2.12.15 - 7 Minutes With... Erica Spindler
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When I was a (very) novice writer, I read several books by a woman named Erica Spindler. One of my favorites was COPYCAT, possibly one of the best thrillers I’ve read in the past decade. Little did I know Erica and I were destined to meet, and to become such good friends. I was simply in awe of her talent, her fearlessness, and her ability to draw me into a tale.
All these years later, I feel exactly the same way, though now I have the distinct honor and privilege to call Erica friend.
At RWA in Orlando, I believe it was, Nora Roberts gave a keynote where she said you need to find the four or five people in your writing world you trust with your life, create a tribe, and stick with them. Her words struck me – and it wasn’t long after when I knew Erica was one of my tribemates. Was it the weekend in Omaha, where so many of my permanent friendships were born? Was it a joint love of wine, of New Orleans, of the twists in our brains? I don’t know, but I can say I don’t know many women with hearts so pure, so generous, so kind. Not only is she an incredible writer who constantly amazes me with her imagination, dedication and talent, she’s a lovely woman, a confidant extraordinaire, someone I want to emulate, in writing, and in life.
Her new novel THE FIRST WIFE is out this week. I can’t recommend it highly enough. Rush out and grab your copy, then settle in with some Starbucks and get to know my buddy Erica a little better.
Set your music to shuffle and hit play. What’s the first song that comes up?
Phillip Phillips, "Gone, Gone, Gone"
Now that we’ve set the mood, what are you working on today?
RANDOM ACTS, an e-novella. It’s a prequel to Light Keepers, a series I’m launching later this year, and will be included in SWEET DREAMS a boxed set author Brenda Novak is putting together to benefit Diabetes Research. Oh, and promotion for THE FIRST WIFE!
What’s your latest book about?
Bailey Browne is both a realist and a romantic. She always dreamed of finding Prince Charming, a knight in shining armor to whisk her away from her ordinary life. On a Caribbean vacation, she meets him. Bailey falls head-over-heels in love; impossibly, he feels the same for her. He proposes; they marry in a romantic whirlwind. Only as Bailey begins her new life on his Louisiana horse farm, surrounded by his secretive family and whispers of his dark past and the disappearance of his first wife, does Bailey realize she knows nothing about this man other than she’s has given herself to him, heart and soul.
Where do you write, and what tools do you use?
I do most of my writing in the coffeehouse; I find being surrounded by activity less distracting than the silent demands of home. My tools of choice are a MacBook Pro, spiral notebooks—for notes, brainstorming and giving my muse a break from the keyboard—mechanical pencils and a giant dry erase board in my home office.
What was your favorite book as a child?
I had a favorite series: the Trixie Beldon mystery series. As far as I’m concerned, Trix was not only ahead of her time, she still rocks.
What book are you reading now?
Fiction: BREAKING CREED by Alex Kava. It’s book one in a new series from her and I’m enthralled. Non-fiction: HEAVEN by Randy Alcorn. It’s an in-depth look at what Scripture says about heaven. (Forget the puffy clouds and harps!)
What’s your favorite bit of writing advice?
Sorry, but I can’t limit myself to just one because different folks benefit from different advice. Here are my top three: 1- Believe in yourself. 2- Write what you love to read, not what you think is selling. 3- Write everyday.
What do you do if the words aren’t flowing.
I hate when the words aren’t flowing! I find changing my environment helps the most. Write outside or go to the coffeehouse. Take a break for a non-writing activity—I like walking, but I have friends who garden, bake or read. Calling a trusted friend to brainstorm works, too. Anything that takes my critical left brain out of the equation and gives my muse a chance to recharge.
What would you like to be remembered for?
This is totally non-writing related, but the first thing that popped into my head was being kind. What better legacy than to be remembered as someone who was kind to others and a positive force in the world?
Erica Spindler is the New York Times and International Chart bestselling author of thirty novels and two eNovellas. Published in twenty-five countries, she has been called the “The master of addictive suspense” and “Queen of the romantic thriller.”
A Romance Writers of America Honor Roll member, Erica received a Kiss of Death Award for her novels FORBIDDEN FRUIT and SEE JANE DIE, won the prestigious Daphne du Maurier Award for excellence for her novel BONE COLD and is a four-time RITA® Award finalist. In 1999, Publishers Weekly awarded the audio version of her novel SHOCKING PINK a Listen-Up Award, naming it one of the best audio mystery books of 1998. Her newest novel, THE FIRST WIFE, is available in stores everywhere.
Erica lives just outside of New Orleans with her husband and two sons.
And here's a little bit more about Erica's new book, THE FIRST WIFE:
As a child, Bailey Browne dreamed of a knight in shining armor swooping in to rescue her and her mother. As she grew older, those dreams transformed, becoming ones of a mysterious stranger who swept her off her feet and whisked her away from her ordinary existence. Then, suddenly, there he was. Despite the ten year difference in their ages, her working class upbringing and his of privilege, Logan Abbott and Bailey fall deeply in love. Marriage quickly follows.
But when Logan brings her home to his horse farm in Louisiana, a magnificent estate on ninety wooded acres, her dreams of happily-ever-after begin to unravel. A tragic family history she knew nothing about, plus whisperings about the disappearance of his first wife, True, and rumors about the women from the area who have gone missing—and when another woman disappears, all signs point to her husband's involvement.
At first Bailey ignores the whispers—even as they grow louder and circumstantial evidence against Logan mounts. But finally, Bailey must make a choice: believe what everyone says is true—or bet her life on the man she loves, but is realizing she hardly knows.
And if you want to say hi to Erica while she's out promoting THE FIRST WIFE, you can catch her on her book tour--details below!
LOUISIANA
February 10th
6:30 PM
B&N Metairie
3721 Veterans Memorial Blvd.
Metairie, LA 70002
Store: 504-455-4929
February 11th
7:00 PM
Jefferson Parish Library (with Alex Kava)
4747 Napoleon Ave, Metairie, LA
Contact: Chris Smith
February 14th
11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
B&N Mandeville
3414 Hwy 190
Ste. 10
Mandeville, LA 70471
Store: 985-626-8884
HOUSTON, TX
February 22nd
2:00 – 4:00 PM
Katy Budget Books
2450 Fry Rd.
Houston, TX 77084
Store: 281-578-7770
February 23rd
6:30 PM
Murder by the Book
2342 Bissonnet St.
Houston, TX 77005
Store: 713-524-8597
NASHVILLE, TN
March 1st
2:00 PM
Erica Spindler w/ J.T. Ellison
Parnassus Books
3900 Hillsboro Pike
Nashville, TN 37215
Store: 615-953-2243
NEW ORLEANS, LA
March 4th
7:00 PM
Fleur de Lit., Reading Between the Wines
Pearl Wine Co.
3700 Orleans Ave.
New Orleans, LA
TUCSON, AZ
March 14
10:00 – 11:00 (with Catherine Coulter & Brenda Novak)
Tucson Festival of Books
University of Arizona
Koffler Room 218 – book signing to follow
March 15
10:00 – 11:00 (with Iris Johansen & Brenda Novak)
Tucson Festival of Books
University of Arizona
Koffler Room 218 – book signing to follow
