Tell us about Ghost Writer

“Ghost Writer” is about unemployed computer programmer, Nan Burton, who inherits a California beach cottage from her great-great-aunt. She’s delighted, but she’s in for a huge surprise: The house is haunted by the ghost of famous romance writer Max Murdoch (pen name Maxine DuBois) who insists Nan complete his last novel, threatening to keep her from sleeping until she agrees. The ensuing clash pits youth against the long-dead but still egotistical author with humorous and moving results.

What genre is it?
Fantasy/mystery/romance.

What kind of readers will it appeal to?
This G-rated book will appeal to readers of all ages who like cozy who-done-it mysteries mixed with a little sweet romance, with the addition of a pesky ghost. It’s a great, quick weekend or beach read since it’s set in and around Laguna Beach, California.

How long did it take to write?
This one took about a year, plus several additional months of rewrites.

And what was the most challenging part of your creative process?
As Terry Brooks calls it, ‘the muddle in the middle.” I always know the beginning and the end as well as the overall arc of the story. It’s filling in the center while trying to keep the reader’s interest that is the most challenging.

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I was raised in Alhambra, California and attended California State University at Los Angeles where I majored in English. Between 1998 and 2001, I worked in Osaka, Japan on the Universal Studios theme park with my husband, Larry. Our memoir of that experience, “31 Months in Japan: The Building of a Theme Park,” was published in 2005 and was a finalist for the 2006 nonfiction EPPIE award and named as one of Rebeccas Reads best nonfiction books of 2005. We have written two mysteries together: “Murder… They Wrote,” published in 2009, and “Murder in Paradise,” published in 2010. The latter was a finalist for the 2011 EPIC eBook Award in 2011. We are currently working on at least two more in this series.

Along with authors Sherry Derr-Wille, Luanna Rugh, and Christie Shary, I have written several romance anthologies: “Snowflake Secrets,” finalist for the Dream Realm and Eric Hoffer Awards, “Seasons of Love“, and “Directions of Love” which received the EPIC eBook Award for best romance anthology of 2011. We added debut author, Cheryl Gardarian for” An Aspen Grove Christmas,” published in December of 2010. Our next anthology, “The Art of Love,” comes out this September. We are currently working on two more anthologies.

Today, Larry and I are retired and reside in Dana Point, California. And we’re still writing.

Call that retirement? You sound busier than ever! Where can we find you on the internet?
You’ll find me at: http://lornacollins-author.blogspot.com/.
Twitter: @LornaCollins
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Larry-K-Lorna-Collins/57933964210

Where can we buy Ghost Writer?
Amazon ( US, UK). Barnes and Noble. And from our website: www.lornalarry.com

What’s next?
Larry and I are currently working on an historical novel set in San Juan Capistrano, California between 1820 and 1890. This one requires extensive research, but we are enjoying doing it and are having fun with the plotting as we work around all the real events. We expect this one to take another year to finish.

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Enjoyed this interview? Then check out our conversation with Kathy Lynn Hall.