Connection of the Minds... Roseanne Dowell, Connecting the dots...

It is great to have you here today Roseanne, Congratulations on the releaseof your new novel, Connection of the Minds.

Welcome  to my blog. Thanks for being here today.

Thanks for having me.

Other than ‘author’ what are three words you would use to describe yourself?

Wife, mother, grandmother (great grandmother – I know, that’s 4)
Roseanne, I know being a grandmother is a wonderful experience, today is my granddaughter's birthday, so a double reason to celebrate. A great grandmother... that is awesome. We will allow four, in this case. :)

Do they influence you as a writer? Or the genre you write?

Not really. At least I don’t think so.

What is it about your chosen genre/s that fires up your muse?

 I love and have always loved reading romance, romance/mystery, and mystery books so it’s only natural I’d want to write them.

Your book Connection of the Minds has just been released, what inspired this story?

Wow, great question. Other than a small town we visited several times, I honestly don’t know. The characters and story just suddenly came alive and of course I always listen to them.

Do you have a regime when writing? A special place, time, mood or do you snatch opportunities to pen ideas or write a few lines?

Ha, the only regime I have is when my characters come up with dialogue or something they want to do. It might be early In the morning, late afternoon, or evening. Most often it’s the middle of the night.

Does your Muse follow rules and plot lines or does she offer ideas on a whim?

 I don’t plot my stories. I learned the hard way that doesn’t work for me. When I start a story, I know the beginning and the end, what happens in the middle is as much a surprise to me as it is to the readers.

That's how my Muse works too Roseanne, I don't have much luck plotting before I begin to write.

What are the most dramatic changes you have made to a story you have written? What prompted the change?

 Other than editing, I honestly can’t say I make drastic or dramatic changes. I’ve been known to eliminate the first several paragraphs or even several pages and save them for later. The reason being they were back story and I wanted the story to start with action.

Has there been one event in your life that changed/inspired your writing career? For example, meeting an author, finding a publisher, joining a critique group?

Yes, years ago I took a correspondence writing course. They had a chat room and forums. The instructor doing the forums gave great examples and from her I learned to show, rather than tell my story. I learned more from her than I did the course itself.

Would you like to tell us about the main character of your book and/or the villain? Or would you like to share an excerpt? Either or both… we are keen to learn more about the story.

You don’t have to ask twice. LOL I love talking about my book.  I think I’ll let the main character tell you about it.

Did you ever have a feeling something bad was about to happen? Kind of a premonition, intuition, omen or whatever you want to call it? I’m sure at some point in your life you’ve experienced ESP. I mean we all have, haven’t we? Especially with a spouse or sibling. I bet sometimes you even finish each other’s sentences. Nothing unusual in that, is there? Not at all.

But I experienced something even stranger. Oh, I’m Rebecca Brennan. Can’t expect you to read my mind, can I?  I have this rare connection with someone’s mind. I feel what he feels, hear what he hears and even know what he’s thinking. Not all the time, just sometimes. Thank God for that. I’d hate to know what he’s thinking all the time.  I even feel his pain.  Trust me, that’s not good. In fact, none of its good. I mean seriously, how would you like to wake up in the middle of the night, screaming in pain and there’s absolutely nothing physically wrong with you? Trust me, you wouldn’t.

That’s exactly what happened to me in Connection of the Minds. I have these strange visions about someone else’s life. Some might think it’s a unique gift. Believe me, it’s not.

Excerpt:

“No!” Rebecca sprang up in bed. Hot searing pain bore into her shoulder. What was happening to her? A warm sticky substance flowed from her shoulder. Oh God, there was going to be blood. From the feel of it, lots of blood.  Half afraid to look, her hand trembled as she slowly brought it in front of her face and looked at it.  Dry, no blood.  What was going on? These kinds of things happened way too often lately. Okay, they were dreams but still. They were so damn real.

Rebecca eased off the bed. Her feet felt like lead weights as she walked to the kitchen and poured a glass of water. After a big gulp, she hurried back to bed. Shivers racked her body even with the blanket pulled up to her chin. A minute ago sweat soaked her skin. Now she couldn’t get warm. Someone’s life had invaded her mind. She didn’t know who or where they lived. And she sure as heck didn’t like it. These were more than dreams. Most of her visions happened while she slept, but they were real. Besides, too many occurred during the day.

The pain eased, but fear and danger lingered. Curling up, she pulled the blanket tighter, closed her eyes, and willed herself to sleep. Strange visions played in her mind. Red, white, and blue flashing lights, fire engines, and ambulances, and police rushed around calling instructions, trying to control panic and hysteria at the scene.

Rebecca rubbed her eyes, trying to erase the visions.

“If only I knew how to find this person. Maybe then I’d find out what these dreams and visions mean.” Her voice startled her in the quiet room. Snuggling deeper in bed, pushing the thoughts away, she tried to sleep.

But sleep wouldn’t come. Her mind wouldn’t be still. The visions persisted.  Was she going crazy? Maybe Allison was right to force her to see a parapsychologist.

 "I think you’re experiencing a psychic phenomenon." Allison had suggested. "Like ESP or something."

Great extract Roseanne, sounds intriguing.

Who is publishing your story? MuseItUp Publishing

Where can we get this book? http://bit.ly/ConnectionoftheMinds

How can we follow your career?

You can find out more about me at www.roseannedowell.com or my blog at http://roseannedowellauthor.blogspot.com

Thanks for participating.It has been great to get a sneak peek into Connection of the Minds. Good luck with your book release.

Thanks again for having me. I enjoyed it.