Welcome Roseanne Dowell!

This is a day late. Roseanne was supposed to have her interview go up yesterday but there was a slight technical difficulty. But here she is today and I can assure you it was worth the wait.:-)


1: Thank you so much for being here Roseanne. First up is the obligatory question. When did you first begin writing?:-)

I began writing years ago. I actually took a writing for children course when my children were very young, but it takes someone special to write for children and I didn’t have it. It wasn’t until about six years ago, I started writing and submitting.

2: What inspired you to write?

Even as a child, I made up different endings to many stories I read. But one day at my book club, we were discussing what we regretted not doing. I said writing. That started it all. My friends insisted it was never too late and encouraged me, so I was off and running.

3: What do you like the most and the least about writing?

I mostly enjoy writing. Submitting and looking for agents/editors is what I like least.

4: Are you currently working on?

I’m currently revising something I wrote many years ago. Unfortunately, I was guilty of head hopping and now I’m fixing it. I don’t mind telling you, it’s a lot harder than writing the story to begin with.


5: What do you for fun and relaxation when not writing?

I enjoy spending time with my six children, 13 (almost 14) grandchildren (and a great grandchild on the way). I also enjoy embroidery and quilting. Right now, I’m embroidering a quilt for my niece’s twins. I found a way to combine my two interests – I embroider the squares and then sew them together and quilt them.

6: Which authors do you like to read?

I enjoy a wide range of authors, but my favorites are Lisa Scottoline and Nora Roberts – both of whom, I’ve had the pleasure getting my picture taken with a their book signings.


7: What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

Hmm that’s a hard one. I’d guess that I’m family oriented and enjoy writing.

8: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?

Yes, NEVER give up. Don’t take rejections personal and it’s nothing against your writing. Sometimes editors/agents already have something similar or it doesn’t fit their needs. Also, remember it’s never too late.

9: If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

Truthfully, I’m very happy here. I really have no desire to leave the United States. I think there’s plenty to see here and I’ve not even begun to visit all the states that I’d like to visit – CA, VT, ME, MA, LA and many more and not necessarily in that order. But there’s so much to see here in OH that I haven’t seen yet. So I guess, I’d have to say, OH and I’d start with the Islands.

10: Your debut novel with Red Rose will be coming out on March 11th. Can you tell us a little bit about Time To Live Again?


Fifty-eight year old, Rose Asbury knows people think she’s a recluse, but she doesn’t care. She just wants to be left alone. She doesn’t need anyone, and no one needs her and that’s just fine. At least she didn’t until this year. For some reason this year is different. Suddenly she’s melancholy and discontent with her life.
And the man next door doesn’t help matters. Every time he sees her, he insists on speaking to her. To make matters worse her sister’s ghost begins to harass her.

