Visiting with Sherrill Cannon, Award Winning Children's Author and Playwright

Sherrill would you tell us a little about yourself before we discuss your books?

I am a mother of four and a grandmother of nine. I have written three published children’s books, as well as four published musical plays for elementary school children. I will have a fourth children’s book released in early 2012.  A former teacher, I have had varied careers including Varsity Coach, professional Newspaper Sports Photographer and Columnist,  Dinner Theatre Company Stage Manager, Talent Manager, and Business Administrator. My husband and I celebrated our 51^th wedding anniversary in June!  We are now retired, and we travel in our RV from the east coast to the west coast each year to spend time with our children and grandchildren... sharing my books along the way! 

Tell us about the genre of your work. 

My children’s books are all in rhyme and meter – anapestic tetrameter - and are written to be read to small children.  Older children enjoy reading them too!

Why did you choose this genre?

I have always loved poetry and started writing lyrical poems when I was about 4 years old (my mother wrote them down for me.)  I feel that children love the music of the words, and they find it easy to remember rhymes.  I also love to teach, and all my books try to teach something like good manners and caring for others.  This genre chose me!

What are some of your books, stories that have been published?

·       The Magic Word, recipient of a 2011 Gold Readers Favorite Award, a 2011 NABE Pinnacle Achievement Award, and a 2011 Global eBook Finalist Award.

·       Santa’s Birthday Gift, recipient of a 2011 Silver Readers Favorite Award as well as a  2011  National Indie Excellence Finalist Award

·       Peter and the Whimper-Whineys, recipient of a 2011 Bronze Readers Favorite Award and also a 2011 USA Best Books Finalist Award.

They are all available in softcover as well as eBook.

I also have four published plays, Have You Seen My Little Lamb?, The King’s Spell, When You Wish Upon a Star…fish, and The Wonderful World of Weather (the latter three co-authored with my daughter who is an elementary school teacher.)

What ages do you direct your books?

My books are best for ages 3-8.  My plays are written for elementary school classroom students, grades 1-4.  

Would you tell us more about your books?

All of my books can be found at amazon.com and bn.com – both softcover and eBook:

Santa’s Birthday Gift (978-1-60860-824-9) - Copyright 2009

Santa’s Birthday Gift includes Santa in the Christmas story. (After reading a story of the nativity to my granddaughter, she had asked, "But where’s Santa?")  Santa's gift to Jesus is his promise to bring gifts each year on Christmas to celebrate the Christ Child's birthday.

Peter and the Whimper-Whineys (978-1-60911-517-3) – Copyright 2010

Peter is a small rabbit who does nothing but whine. His mother warns him that if he can't stop whining he might have to go live with the Whimper-Whineys. Peter's nocturnal adventures convince him that Whimper-Whineyland is not a fun place to be, that the Whimper-Whineys are very ill-mannered and rude, and that his mother was right...if only he can find his way home!

The Magic Word (978-1-60976-909-3) – Copyright 2011

Elisabeth was rude, selfish and demanding and had very few friends. Her mother warned her that she needed to improve her manners and suggested she use the magic word “Please”. When Elisabeth went to school the next day, she thought of her mother’s advice, “What is the magic word?” and she started saying “Please” and also “Thank You”. She tried to become more thoughtful of others, and discovered that she was a much happier person. 

My newest book, now in Illustration, is Gimme-Jimmy.  It should be released this fall.

James Alexander’s nickname was Gimme-Jimmy because he was so greedy and selfish.  Imagine Jimmy’s concern when he discovered that every time he said the word “Gimme”, his hand grew larger.  Jimmy was happy to discover that when he was polite and said “Please” and “Thank you”, his hand began to shrink.  He started practicing his new “Polite Rule” and found out that it was much more fun to share.

Do your books have a teaching objective?  If so, what is it?

All my books strive to teach consideration for others, good manners and giving.  

How do you come up with the names of places and characters in your books?

Most of my characters have names that best fit the rhyme and rhythm of the story – and quite a few of them are family names.

Is there a unique character or a recurring character if you have more than one published or to be  published book?

