Bestselling Author Alina Adams and the Soaps

by Jean Henry Mead

Alina Adams is the New York Times bestselling author of Oakdale Confidential, The Man From Oakdale and Jonathan's Story (with Julian London). She has written figure skating mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime, and romances for Avon and Dell. She's currently in the process of converting her entire backlist to enhanced ebooks with audio, video, and more, as well as creating original works such as "Soap Opera 451: A Time Capsule of Daytime Drama's Greatest Moments."

You have an interesting background, Alina. Born in Russia and learning English at age seven by watching soap operas on TV in San Francisco must have influenced your later writing.

I have a very hard time stopping a story. As a reader and as a writer. As a reader, if I fall in love with a particular set of characters, I want the story to continue forever. I feel the same way as a writer. I want to know what happens next. And what happens after that. And after that. And after that. That's why my next project, "Counterpoint," is going to be a continuing series of novels. But, inspired by a project I launched for Procter and Gamble in 2009, http://www.AnotherWorldToday.com, I am actually going to ask readers to chime in on where they want the story to go next, and then I'm going to write it according to their specifications!


Tell us about your writing background?

I've published a dozen novels - regency romance, contemporary romance, non-fiction, and women's fiction with various publishers, ranging from Avon to Simon and Schuster. Now, I have gotten the rights back to a majority of my books and am in the process of releasing them as enhanced e-books. For instance, for my Figure Skating Mystery series, I made a deal with Ice Theatre of New York (http://www.icetheatre.org/) to include their performances in my books to represent the various fictional characters. I also produced a book for a fellow author. Dan Elish is a Broadway writer ("13") and he'd published a children's book in 1988, "The Worldwide Dessert Contest," as well as written a musical score to go with it. I combined the two to create "The Worldwide Dessert Contest: Enhanced Multimedia Edition." I am also developing other titles with writers of romance, Young Adult, and non-fiction to re-release them all as enhanced ebooks. Authors who think they have titles that might benefit from enhancement can contact me at: http://www.alinaadamsmedia.com/.

What was it like working for Proctor and Gamble Productions as website producer for the soaps, “Guiding Light” and “As the World Turns”?

I was there for 10 years, and I had a wonderful time. Writing the websites meant writing in the voices of characters from the show, characters I hadn't created but still needed to bring to life through words (without the help of actors!). It's a great skill for any writer to have.

Tell us about your latest groundbreaking project, Soap Opera 451: A Time Capsule of Daytime Drama's Greatest Moments.

Soap fans love to talk about their favorite moments. And there have been books written on the history of various soaps and stories. But, up until now, you could only read about how great they were, you couldn't actually view the scenes themselves. That's all changed now. Soap Opera 451: A Time Capsule of Daytime Drama's Greatest Moments is a one of a kind book in that, after asking fans and soap experts what were some of the greatest moments of all time, I interviewed the actors, writers, producers and directors involved with those moments - and then I added links to where you could actually view them. It's a completely interactive experience that's never been done before.

How did you become a bestselling author?

Doug Wilson, who directed ABC's figure skating coverage for many, many years tells a story of how, during the 1988 Olympics, he was planning to open Brian Boitano's Long Program with a shot from across the ice. But, the camera he'd designated for it broke down, and he had to improvise what became Boitano's dramatic, opening head-shot, which is still used on retrospective shows today.

According to Doug, "This just goes to show, that if you work hard and prepare and plan everything out... there's not telling how lucky you can get." Like Doug, when it came to being a bestselling author, I got lucky. In December of 2011, I wrote a biography of skater Sarah Hughes, hoping she would at least make a respective showing at the Salt Lake City Olympics. Two months later, she won the whole thing.

In 2006, I pitched the idea of doing a book based on "As the World Turns" to coincide with their 50th Anniversary. The show wrote the book into the on-air story. And "Oakdale Confidential" debuted at #3 on "The New York Times" best-seller list.

Advice for novice writers.

Writing is a job. Treat it like a job. Don't wait for inspiration to strike. Just get up in the morning, do what you have to do (in my case, it's get three kids off to two different schools, pack lunches, and periodically remind my sleepy husband what time it is, so he can make it to work on time), and then sit down and write. (This advice also works if you're an evening person. In that case, just substitute doing the dishes and putting kids to bed for waking them up and packing lunches.) Write one word. Then write the next word. And the next sentence. Keep writing. I think it was Danielle Steele who said, "It's much easier to rewrite a bad page, than a blank page."

Oh, and here is something really depressing. You know those days when the writing flows and it's brilliant and easy? You know those days when every word feels like pulling teeth and sweating blood? Go back and read the whole book a year after it's published. Both passages will read exactly the same.

Finally, don't for a minute think that your job as a writer is done once the book is on the shelves and up at Amazon. Promoting your own work is the most important part of being a writer. As the frustrated artist laments in Stephen Sondheim's "Sunday in the Park with George," "If no one gets to see it, it's as good as dead."

We may not like it, we may wish matters worked differently, but keeping your work alive is your job. Same as writing it.

