What’s Jack up to? As I type this he’s sleeping sweetly after a rip roaring day. Ah, peace is so good.

We’ve got a treat today. An interview with Phyllis Bourne Williams, fab author of A Moment On the Lips and fellow blog buddy.

Hi, Phyllis thanks to much for being here at KwanaWrites I really appreciate you doing this interview today.
Thanks, Kwana! I’m a longtime stalker…uh, I mean reader of your blog. It’s a thrill for me to actually be your guest today.

I’ll start with my traditional question. What lead you to become a writer is it something you always wanted to do or is this a career you backed into?
I can’t remember not loving romance novels. In college, I hid issues of Romantic Times in my textbooks and read while the professor lectured.
A journalism major, I went on to become a newspaper crime reporter. After a long day of covering the unbelievable things people do to hurt each other, I couldn’t wait to escape into a good romance.
Years of reading evolved into the urge to write my own.

Please tell us the story of your overnight success?
Overnight success? I have to laugh at that. For me, it was more like years (and years and years). I spent a lot of time thinking, dreaming and talking about writing, but not much actual writing. Once I sat my butt down and wrote, my efforts were rewarded with several RWA chapter contest wins and two Golden Heart finals.
A Dorchester editor was the final round judge of one contest, and she requested my full manuscript. I didn’t win, but the editor bought my book.

What’s you typical writing day like? Are you a plotter or a pantser and how do you work this non-traditional job into your life?
I’m easily distracted. I don’t think about laundry or cleaning – until I sit down to write.
So when I need to get some serious writing done I go to the library or Starbucks. There I accomplish in a few hours what would take days for me to get done at home.
I try to get out of the house early, so no matter what crops up later I’ve got my writing done. I’ve also learned to say no and not alter my schedule to wait around on repairmen or deliveries.
I was a die-hard pantster, but I’m waning. Nowadays, I write my synopsis first and use it as an outline.

I loved A Moment On The Lips. How did this book come to life for you? Also it incorporates knitting which a love of mine, is it a passion of yours?
Thanks, Kwana!
The story didn’t truly come to life for me until after it sold. My editor encouraged me to delve deeper into my characters and the story. By the time I was done, Melody and Grant were my best friends. I hated to leave their world.
Yep, I knit. Keep in mind, I’m not a very good knitter, but I try hard.
I typically start a knitting project at the same time I start a writing project. I like watching my skeins of yarn transform into a garment as my words turn into a novel.
I just started working sweater. Here’s what it looks like now. (*See attached photo)

(Sidebar: Phyllis’ knitting ROCKS!!)

The main Character, Melody is a real woman with real curves is writing real women important to you?
I wanted my heroine to wear a size 12, the average size of most American women.
I also wanted the hero to appreciate and adore her voluptuous shape. It was important she didn’t believe she had to lose weight to be loveable.

What main piece of advice would you give to an aspiring writing?
BICHOK – Butt in Chair Hands on Keyboard. Simple advice that I don’t always follow myself, but it works!

What’s up next for you, Phyllis?
I have a novella in Dorchester Publishing’s October 2008 Christmas anthology, The Holiday Inn, along with authors Farrah Rochon and Stefanie Worth.
In my story, “By New Year’s Day” I write about a couple whose thirty-year marriage is crumbling under the endless demands of their adult children.
The fed-up husband whisks his wife away to a remote ski lodge, to rekindle their passion and save their troubled relationship.

Thanks so much for being with us today, Phyllis. Please check out Phyllis at her website and her fab blog http://phylliswilliams.com/ and http://www.fortyisthenew20.com/. You won’t be disappointed.

Best,
Kwana