No recurring characters – just recurring characteristics!  Good manners and thoughtfulness need to be taught at an early age!  And of course they are all written in rhyme!

What is your favorite thing about your book/s?

My favorite thing is being able to read them to children (which makes book-signings so much more fun) and the way so many small children seem to be able to remember many of the lines…which I hope they take to heart! 

Is your book illustrated?  If so, would you tell us by whom, and if you worked with an illustrator, can you discuss that experience?

All my books, including the newest one, are illustrated by the Kalpart Team.  This team is headed by KJ, and she and her team of artists are amazing. They are located in Mumbai, India, so all of the coordination and communication is done by internet.  She has a description of the basic illustration in the manuscript, and she sends me her sketch.  I can make any necessary changes by request – or sometimes I just draw something on top of her sketch to show her what I am looking for, and then scan it and send it back to her.  When it is ready, she sends a colored version for acceptance.  It works amazingly well.  Each of my books is uniquely illustrated as well.  Santa’s Birthday Gift was done in watercolors, with an amazing use of light which allows the star to help illuminate each scene.  Peter and the Whimper-Whineys was done in digital color, with most of the action in the book taking place at night.  The Magic Word, again in digital color, is very bright and simplistic, emphasizing the message of the story.  I think that Gimme-Jimmy will be very like it, since the message is similar although more boy-oriented.  She also has produced my awesome covers for me!!! (Paying for an illustrator is the most expensive part of getting a book published, but you can’t have a children’s picture-book without pictures!  I feel that KJ is worth every penny!)

How is writing in the genre you write, different than other genre?

My children’s books, because they are in rhyme, are more like poetry in many ways.  And I have always loved poetry, so they are fun for me to write.

Are there any problems in getting children’s’ books published?  

I sent out a few queries when I was working, but it wasn’t until I retired that I had time to pursue getting my books published.  I sent the manuscript of Santa’s Birthday Gift electronically to the Writer’s Literary Group, who suggested I submit it to the Strategic Book Group – and now I have three published books and another on the way. 

Why and when did you begin writing?

As mentioned earlier, my mother tells me I was writing poetry at age 4.  I have always loved to write, but now I have time to do it!

What is your writing schedule?  

Whenever… Actually, a lot of “lines” pop into my head in the middle of the night, so I have a tablet and pen beside my bed so I can write them down.

What projects are you working on now, or plan for the future?

I have four more children’s books to publish and three more plays (two of which have been submitted to my publisher at Lazy Bee Scripts.)  I also have a couple more rhymed children’s stories in the works, however most of my current time is taken up with marketing my books online.  There are so many opportunities and so little time…

What kind of advice or tips to you have for someone who wants to write and get published?

I whole-heartedly recommend my publisher, Strategic Book Group, to anyone who wishes to get started and not spend a lot of time writing queries to publishers who respond (if at all) by telling you to get an agent – or trying to find an agent who tells you they only accept published authors!  Also, it’s really important to determine the right niche for your book, so you will be able to focus your efforts on productive marketing.  

Are there any other comments, advice or tips that you would give to beginning writers?

Just be sure that anything you decide to submit anywhere is edited to the best of your ability before you send it out.  Bad grammar and poor spelling can undermine a masterpiece!

What do you do when you are not writing?  

My husband and I like to go “rving” which is camping with a “house” instead of a tent!  I also love to read.

Anything else you would like to add?

A little bit about my plays for elementary school children:  

The plays are written for elementary school classroom students, grades 1-4.  Each child has at least one line in the play. They are all musicals, although they use suggested popular songs and nursery rhyme songs which can be selected by the teacher or music teacher.  Most of the plays are co-authored by my daughter, Kerry Gallagher.  The plays have had several performances each, both in the United States and in the United Kingdom!

Have You Seen My Little Lamb? – Mary has brought her lamb to school and now the lamb is lost.  Mary, with the help of Mother Goose, meets many storybook friends as she searches for her lost lamb.

The King’s Spell - Something is not right in Mother Goose Land, when Old King Cole casts a spell on the characters.  Mother Goose wanders through the kingdom finding everything mixed up until she can prevail upon the King to remove his spell.

