In conversation with Darian Wilk, the amazing and talented author of “Love Unfinished” and “Reinventing Claire”. She is definitely a woman of substance and has some interesting stories to share about her childhood. So, join us in the fun as we talk about writing, books, characters and life in all its beauty. Smile is guaranteed!
When I was a child I always wanted to be a writer, it is what I loved, what I knew. But as an adult, due to pressure to have a stable, normal career, I forgot that dream. But in 2009, a few months before my mom passed away, I learned by her unfinished life that our time is too short to not do what we love for the sake of someone else’s ideals. I did not want to waste the rest of my life trying to be something I wasn’t, so I became a writer.
RG: Why did you choose to write in this genre?
Because I love this genre as a reader and a writer. Women’s fiction, to me, blankets so many beautiful stories, so many strong characters, characters that are real women just like the women buying the books. Women’s fiction has a little bit of all of us in it, which gives me the chance to connect with readers on so many levels not many genres can.
Love Unfinished is my first published book, my baby! It’s the story of soul mates, torn apart on their wedding day by a tragic accident, but are destined to meet each other again in new incarnations. Only she has married someone else, and he has vowed to never love again. Are they fated to fulfill their love, or will they once again, leave love unfinished? It falls under the umbrella of "Paranormal Romance".
My second novel, which should be out in late spring of 2012, is Reinventing Claire. People get divorced, but that is what is supposed to happen to other people. That’s what Claire thought anyway, until her husband, Charlie, tells her he wants a divorce. Armed with her dating dunce cap, and her loud, suffocatingly sweet family by her side, Claire faces the question she has no idea how to answer, who is Claire without Charlie?
RG: If you could be one character from your books, who would you choose to be and why?
Good question! Only one character, phew that’s tough! I think from Reinventing Claire, I would want to be Claire. I love fresh starts, they’re exciting to me regardless of how you came to find yourself needing one. Starting over is a challenge, and I love a good challenge. And I like her spunk, her dorky coolness that I think is hidden in a lot of us.
RG: Where do you get ideas for your stories and characters?
From curiosity really. I wonder, asks questions, a lot. I am always wondering about people, situations, how something came to be that way or what would happen if something were to change. It’s that curiosity that leads me to a question I must answer.
RG: List 5 suggestions/writing tips for those who want to venture into writing fiction.
Interview your characters. I think for characters to feel real, you have to know them well. Taking the time to learn about them, about the things in their life that will never hit the pages of your book, makes them come alive and your readers will feel that.
As James Scott Bell says, write hot, edit cool. Get that story on paper, let the thoughts fly without worry of misspelled words or the compulsion to read over what you just wrote. Write while the story is hot. Then, edit cool. Take some time off, let the story cool down, forget it. Waiting allows you to come back to edit it with fresh eyes.
Don’t give up. A lot of writers find the first few chapters come faster than they can get the words onto paper. Then they hit the middle of the story and find themselves staring at a blinking cursor. Don’t give up on your story, or yourself, keep pressing on. Every step you have taken is one farther than someone else did.
Read while you write. Writers write better when they read good books. It keeps your imagination fresh, always going. Sometimes nothing will make you want to run to your story faster than reading a good book.
Have someone else read your book, someone who won’t sugar coat their opinion, and someone who will. You need the hard advice to better your craft, and the sugar coated encouragement for motivation when you’re down.
RG: Do you think that book blogs play a vital role in getting the books across to readers?
Absolutely. Book blogs can reach out to thousands of readers you might never reach otherwise; it’s the modern day word-of-mouth on Redbull. It’s an amazing way to connect, the world is literally at your fingertips.
I think E-books will be commonplace for the next generation, but print books will stay alive because of previous generations like me. There are few things more exciting to me than the feeling of a new book in my hands, but I had to ask my 3yr old son how to turn on my husband HP Tablet. I think E-readers will become apart of households like cell phones have, but printed books are classic, timeless, something people will always see a need for.
RG: I totally agree with you! With traditional people like us, who love holding a book in hand, instead of a sleek gadget, paperbacks are going to stay for sure! At the same time, I cannot deny that e-readers are going to get popular day by day. How much time did it take you to complete one book? What was your routine for writing?
That is something I have to estimate, because while writing my first book I was a full time caregiver for my mom; my writing time was based around the amount of care she needed, and I took several months off after she passes away. I would guesstimate Love Unfinished took around ten months.
My writing routine then was the same as it is now, I write while my son naps and my daughter is at school. Those two hours while my son sleeps are mine and mine alone. The laundry waits, cleaning waits, everything waits until he is up and my time is over.
RG: How do you balance your family life and your writing commitments?
