Please join me for an
Author Interview with Tina Peterson Scott for her Book Tour of, My Sweet Danish Rose.
Tina Scott is a
Novelist, and Watercolor Artist, among many other talents. She has authored
several children’s books, and a travel guide for Denmark. She is the author of Farewell,
My Denmark and its sister book, My Sweet Danish Rose, will soon be
released. Tina grew up in Mesa, Arizona where she met and married, Randy, the
love of her life. They have seven grown children and nine
grandchildren.
Tina is currently living in Anchorage, Alaska.
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1.
Tina, now
that you live in Alaska, how do you keep from getting the dreaded ‘cabin
fever’? "We go out every day and take
mini excursions. Since Arizona has about 300 sunny days a year, it’s the lack
of sunlight that is hardest for me to get used to in Alaska."
Ah, having lived in Anchorage myself, I know
how you feel… but wait until summer, when the sun doesn’t go down until way
after midnight.
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2.
When did
you first know you wanted to be an author? "I dreamed
of being an author/illustrator when I was in elementary school. The dream came
back to me when I was going to college as an adult."
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3.
What
inspired My Sweet Danish Rose? Did the idea come to you out of the blue
or did a person or place inspire it? "It was
inspired by one of my family history stories. When I was reading through it, I
was prompted to write about it. The story has evolved since that first
inspiration into what I believe is a wonderful story."
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4.
It sounds
so real, have you ever lived in Denmark? Or was it all deduced by research? "I’ve been to Denmark twice and while I was there, I learned a lot
that helped me finish the novels. Some of the Danes I met while in Denmark told me stories of the area that I've tried to include. The rest I’ve learned through research."
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5. What kind
of music, if any, do you listen to while you write? Or do you need absolute
quiet to write? "Music distracts me. It has
to be quiet."
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6. How do
you know if an idea is good enough to write a book about it? How do you develop
it? "I’m pretty sure that even seasoned writers
occasionally have story ideas that they pursue only to discover that it wasn’t
that great after all. To write a story from beginning to end takes a lot of
time so it has to be an idea that I’m interested in/passionate about."
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7. What is your process of
brainstorming a story? Do you just sit down and write, waiting to see what
happens next, or do you outline the whole book first? You know ‘pantster’ or
outliner? Which have you done with My Sweet Danish Rose? "I like to have a clear idea of the story’s
beginning and the ending before I start writing. Other than that, I am more of
an organic writer."
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8. Do you
ever experience a snag in the story, a form of writer’s block? If so, how do
you deal with it? Did you experience that with My Sweet Danish Rose? "I do get snags. I’ve discovered that when I do, it’s usually
because I’ve written something amiss. When I figure that out, then I start
somewhere else in the novel and start writing again."
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9. Do you
use a critique group during your writing process? Do you belong to any writing
groups? Why or why not? "I’ve been a member of the
American Night Writer’s Association since I first started writing. The authors
there are very encouraging. And I've attended a lot of writer's conferences. The ANWA conference in Arizona is an exceptional one, in price and content." I agree, they are wonderful aren't they!?!
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10. When you’re writing, what
is something about yourself people don’t know? You know, like wear a superman
shirt, glass slippers, or fake mustache? Tina didn’t
want to divulge the answer to this question, makes me wonder, hum, it must be – the fake
mustache; OR one of those cute mermaid suits???
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11. Tina,
what words of advice do you have for other writers who desire to have their
writing become books in print? "Stay focused on your goal. Don’t
get discouraged. Don’t give up. It’s a tall order but it’s possible. "
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12. What are
you working on now? You have My Danish Rose being released soon,
anything else in the making? "I’m currently working on a
fantasy romance about a mermaid. It was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s Little
Mermaid and a vacation to Alaska."
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13. Do you have any other
Denmark projects in the works? What are your writing plans? "I do have
plans to write another story set in Denmark. The characters won’t be related, though it
will have bits of family history included."
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14. One last
question - where can readers go to find your books for ordering? "Farewell, My Denmark is available in several places. My Sweet Danish
Rose is currently available for pre-order and will be published tomorrow on January
31st."
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My Sweet Danish Rose: My Sweet
Danish Rose
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Thank you
so much Tina, for your time and for letting us get to know you better with this
candid interview. "My pleasure, Thanks for having me!"
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