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“A few years ago, we turned an attic storage area off of our bonus room into an office for me,” Lynn said. “Half of the ceiling is angled to the floor because it’s the roofline, but it’s a room of my own for writing. My kids are used to me saying, ‘This is the part where you pretend Mommy has left the house.’”

The post Lynn Blackburn’s Room of Her Own (Episode 34) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“I think time is like a closet,” Dana said. “If you have a small closet, you fill it up. If you suddenly gotten yourself a big closet, you fill it up. No matter the how much space or time you have, you’re going to fill it up.”

The post How Dana Mentink Fills Her Closet (Episode 33) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“I don’t know how I’ve written 80 books,” Lenora said. “I’ve always wanted to write from a young age, and when I finally had the opportunity, it took a few years. I really enjoy writing and I have a vivid imagination. When I look back, I think how I did I do that. I’ve written novels, novellas, short stories, poetry, worked for newspapers, worked for magazines—and it was all coming from this need to put words on the page.”

The post Lenora Worth’s Lifelong Desire to Write (Episode 32) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“It was kind of difficult finding a balance to write at first,” Sara said. “I primarily get up early—and it’s hopefully before anyone else is up—between five and five-thirty, and then try to get as much writing as I can before everyone else is getting up. Whatever writing doesn’t get done, I try to fit it in between math, etc.”

The post Sara Blackard’s Early Morning Inspiration (Episode 31) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“When watching movies, I use them to draw inspiration as far as character ideas, flaws for the characters, plot engines, and how other writers have put together the steps to create the plots,” Gina said. “When I relax my mind that way, I’m also able to think of things for my own books and ideas come to mind.”

The post Movies Provide Inspiration For Gina Holder (Episode 30) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“For me, I think there are a few things hard about writing romantic suspense,” Deena said. “One is keeping up that level of suspense through the whole story. Second, balancing that with the romance. Since I write inspirational, it’s also balancing the faith element with the suspense and romance—all while not letting the story get boring.”

The post Deena Alexander on Balancing Romance, Suspense & Faith (Episode 29) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“One of my secrets is that when I decided to start writing, I gave up TV,” Cara said. “I figured out what was that thing in my life that I could cut out and make space for writing.”

The post What Cara Putman Gave Up to Write (Episode 28) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“When I decided to write a book, it was natural for me to segue into romantic suspense,” Lynette said. “I was a suspense fan and a romance fan, so combining the two was fun.”

The post Lynette Eason on Why She Writes Romantic Suspense (Episode 27) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“If somebody tells me the end of a book or a movie, it doesn’t ruin it for me,” Wendy said. “I still want to go back and read or watch it because I want to know how that ending came to pass.”

The post How Wendy Wilson Spooner Tracks Down Her Characters (Episode 26) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.

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“I’ve never seen a story where a court reporter was the main character,” Kelly said. “It fit so well into the crime genre because they’re responsible for the evidence in trials. A lot of people think they’re just transcribers, but there’s a tremendous amount of work that goes into recording the trial.”

The post How Kelly Irvin Turned a Side Job Into a Novel (Episode 25) first appeared on Author Sarah Hamaker.