MY INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR CHRISTINE GARDNER

 

 

What’s your name and what genre would you consider your books to be?

Christine Gardner. That’s an easy one—the genre question’s a bit more complicated. I have written children’s fantasy and other children’s stories, sci-fi for young adults, true crime as well as fiction inspired by true crime, horror, romance and historical fiction. My current WIP is supernatural. I’ve also written several short stories which are of varied genres but the longest ones tend to lean towards the dark side. That’s what I do for fun.

 

Tell me about your book. How did you come up with that (story, angle, idea)?

My current WIP won’t be released until next year but my most recent release is ‘The Letter’, an Historical Fiction novel inspired by my love of family history and of history in general.

 

 

How did you get interested in writing this particular genre (historical novels, mysteries, sci-fi, children’s books, etc.)?

I think I was born with a curiosity about history. It seems I’ve always found it fascinating.

 

What kind of research did you do for this book?

A lot more than I thought—thank God for the internet.  Even though I’d studied some of the history I needed for this book at university I found I really didn’t know the specifics of day to day living—for example what the miners ate on the goldfields in Bendigo in the 1850s, and which buildings were in Melbourne then. It was quite difficult sometimes but I was very happy with the end result.

 

Can you tell me about your Series?

I do have a romance series, set in the Australian Outback, called The Red Dust Series. I had no intention of writing a series when I wrote the first book, Stony Creek, but I decided there were characters in that story who might have stories of their own.

 

Do you have a favorite book out of this series?

I think maybe the last one, Red Wine and Summer Storms, maybe because it was the last one; maybe because I’m still particularly fond of Max, who was a little like Chris Hemsworth in my head.

  

 

 

Where did you get the inspiration/idea for your series?

My sister, who is 11 years older than me, married a farmer and I spent a lot of time, as a child, staying on the farm with her. We visited friends who lived on stations and I met my first ‘boyfriend’, at the age of 11, at a woolshed dance. We actually held hands which was very romantic!

 

What kind of research did you do for this book?

A lot of the research I’d done for the previous books was useful and I was able to find out a few bits and pieces from friends and family members. And then there’s the internet. There were a few things I needed to find out about the law because the main character is a lawyer and I was able to find a lawyer on line who helped me out.

 

 

What’s a typical working day like for you? When and where do you write? Do you set a daily writing goal?

I haven’t had a typical working day for a while because of health issues but I’m trying to get back to it. Mornings are usually the best time for me and my brain, and I have my own office now all my sons have left the nest. At the moment if I write a few hundred words I’m happy.

 

Do you have a new book in the making and if so, what’s the name of your upcoming book?

It doesn’t have a name yet—just a working title which is too silly to mention. I’m thinking of something like ‘View from the Edge’.

 

 

How important are character names to you in your books? Is there a special meaning to any of the names?

They are very important. In ‘The Letter’, which is about a Welsh family migrating to Australia in the mid-19^th century, I used family names, partly because I knew they were appropriate since my grandmother’s family came from there, and partly for my mother because the Welsh connection means a lot to her. The right name helps you to get in touch with the character.

 

Where do your ideas come from?

The original idea for ‘The Letter’ came from my history studies at university, about life onboard those sailing ships during the months at sea in the 19^th century.

 

Is there a genre that you’ve been wanting to experiment with?

Not at the moment but you never know. I’ve already tried most of them and I suppose I tend to write in the genres I enjoy reading.

 

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

Self-discipline.

 

 

What do you consider to be your best accomplishment?

Probably ‘The Letter’, but my romance series is the most popular.

 

What’s the best thing about being an author?

When it’s going well it’s rather like reading except you get the ending you want.

 

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Not a clue.

 

Have you always liked to write?

Yes. I liked nothing better at school than writing stories. At home I was always reading.

 

 

What writing advice do you have for aspiring authors?

