Writer Wednesday Interview and GIVEAWAY with Elizabeth Meyette
Celebrate the
Audiobook Edition of The Cavanaugh House
with this Giveaway
GIVEAWAY ALERT: Enter to win a $25
Amazon Gift Card below!
Welcome, Elizabeth! When and how did you first become
interested in writing?
I was smitten with writing from the
time I could hold a pencil and scrawl nonsense scribbles on paper. Mrs.
McGrath, my third grade teacher, told me I was a very good writer and that
affirmation launched my love of words. My first poem was published when I was a
high school sophomore, and I wrote for our high school newspaper. I majored in
English and minored in Journalism in college, and I wrote for my college paper.
On a dare, I wrote a romance novel. Eventually, it became my first published
book.
'The Cavanaugh House' isn't a traditional romance - what makes it different?
One convention of a traditional
romance is scenes that alternate between the heroine’s and hero’s point of
view. The Cavanaugh House is told in
limited omniscient point of view through my heroine Jesse. So the only way we
know what Joe, the hero, is thinking is through his words or Jesse’s
observations of his facial expression or body language. Other than POV, it’s a
pretty conventional romance—they meet and fall in love, there are
complications, they are separated, they reunite, a happily ever after ending.
As I began to listen to Amy
McFadden narrate my story, I got teary-eyed.
It was overwhelming. Those were my words! Someone was reading my words! My
husband Rich walked in and gave me a hug—he totally gets it. Amy warned me that
my characters would not sound like they had in my head all the time I was
writing the book, and I was grateful that she said that. But even though some
of them didn’t sound like I’d imagined, Amy nailed it, especially with Jesse. I
was thrilled.
Who are your favorite romantic authors?
My older sister introduced me to
Victoria Holt and her gothic novels when I was in high school. I devoured them
all. Of course, now I read Nora Roberts and Diana Gabaldon. I’ve been reading
romances by authors I’ve come to be friends with, but I’m afraid if I only name
a couple I will miss someone J.
I especially love historical romance and romantic suspense. Oh, and Shakespeare—there’s
lots of romance in his works LOL.
Which other genres do you like to
read?
I have to admit that I like some
romance in any genre I read. Mystery is my favorite, so I love Janet Evanovich
and Patricia Cornwell. I’ve read every mystery Agatha Christie wrote, and love Sherlock
Holmes and other British mysteries. I also like paranormal, fantasy and some
sci-fi. I used to teach high school English, so of course I love the American classics.
To Kill a Mockingbird is my all time
favorite, but I love The Great Gatsby,
Dandelion Wine, even The Grapes of Wrath!
Janet Evanovich always makes me smile, and I love a good mystery too. To Kill a Mockingbird is a great book as well - I so admire Harper Lee's writing. Speaking of writing, what’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve been given?
HOKBIS. Hands on Keyboard; Butt in
Seat. There is no other way for this to happen, my friend.
The Cavanaugh House excerpt:
This house held
secrets. Secrets that wafted through
rotting window sashes on the winter wind.
Secrets that spiders wove into webs anchored between the ceiling and walls.
Secrets that scuttled on the feet of cockroaches across stained kitchen
linoleum and scurried into its cracks. Secrets that peered from holes in the
baseboard from glinting mouse eyes. This house held the secrets close to its
bosom where they had slept for decades. No one had disturbed these secrets in
all the years the house sat decaying from neglect. There was no reason to, and
there was no desire.
The Cavanaugh House blurb:
When
Jesse Graham unlocks the door to the deserted house she inherited from her Aunt
Helen, she doesn’t realize she’s unlocking secrets that had lain dormant for
years. Reeling from a broken engagement to acclaimed musician Robert
Cronmiller, Jesse wants to leave the city where her name is linked to his in
all the society pages. Her best friend Maggie, aka Sister Angelina, convinces
her to take a job at a private girls’ school in the pastoral Finger Lakes
region of upstate New York. Anticipating a quiet, revitalizing life in her
aunt’s deserted house, Jesse is instead thrown into a maze of danger. Questions
about her aunt’s death lead Jesse to investigate events surrounding it and the
people involved, but she uncovers a web of deceit that reaches far beyond the
occurrences of over two decades earlier. Still dejected from her broken
engagement, Jesse finds it difficult to trust anyone, even her self-absorbed
mother. Joe Riley is irresistible, but secrets obstruct involvement with him
until Jesse can solve the secrets of the Cavanaugh House. Someone doesn’t want
those secrets unearthed and will stop at nothing, even murder, to keep them
hidden.
Where can readers find you and your books?
Thank you for inviting me to your
lovely blog today, Stephanie. Readers can find me and my books at the
following:
In
the UK:
In
the US:
My
audiobook version of The Cavanaugh House
is available on:
I
love visits, and you can find me at
Thanks for inviting me to your lovely blog today, Stephanie!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting point. I never thought about characters sounding differently from the ones we dream up. It's a frightening prospect in a way what if your soft voiced heroine becomes a Harpie with an nasal scream? Obviously that didn't happen to your audio book, Elizabeth. Best of luck with this new version.
ReplyDeleteYou are so right, J. Arlene! I sent Amy detailed character sketches including what each one's voice was like (sweet soprano, alpha-male bass, feisty alto) to help her "hear" them like I do.
DeleteThanks for visiting, Elizabeth! Arlene, I once wrote a radio play which a local theatre group recorded for community radio, and it was fascinating to hear my characters brought to life by the actors (including my super-talented friend, the actress and author Angela Wren).
ReplyDeleteStephanie, that must have been a very fun project! I've been tinkering with a play for a couple of years because I love to write dialogue. Thanks for having me on your blog today!
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