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by Charity Tahmaseb

Interview with Award-winning Author, Norah Wilson

Not many writers share space with a rat. But then, not many writers are three-time finalists for the prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award. Nor are they the winners of the 2003 Romantic Times/Dorchester New Voice in Romance Contest. Norah Wilson is all three.

Award-winning author Norah Wilson makes her home in New Brunswick, Canada, where she also shares space with her husband, two teenagers, and a geriatric dog.

Her mass market paperback debut, Lauren’s Eyes, is an August 2004 release from Dorchester Publishing. Romantic Times BOOKclub awarded Lauren’s Eyes four stars, calling it, “An exciting and thrilling debut with an inspired paranormal twist.”

I recently had the chance to chat with Norah about her writing journey. She generously shared tips on process, publication, and promotion with me.

Can you give us some background on your journey to mass market publication? How long have you been writing?

I embarked on my first attempt at a romance novel ten years ago, armed with nothing more than a reader's love of the genre and decent writing skills. Looking back, if I'd known then what a long learning curve I had ahead of me, I probably never would have begun the journey. Thankfully, I was shielded by my ignorance! My journey might have been faster had I not worked fulltime during that period, but who's to say?

Eventually, I started to enjoy some contest success, making the finals in the Romance Writers of America’s (RWA) Golden Heart contest in three consecutive years (2001, 2002, and 2003) with three different manuscripts. I also had a novel published by a small press/e-publisher in 2000 (Haunted by Dreams, Hard Shell Word Factory).

While these credits helped enormously to open doors with editors and agents, that sale eluded me until I entered and won, or rather co-won, the New Voice in Romance contest sponsored by Dorchester Publishing/Romantic Times BOOKclub. I actually tied for the win with Kathy Richards (writing as Kate Lyon). The prize was a contract from Dorchester to publish our winning novels.

What is your writing process like? Any favorite parts? Anything you dread?

I used to be a seat-of-the-pants writer, but after a few projects floundered, I decided to invest more heavily in planning. I'll never be one of those writers who charts out the whole book before I start, but these days, I do have a much more structured approach.

My first step is to complete GMC (goal, motivation, conflict) charts for both hero and heroine, after which I'm ready to write a loose synopsis sketching out the broad strokes of the story. This is the most painful part, because my talent seems to lie more in the execution than the planning. By the time I've finished this process, it’s a relief to start writing. Of course, the writing quickly becomes painful, too! I think the creative part is just destined to be dragged out of me, word by word. Once I have a first draft done, that's when the easy stuff comes. Editing, polishing, revising—it's all good!

How do you balance a fulltime job, a family along with writing? Any tips for other writers trying to "do it all"?

With great difficulty! My husband and kids are really terrific about the amount of time I devote to writing and writing-related activities. But just because they don't lay guilt trips on me doesn't mean I don't suffer guilt. Some days, I feel like I have way too many jobs and I'm not doing justice to any of them. It's a constant balancing act, assessing which element of my life needs my attention most urgently.

For a while, my priority might be fitness/health/nutrition (mine and my family's). Invariably, the things you put on the back burner have a way of displacing those priorities when they're neglected long enough. My advice is to try to be kind to yourself, don't sweat the small stuff, delegate what you can, and ask for help when you need it. And keep honing those juggling skills!

Tell us a little bit about Lauren’s Eyes. What inspired the story?

I describe Lauren's Eyes as a western-set romantic suspense with a paranormal edge. It's set on a guest ranch in Alberta, where a psychic veterinarian from the East Coast has come to prevent a murder she has foreseen. The hero, Cal Taggart, is a reluctant host, disdaining the necessity of running a dude ranch to subsidize his troubled cow-calf operation. Lauren quickly learns that the would-be murder victim is Cal's volatile ex-wife. She also finds no shortage of murder suspects, including the man to whom she's so powerfully attracted.

Here's where I have to confess that Lauren's Eyes was conceived quite cynically. At the time, the themes I was writing about were not hooking editors, so I decided to get on the "cowboys, babies, and brides" bandwagon. I couldn't see myself writing babies or brides, so cowboys it was. Looking back, I should have known I would be punished for my condescending attitude. Fittingly, I wound up falling in love with the cowboy archetype.

Is it true you essentially "shelved" Lauren’s Eyes before you entered it in Dorchester’s New Voice contest? What inspired you to enter?

Indeed, I had shelved it. It was a finalist for the Golden Heart in 2001. By 2003, I had no takers, and two more Golden Heart finalist manuscripts to market. The Dorchester contest was brought to my attention by a critique partner, who remembered the paranormal element in Lauren's Eyes. I didn't have terribly high hopes, because the paranormal element was so slight compared, say, to time travel or vampires. Thank goodness I didn’t let those doubts deter me!