Self-discipline, which is the hardest thing for me—just sit at the computer every day and write something. The more you write the easier it gets. The ideas will come. As long as you have the beginning of an idea don’t wait around for inspiration.

 

If you didn’t like writing books, or weren’t any good at it, what would you like to do for a living?

Editing. I already do some and have a Diploma on Writing and Editing.

 

Do you read reviews of your book(s)? Do you respond to them, good or bad? How do you deal with the bad?

I do read them and as long as there’s some good ones the bad ones don’t bother me too much. When I wrote my first novel for adults, ‘The Inheritance’, I wanted to write like Stephen King and it is a horror story but nothing at all like Stephen’s work. Then I got a one star review from someone who hated it and said it was like a Stephen King book!

 

 

What is your least favourite part of the writing / publishing process?

Getting stuck.

 

What are you working on now?

My WIP is about a young woman who breaks up with her boyfriend and then wins millions in lotto and falls in love with a rundown mansion with a spectacular view across the valley. She buys the house without knowing much about its history and sets about renovating it. The neighbours hint at rumours about the place, about strange happenings. And strange things do happen.

 

Can you give us a few tasty morsels from your work-in-progress?

When I was a teenager I was, according to my mother, somewhat of a handful, and she was relieved when I met Scott. He was sensible, driven in his career, and a very good influence on me. In spite of all that I did love him, at least at first. Maybe he was something of a father figure, even though he was only four years older than me. My father had died when I was just five years old and I barely remembered him.

I liked being looked after when I was nineteen, and even in my early twenties. I was working at a department store and it was okay; everything was okay. We rented an old cottage on the edge of town, near a bush reserve, which was peaceful and quiet. I was contented enough. Then one day Scott bought a house.

He surprised me. Just took me for a drive on a Sunday afternoon and said, “That’s our new house,” as he pulled up in front of a cream brick box with a well-manicured green lawn at the front and a white picket fence. Yes, it actually had a white picket fence. I was horrified.

 

There is laughter at first and the pitter patter of little feet running up and down the majestic hallway. ‘My turn!’ A girl’s voice calls out. ‘Come find me!’ More running and a girly giggle from behind the cabinet in the lounge room. Then there is the sound of something falling in the hallway, the crash of something breaking, and another voice, a woman this time, and the other child, perhaps a boy, screaming, almost drowning out the sounds of the slaps. Then the little girl, still hiding behind the cabinet, starts sobbing, and calls out for her daddy.

 

 

Where did your love of books come from?

My family. My parents were always keen readers and my eldest sister always bought me books for birthdays and Christmases when I was young. When I was old enough I read all hers and we share a love of historical fiction now.

 

Do you have any favorite authors or favorite books?

My favourite books tend to be one-offs, rather than products from my favourite authors. ‘The Watcher’ by Charles Maclean, simply because it’s weird and I haven’t come across anything similar since I read that, decades ago. “The Cry and the Covenant’, by Thomas Morton, because the story itself—the history behind the fiction, is just amazing and I, like so many others, had never heard the name Ignaz Semmelweis (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignaz_Semmelweis)  My favourite authors come and go and I tend to look for stories that interest me, rather than authors.

 

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

Both

 

What is your writing Kryptonite?

Facebook and laziness

 

 

Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

No. I write what I have—some readers like some stories and others like different stories.

 

What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

I have lots of Facebook author friends and some are very supportive. I have one author friend who I’ve known since before I started writing and she’s been very helpful. I co-wrote several books with her before I had the courage to publish on my own.

 

Where can your fans find you and follow??

All my books are on Amazon and most are now on Kobo, Apple, Barnes and Noble and others through D2D. I’m in the (slow) process of uploading also to Google Play Books and have one there: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Christine_Gardner_Her_Flesh_and_Blood?id=a7tvDwAAQBAJ

https://www.amazon.com/Christine-Gardner/e/B00AY80A08

https://www.facebook.com/ChristineGardnerAuthor/