Christine Hamlett & J.A. Clarke
Interview: Feb 29, 2008
Wildfire would like to welcome authors Christina Hamlett and J.A. Clarke. Two authors with a passion for writing and interesting hobbies.
Christina Hamlett
Julie: How long have you been writing? What inspired you to pick the pen up one day and create characters that capture the imagination?
Christina: I’ve been writing stories ever since I first learned how to read. To begin with, I was an only child in a wealthy family. The latter obviously exposed me to the best of the arts, a quality education and extensive travels. The bigger influence, however, was that - in the absence of siblings - I entertained myself by becoming a voracious reader and developing a vivid imagination. There was also an abundance of dysfunctional relatives who proved to be tremendous fodder for what would become future humor columns in my repertoire. While the particulars of a person’s upbringing obviously have an influence on their career choices and opportunities, the important thing is to simply decide what it is that makes you happiest and figure out how to pursue it. I always knew that writing was exactly what I wanted to do when I grew up. What I didn’t realize is that I’d create the opportunities to establish myself as a playwright, novelist, screenwriter and magazine/newspaper columnist. The fact I enjoyed acting, too, eventually led me to not only perform in community productions but also establish my own touring theater company. This, in turn, provided me with the chance to write all of the plays we put on and to get great feedback from my actors and our audiences. As I often tell my clients, I probably learned far more about crafting snappy dialogue, developing compelling characters and maintaining a cohesive structure from the years spent on stage then I ever learned from any screenwriting books or classes. Theater also teaches you economy of expression. Among the biggest mistakes I read in new screenplays, for instance, is the tendency to rely heavily on the glitz of expensive sets and technical effects to carry the story. When these elements are stripped away, there’s rarely a compelling plot underneath. The physical constraints of a stage force you to determine the minimum number of characters, locations and props you need in order to deliver whatever it is you want to say. Interestingly, the clients I have who mention that they majored in Theater Arts and/or did stints in community theater or summer stock tend to write more tightly focused scripts, better developed characters and more plausible dialogue than anyone else.
Julie: Tell us about your latest release and what inspired it.
Christina: Movie Girl (Outskirts Press) is a YA romantic comedy and came about as a result of email and phone conversations I was having with several women friends about what we were doing in high school. The common denominator turned out to be that when we were sophomores each of us had insatiable crushes on senior hottie boys who, by and large, didn’t even know we existed. Other similarities soon emerged. We all hated P.E. (especially our gym uniforms), we saw no real purpose in the concept of “homeroom”, and we pretty much dismissed all of the genuinely nice guys we knew because hey, they were “just friends” and not nearly as intriguing and dangerous as the hunks who were ignoring us. My interest in developing Movie Girl was solidified a few summers ago by my teaching screenwriting to teenagers at Lyndon Institute in Vermont. Their love of movies – coupled with their boundless ambition to be successful – affirmed that a launch book that revolved around film would be a hit. Interestingly, however, the publishers whom I first approached with the concept remarked that, although they loved my writing, my young heroine would have more commercial appeal if she were (1) anorexic, (2) bulimic, (3) Goth, (4) pregnant, (5) sexually confused, or (6) a vampire. Yikes! One of them even commented that my YA romance was “much too Disney”. Since when did a comparison to the Happiest Place on Earth start counting as a negative?
Julie: Do you make time to write every day?
Christina: Definitely. On average, I tend to work 12 hour days during the week and 4-5 hours on weekends. The irony is that a lot of people I talk to don’t consider writing to be actual work because I’m having so much fun at it. Some even go so far as to tell me, “You have it easy ‘cuz you don’t have a job.” Hello? Writing is my job. Even during the years I was working for other people, it was a consuming enough passion that I got up an hour earlier, went to bed later and carried a notebook and a tape recorder everywhere I went just to make time for what I really wanted to do. Like any other skill you want to master, you need to practice it diligently and consistently. For example, I’ve been teaching myself how to play the piano and have made the commitment to practice for an uninterrupted 20 minutes a day. Although this often stretches into 20-40 minutes beyond that, this doesn’t give me the excuse to skip the next two days. The very next afternoon, I’m right back at the keyboard and practicing whatever suits my mood. (Our downstairs neighbors are getting to know the music from Pirates of the Caribbean really well…)
Julie: When you write, is atmosphere important? For example, do you use mood music or candles? Do you need complete quiet to concentrate?
