Author Crush Month: Julie Garwood

I’ve been reading Julie Garwood’s books since just about the time she started publishing them. There is such a sense of adventure, not just to the life of the heroine, but to the love story itself! I have read and re-read The Gift so many times I almost know it by heart. I found Guardian Angel (yes, coincidentally, both books have pirates! yum!) at a garage sale here in Sydney and had to rescue it (i.e., buy it again) and read it again. (Guess what I started reading last night?)

When I emailed Julie to tell her I have an author crush on her and would she be our guest, I was so excited when she replied with the following blog! Though we’ve not met, she’s fallen into the category of other writers I’ve met (Debbie Macomber, for example) who are role models to me of generosity and graciousness.  I hope you enjoy what Julie has to say about writing routines. When you’re done, check out her web site. It is totally cool!

My writing routine developed with my first book, and it hasn’t changed a great deal since then. I’m afraid I’m one of those rare writers who still uses a typewriter. My IBM ActionWriter has been my trusted companion through the trials and tribulations of 26 books, and I’m not about to abandon it now. Of course, sitting next to it is my laptop computer which I use for everything else, but there’s something about the tactile experience of the typewriter keyboard tapping the words onto the blank page that stirs my creative spirit, and as long as I can buy ribbons for it, I’ll remain loyal.

I prefer to do most of my writing in the morning, a habit that developed from being a mother of young children. At the beginning of my career, my three children were in elementary school and I was working, so the only quiet time I could steal for myself was early in the day before they woke up. I’ve kept that routine ever since. I still get up early to work. I’ve received hundreds of letters and emails from aspiring authors who say they can’t seem to finish a manuscript, and I usually tell them that routine is one of the most important elements to the process. It’s important that they find a time each and every day to devote to the writing so that they’ll develop the discipline to finish a project. It also will help them get into a rhythm, and they won’t feel as though they’re starting from scratch each time they sit down at the keyboard.

Another habit I’ve developed is daydreaming. I guess that’s sort of an occupational hazard for most writers, though. If I’m working on a scene that isn’t turning out the way I want, I’ll get up to do a mundane chore and let my mind wander. My family and friends know that if they come into my house and I’m baking cookies, it usually means I’m plotting. Changing my activity for a while usually will free up my imagination and I can go back to my story.

I’ve learned to manage my daydreaming a little better than I used to because it’s put me in a few embarrassing situations. Years ago, I was working out a scene in my head while I was going through a carwash – one where you turn your car over to an attendant at the entrance and pick it up at the exit. I saw my station wagon roll out of the tunnel, so I tipped the attendant, got in, and drove off. It wasn’t until I heard “Ma’am” coming from a voice in the backseat that I realized I had driven off with a man who was cleaning the rear window. I had been so immersed in my story, I was oblivious to the world around me. I had to drive around the block to return the man to the carwash, and all his work buddies had a good laugh at my expense as I dropped him off. Needless to say, I’m much more cautious now.

I can’t profess that I’ve loved each and every minute of my writing career – deadlines can be real buzzards at times – but I can honestly say it’s given me far more joy than I ever would have imagined. There’s nothing more gratifying than hearing from readers who tell me my stories helped them get through a rough time in their lives or lightened their day.

So, for all those aspiring writers who are wanting advice, I say: find what you love to write, develop your routine, and stick with it. And I hope, whether you write for a small audience or a large one, you’ll find as much satisfaction in telling stories as I do.

Julie Garwood is the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers, including Fire and Ice, Shadow Music, Shadow Dance, Murder List, Killjoy, Mercy, Heartbreaker, Ransom, and Come the Spring. There are more than thirty-six million copies of her books in print.

Her latest novel, Sizzle, released December 29, 2009.