Alina can be reached via her website: http://www.AlinaAdams.com

A Conversation with Allison Brennan

by Jean Herny Mead

New York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan has published 13 books and three short stories during her career. A former senior consultant for the California State Legislature, she's the mother of five who writes three books a year.

Allison, how does a mother of five manage to write three novels a year?

I don’t sweat the small stuff. Like any working mother, I prioritize. I write when the kids are in school and I write after they go to bed. When I’m close to deadline, I often go to Starbucks after dinner and leave my husband in charge. I have no life outside of my family and writing! But honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love both.

How did your former FBI agent, who became a crime novelist, come about?

The Prey was my fifth book, and my first sale. I started the book years before I got serious about my writing, then like everything else I’d begun, I set it aside. At some point, I found it on my computer—it was 300 incomplete pages of garbage. Great premise, but nothing behind it.

I thought about Rowan Smith, my heroine. Why did she leave the FBI? Why did she start to write crime fiction? At about the same time, I read an article about a murder-suicide. A man who killed his family, then himself. His neighbors and colleagues were stunned—they couldn’t reconcile the man they knew with a killer. I then played the “What if?” game . . . what if one of his children survived the attack? What would she be like? What would she do with her life? How would her past affect her? She became Rowan Smith.

I ended up deleting all but the first two chapters of that first draft, and wrote it fresh.

Do you have a background in journalism or law enforcement? If not, how do you research your novels?

I’ve always been an avid reader. Before I sold, I relied on books for my research. I’m not shy, so I’m always willing to ask questions of people who know more than I do about something I’m interested in. I’m sort of the “Jill of all trades” – I learn a lot about a subject, write about it, then promptly forget most of the details.

Through writing, I’ve found many experts—cops, doctors, criminalists. It’s really a matter of being diligent, double checking, and ultimately, realizing that my primary purpose is to entertain my reader. I just need to know whether a scenario is plausible. It doesn’t have to be probable, just believable. If I can reason it out, I’ll write about it.

I’ve been very lucky now that I’m published to have greater access to experts, and bring in a greater realism to my books. For example, I met my primary FBI contact during research for my eighth book, Tempting Evil, the second in the Prison Break trilogy. I had a secondary character, fugitive apprehension specialist in the FBI, Mitch Bianchi, who was tracking a convict who’d escaped during the earthquake that totaled San Quentin in Killing Fear. Mitch tracked the fugitive to Montana. I was working on revisions and had a few questions that my regular contacts couldn’t seem to answer, so once Washington cleared me, I was given access to the media relations special agent (PIO) in the Sacramento FBI.

I sent him a long list of specific questions and learned real quick that my entire set-up was wrong. Mitch would never have tracked the fugitive through multiple jurisdictions. If he had information that the fugitive was in another state, he would contact that jurisdiction and they’d follow up. This was not good news. I was on a tight deadline—I was working on editor revisions, the book was DONE, and I was just cleaning it up. I couldn’t change his character because that would change the whole book. I asked the PIO a bunch of questions, trying to dig myself out of the hole I’d written (thank you television—NOT!) and then hit on the right question.

“Well, if an agent disobeyed orders or broke the rules by tracking a fugitive into another jurisdiction without following established protocols, what would happen?” The answer? Anything from a reprimand to termination. I love shades of gray!

Not only did this work for the book (and saved me a major last minute rewrite) but it worked for my character. Mitch doesn’t play by the rules, he’s been reprimanded many times and gone before the Office of Professional Responsibility more than once. He’s also smart, dedicated, and decorated.

So at the beginning of Playing Dead, Mitch is off the case because of his blatant disregard of direct orders in Tempting Evil, and is confronted with another difficult choice—if he works the case, he’ll be fired. He’s run out of chances. I had not only established his character, but his primary conflict. It worked so well you’d have thought I’d planned it!

I am truly blessed to have so many resources. In the past three years, some of my research excursions included participating in two SWAT training exercises (with another scheduled in March); touring the FBI Academy at Quantico (going back in October), visited FBI Headquarters in D.C.; visiting Folsom State Prison (with the amazing bestselling thriller writer James Rollins); and two trips to the Sacramento County Morgue–once for a tour and to observe an autopsy, the second time to learn how they preserve evidence. If you really twist my arm, I’ll admit being a non-ambulatory victim during SWAT training was probably the most fun I’ve had in a long, long time . . . which shows you what a boring life I lead! In fact, on Tuesday I’m participating in another SWAT exercise. Not for any specific purpose, but simply to internalize what happens and try to put myself in their shoes . . . and the bad guy.

I’m going back to Quantico this fall--perfect timing to start writing Lucy Kincaid #5, which takes place at Quantico while Lucy is at the FBI Academy. Sometimes, I think I shouldn’t be having so much fun researching . . . but that certainly doesn’t stop me!

Tell us about your Seven Deadly Sins Series.

An evil occult releases the Seven Deadly Sins from Hell as incarnate demons in order to gain eternal youth and beauty. My heroine, Moira O’Donnell, is a former witch who is trying to stop her mother, the occult leader, from fulfilling her agenda. The Seven Deadly Sins is a supernatural thriller series that asks the question, what is your deadliest sin? If your conscious was stripped bare, what sin would you be vulnerable to?