Christina: The background music I have playing while I work depends on what kind of project it is. For example, when I was writing The Spellbox – my Scottish time travel romance – I played a lot of Celtic tunes and bagpipe music. When I’m writing things that are comedic, the snappy ragtime patter of Scott Joplin puts me in the right frame of mind. If I’m writing about characters who are upper crust and live in posh settings, anything by Vivaldi is the perfect accompaniment. For Movie Girl, I listened to hits from the 1960’s – nothing like a song to bring back memories of teenage crushes, ugly gym clothes, and school dances! And when I’m in a crunch on freelance newspaper stories and am vexed about pokey and/or difficult interviewees, the strains of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd fill the room.
Julie: Who would you say influenced your writing career the most?
Christina: That would be Sylvia Burack, owner/publisher of Plays, The Drama Magazine for Young People. Sylvia bought the very first play I ever sent out for publication in January 1980. It was called The Knight of the Honest Heart and was a Medieval romantic comedy in which Crispin, a shoemaker, pretends to be a knight who arrives at a distant court with the message he’s supposed to escort the resident princess back for a marriage to his king. What he doesn’t realize, however, is that Celia, the princess’ lady-in-waiting, intercepts his note, recognizes a good opportunity when she sees one, and pretends that she’s Lady Elaine. That first sale to Sylvia began a relationship/mentorship that not only spanned 20 years but continues to this day with Liz Preston, Sylvia’s former managing editor, who now owns the magazine with her husband, Peter Dimond. Even when Sylvia rejected a project, she always wrote a personalized rejection letter that highlighted what didn’t work and, further, made suggestions on how to improve it. How many editors in this day and age make the time to do that?! When I learned that Sylvia was going to be retiring, I decided to pen a sequel that picked up where the first play left off. As they always did, Sylvia and Liz read the roles out loud in Sylvia’s office when it arrived and informed me that it was so good, they were both crying at the end. What a wonderful testament to be able to continue to surprise and amaze two women who knew my style better than anyone else. The Knight of the Honest Heart Returns was sold 20 years to the day of my first sale; both plays are included in the latest anthology, Awesome Plays for Teens and Tweens. Sadly, Sylvia passed away a few years ago but her presence still lingers and encourages me to always do my best.
Julie: Do you work on multiple projects at the same time?
Christina: Absolutely! At the moment, for instance, I am ghostwriting two projects for clients of The Penn Group, working on First Date (which picks up where Movie Girl ends), penning a couple of one-act plays for Plays, The Magazine for Young People, working on the 12 short romances that will comprise Consumed With Passion (a collaborative project with my husband), and interviewing local business owners, philanthropists and celebrities for two weekly newspapers – The La Cañada Outlook and The Pasadena Outlook. In addition, I evaluate several dozen screenplays per month for clients, agents, and independent studios and write a monthly screenwriting column for Writer’s Journal.
Julie: Describe the space where you write.
Christina: The French doors to my home office are flanked by a suit of armor and a black velvet dragon named Mischief. Holding court in the middle of my Oriental rug is Viktor the Siberian tiger (one of 310 stuffed animals I have collected throughout my life). My L-shaped oak desk has a high, 6 foot long hutch with lots of cubbyholes and cabinets that prompted one of my friends to remark that it reminds her of a really quirky Advent calendar! My love of books is evidenced by all the bookcases behind me and my love of photography (we travel a lot) is reflected in the fact that virtually every square inch of wall space has something hanging on it. (I suspect that one day the drywall will completely collapse from the weight of all the frames.) Last but not least, a life-size standing cutout of Captain Jack Sparrow literally has my back. Since my office is in view of our dining room, I often turn on the miniature white lights in my silk ficus tree when we have dinner parties; they throw off just enough light that guests who haven’t been here before have been known to freak out that there’s a pirate standing in the shadows by my chair.
Julie: What do you do when you aren’t writing? Any hobbies or special interests that you can tell us about?
Christina: My husband and I enjoy traveling and, as of this writing, are getting ready to spend our wedding anniversary in Manhattan. (We exchanged our marriage vows, by the way, at Stirling Castle in Scotland.) We’re both avid photographers, gourmet chefs, and could probably open a small library with the number of books we’ve bought.
Julie: Are there any absolutely-must-have characteristics for your heroes or heroines?
Christina: A sense of humor, the ability to engage in smart conversations, and boundless tenacity to pursue their dreams.
Julie: What’s next for you?
Christina: The project that I’m most excited about now is a collaborative venture with my husband called Consumed With Passion. It’s an anthology of 12 romantic short stories – one for every month - that each revolve around a wonderful meal. I’m writing the stories and Mark is writing the recipes. If it catches on – and we already have a waiting list of people who want to buy it – we plan to do a new anthology each year and even open it up to a competition that invites other food-loving writers to participate.
