiders, If they stay outside, I leave them be. There are some snakes that I avoid when possible, but there are others that I find absolutely beautiful. Have you ever seen a black racer sparkling in the sunlight? They almost look deep blue in color.

And while I’m no entomologist, I like some bugs. Not your everyday standard cockroach, housefly or mosquito, but give me a dragonfly any day. (I’ve been known to rescue dragonflies that got inside buildings and take them back outside.) I love the variety pf colors and the way the sun makes them sparkle. I’m fascinated by the way they move through the air with what seems like no effort.

Maybe you’ve noticed I’m a very visual person from the above descriptions. Which leans nicely into my biggest fear.

Well, maybe not my biggest but the one I’m willing to admit to. I worry about going blind.

Sure, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. But all my hobbies, my profession and my writing are based on being able to see. There are plenty of audio books out there, so at least I’d be able to feed my love of reading. But to not be able to observe this wonderful world in all its glories and beauty and pitfalls – I’d have a hard time adapting.

To never see another sunrise or sunset. To never stand and the top of a mountain and marvel at the world stretched out below. To never watch an old couple hold hands as they slowly make their way down the sidewalk.

To never write another book or story or poem. Sure, there’s speech to text technology, but I’d have to learn to use it. And sometimes the visual presentation of words helps to trigger the writing process for me.

And I can’t imagine having to ‘visualize’ what a person looks like from the sound of the voice. Or the way they feel. Or what color their hair is. In fact, I don’t know how I’d handle never seeing reds, greens yellows and more again. At least I’d have the memory of colors in my darkness.

And that’s my biggest fear. What’s yours? While you think about it, I’m going to go check the other authors.

August 13, 2018

What is your biggest fear? What random and innocuous thing makes your skin crawl?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Blogger

document.write(”);

What is your biggest fear? What random and innocuous thing makes your skin crawl?

“I don’t like spiders and snakes…”

But that isn’t true. While I’m not a big fan of spiders, If they stay outside, I leave them be. There are some snakes that I avoid when possible, but there are others that I find absolutely beautiful. Have you ever seen a black racer sparkling in the sunlight? They almost look deep blue in color.

And while I’m no entomologist, I like some bugs. Not your everyday standard cockroach, housefly or mosquito, but give me a dragonfly any day. (I’ve been known to rescue dragonflies that got inside buildings and take them back outside.) I love the variety pf colors and the way the sun makes them sparkle. I’m fascinated by the way they move through the air with what seems like no effort.

Maybe you’ve noticed I’m a very visual person from the above descriptions. Which leans nicely into my biggest fear.

Well, maybe not my biggest but the one I’m willing to admit to. I worry about going blind.

Sure, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. But all my hobbies, my profession and my writing are based on being able to see. There are plenty of audio books out there, so at least I’d be able to feed my love of reading. But to not be able to observe this wonderful world in all its glories and beauty and pitfalls – I’d have a hard time adapting.

To never see another sunrise or sunset. To never stand and the top of a mountain and marvel at the world stretched out below. To never watch an old couple hold hands as they slowly make their way down the sidewalk.

To never write another book or story or poem. Sure, there’s speech to text technology, but I’d have to learn to use it. And sometimes the visual presentation of words helps to trigger the writing process for me.

And I can’t imagine having to ‘visualize’ what a person looks like from the sound of the voice. Or the way they feel. Or what color their hair is. In fact, I don’t know how I’d handle never seeing reds, greens yellows and more again. At least I’d have the memory of colors in my darkness.

And that’s my biggest fear. What’s yours? While you think about it, I’m going to go check the other authors.

August 13, 2018

What is your biggest fear? What random and innocuous thing makes your skin crawl?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Blogger

Who is your favorite antagonist/bad guy/villain in your books and why? What makes him/her tick?

Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t read my books, this is your chance to turn back before I tell you who dunit. 

If you’ve followed this blog for very long, you know I’m a pantser. That means I don’t fully plot out my books before I write them. I may have a general idea of the story line, but details often change as I write. That includes my villains. Someone once said that if they didn’t know who the bad guy was by the end of the first chapter, I was doing it wrong. I strongly disagree.

Take my first book, Wolves’ Pawn. I knew from the moment I first met him that Elder Choate was the bad guy of the story. I didn’t understand his motivation at first, but that developed as the story did. He was a man driven by the belief that the old pack structure was the best and he failed to realize that modern ways would influence changes even to his tightly controlled world. His idea of what was right didn’t match up with the beliefs of Dot, my protagonist.

