Me:
Hello Marissa! So glad to have you for a morning cup of coffee today
:) Anyway, how do you take your coffee?
Marissa:
Cream/no sugar, decaffeinated (I hate it, but caffeine does awful
things to me) and in a very large mug. I love my coffee, I do.
Me:LOL
I get it, honestly. Would you tell us about your greatest fear? Not
coffee related. *wink*
Marissa:
Something happening to my husband or kids. They’re my pole-star.
Me:Oh
yeah. That fear is a great one to all us loving wives and mothers. Is
there someone you’d like to thank for encouraging you through the
hard times?
Marissa:
My BFF Sherry, who is my biggest, most enthusiastic non-related
cheerleader.
Me:Where
would a person find you usually?
Marissa:
In my office, at my desk. Life would be so much easier if I could
just have my computer surgically implanted, and then I could write
anywhere.
Me:How
did you come up with the idea for By Jove?
Marissa:
By Jove was the result of a dream. I’ve
actually dreamed a number of the plots for my books; it’s why I
keep a dream journal and light-up pen in my nightstand.
Me:Really?
I tried that at one time, but hubby looked at me like I'm nuts to get
up in the middle of the night to write my dreams, so I sort of gave
up on it... Tell us about your writing process. Do you outline, or
are you more of a seat-of-your-pants type of writer?
Marissa:
Both, actually. I start with a rough synopsis and then refine it as I
go along, but am very happy when some bolt-from-the-blue idea comes
into my head to either change that outline or make it stronger.
Me:What
is your most interesting writing quirk?
Marissa:
Before I start a new book, I go to the candle shop and pick out a
scented candle that just seems to go with the story I’m about to
start...and then I buy about six of them. I burn the candle while I
write until the scent becomes completely associated with that story.
It really helps get me going in the morning when I sit down to write
because of that association. Once my candle got discontinued while I
was in the middle of a book, and I went crazy searching online for
more.
Me:Wow!
That's such a creative idea! I'm not much of a scented candle lover,
as I have bizarro scent allergies, but I think you've found a great
way to concentrate on your stories :) What is your usual writing
routine?
Marissa:
Get up, go to the gym, come home, shower, and write. At least, that’s
what I aim for, but sometimes the darned internet gets in my way.
Me:You
must be the first author how I've interviewed to go to the gym. I
admire you for that. Way to go! How often do you visit the library or
bookstore?
Marissa:
I got addicted to buying books on-line years ago, and my ereader has
just confirmed that habit. I have a scary number of books,
both paper and electronic.
Me:Yup.
Same thing here. Not to mention that I'm somewhat of a tree-hugger,
so yeah. E-books it is :) What’s the last book you bought?
Marissa:
Just today I downloaded The Late Scholar, which is the latest
Lord Peter Wimsey mystery as told by Jill Paton Walsh, who was
authorized by Dorothy L. Sayers’s estate to keep writing Peter
Wimsey books. I’m saving it for a long plane flight I have to make
later this week.
Me:Awesome!
I hope you're going to a wonderful place :) How long does it take you
to fall in love with a book?
Marissa:
As little as a page, which was the case when I started reading Laurie
R. King’s Mary Russell books, about a young girl who becomes
Sherlock Holmes’s apprentice (and later partner).
Me:If
you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Marissa:
I wish I were better at small talk and chatting with strangers. It’s
something I’ve really been trying to improve about myself, because
I’m pretty shy.
Me:Huh.
Writers are supposed to be sort of introverts. But I like to think
that they have a lot to share, should they feel a bit less shy about
it :) You collect...?
Marissa:
Antique fashion prints from the early nineteenth century. They’re
total eye candy. And I tell myself it’s okay to keep collecting
them, because it’s research. And I can post them on my blog and
feel like I’m being educational.
Me:Hehehe!
Makes for great blog posts too :) Fruit you can’t live without?
Marissa:
Pears.
Me:What’s
the pet of your dreams?
Marissa:
I have them—my two silly, adorable, and utterly sweet house
rabbits, Saffron and Beatrice. I’m constantly posting pictures of
them on Facebook because they’re just so funny and photogenic.
Me:What
do you think is the most important thing in life?
Marissa:
To be kind.
Me:What
do you carry in your purse/pockets?
Marissa:
Wallet, keys, mini-hairbrush, phone, chapstick, business cards, a
tiny tape measure and tiny flashlight, about fifteen pens and a
notebook, and my ereader. I don’t go anywhere without that!
Me:A
tape measure? Okay, I guess we all have our quirks. Where are you
right now?
Marissa:
In my office, of course. I live here, remember?
Me:*slaps
hand on forehead* Gosh! Of course! Well, good luck with your next
novel! I hope there are a ton of those to follow :)
Have you noticed how written interviews could become boring after a while? Well I certainly have, and this is why I want to do something different. I'd like to record my interviews. Of course, not everyone would be willing to be recorded, but I think there will be the occasional brave soul to do it. And I don't just mean authors. Anyone who has something to say about books is welcome to send me an e-mail (my address is at my contact page) and we can discuss dates/times/topics.
