THURSDAY THIRTEEN--Linda Winfree
warning: this green bit is all about how brilliant I am and not much about Linda. She's one of those people I knew would be published. I read her unpubbed work and thought any minute. So I was off by a year but...Ha! I knew it. She has a new book out. I haven't read it yet but I will. Oh, yes. I will read her books. And here's my review of another Winfree book.
Linda Winfree talks about Linda Winfree
1. I was a child bride. I’m almost 38 and will celebrate 19 years of marriage the same month. You do the math. (Oh, heavens. That’s half my life I’ve been married. That’s kinda . . . frightening.)
2. I have two Monsters. One is looking me in the eye and can outrun me since he started cross country. He’s very smart and wants to be an architect (he did not inherit the math or artistic ability he has from me). The other . . . The other is very smart and will one day take over the world. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
3. I’ve been the wife of a cop, truck driver, logistics manager and miner. All while being married to the same man.
4. My husband has only ever been married to an English teacher. My alter ego is the Evil English Overlord. Students fear me. (I wish. They love me. Okay, they do respect me – is that a form of fear?) Well, my husband actually is now married to a multi-published romance author as well. It’s done much to up his “street cred” with the boys at the mine. They think he gets lots of sex and will be a rich, kept man one day. (They are obviously delusional.) 5. I want to live at the beach. Alas, it is not going to happen soon. The Monsters are too devoted to my mom, who lives five minutes away. Grandma trumps beach, obviously.
6. I can quote The Great Gatsby. And Miller’s The Crucible. I’ve taught Gatsby so often I can pinpoint happenings and quotes in my Bruccoli version of the book when kids ask a question. Like down to the page, paragraph and almost to the line. It scares them.
7. I live on oatmeal, Special K Vanilla-Almond, and good coffee. When I’m really, really feeling indulgent, I hit the Big Dawg for French fries.
8. I spent nine years writ
ing my most recent release, Hold On to Me. Yes, NINE years. Writing, rewriting, gutting, putting back together. Probably why it’s my favorite book.
9, My favorite character? Other writer’s – John Proctor, The Crucible. Mine – Tick Calvert from Hold On to Me, among other books. He just won’t go away. Winds up in every. Darn. Thing. I. Write. 10. My mother insists I should send my new print release What Mattered Most to Oprah. And Martha Stuart. I’ve tried to explain how many books a year Oprah (and Martha) probably receive. She won’t listen. Now she has everyone else on the bandwagon, too: my cousin Marty the millionaire, my aunt, my sisters, the ladies at the bank, her next door neighbor.
11. As an author, I have been the equivalent of “Famous in a Small Town.” My name was up on the town marquee (until I was bumped by the Ole Timers baseball game). I made both local newspapers (one article is here: in the Albany Herald). I had a book signing at the local bookstore and sold through sixty copies. I beat the former record-holder, an elderly woman from Baker County who had thirty copies sold.
12. I am highly competitive. Once I found out how many copies the old lady had sold, I was determined I’d sell at least thirty-one.
13. I have this thing for clothes. And shoes – really fashionable heels. And jewelry. I have a hard time dressing down to T-shirts and sneakers. But I have quite the impressive collection of school spirit shirts. I could wear a different spirit shirt every Friday for more than three months.
Links of interest:
www.lindawinfree.com
www.samhainpublishing.com/authors/linda-winfree
http://lindawinfree.blogspot.com
Linda Winfree talks about Linda Winfree
1. I was a child bride. I’m almost 38 and will celebrate 19 years of marriage the same month. You do the math. (Oh, heavens. That’s half my life I’ve been married. That’s kinda . . . frightening.)
2. I have two Monsters. One is looking me in the eye and can outrun me since he started cross country. He’s very smart and wants to be an architect (he did not inherit the math or artistic ability he has from me). The other . . . The other is very smart and will one day take over the world. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
3. I’ve been the wife of a cop, truck driver, logistics manager and miner. All while being married to the same man.
4. My husband has only ever been married to an English teacher. My alter ego is the Evil English Overlord. Students fear me. (I wish. They love me. Okay, they do respect me – is that a form of fear?) Well, my husband actually is now married to a multi-published romance author as well. It’s done much to up his “street cred” with the boys at the mine. They think he gets lots of sex and will be a rich, kept man one day. (They are obviously delusional.) 5. I want to live at the beach. Alas, it is not going to happen soon. The Monsters are too devoted to my mom, who lives five minutes away. Grandma trumps beach, obviously.
6. I can quote The Great Gatsby. And Miller’s The Crucible. I’ve taught Gatsby so often I can pinpoint happenings and quotes in my Bruccoli version of the book when kids ask a question. Like down to the page, paragraph and almost to the line. It scares them.
7. I live on oatmeal, Special K Vanilla-Almond, and good coffee. When I’m really, really feeling indulgent, I hit the Big Dawg for French fries.
8. I spent nine years writ
ing my most recent release, Hold On to Me. Yes, NINE years. Writing, rewriting, gutting, putting back together. Probably why it’s my favorite book.9, My favorite character? Other writer’s – John Proctor, The Crucible. Mine – Tick Calvert from Hold On to Me, among other books. He just won’t go away. Winds up in every. Darn. Thing. I. Write. 10. My mother insists I should send my new print release What Mattered Most to Oprah. And Martha Stuart. I’ve tried to explain how many books a year Oprah (and Martha) probably receive. She won’t listen. Now she has everyone else on the bandwagon, too: my cousin Marty the millionaire, my aunt, my sisters, the ladies at the bank, her next door neighbor.
11. As an author, I have been the equivalent of “Famous in a Small Town.” My name was up on the town marquee (until I was bumped by the Ole Timers baseball game). I made both local newspapers (one article is here: in the Albany Herald). I had a book signing at the local bookstore and sold through sixty copies. I beat the former record-holder, an elderly woman from Baker County who had thirty copies sold.
12. I am highly competitive. Once I found out how many copies the old lady had sold, I was determined I’d sell at least thirty-one.
13. I have this thing for clothes. And shoes – really fashionable heels. And jewelry. I have a hard time dressing down to T-shirts and sneakers. But I have quite the impressive collection of school spirit shirts. I could wear a different spirit shirt every Friday for more than three months.
Links of interest:
www.lindawinfree.com
Kate: now when will you be right about ME, huh? /*whine*
ReplyDeleteLinda: I think Kate should host a contest with your book as a prize, don't you?
IF you'd look at the link, Those people I knew would be published. you'd see your name, Dr. HOffman.
ReplyDeleteHmmmm. Yep,and I think everyone else in there is.
(Bron got such a great contract, she can quit other jobs for a couple of years.)
Hey, Doug, I think that's an idea!
ReplyDeleteKate -- you come up with the contest. Winner gets choice of my ebook backlist.
My mom and dad married at 19, which I thought was so young when I was growing up. Then I got married at 21. Not that much different! And yes, my mom keeps asking if I'll be on Oprah one day...
ReplyDeleteVery impressive Linda. I didn't know you were an English teacher. I'll have to remember to watch my p's and q's around you.
ReplyDeleteCarrie, at least we didn't compound the error by having children immediately. I would not have been ready for that. Heck, I wasn't ready at 25 & 27!
ReplyDeleteAnd DH was a cradle robber. The man was 26. He should have known almost-19 was too young!
LOL, Denise. Wish my students would watch theirs . . .
I've got your contest up, Winfree. Go on, pick your color.
ReplyDelete