When You Wish Upon a Star…fish - A little girl (or a little boy) finds a starfish while she is walking on the boardwalk and throws it back while making a wish that she could see what is under the sea.  The play continues with the starfish introducing the little girl to different sea creatures, who each tell her a little about themselves.  This play is educational in nature, and can easily be used in connection with a classroom project about undersea life.

The Wonderful World of Weather - A bird family starts the play, which continues through the different weather scenarios as they go through the seasons, and the bird family concludes the play returning to their nest at home. This play is educational in nature, and can easily be used in connection with a classroom project about the weather.

A couple more plays have been submitted as well.  Please stay tuned to my website for updates!

Another thing I would like to mention:  All three of my books are now part of a fund-raiser for the Women’s Economic Council Foundation (WECF), which sponsors programs and scholarships for girls and women.  Fifty percent of the sales of my books go to the Foundation.  I have provided the link below with the other links.  I attended the Summit meeting in Nashville TN in October, where I signed books, and the website is still live: http://www.sbpra.com/wecf/ 

What “Made It” moments have you experienced in life?

I have always been an “over-achiever” and have had many “made it” moments in my life, including celebrating our 51^th wedding anniversary in June.  Recently, the joy of receiving seven 2011 Awards for my three books!

You can learn more about the author and her books on the following sites:

Website and blog:  http://www.sherrillcannon.com

Facebook Fan Page: http://tinyurl.com/Author-Sherrill-S-Cannon

Books Page: http://www.StrategicBookClub.com

Plays Page: http://www.lazybeescripts.co.uk

Amazon Links:

            http://www.SantasBirthdayGift-amazon.com

            http://www.PeterandtheWhimperWhineyw-amazon.com

            http://www.TheMagicWord-amazon.org

Red Room Author Page: http://www.redroom.com/author/sherrill-s-cannon/

Women’s Economic Council Foundation:

http://www.womenseconomicfoundation.org/summit_speakerbooks.html

You can visit my other blog at: http://love-faith-and-guts.blogspot.com/ that features a preview to my new book that will be released in 2012, Traveling a Rocky Road with Love, Faith and Guts.

Author, Alyssa Lyons has Two Newly Released Books: Last Wishes and Clubbed to Death

You may be surprised to learn that this author not only a writer, but a former teacher, attorney and she even worked for the CIA.  What a great background for writing crime mysteries that includes a female sleuth, a touch of romance and a dash of humor.   

Alyssa Lyons, like her character Jordan Davis, lives in Lynchburg, Virginia. The South is her playground. Its eccentricities fuel her stories. She specializes in “Solving Crimes Southern Style.” However, unlike Jordan, she is a cat person—rather she is staff to two cats she rescued. Like most cats, they believe they were the ones doing the saving and therefore she owes them. She taught high school American history and government, worked for the CIA, and is a retired attorney. Or, as she is fond of saying, “I am a recovering attorney.”

Tell us about the genre of your work.

I write “chick mystery.” This is similar to cozy mystery except the amateur detective is younger and hipper than the Miss Marple/Jessica Fletcher of the traditional cozy and some violence takes place on the page, not off scene. Jordan Davis is a motorcycle-riding, catsuit-wearing entrepreneur, although she does love chai tea and her Miniature Schnauzer, Muffin. Chick mystery also has a healthy dose of hot sex in the mix. I cannot imagine Miss Marple doing the nasty with Hercule Poirot (shudder!)

Why did you choose this genre?

I started as a romance novelist, but never stopped reading mysteries and thrillers. Not finding a hip, thirty-something, motorcycle-loving heroine solving cases, I was inspired to write the Jordan Davis Mysteries with a strong dose of romance. After the first and substantial reworking, I molded the original into a fast paced, dark and sexier story, but with romance and a lot of tongue-in-cheek humor. Of course, it is easy to write humor when the stories take place in the South.

What are some of your books, stories that have been published?

My first Jordan Davis Mystery, Last Wishes, was released in March 2011.