What kind of consulting did you conduct for the California State Legislature?

I was a senior consultant responsible for constitution communication—essentially, I managed the constituent databases for elected officials as well as wrote communication pieces. For example, I would read and analyze legislation and then summarize it in one page or less.

Tell us about your latest series featuring FBI recruit Lucy Kincaid.

In my sixth book, Fear No Evil, Lucy Kincaid was a happy-go-lucky high school senior waiting to hear about college acceptances when she was kidnapped by an online predator. Now, she’s a resolute graduate waiting to hear if she’s been accepted into the FBI Academy at Quantico, haunted by the events in Fear No Evil—where she was kidnapped right before her high school graduation. Lucy has been a favorite of mine since she first walked on the page. I wanted to write a series around her, and was thrilled when my publisher agreed. So many series begin with an established detective or agent in the middle of their career; with Lucy, I start at the beginning, before she’s in the FBI Academy. She’s weeks away from her 25th birthday when Love Me to Death begins.

This book started with the character—I knew I was writing Lucy’s story. I also knew that while I wanted it to tie into her past, I also needed to make sure that the story stood on its own. I wondered what Lucy would be doing now, six years after she was raped and almost killed by an online predator. She’s done many things—college, internships, applying to the FBI—but it’s her volunteer job with a victim rights group that lands her in serious trouble at the beginning of Love Me to Death when she learns that the predators she thinks she’s helping send to prison are ending up dead.

One of the most interesting--and depressing--presentations was from the Supervisory Special Agent in charge of battling child pornography. And it is a battle. The Internet has made child pornography so widespread and virtually unstoppable. If every cop in the country—local, state, and federal—spent 24 hours a day, 7 days a week pursuing on-line predators for a full year, they wouldn’t be able to stop even ten percent of these horrid crimes. And this only includes crimes against children under 14.

The SSA told us that no one lured in by Dateline’s “To Catch a Predator” program, at that point in 2008, had been arrested or convicted as a result of being “caught” on the show.

And I wondered, what if? What if Lucy found herself in a “catch a predator” type plan . . . but the predators ended up dead? What would she do? I began to think about vigilantism in general, and motivation in particular. The idea opened up more research into average sentences for sex offenders, recidivism rates, and statistic on early release programs. No one thing gave me the story—it was a variety of threads I spun together.

The second book in the series, Kiss Me, Kill Me, also started with an idea I got through the FBI citizens academy about underage prostitutes. While KMKM has nothing to do with prostitution, the online element of underage girls voluntarily engaging in online sex chats came from what I learned. I wondered what would happen if the girls agreed to meet some of these guys. I read an article about underground parties, then in the course of my research about that found an online photojournal and contacted the photographer. I had a bunch of questions, and he graciously answered. I then decided to set KMKM in New York City with abandoned warehouses and underground parties as the backdrop.

And now, for book three in the series (If I Should Die, December 2011), I’m researching closed mines in upstate New York. While I can’t travel to the Adirondacks before the book is due to my publisher, I’ve made contact with the owner of a mine here in California to help me with some of the details.

What are the most difficult and most enjoyable aspects of writing for you?

I love writing. I love getting into the heads of my characters and seeing how they react to whatever situation I put them in. I love both writing and revising, editing and proofing. The whole process.

Difficult? I want to make each book better than the last, and because I fear I won’t be able to write stronger, better stories, I tend to panic. I’m constantly worried that what I’m writing is mediocre, that I’ll disappoint my editor and my readers.

How did you acquire an agent?

The old-fashioned way: blind queries. For the first four books I wrote, I received over 200 rejections. For The Prey, I had a feeling I had finally found my voice, that this was “it.” I queried 12 agents and had seven requests for full manuscripts. I ultimately went with an agent at a major NY agency, who sold me to Ballantine and negotiated six contracts for a total of 17 books.
Last year I went through another agent hunt (long story) and the benefit of being a published author means that I could call agents on the phone and most would talk to me and read my work. Out of six agents I spoke with, three offered representation. While just as stressful as my unpublished agent hunt, it was still easier.

Advice to fledgling writers?

Write. Revise. Learn to self-edit. Learn to discern good advice out of all the crappy advice you get. Learn to be self-critical without destroying your confidence. No one is a master out of the gate; even the masters practiced for years. Be smart about the business, because publishing is a business first. Write because you love to write, not because you want to be published. Write because you can’t imagine not writing. Writing is a business, but it’s also creative, and thus unique. You have to love what you write because if you sell, you’ll be writing that type of story potentially for years. Don’t write to trends, because trends change, but write what you love—then position it to fit the market. And while some rules are important—such as punctuation—don’t get hung up on arbitrary rules. Write boldly and with passion, because that’s what it takes to stand out in this tight market. But mostly, write with the love of writing, because even when you curse the computer and your lack of imagination and your fear of failure and your fear of success, even when you think you’re writing total garbage, deep down you love it because it’s you.

Thank you, Allison. You can visit Allison at her website: http://www.allisonbrennan.com/ as well as her blog sites:
http://murderati.com/ and http://murdershewrites.com/
At Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Allison-Brennan/260434194559
and Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Allison_Brennan