A Chance Interview with Judi Phillips

I’m so happy to have author Judi Phillips visiting today. Her newest release, Ghost of a Chance, is available at Wild Rose Press. And she’s here to tell us all about it. Welcome, Judi !!

Thanks, Nina, for inviting me over.  I love your work and this is a treat.

Mwahahahaha … you have no idea what I have in store for you. So here goes with all the personal questions …

Tell us a little bit about you and how you got into writing.
I have always had stories in my head, but had no interest in writing a complete manuscript on a typewriter (which may give you a hint about my age).  When computers arrived with the magical cut and paste icons, it was all over for me.  Within a month or two of my first job using a word processor, I was writing my first novel.

Please tell us about your newest release
Ghost of a Chance is the story of a mischievous little boy ghost, Edward.  There’s Trace Hawthorn, the hero, a left-brained engineer, Wynter Storm, the heroine, intuitive but doesn’t want to acknowledge it, their matchmaking daughters, and their meddling mothers.

What was the inspiration for this story?
A comment made years ago by my daughter (10 or so then) and her friend who suggested it would be fun if I dated her dad (her parents had recently divorced) and that way they could be sisters.  Made me think about matchmaking daughters.

Paranormal. Interesting. What’s your favorite genre to write?
My favorite stories to write are time travels.  Love forcing either the heroine or hero to struggle with that fish out of water feeling.  Also like writing contemporaries with a hint of mystery.  And the hot stuff.

Oh, hot stuff, you opened that door. Now will you please tell us a little bit about your step into the world of erotic romance? 
Ah, yes.  Pepper Goodrich.  She writes  Saucy, Sexy Romps and you can check her out at her website.  I can tell pretty much from the start of the story whether Judi or Pepper is writing.  In fact, the story I’m working on now, I thought was going to be written by Pepper, but Judi took over from the get go.

You can find Pepper’s newest story, Meltdown HERE.  There’s even a book trailer (done by the very talented DNK Productions oh, that would be me! Hee hee) …

Will you have more titles as Pepper?
Definitely.  I have one completed story and at least a couple more in the works.  Just need to find a home for them.

If you came with a warning label what would it read?
Very hot, but lots of fun.  Very lighthearted.  And hot.  Remember, it’s written by Pepper.

Describe your writing space. Do you move around or always write in the same place?
My office is what would probably be the master bedroom in my house.  It’s the larger room.  About half of the room is where I write.  My desk faces a window so I can look outside at the woods surrounding my house.  Fun in the summer because I can watch the birds.  Not so much fun in the winter as the snow piles higher and higher.  The other half doubles as a guest room/research library.  Bookcases line one wall, filled to overflowing with books on writing or on topics I write about.

In the summer, I grab my laptop and plant myself on my deck and that becomes my summer office.  Love writing with the breeze ruffling the wind chimes and my little doggies snoozing as they soak up the sun.  A glass of lemonade and my iPod and life doesn’t get any better than that.

What happened to the first novel you ever wrote?
Poor thing is keeping the dust bunnies company.  I refer to it as my House Beautiful/Vogue story.  Lots and lots of descriptions of what people were wearing and how the rooms were arranged.  But I honed my writing skills with it, so it has a special place in my heart.  But it will never again see the light of day.

You have a fulltime job. How do you fit writing into your busy schedule?
I try to get up early, but have been a slug abed lately.  Need to kick myself awake because I have a deadline looming.  I almost always write during lunch, going to a local food court with a fountain that drowns out most conversations.  My iPod takes care of the rest.  I can write a surprising amount in an hour.  Evenings, I work on either editing my own stuff or doing critiques for my buddies.

Tell us about your writing process. Are you a plotter or pantzer? Do you have comfort drinks or snack foods. Any favorite music you play while writing?
Sort of both.  I start out pantzing for about the first three chapters.  Then, when I think I know the characters, I start working on character sheets, conflict and figuring out what’s going to happen down the road.  One of the many problems with my first story was that it wandered all over the place and I had to keep bringing it back.  Much easier, I think, if I know where I’m going in the first place.

The editing process is an important aspect of writing. Do you have a routine you follow when going through it?
One of the things I do is go through the manuscript and highlight problem words, like those ending in ly, just, that, was, etc.  Some pages become a nightmare in yellow.  I also print out the chapters with about a 3 inch margin on the right side, which encourages editing by giving me lots of room to make comments and add missing pieces.  For whatever reason, my left brain seems to click on at night, so I find evenings the most productive time to edit, whereas mornings are good for creating.

A hot soak in the tub or a smokin’ BBQ with friends?
Which would I prefer?  A smokin’ BBQ with friends, especially if they’re my writerly friends.  Nothing better than hangin’ with people who understand that because I have stories playing in my head, I’m not necessarily crazy.

Judi, the voices in your head definitely don’t make you crazy … but they DEFINITELY make you a writer. *g* Thanks so much for visiting. The cabana boys would love to offer you a massage… ah, Judi. Oh, there she goes.

Well, if you’d like to find out more about Judi and her books visit her website. She’d also love it if you emailed her at JudiPhillips @ roadrunner.com (without the spaces). I’ll see if I can pull her from the cabana boys long enough to answer a few of your questions. In the meantime, why don’t you entertain yourself with the book trailer for Ghost of a Chance.