EXCERPT
Chapter 1

Doesn’t that man ever stay in the house? Rose slammed her car door and tried to ignore the man next door. Just once, she wished he’d let her get away without trying to talk to her. But why should this time be any different? She lowered her head and hurried toward her house. Right now she wasn’t in the mood for conversation. At least not with him.
“Hello, Rose, uh... Mrs. Asbury.” He dropped his snow shovel, grabbed something from his garage, and hurried toward her.
His relaxed, tall, lean body in a denim jacket and jeans caused a stir of excitement in her. Even his graying temples aroused something in her that she found way too familiar. Stirred up feelings she didn’t want stirred up. She barely glanced at him, yet she felt a tug on her heart.
Damn! Rose pulled her coat close against the cold wind and threw the scarf around her neck. Why didn’t he just leave her alone? You’d think by now he’d realize she didn’t care to talk to him. Her stomach fluttered, a feeling she hadn’t experienced in a long time. Hunger pangs, she dismissed it. Nerves, that’s all. She nodded a hello, like always, and hurried to her house. What was it with him? Why did he keep bothering her? Couldn’t he see she wasn’t the least bit interested?
Suddenly, Rose’s feet slid out from under her. Splat! She landed on her butt, fell back, and hit her head. Groceries flew everywhere. Oh crap, just what she needed. She looked up to see the man leaning over her.
“Are you all right?”
Heat rose to her face. Other than humiliated, she was fine. A bit sore, but she didn’t think she had any broken bones. She tried to sit up.
“Wait!” He pushed her back down. “You may have broken something.” He ran his hands gently across her ankles and legs and up toward her thigh.
A smoldering heat started deep in Rose’s stomach. She held her breath, let it out slowly. Even through her slacks, the heat from his hand sent tingly sensations down to her toes.
That’s it, she had enough. She pushed his hands away, sat up and managed to get to her knees. The man tried to help her stand. She ignored him and brushed herself off. Heat radiated from her face, and she knew it turned as red as her coat.
She bent down and picked up her groceries. She still hadn’t spoken to him. She wished he’d leave. She could manage just fine without his help. He picked up some of her canned goods and put them in the bag. She reached for it.
“Here, this is for you.”
“For what?” She looked at the rose in his hand.
“It’s a yellow rose. It means friendship.”
She could see it was a yellow rose, she wasn’t a nitwit. And she knew what it meant. Frank used to bring her roses every week. She took the rose from him. “I...uh...” Hell, she didn’t know what to say. Why would he give her a rose?
“I saw it and thought of you.” Stephen ran his fingers around his shirt collar.
“Here, let me help.” He picked up the bag of groceries and started walking toward her door.
She grabbed the bag from him and ran into her house, too humiliated to speak, leaving him to stare after her.

Stephen watched Rose walk away. Damn woman made him feel like he did something wrong. Worse than a kid getting scolded by the principal. Why he bought that damn rose was beyond him. When he saw them in the grocery store, it seemed like a good idea. Especially when he saw their meanings. Now he wished he hadn’t.
Crabby, old woman, she could have at least said thank you. Okay, so it’s cold and she fell, but she did the same thing in the summer. How many times had he seen her working in her yard? Yet when he came out, she jumped up and hurried into the house. You’d think he tried to attack her or had some horrible disease.
All he wanted was some friendly conversation. He shook his head. Don’t know about her. Obviously she didn’t want anything to do with him. Too bad, she’s an attractive woman. Not that he was looking for anything more than friendship. Hell, he lived here over a year, and she never did more than nod at him. Bet she didn’t even know his name.
Crotchety, old biddy.
So why did he bother with her? He really didn’t need more friends. He had the Senior Center and the neighbors a couple doors down, Len and Millie Fisher. Why he insisted on talking to Rose Asbury he’d never know.
Still, he hoped she wasn’t hurt. She had taken a nasty fall. Bet she’d feel it in the morning. Bet she’d have a good black and blue mark too. He chuckled. Served her right, rude old coot.
Something about her, though. He shook his head. Not sure why, but he wanted to break through that tough reserve. He shrugged and walked back to the garage, put the shovel away and went into the house.
Oh well, can’t say he didn’t try.

Rose set her groceries on the counter and rubbed her hip. Gonna be sore as hell tomorrow, she could tell. Bet it turned black and blue already. Stupid klutz! Talk about the epitome of embarrassment. Bad enough she fell, but why did he have to see her. She made a fresh pot of coffee, picked up the rose and smelled it. Something about the fragrance of the rose made her think of Frank.
“You could have been nicer to him,” a voice whispered.
Rose jumped back. What the hell? “Who’s there?” She spun around the small kitchen. Shivers ran up her spine. She didn’t see anyone, yet she sensed a presence. Cold air brushed past her and settled over the room. She gripped the counter. What the hell’s going on here? “Who’s there?” she yelled again.
“It’s only me.” A shadowy figure appeared in front of her.

Time To Live Again will be released from Red Rose Publishing on March 11th. I'm so excited because Roseanne is an amazing lady. If you'd like to know more about Roseanne and her writing, just click on my links to go to her website. Again, thank you Roseanne Dowell for being here and sorry about the difficulty yesterday.