The second, Clubbed to Death, was released in May 2011. The third, Stabbed and Slabbed, is tentatively scheduled for a mid-summer 2011 release.

Last Wishes

ISBN:  978-0-9832681-3-0

Amazon Kindle:  http://tiny.cc/8kqdq

My website:  http://www.alyssalyons.com/

He was a judge. He did not break the law…at least not until he met her.

Judge Grayson Trent never suspected the woman his Aunt Becca hired to handle her funeral arrangements would be the very same woman who has consumed his fantasies from the moment he saw her standing before him in court. He soon discovers she has not changed her ways. Not only is she still ignoring the rules when it suits her, now she is a target for murderer. Unless, she is the murderer herself.

She was not really breaking the law, just bending it a little…and all for a good cause.

Jordan Davis sees nothing wrong in breaking a silly city ordinance, especially when it interferes with her fulfilling the last wishes of her clients. To her Judge Trent is a narrow-minded, overbearing stick in the mud—a very sexy and hot stick in the mud. Until it seems as if he is responsible for several murders. Maybe the hunk of a judge is not as law abiding as she thought. Or, maybe they are both in danger of being a killer’s next victim.

How do you come up with the names of places and characters in your books?

Jordan Ashley Davis is named after my eldest grandchild. Trent is the last name of a prominent Lynchburg family (there is a road called Trent’s Ferry in the Boonsboro section of town). Libby, Grayson Trent’s mother, is named after my centenarian mother-in-law. The religious wheeler-dealer Reverend Sippard derives from his family’s history as bootleggers. FBI agent Paige Sidney, who appears in Clubbed to Death, is named after my other two granddaughters. Other names were chosen because they sounded right for the characters.

Our stories are set in Lynchburg, which is a real city in Central Virginia. Wherever possible we refer to real places in town, unless using the real name might cause a scandal. After all, the only real sins in the South are being rude and impolite.

How did you develop the character of your protagonist in this book? 

What kind of woman would quit medical school to take care of her dying mother? Who would go into the business of granting the last wishes of her clients, even if it means bending a few laws to get the funeral or memorial done right? What kind of woman would install a safety cage on the read of her motorcycle so her miniature schnauzer, in a leather motorcycle jacket and helmet, could go cruising US 460 with her? And who, if she discovered one of her clients was murdered, would move heaven, earth and an immutable, straight-laced judge, to discover who the murder is? Throw in being the love child of her father’s mistress and a Jew in Jerry Falwell country for lagniappe. That is the type of woman Jordan Ashley Davis is; one of a kind!

What about an antagonist…is there a unique “bad guy” or a recurring nemesis of any kind?

I hope to provide new and scary villains in each Jordan Davis mystery. Murderers we know exist and hope we never meet, even in a social setting.

What is your favorite thing about your book?

Definitely Grayson Trent. He is handsome, hot and sexy without being obvious about it. I love how Jordan gets him to loosen up yet he never quiet loses all his starch.

How is writing in the genre you write, different than other genre?

Mysteries take the most careful pre-planning of any genre. You have to keep the reader guessing, the timeline straight, the red herrings convincing and the resolution logical. It would be very difficult for a true “pantser” to write a mystery.

Why and when did you begin writing?

I began to write as a child, beginning with poetry, moving into short stories, plays and screenplays as I got into high school and college. In the 1990’s I began to focus on writing novels, primarily romance because that was what I was reading at the time.

What is your writing schedule?

I have a full time job Monday through Friday, plus I do some free lance editing for other authors. After work during the week, I work on editing jobs, blogging, and other promotional activities. I do the bulk of my work on the Jordan Davis mystery series in long sessions (10am-7pm) Saturday and Sunday.

What projects are you working on now, or plan for the future?

I am currently writing Stabbed and Slabbed. I plan to continue writing Jordan Davis mysteries as long as the readers want to read them. I would also like to rework a medical thriller that is half-finished into a series of medical procedurals with a team of epidemic-solving doctors similar to those who work for the Centers for Disease Control, along with another strong dose of romance mixed in with the thriller aspects. Think, love in the time of E. coli.

