Friday, April 6, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with GENIE GABRIEL

The first five sentences of... PICTURE PERFECT LEGACY

Don't take my baby. Please don't take my baby. The woman's plea whispered in the steady swish, swish of the wipers. Her image wavered among the falling flakes of snow, horror streaking in anguished tears down her face. Marly O'Shea shivered and forced her attention back to the narrow, twisting road grudgingly carved out of the side of the mountain.

Available now!

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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT GENIE

1. Tell me about the first novel you ever wrote? What ever happened to it?

It was published fourteen years after I started writing it. :) And the rest of the story… Like most teenaged girls, I was infatuated with a few rock stars. So when I was supposedly grown up and started writing, I thought a rock star would make a good hero of a romance book. Well, if you overlooked the rock star's mantra of "drugs, sex, and rock'n'roll." So my hero became a reformed rock star. And did someone say celebrity-type heroes don't sell well unless it's an exposé to a tabloid? Um, I must have missed that e-mail. I blithely started writing. And writing. And writing. Six-hundred pages later, I realized the story was far too long for any contemporary romance markets.

I had also been attending Romance Writers of America meetings and conferences and was learning the craft of writing. Point of view? Character arcs? Conflict? Building tension? Oops! I totally rewrote that book over half a dozen times, but I loved the two main characters and wanted to tell their story. I "came close" to selling it to New York publishers--meaning I got personal rejection letters from editors.

Fourteen years after I started writing THE ROCK STAR, I sold it to an e-book publisher. I later got my rights back and another e-publisher re-issued it last fall with its current title and a new cover. I still love that story and continue to promote it along with my more recent books.

2. If you had a free afternoon, what’s the first thing you’d do?

Find some work to do? LOL! I'm happiest when I'm busy. I'm also at a point in my life where I can pretty much do what I want. So I write. I'm also a graphic designer and I love to design book covers. I have a herd of doggies--mostly rescues--who have taught me more than I ever learned in a classroom. I am a Reiki master and experience miracles every day. The door to my office opens onto the deck to my back yard and I can meander out and dig in the dirt if I want to. If I scheduled a free afternoon, I'd sit on the bench under my magnolia tree and read books, or go play with my kids and grandkids.

3. If you won the lottery, what’s the first thing you’d buy?

Funny this is one of your questions! I bought a ticket for the $640 million lottery drawing just for fun. What would you do with that much money? Pay off the mortgages of everyone you know? However, what I would buy first is property for my herd of doggies so the animal sanctuary I've planned for years would have room to spread out!

More about Genie
For years I've been fascinated by the puzzle of why some people collapse under life's traumas and others emerge triumphantly stronger. These triumphs of the human spirit over the ugliest of adversities became the basis for my stories. Yet my dramatic stories have always contained touches of humor, and sometimes I have great fun writing romantic comedy novellas. However, in all my stories, my passion for writing romance is an outlet for the powerful messages that people can overcome great difficulties, and true love can turn life’s heartaches into happily ever after.

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THANK YOU, Rebecca, for having me as a guest on your blog today! Maybe just for fun, anyone who comments would tell me what they would buy first if they won the lottery. I love to hear people's dreams!

And…it's not the lottery, but anyone who comments here will be entered in the contest drawing I'm having on my LEGACY blog for a $15 gift card. The drawing will be April 27. If you want to check out that blog, the url is http://oshealegacyseries.blogspot.com/. You can also check out my Web site http://www.GenieGabriel.com for more information about me and about my books.

Thanks to everyone who stops by!

11 comments:

  1. Hi, all! I'll be away from my computer for a chunk of the afternoon on Friday, so if I'm slow responding to comments, please be patient. I'll check in as soon as I can.

    Thank you again, Rebecca, for having me as a guest on your blog!

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  2. Hi Genene, You're use of your lottery winnings does not surprise me one bit. ;) I'd be the same. Make sure all my kids had the house/property they wanted. Then I'd spread the wealth.

    Good luck with your book!

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  3. Oh, I loved this post. Such unique questions, Rebecca AND Genie, I loved your responses. The lottery question got my attention to visit, so, yeah... kudos for the emotional grab!
    As for what I'd do with lottery winnings, and sorry if this sounds morbid, but right away I'd move my grandfather's remains to reside with my grandmother's remains. Right now they are resting in two different states.
    Good luck with your book.

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  4. Hi, Paty! Figured the sanctuary for my doggies wouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows me. :)

    Having a place to call home for those I care about, especially in the current economy, is very appealing.

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  5. Hi, Stanalei! Glad you enjoyed the post. I'll be there's a story behind your grandfather's and grandmother's remains being in different states. Maybe that will happen even if you don't win a lottery jackpot. :)

    Thanks for the well wishes and for stopping by!

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  6. Genene, thanks so much for coming on today. Loved your answers. :) What would I do if I won the lottery? Assuming it was the Mega Millions (is anything less even worth going for? LOL), after paying off all the mortgages of our moms, dads, siblings, best friends, I'd buy a beach house someplace warm. That and a good book and I'd be happy.

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  7. Ok, my second try. Had to shut down the computer and log back on to publish this comment. So, what if I won the lottery? I'd travel around the world and take as much time as I wanted.

    Fun post Genene.

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  8. Hi, Rebecca! Oh, a beach house someplace WARM sounds heavenly! I'm having a heck of a time adjusting from sunshine one minute to hail the next. I'm still wearing my winter woolies to walk my dogs! LOL!

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  9. Hi, Chris! Traveling around the world sounds wonderful! But I know I wouldn't even make it to the airport before I'd miss my doggies. Guess I'd just have to travel vicariously from the photos you send back. :)

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  10. Just checking for comments one last time before I walk my doggies and wrap things up for the night. Many thanks to all who visited and commented. And many thanks again to Rebecca for having me as a guest!

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  11. Hi Genie and Rebecca! If I won the lottery it would be because my DH bought the ticket, LOL. I'd buy property on the coast in/near Astoria, Oregon, buy my husband a dive boat, take care of the siblings and kids and set up college funds for the grandkids. I'd invest enough to live comfortably and then donate the rest to my faith and to charity.

    What a fun fantasy!

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