I tried to build  him with more than depth than a single motivation. He’d been spurned by the woman who he’d chosen to be his wife. I never did figure out what caused the rivalry between the Choate pack and the Fairwood pack, one that had gone on for years. I suspect it was more than just a territory issue. One of these days I’ll figure it out.

SPOILER ALERT!

What I didn’t expect was for Elder Henry Fairwood, the hero’s father, to end up as an antagonist. I’d written him as a good guy for most of the book. When he revealed his true colors near the end of the book, I was crushed. But when I thought about it, it made sense.It was true to his time and upbringing. The fact that he surprised me meant it would surprise the readers as well, and I see that as a good thing.

But he ranks second in my list of favorites. I’d say my favorite is Annabelle LeRoix from the Baron’s Cufflinks, the third book in the Oak Grove Mysteries. I wrote her as an uneasy ally in Harmony’s quest to solve her current mystery. She was one of the good guys who, on the surface, sometimes acted like a bad guy. In fact, she was hired to help track down the bad  guy.

Then I got to the end of the book and she revealed her true colors. And none of them were good. The whole acting as a bad guy wasn’t acting at all. Luckily, Harmony was up to handling the news. So was I, and this time it didn’t make me sad. I didn’t even have to go back and change anything in the story to make it work.

Annabelle was fun to write because she was so deeply flawed and she was good at hiding it. She was motivated by the classics-greed, power and love. A deeply flawed definition of love, in my opinion, but it fit her personality.


I’d love to hear about your favorite villain in the comments. In the meantime, let’s check out what the other authors are willing to reveal about their bad guys.

August 6, 2018

Who is your favorite antagonist/bad guy/villain in your books and why? What makes him/her tick?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Blogger

document.write(”);

<!– end InLinkz script →

Who is your favorite antagonist/bad guy/villain in your books and why? What makes him/her tick?

Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t read my books, this is your chance to turn back before I tell you who dunit. 

If you’ve followed this blog for very long, you know I’m a pantser. That means I don’t fully plot out my books before I write them. I may have a general idea of the story line, but details often change as I write. That includes my villains. Someone once said that if they didn’t know who the bad guy was by the end of the first chapter, I was doing it wrong. I strongly disagree.

Take my first book, Wolves’ Pawn. I knew from the moment I first met him that Elder Choate was the bad guy of the story. I didn’t understand his motivation at first, but that developed as the story did. He was a man driven by the belief that the old pack structure was the best and he failed to realize that modern ways would influence changes even to his tightly controlled world. His idea of what was right didn’t match up with the beliefs of Dot, my protagonist.

I tried to build  him with more than depth than a single motivation. He’d been spurned by the woman who he’d chosen to be his wife. I never did figure out what caused the rivalry between the Choate pack and the Fairwood pack, one that had gone on for years. I suspect it was more than just a territory issue. One of these days I’ll figure it out.

SPOILER ALERT!

What I didn’t expect was for Elder Henry Fairwood, the hero’s father, to end up as an antagonist. I’d written him as a good guy for most of the book. When he revealed his true colors near the end of the book, I was crushed. But when I thought about it, it made sense.It was true to his time and upbringing. The fact that he surprised me meant it would surprise the readers as well, and I see that as a good thing.

But he ranks second in my list of favorites. I’d say my favorite is Annabelle LeRoix from the Baron’s Cufflinks, the third book in the Oak Grove Mysteries. I wrote her as an uneasy ally in Harmony’s quest to solve her current mystery. She was one of the good guys who, on the surface, sometimes acted like a bad guy. In fact, she was hired to help track down the bad  guy.

Then I got to the end of the book and she revealed her true colors. And none of them were good. The whole acting as a bad guy wasn’t acting at all. Luckily, Harmony was up to handling the news. So was I, and this time it didn’t make me sad. I didn’t even have to go back and change anything in the story to make it work.

Annabelle was fun to write because she was so deeply flawed and she was good at hiding it. She was motivated by the classics-greed, power and love. A deeply flawed definition of love, in my opinion, but it fit her personality.


I’d love to hear about your favorite villain in the comments. In the meantime, let’s check out what the other authors are willing to reveal about their bad guys.

August 6, 2018

Who is your favorite antagonist/bad guy/villain in your books and why? What makes him/her tick?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

Blogger

<!– end InLinkz script →

I know it’s August, but the #MysteryExchange isn’t over. This week I’m pleased to present Cathy Perkins and her Holly Price books.