It is hard, and it takes a lot of adjustment and flexibility. My family comes first, always. To keep both going, without dipping too much into the other, I have to stay organized and schedule my ‘writer’s life’ at least two weeks in advance. It keeps me on track, which makes my family life and writing life flow smoother.
RG: Are you inspired by any particular author? Who is your favourite author?
Anne Tyler, love her! I aspire to create characters like she does, so vividly real to a reader, flawed yet exceptional. It doesn’t take long when reading one of her books to forget that you’re reading, and it feels as if you’re spying on someone’s life.
I think that would come from one of my favourite books, Katherine by Anya Seton, a historical novel. Katherine, slated to marry a knight, finds herself falling for a powerful Duke, married to a Duchess Katherine admires; for her beauty and gentle personality. I think it’s not Katherine’s choices I can relate to, I’ve never cheated, never watched my husband be murdered so I can love a married man; I think it’s her simplicity and craving for passionate love. I am a very simple woman at heart, very old school some might say. I enjoy staying home with my kids, I enjoy being Kat Von D meshed with June Cleaver, but I crave passion, the rush of strong love. I think, untamed, the craving could lead anyone to bad decisions, like Katherine had made. I remember her for that, to keep passion alive, but keep a hold onto it so that I control it; not it controlling me.
RG: I believe that there are only two categories of books: good books and bad books. In your opinion, what are the qualities of a “good book”?
There are a lot of things to consider; I think for me to call a book good, it has to pull me in, whether through the characters, plot, or a relatable story. Did it draw me in to the point that I no longer thought about prose, if the author was adverb happy, if I accidently let my dinner burn because I just HAD to finish that chapter? If a book can pull me, so that I forget it’s only a book and not a real story, that the characters are not real, that I have a life to live and need to put the book down, then I consider it a good book.
Now, time for some fun questions:
RG: Share with us your favourite childhood memory.
I cannot hear Jeremiah Was A Bullfrog without thinking of my childhood. My father was a truck driver, gone for days or weeks at a time, so much of the time it was just mom, my brother and me. Mom would put her record on the turntable; I would be in my best rocker chic clothes, my vacuum microphone in hand. My brother would be armed with his tennis racquet air guitar, ready for a solo, and mom was ready to dance or beat on the couch cushion drum set. We’d sing and dance all day, listening to one record after another.
RG: Okay Darian, here you go then! :) Rewind those joyful times in your head and dance to the tune!
RG: Tell us about the craziest thing you ever did in your life.
In my younger years, you know, pre-mommy days, I used to drag race – illegal street racing, and lost my license for a time because of it. I love the rumble of horsepower, it’s thrilling and irresistible to me. I would be out at ridiculous hours, racing other cars until the sun rose. Looking back it’s insanely stupid, I could have crashed and died, or killed someone. But to this day, every time I see a gorgeous fast car, I want to drive it and see just how fast it can really go.
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| Darian, will something like this catch your fancy? *wink* |
If I were rich I would shop, I love shopping. Shopping for clothes, shoes, accessories for the house, I just love to shop! But, seeing how I’m not famous or a millionaire, typically watching a movie or TV show with my hubby and kids is just what I need to relax. Give me some cuddling, a bowl of popcorn, and I forget whatever it was that had me all stressed out to begin with. Or, I wash my car. Sounds weird I know, but there’s something about washing my car and cleaning out the interior that is calming to me. Hey, I never claimed to be a normal lady!
RG: Complete these sentences:
· Love is...ever-changing over the years.
· Life is...opportunity at my feet every day.
· Writing is…fulfilment on paper.
RG: Thank you for your interview. It was so much fun chatting with you. Wish you all the best for your current and upcoming books.
About the Author:
Darian Wilk is a women’s fiction writer, and the author of Love Unfinished, released in October. She has a Fan Page on Facebook, and is also on Twitter. Please visit her website to read more about her debut novel, to read her blog, or enter the current giveaway.
About the Book:
Soul mates from the past leave their love unfinished when a tragic accident ends their lives on their wedding day. Yet they are destined to meet again to fulfill that love in new incarnations, leading vastly different lives.
Emma thought she had chosen the right path, but too late does she realize her mistake as her husband reveals the monster behind his smile; morphing their fairytale image with loveless obligation. Trapped in a broken marriage to a powerful, abusive husband, she knows this is not the life she was destined to live. As her hope for love withers, she meets James, her love from a lifetime ago.
Emma cannot deny the love pulling her toward James, but courage to abandon her marriage wavers and unknowingly puts her love on the line. If Emma has any hope of life and love, she must trust the bond with James and be with the man destiny has spent two lifetimes guiding her toward. Are they fated to fulfill their love, or will they once again, leave love unfinished? (Book Blurb Courtesy: Amazon.com)
Purchase Links:
"Love Unfinished" is available through Darian’s website, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. You can also download free sample chapters of her book, by clicking here.
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