New writers are often shy about contacting experts for information. I know you’ve used at least one expert reader in the past. Can you give us any hints for approaching experts?

The thing to remember is that everyone loves to talk about what they do. I have yet to encounter an expert who wasn't completely willing to share their special knowledge. Some, by virtue of the jobs they hold, might prefer not to be identified by name as your source, but they're usually happy to talk to you.

If you're a member of a writers' group, a good way to cultivate contacts is to invite them to speak to your group. They'll usually leave you with contact information if anyone has further questions. I've used this approach to make connections with a forensic anthropologist, a Crown prosecutor, a police detective, a police diver, a police K9 handler, and more. If I need their expertise down the road, I will feel comfortable calling on them.

Your first book was published by Hard Shell Word Factory. Can you speak to the differences between working with an e-publisher as opposed to a traditional publisher? In retrospect, would you choose e-publishing again?

The main difference between an e-publisher/small press and a mass market publisher is distribution and promotion. Hard Shell does a terrific job of getting their authors' titles listed in many venues, in multiple formats. In my case, I also contracted with Hard Shell to publish the same work in print version. The trade paperbacks they produce are beautiful, but they're print-on-demand, and are often listed as "out of stock" in that format, even though they can be stocked almost overnight. That tends to bewilder potential customers. And of course, the success of the e-published author is completely contingent on the intensity of their self-promotion. Not that traditional publishers are entirely without distribution issues, and not that traditionally-published authors don't also have to engage in promotion. But the playing field is quite different.

As for choosing e-publishing again, I would definitely do it in the right circumstances. Sometimes the stories we're compelled to tell don't quite fit the traditional market, but may go on to find an avid audience—and rave reviews—after being e-published. It's an opportunity to say, "See? This kind of story really resonates for readers!" I also think there's a lot to be said for having a title out there that will be on the virtual shelves for the long haul. And there are some exciting market opportunities opening up in e-publishing. I'll be watching with interest as this avenue continues to evolve.

You’ve navigated your career so far without the aid of an agent. What advice can you give other writers attempting the same thing?

I think it's critical for the author who finds herself acting as her own agent to educate herself. Alternatively, you can hire a literary contract attorney to read your contract and highlight any perceived deficiencies. You may even hire that attorney to negotiate for the changes you want. The one thing this approach won't get you is someone who is as invested in your career as you are, and who is uniquely positioned to help you make critical career decisions.

We’ve all heard that more and more, marketing falls on the author’s shoulders. What marketing techniques have you been using? Which seem to be paying off? Any "must do’s" for first-time novelists?

I had a lot of buzz going for me with this Dorchester debut, thanks to the contest win. Another bonus: I got my cover art and release date eight months in advance, which allowed me to get a head start on promotion.

The main thrust of my efforts was to try to reach romance readers via the Internet. I sent ARCs (advance reader copies) to many romance review houses. Because of the New Voice buzz, there was a lot of interest on the part of these sites to profile me.

I also ran a contest on my website which allowed me build a mailing list to notify when my book hit the shelves. I also did a targeted mailing to Canadian bookstores to try to encourage them to stock this title. One of the most cost effective things I did was to buy a listing in RWA's Romance $ells catalogue, which lists the new releases of participating authors, and which goes to thousands of bookstores and libraries across North America.

And lastly, I joined several group websites, including The Rising Stars of Romance, the Canadian Romance Author Network, and the very fun WetNoodlePosse.com (a joint effort with my fellow Golden Heart finalists from the Class of 2003). The absolute "must do,” in my opinion, is to build your own website and update it frequently.

There are plenty of other free things I could have done, but chose not to, including participating in author chats. I'm pathetic in chat situations, so I decided to stick with my strengths. Many authors buy banner ads on sites frequented by their reader base, but I conserved my limited promotional dollars for mailing ARCs and targeting booksellers.

What has surprised you most about your mass market paperback debut?

I guess I wasn't quite prepared for how disruptive the whole process was going to be to my actual writing schedule and my productivity. In this business, that first shot may be the only shot you'll get, so I felt a lot of pressure (self-imposed) to promote this book as vigorously as I could, within my budget.

Thus, promotional activity consumed a lot of my time (tip: build your website before you sell and start building a mailing list). Then there's the business of reviews. Even a rave review can present a distraction. Next time, I think I'll be better equipped to handle the distraction factor.

Anything else you’d like to add that I haven’t asked?

Nothing I can think of. You've done a great job covering the territory. But if anyone is left with questions they'd like to put to me, I'd be delighted to field them at norah@nbnet.nb.ca. In the meantime, thanks for having me!

Be sure to visit Norah’s web site: http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/wilson


About the Author
Golden Heart Finalist and Pushcart Prize Award nominee, Charity Tahmaseb is a Minneapolis-based freelance writer. You can learn more about Charity at her web site: http://www.charitytahmaseb.com