The Writers Studio: March 2015

Monday, March 30, 2015

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT - Tierney James

Today's Author Spotlight shines on Tierney James. Tierney and I first met at an author signing prior to our local Ozarks Romance Authors conference and we've been buds ever since. She is the sweetest lady you will ever meet and beyond talented in various fields (as you'll see below in her bio)

About Tierney James:

Tierney James is a former Solar System Ambassador for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab as well as a former geography teacher. Besides working on a Native American reservation, floating the Okavango Delta of Botswana, Africa and visiting The Great Wall of China, she has spent time at Space Camp for Educators and volunteering her time for Friends of the Library board. Living in a mining community for many years led to writing the novel, The Rescued Heart, a romantic suspense. Between traveling, gardening and writing, Tierney serves as an officer for Sleuth’s Ink, a mystery writing group. Creating a writing workshop for beginning writers is her latest project.

Thank you, Tierney for joining us today!

Note: My apologies for question 5. Nothing I do puts things in correct alignment. Everything looks fine in preview. LOL

Let's see what T (that's what I call her) has to say in response to my questions...

1) Why do you write?

My writing generates because I have a very over active imagination. Even when I was a little girl I wrote puppet plays, pretended, and dreamed of bigger things. My parents used to ask, “What’s wrong with you?” This is a true story. It is therapy for the soul. Even when I’m not in front of the computer, I’m writing in my head. Breathing and writing. Same thing.

2) What is your ‘Daily Mantra’ for writing? What gets you to your keyboard above other activities?

I do start each day with a daily devotion and thankfulness for this life I’ve been given. It doesn’t take much to get me to the keyboard. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and look at the clock to see how much longer I have to lay there before I can get started on my work in progress. My trouble is taking care of things that need to be done, like laundry and cooking.

3) What is the best writing advice you ever received?

I’ve met many people in the last couple of years from Ozark Romance Authors and Sleuths’ Ink that helped give me confidence. With their encouragement and support I’ve been able to free myself of self-doubt and just do the job of writing. You are one of those people! Don’t give up. Just write. Listen to the voices in your head. Go to conferences. Drink lots of coffee. All of that is advice I’ve taken to heart.

4) What is your favorite genre to write and why?

My favorite genre to write is suspense/thriller. I love the edge of your seat kind of stories, movies and adventures. I have since I was a little kid. I would much rather go see American Sniper or Indiana Jones than a movie like The Notebook or Dear John. Having said that I like them too, but not my favorites.

5) What is the one key career you remember from your childhood of wanting to be when you grew up?
The number one thing was to be an astronaut. I loved science and NASA. Later I got to go to Space Camp for Educators and then became an ambassador for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab. My second thing was to be a famous writer. Although the famous part probably won’t happen since I just started to take writing seriously a couple of years ago, I am at least a published author. Then I wanted to be a teacher. I loved doing that for 35 years. Because I’m a life-long learner writing and research went hand in hand.

Here's a blurb from Tierney's cool bookmarks about The Rescued Heart