What kind of advice or tips to you have for someone who wants to write (especially mystery)?

Mystery takes planning and research. There are several spreadsheets and grids out there for planning action in the plot. Find one that works for you and use it. Read the types of mysteries you want to write and know the market. Make sure your details ring true (you cannot use a silencer on a revolver, no matter how many towels Vito Corleone used in Godfather, Part II), although, a potato and pillow will work. It is the recoil that will get you. Also, whether you submit to a publisher or decide to go indie, treat writing as a business. Be professional and observe the formalities. Proofread and then get another pair of eyes to proofread.

Are there any other comments, advice or tips that you would give to beginning writers?

You have to develop a thick skin. Critiques can seem harsh, editor’s comments can be harsher, and book reviewers can be brutal. Your critique partners and editors have your best interests in mind. You must be willing to accept suggestions. Nobody ever wrote the perfect book, and not your every word is hewn from platinum. And, for goodness sakes, if you get a bad review, do not go on the reviewer’s blog and write a nasty rebuttal. It could easily go viral, and you will do untold damage to your career. Just suck it up and hope you can bury it, quickly, beneath good ones.

What do you do when you are not writing?

Read, eat, and sleep.

What “Made It” moments have you experienced in life?

The day I passed the California Bar, the day I sold my first novel, and since then, there have been too many to count.

To learn more about this author, visit her website at: http://www.alyssalyons.com/

Cozy Mystery Writer, Nancy Lynn Jarvis, Announces Upcoming Debut of Her New Book

This was a very interesting chat with Nancy, and I am delighted that she gave me the priviledge of interviewing her. 

The Lady behind the Mystery

Nancy Lynn Jarvis has been a Santa Cruz, California, Realtor® for more than twenty years. After earning a Bachelor of Arts in Behavioral Science from San Jose State University, she worked in the advertising department of the San Jose Mercury News.  A move to Santa Cruz meant a new job as a librarian and later a stint as the business manager of Shakespeare/Santa Cruz. Nancy’s work history reflects her philosophy: people should try something radically different every few years. Writing is her newest adventure.  Details and ideas for Nancy’s Regan McHenry Mysteries come from Nancy’s own experiences.

Tell us about the genre of your work. How is writing in the genre you write, different than other genre?

 I write cozy style mysteries which mean there is a body in the first chapter, no graphic sex or violence, no bad language, and a good resolution. The protagonist is female of a “certain age” and an amateur sleuth, who picks up information the police miss. Often cozies are set in a small community. In my case, the books are set in Santa Cruz in the world of real estate.

Why did you choose this genre? Why and when did you begin writing?

I started writing as a mind game, kind of like doing a giant Sudoku and mystery worked: solving the crime equals solving the Sudoku. Maybe I better back up a bit. My husband and I were, technically still are, Realtors who own a small company in Santa Cruz, California. I have been in the business since 1989 and had seen down markets with all their cruelty before, so when the real estate market tanked in 2008, we decided to hang up our for sale signs, take a time out, and pretend we were retired. I got bored within a couple of weeks and decided, strictly as an entertaining thing to do, I would write a mystery.

I had the beginning and the end, and lots of stories I could use as background if I made the protagonist a real estate agent. I set the books in Santa Cruz since I knew the community so well. The protagonist, Regan McHenry began her life as me, only younger, thinner, and more successful than I was. She became her own person about the time she found a body.

What are some of your books, stories that have been published?

I have three books published: The Death Contingency, Backyard Bones, and Buying Murder. People can read the first chapters of all the books at my website: http://www.goodreadmysteries.com/ if they like.

The books are available on Amazon in both standard size print and large print (large print follows the National Association for the Visually Handicapped standards) and for e-readers like Kindle with apps for other e-readers and smart phones and on Barnes and Noble Pubit! 

There is also a Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries page on Facebook if anyone wants to take a look. http://www.facebook.com/ReganMcHenryRealEstateMysteries?ref=ts Sometimes there are contest and free books…

The next book in the series should be out in July, just in time to get a copy for a fun summer read. The title is The Widow’s Walk League. All the books have something in their titles that relates to real estate or houses, but in this instance, a widow’s walk takes on a more sinister aspect than being a house feature.

