Welcome multi-genre author Roseanne Dowell to the Seeds of Inspiration Event. Remember to enter to win a copy of Roseanne's e-book, Trouble Comes in Twos, by leaving a comment below. Winner will be chosen after 12:01 Sunday morning.
Now let me tell you a little bit about Roseanne Dowell. She is an avid reader. Roseanne writes various types of romance - paranormal, contemporary, and mystery. She has several books available at Amazon as well as over 40 articles and short stories published in magazines such as Good Old Days, Nostalgia, and Ohio Writer as well as several online publications. Besides teaching writing courses for Long Story School of Writing, she also taught two writing courses for the Encore Program at Cuyahoga Community College.
Roseanne lives in Northeast Ohio where she enjoys life as a wife, mother of six, grandmother of fourteen and great grandmother of two. When she’s not writing or enjoying her family, Roseanne spends her time with embroidery and quilting, especially combining the two. She also enjoys blogging, tweeting, facebooking and posting on various writers groups.
her Facebook page
No Regrets by Roseanne Dowell
Like most authors, I always loved to read. From my
first book, Dick and Jane to the Golden books, I read every chance I had. I
grew up reading Nancy Drew mysteries and soon moved on to Victoria Holt and
Phyllis Whitney. I was a big fan of Agatha Christie –still love her books,
actually.
Ever since I can remember I’ve been writing, even as
a teen. I often made up stories and wrote poetry. Of course, I kept a
diary/journal. The stationary department of stores always drew me. My favorite
places to shop to this day are Office Max and Staples. I have a love affair
with paper and pens. I still can’t resist notebooks, especially if they’re on
sale. It’s nothing for me to come home with three or four various types of
notebooks, file folders, and pens during the school supply sales.
While working as a school secretary, and encouraged
by my coworkers, I took a correspondence course -writing for children. It
didn’t take long to realize, that even though I had six children, it took
someone special to write for them. I also tried my hand at nonfiction, but at
the time, didn’t care for it. That’s when I moved on to romance novels and
mysteries. Two of my favorite genres. Not that I did anything with those
stories. At least not then. They sat in the attic with my poems and journals.
Back then we didn’t have computers, let alone the internet. Finding time to
write with six children wasn’t easy either and I never submitted anything.
It wasn’t until 2002 while I was at a Book Club
meeting, the conversation turned to what we most regretted in our lives. I
confessed I hadn’t pursued a career in writing. That’s all it took. My friends
convinced me it wasn’t too late. There was only one way to find out, I decided
to give it a shot and took another writing course. Part of the course was
writing nonfiction, my least favorite genre. Within a couple of months I
published my first article in Good Old Days Magazine. I framed a copy of that
check. Since then, I’ve had several nonfiction articles published. My first
published book in 2006, Satin Sheets, sold over 35,000 copies. Not too bad for
a first novel. It’s out of print now and available as an ebook, It’s Only Make
Believe.
As I said previously, I love mystery and romance and
often combine the two. I also love the paranormal (ghosts) and incorporate them
in a couple of my books, Time to Love Again and Shadows in the Attic. Entangled
Minds is a paranormal about ESP. A firm
believer in love at any age, some of my heroines are older women. Time to Love
Again, Geriatric Rebels, and Another Day all feature older heroines. I try to
insert a bit of humor in most of my stories also.
My latest book, Trouble Comes in Twos, released with
Books We Love Publishing was intended as the third book in a Trilogy. Circumstances beyond my control made me change
it into a single book. My inspiration and idea for the book came from a visit
to Locust Grove Cemetery in Twinsburg, Ohio. I have a thing for cemeteries,
especially old ones, and visit them every opportunity I get. Fortunately my
husband indulges my strange habit.
While we were walking around, reading the headstones
–something else that intrigues me-- the story idea began forming. The cemetery
is located off a main street and set way back from the street. It’s a very
small cemetery, and if you didn’t know it was there, you’d drive right past it.
We almost missed it the first time we went there. It’s surrounded by stores two
sides and a retirement home on another and slopes down a hill. My imagination immediately
reacted. What if someone got killed here? How long would it be before someone
found the body? The graves in this cemetery are very old, so I doubt too many
people visit them anymore.
By the time we got home, my mind was whirling with
ideas for the book and before long the first draft was born. Several months
later, I was ready to submit.
Trouble Comes in Twos Back of the Book:
After a
five year absence, Kate Wesley returns to Twinsburg Ohio to open a florist
shop. She’s content with life until Mark Westfield enters the picture. To make
matters worse her ex fiancé is back in town, looking to pick up where they left
off, and she’s attracted to both men. As if her life isn’t complicated enough,
she finds a dead body in the cemetery, the twin sister of the victim shows up
and another body is discovered. Can Kate sort through the confusion her life
has become or will she become the next victim?
Please leave a comment to enter the drawing to win Trouble Comes in Twos. We love a wave, a hug, high five, or even a giggle. Thank you.
11 comments:
Hi Ro,
Loved reading about your beginnings, and learned how much we have in common - I think women "our age" grew up in the same decade and we all loved Nancy. :) I was glad to know you've been pubbed in Good Old Days - so have I. :) And your book sold over 35,000 copies!!! Awesome! Congrats on all of your successes. :)
Great post, Roseanne! I love the title. Despite all the twists and turns that life takes us on, it's important to let go of the bad... no regrets.
For almost 10 years, I lived next door to a small, old, country cemetery. It was a great place to stroll around and ruminate. I think you'd like it!
Thank you, Miss Mae and Heather. I've had a couple stories in Good Old Days, one in Nostalgia also. I've not been to a cemetery in a while, but plan to visit some this summer.
Hi MM--As I read through authors' blogs, a lot of them grew up on Nancy. Thanks for stopping in.
Heather, I love the title too. I read this engaging book. You'll be amazed how many twos you'll find in this story.
Reading and writing definitely go together. It's never too late to pursue your dreams. So glad you had good friends to push you in the right direction.
MJ, A to Z Challenge Co-Host
Writing Tips
Effectively Human
Lots of Crochet Stitches
Well, I for one am glad your friends convinced you to go for it! Because I'd never have met you if you hadn't and wouldn't have my best cyber-space bud and brainstorming partner. Hey JQ! Hey Miss Mae!
MJ--Lucky is the person who has such "pushy" friends..LOL..Sometimes a nudge doesn't work, so we need them to give us a push. Thanks for stopping by.
Hey back at ya' Gail, Roseanne's your brainstormin' partner? Lucky you! She is very special for sure.
You're an inspiration, Roseanne. Thanks for sharing.
Congratulations, Joylene! You are the winner of Roseanne's ebook. Enjoy.
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