Don’t forget to email me at margaretdaley@gmail.com if you want to be included in the drawing for two of Patt’s books.
1. What made you start writing? How long have you been writing? When did you sell your first book?
When I bought my first computer in 1989, I thought I should try to write a romance. I’d been reading several books per week for years, and it seemed easy enough.
And it was easy. So easy that it only took ten years for me to sell. Just this past week, I attended a luncheon for retired educators. After hearing me be praised for writing a romance, the former school librarian said she’d always thought she should write one. Should? Hmm. That’s what I once thought. I hope it takes her less time than it took me to sell to a major publisher.
2. How do you handle rejections?
Terribly! We’re supposed to roll with the punches, but I wallow rather than roll. I really blew it after my first sale. Thinking that once you’re “in,” you’re in, I prepared a proposal for a movie star hero (that’s a no-no) who had three sisters. Encouraged by my editor (who was rather new to the business), I submitted a proposal for four WONDERFUL books. In a heartbeat, the senior editor nixed the project with no chance of revision. Now, I know that was good business on her part, but then I was so devastated, I couldn’t write a sentence without wondering if it would be rejected.
3. Why do you write?
I’m not one of you who HAVE to write to feel complete. I love drama, and I’m addicted to the feeling I get when characters realize they’re falling in love, but I can get that through YOUR books. I write for one reason: to lift the spirit of a reader and assure her that she has a God who cares for her and has a plan for her life.
4. What would you be doing with your free time if you weren’t writing?
Well, I do know. I haven’t written anything since I turned in the manuscript for The Doctor’s Bride last spring. I’ve been working on improving my health, which needed improving. I’ve watched endless hours of satellite TV and spent time with family and friends. But it’s been all about me…which is different than any other period of my life. Serving others is so much better than that, and writing books for others is what I’d rather be doing.
5. Tell us about the book you have out right now.
THE DOCTOR’S BRIDE is the story of Zack Hemingway, a man who never wanted to be anything be a doctor, yet has no idea that he might have DNA that contributed to this single-mindedness. Zack hasn’t expected to marry, but he didn’t expect to meet anyone like Chloe Kilgannon, a self-less woman who had to give up her international work with children after she almost died. Chloe doesn’t expect to meet a man who will replace the sense of rightness she had in that job, but Zack needs her love and faith in the Lord as much as she needs his.
6. Do you have any advice for other writers?
I’m a musician–an instrumentalist, a vocalist and a director, I practiced millions of notes that no one ever heard. As a writer, I should expect to write many words that no one will ever read.
As a musician, I’ve performed many, many hours of music that no one paid to hear, but that music filled my soul and made me a better musician. As a writer, I’ve written many, many words that no one may ever pay to read, but the words give me a sense of purpose and make me a better writer.
7. How important is faith in your books?
Faith IS the reason I write, so it’s very important. But I want to entertain the reader, too, and give her the vicarious thrill of falling in love for the first time. I adore that feeling.
8. What themes do you like to write about?
My fifteen years of being a counselor gave me endless case histories of people who grew up in less than perfect homes. My reader mail confirms that many of us did as well. I like to show how my characters can overcome a less than perfect past and find happiness in the Lord.
9. What is your writing schedule like
I’m an all or nothing kind of person. When I’m writing, I go directly to my pretty all-white office (or my screened-in porch overlooking our little private lake). I boot up my daily files which includes a folder for the Lord. I praise Him, read the Word and my favorite devotional, GOD CALLING, and I type a prayer that includes a request for direction in the day’s writing. And then I begin and don’t quit until it gets too hot on the porch and I’m brain dead in my office. I have a refrigerator, microwave and toaster in the office. My husband sometimes brings me three meals a day. I don’t exercise, do lunch or be a good friend.
This is not a recommended way to live. I would love to find a better way than all or nothing at all.