Backlist:
Movie Girl, Outskirts Press
Screenwriting for Teens, Michael Wiese Productions
Could It Be a Movie, Michael Wiese Productions
ScreenTeenWriters, Contemporary Drama Service
The Spellbox, Hardshell Word Factory
Heaven Only Knows, Hardshell Word Factory
Catch of the Day, Hardshell Word Factory
The Magic Touch, Harper Collins
Charade, Harper Collins
Hunter's Heart, Harper Collins
Knight Dreams, Harper Collins
The Enchanter, M. Evans & Company
Coming soon:
First Date, Outskirts Press
The List, Outskirts Press
Consumed with Passion, Outskirts Press
Links:
Absolute Write
Movie Girl
Author Articles
Bookspoke
J.A. Clarke
Julie: How long have you been writing? What inspired you to pick the pen up one day and create characters that capture the imagination?
J.A.: I've been writing fiction for about ten years. I was going through a stressful time with my day job, plus I had this story in my head that wouldn't go away. One day, I just sat down at our home computer and started writing. For three months, I didn't tell anyone, including my husband, what I was doing. Wish I'd done it sooner. He immediately took on grocery shopping responsibility with two small kids in tow to give me a larger block of time on the weekend to write.
Julie: What is your writing process? Do you outline, fly by the seat of your pants or a combination of both?
J.A.: I definitely fly by the seat of my pants. I love to see where my characters will go and sometimes it's a huge surprise. They can be quite stubborn. I've been to many seminars on outlining and sometimes I'll try a little one on paper for a portion of the story, but I generally just go with what's in my head.
Julie: What influenced you to get published? How long did it take for your first book to get published?
J.A.: I finished my first story, agonized about letting other eyes see it and finally gave it to a friend. After great feedback from her, I started sending it out, and began a new hobby of collecting rejection letters. It took that book multiple rewrites and two years to be published.
Julie: When you write, is atmosphere important? For example, do you use mood music or candles? Do you need complete quiet to concentrate?
J.A.: Quiet's a must. I get most of my writing done early in the morning before the humans in the house are up. A fire in colder weather is always good; and the two dogs are great snugglers/muse substitutes, although sometimes there's competition with the laptop for my lap.
Julie: What's next for you?
J.A.: Getting my current WIP finished. Too many life interruptions lately.
Julie: Most people envision an author's life as being really glamorous. What's the most unglamorous thing that you've done in the past week?
J.A.: Uh…moved dirt and rocks around in my garden. Every year I ask my husband for dirt and rocks for my birthday. I feel kind of sorry for him. He says people don't believe him when he tells them what I want. He would love to get me the sparkly kind of rock.
Julie: Out of all of the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
J.A.: The rogues. I have two of them—Sebastian in StarJumper's Bride, published by LionHearted Publishing, Inc.; and Matt in Arms of a Stranger, which will be released by Uncial Press in May 2008. I love their zest for life, their sense of humor, the little bit of bad boy in them, their…everything.
Julie: Describe the space where you write.
J.A.: The couch, the backyard in summer, my bed, in school gyms waiting for practice to be over... I use a laptop and it goes anywhere.
Julie: What do you do when you aren't writing? Any hobbies or special interests that you can tell us about?
J.A.: I love my garden as you can probably tell from the dirt and rock comment earlier. I'm always looking for birdhouses, found objects and sculptures to accessorize. I have a shade garden, a sun garden, a vegetable garden and a fruit garden. I like to try different textures in the shade garden and am always on the hunt for an unusual perennial. Farmers' markets in the summer are great places to find unusual plants. Wish I could convince the Rat Terrier the dirt is not there for him to scratch through.
Julie: Do you ever experience writer's block? If you do, how do you cope with it?
J.A.: Yes! Then I know I've been doing too much writing and not enough other fun stuff. I cope by looking for fresh ideas and possibly a new direction for my story by talking with my critique partner, lots more reading, watching movies, paying more attention to people around me—it's amazing what ideas will occur just from seeing an action by a stranger on the street.
J. A. Clarke is an award-winning author of contemporary and futuristic romance. She grew up in Africa and has traveled in many countries. She now lives in Portland with her family and delights in exploring all the magnificent places closer to home in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her at www.jaclarke.com.
Backlist:
Moonfire, Hard Shell Word Factory
Summer Heat, Uncial Press
StarJumper's Bride, LionHearted Publishing, Inc.
Beneath a Blazing Sun, LionHearted Publishing, Inc.
Coming soon:
Arms of a Stranger, Uncial Press
Safe Harbor, Uncial Press
Links:
Website
If you would like to request an interview, please send a query to info@allromanceebooks.com
Until next time!
Julie Cummings
Wildfire Interview Coordinator
All Romance eBooks