Rather
than having my new protagonist act as a private investigator or a
journalist working the crime beat, I made my heroine an accountant.
Curious, bright and loyal to friends and family (hmm, she’s much
better at crime solving than my dog) she made a terrific character to
“follow the money.” Of course, when you poke at villains, they
have a tendency to poke back, harder. It was fun to write the scenes
where Holly bumped up against law enforcement and filter the scene
through her impressions—her point of view—rather than another
cop’s.

In
It For The Money
continues Holly’s adventures:

I know it’s August, but the #MysteryExchange isn’t over. This week I’m pleased to present Cathy Perkins and her Holly Price books.

Rather than having my new protagonist act as a private investigator or a journalist working the crime beat, I made my heroine an accountant. Curious, bright and loyal to friends and family (hmm, she’s much better at crime solving than my dog) she made a terrific character to “follow the money.” Of course, when you poke at villains, they have a tendency to poke back, harder. It was fun to write the scenes where Holly bumped up against law enforcement and filter the scene through her impressions—her point of view—rather than another cop’s.

In It For The Moneycontinues Holly’s adventures:

July 30, 2018
Tell us about your favorite piece of furniture. Does it have a story behind it?

It’s a simple rocking chair. Plain wood, no fancy carvings, with a few dents and bruises. Right now, I don’t even own any cushions to soften the seat. I’m not sure I’d call in my favorite piece of furniture, but it’s close.

But it has a story. You see, this is the chair my parents bought for me when I got pregnant for the first time. I won’t tell you how many years ago that was. That was pre-internet shopping, and I think it was ordered from Sear, Roebuck and Company through their catalog.  Or possibly Montgomery Wards. I’ll wait while you young ones go google that. I lived over 1000 miles from them, and that was the best way to get it to me.

There was a lot of rocking done in the chair after my daughter was born. The little dog we had at the time liked it, too. You can’t see it in the picture, but there’s a spot on the back rocker where he ate the wood away while he was teething. I’ve never tried to fix it.

When we moved even farther west, the chair made the trip with us. When my son was born, it was there to rock him, too. (Although he preferred our couch when he was tiny. I think he liked the feel of the rough fabric.)

Eventually, we made the move back from the west coast to the east coast. And yes, the chair moved with us. It didn’t get sat in as much as the kids grew up, but I had no desire to get rid of it. Eventually, we made the move from Florida back to Wyoming and to my dismay, the chair didn’t fit in the moving truck. So it stayed in Florida with my daughter, with the plan that she’d ship it to me when she could. But that didn’t happen for ten years.

There came a time when she left Florida and came to live with us. The chair came with her. Now she’s elsewhere with her husband and two children, but the chair stayed with me. I don’t use it very often, but it’s a good, solid chair that will likely outlast me.

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture? Feel free to share in the comments.

Blogger

July 30, 2018
Tell us about your favorite piece of furniture. Does it have a story behind it?

It’s a simple rocking chair. Plain wood, no fancy carvings, with a few dents and bruises. Right now, I don’t even own any cushions to soften the seat. I’m not sure I’d call in my favorite piece of furniture, but it’s close.

But it has a story. You see, this is the chair my parents bought for me when I got pregnant for the first time. I won’t tell you how many years ago that was. That was pre-internet shopping, and I think it was ordered from Sear, Roebuck and Company through their catalog.  Or possibly Montgomery Wards. I’ll wait while you young ones go google that. I lived over 1000 miles from them, and that was the best way to get it to me.

There was a lot of rocking done in the chair after my daughter was born. The little dog we had at the time liked it, too. You can’t see it in the picture, but there’s a spot on the back rocker where he ate the wood away while he was teething. I’ve never tried to fix it.

When we moved even farther west, the chair made the trip with us. When my son was born, it was there to rock him, too. (Although he preferred our couch when he was tiny. I think he liked the feel of the rough fabric.)

Eventually, we made the move back from the west coast to the east coast. And yes, the chair moved with us. It didn’t get sat in as much as the kids grew up, but I had no desire to get rid of it. Eventually, we made the move from Florida back to Wyoming and to my dismay, the chair didn’t fit in the moving truck. So it stayed in Florida with my daughter, with the plan that she’d ship it to me when she could. But that didn’t happen for ten years.

There came a time when she left Florida and came to live with us. The chair came with her. Now she’s elsewhere with her husband and two children, but the chair stayed with me. I don’t use it very often, but it’s a good, solid chair that will likely outlast me.

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture? Feel free to share in the comments.

Blogger

And the #MysteryExchange goes on! This week it’s Avery Daniels and her Resort to Murder series.