My dogs race through the tall grasses while I meander along, enjoying the views of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, and the fields, and thinking about plot points and characters. I often figure out ways to solve a story’s problem on these walks.
I have a side table covered with papers to be filed, a cupboard for my office supplies, and vintage pottery and tins to hold pens and postcards. On the left of my laptop, I keep a Slinky Jr. that I habitually fidget with while I think or talk on the phone.
Finally, I get to work on my fiction. My romantic comedy, Nancy’s Theory of Style (under my pen-name Grace Coopersmith) was published in May, and Haunted Honeymoon, Casa Dracula Book 4, is available September 28. My next book will be The Shadow Girl of Birch Grove, a young adult gothic to be published by Tor Books. My new editor will send me her notes and I’ll dive into that world, my trusty Slinky Jr. by my side.
‘Where Stories Are Made’ is a new feature here at Book Chick City. It’s where the author takes us on a tour of their writing place, be it an office, coffee shop or park and tells us about their writing day and rituals.
My guest today is the lovely paranormal romance author, Marta Acosta…
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
For most of my life, I had to get up well before 7:00 to get to work or drop a kid off to school, so I would always miss “The California Report,” a news update on the local public radio station that played at 6:50 a.m. I loved this brief radio show about all the political happenings in my state, and I enjoyed holidays when I could stay in bed and listen to it. Well, be careful what you wish for. Writing full-time means that I don’t have to dash off to an office every morning, but now that I can listen to the show, California is in a terrible financial crisis and all the news is horrible and depressing.
So sometimes I just turn off the alarm-clock radio and get up.
I don’t really need an alarm clock, since my rescued dogs, Betty and Bosco, wait outside my bedroom door early every morning, and the sound of them tap-dancing anxiously wakes me up. I start the day by taking them to a vast open park on the San Francisco Bay. There are gorgeous snowy cranes and egrets, mallards, brown pelicans, cormorants, and blue herons. In the autumn, geese fly overhead in formation.
When I return home, I go to my “office,” which is an alcove off my bedroom. I’ve owned a lot of desks that were unsatisfactory in some way or another – too big, too wobbly, insufficient drawer space – and now I have a narrow and indestructible Steelcase desk that’s perfect. It’s placed in front of a window facing the back garden. Immediately outside is a pergola with California native grape growing on it. Mockingbirds, dove, robins, and blue jays visit and squirrels scamper along it.
My first task is reading all my emails and checking for news on my books. Then I write a post for Vampire Wire, my paranormal/urban fantasy blog. I usually get caught up in the nonsense of this blog and it’s a while before I get around to making coffee and reading the daily news. After that, I take care of the business of writing, which can be related to marketing materials, updating my websites, fan correspondence, whatever. You’d be surprised by all the collateral work that surrounds writing.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
You can find out more about this feature HERE
**Next time on ‘Where Stories Are Made’: Rachel Vincent**
13 Comments
Thanks Marta for giving us a glimpse of how you spend a typical day, I enjoyed reading about it very much, and thanks especially for the photos!
Reply
What a great insight into Marta's writing life. I must go check out her books Thanks x
Reply
Awww….I love the picture of Betty in her leopard print scarf! Great feature.
xx,
E.J.
From the Shadows
Reply
Love this blog segment. Getting a glimpse at how writers do their magic is always cool. The doggie is too adorable. I haven't had a chance to read Haunted Honeymoon but I'll be adding it to me TBR list. :0)
Reply
Hi Marta – I love slinkys too, but I always do something to put a kink in them. Perhaps I am too vigorous in my slinky play. Do you have a back-up supply of slinkys, or are you gentle with your slinky muse?
You live in a gorgeous area. It certainly explains why Northern California is the setting for Milagro's adventures. I love it whenever a story pays homage to San Francisco. I have these romantic images of Sam Spade pounding the wet streets at night, and my nostalgia intrudes on any SanFran story I happen to be reading.
Reply
Thanks for showing us inside your life. Love the photos
Reply
Such a cute dog
Whenever I read these articles it always me how busy writers are. I must look up Marta's books as I've not come across them before.
Reply
Hi, everyone!
Stella, I'm going to find a few photos of the wine country ranch that inspired Casa Dracula. I know I have them somewhere!
Susan, hope you'll enjoy my funny romantic series!
E.J., alas, Betty won't wear her costumes for long. My other dog tried to eat the hat and necklaces I wanted to use for his photo shoot.
Mina, if you enjoy funny, clever humor, I think you'll like my books. They're not romance though, so there are no alpha males. (I try to warn people so they don't expect them.)
Rebecca, I'm on my third Slinky Jr. — and I was not responsible for damaging the others. My nephew has been trying to steal my Slinky for a while now, so I bought extras. If you check out "Nancy's World" on my Grace Coopersmith website, you can see a few fun pics of the city.
Seleste, thanks! Hope you'll check out my books. I have a free read of the prologue on my website under "Extras."
Laura, dogs are great writing companions because they never want to sleep on a keyboard like cats do! I've got a free read of my Nancy's Theory of Style draft at Scribd if you'd like to check out my writing. http://www.scribd.com/doc/3711.....eory-Draft
Reply
I miss the bay area so dearly. Thanks for sharing even though I am now completely home sick.
I think that our animals are our little (or big) miracles.
I am looking forward to reading one of your books soon. I am thinking this one should be the first.
Reply
Change that… since its the fourth in the series. I do have the first on my list…
Reply
Hi, Shelly, warm weather has finally come to the Bay Area! We had fog all summer. Yes, our pets are wonderful — mine are the best companions and my character, Milagro, has a dog that she loves.
Reply
I am so glad you featured a Bay Area author – such lovely photos of my fair city!
Reply
Hi, Amused, I love stories set in San Francisco, but I'll put them down if they state that cable car bells are ringing in a place where cable cars don't run! I had to tell a famous author that it's BART, not "the BART" for his books set in SF.
Nancy's Theory of Style is set in posh Pacific Heights, so there are lots of fun SF scenes there.
Reply