How do you come up with the names of places and characters in your books?

Coming up with places is simple. Although there is a disclaimer at the beginning of the books that says all people and places are fictitious, many of the places are well known Santa Cruz haunts. The houses, especially if they have a body in them as in Buying Murder, are real houses I’ve been in, but the addresses are manufactured.

I had great fun with a woman who bought The Death Contingency and called me to say she thought the big climactic scene seemed like it took place in her house. I confessed it did. She ordered books for all her family and friends.

Except for the murder victim and the killer, most of the characters in the books start out as people I know and I begin writing using their names. At some point they get renamed; often as I write the character suggests what their name should be. I occasionally have fun playing name games, too. Characters may keep their initials, for example, a termite inspector named Jay Boyd became Jessie Bolton. A real estate company may keep their office location but get a different name. The idea is, for people who are familiar with Santa Cruz, they may be able to figure out where and who: it’s an added mystery for them to solve if they care to try.

How did you develop the character of your protagonist in this book?

There are three characters carried forward in the books: Regan McHenry, her husband Tom Kiley, and their friend Dave Everett who is a police ombudsman forced into that semi-retired position after losing an eye in a shootout. The characters began as me, my husband, and our friend Dave, whose background I stole although he does not live in Santa Cruz and is no longer a police officer in any capacity.

I am a method writer which means I act out what happens in the books, or at least watch my characters as they act out what happens. As I said earlier, me being me worked until “I” had to find a body. The morning I wrote that scene, my husband found me in my office curled up in a ball crying. At that point, I knew the characters could not be real any more.

A curious thing happened once they got renamed: they took on a life of their own. In many ways they write the books for me now.

What about an antagonist…is there a unique “bad guy” or a recurring nemesis of any kind?

No recurring nemesis because cozies are not like that as a rule. There is a character in Buying Murder who is very like Regan, though and the closest thing she has to a nemesis. Think Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty; they are very much alike in many ways.

What’s your favorite thing about your books?

What I enjoy most is the interaction between Regan and Dave. They are close friends but they constantly annoy one another, often on purpose. Regan is not always as clever as she thinks she is, and Dave is smarter than he may seem, which helps.

I enjoy Tom, as well. He is Regan’s logical husband. Regan is logical, but she’s also intuitive, an observer who remembers and puts things together. Their interplay is fun for me to write, as well. Even though Tom is no longer my real husband he still retains many of his traits and it is his blue eyes I see when I mention Tom’s eyes, but I get to make him perfect. Tom doesn’t interrupt or argue and he is always supportive. I tell my husband to read the Tom parts of the books with that in mind.

What is your writing schedule?

 I usually write at about the time the events in the books are happening. The Widow’s Walk League has been challenging in that regard because it opens on Halloween night and runs through the following August. Buying Murder is set during the winter but I began it in July. I wrote as much as I could and then had to wait for rainy weather and winter to finish it. I just could not relate to a stormy night when it was 96 degrees outside.

What projects are you working on now, or plan for the future?

I do not know what will happen after The Widow’s Walk League. I had the first four books in mind when I began writing but I do not have a fifth. We will have to see. I also have a completely different book in mind which I may play with while Regan and Tom take a vacation.

What kind of advice or tips to you have for someone who wants to write (especially mystery)?

 Do it. That may seem like silly advice but any time I give a book talk I open by asking, “How many of you would like to write a book?” Most hands go up. When I follow up with, “How many of you have?” most, if not all, hands go down. I never intended to do anything with The Death Contingency. It was just a game to see if I could do it, but I have had the most amazing adventures since it came out — things have happened I would never have experienced otherwise, and I have met people I would never have met if not for the books. Do it.

What do you do when you are not writing? 

I write under a pseudonym. When I am not Nancy Lynn Jarvis, I am a completely different person who is busy with a different life.

What “Made It” moments have you experienced in life?

Life is full of “made it’ moments. The most important thing is to keep your eyes open to see them.