October Interview with Bettye Griffin

GB: Hi, Bettye! I’m so glad you decided to drop by my blog for a chat. I know that you are a busy woman so I appreciate you taking the time to chat. I’m also so-oo excited because I love your blog and I admire your work. So thanks so much for doing this. My first question has to do with time management. How do you do it all and do it all so well?

BG: Thanks, Gwyneth! I'm glad to be here. We chat so much online that sometimes I have to remind myself that we actually haven't met yet, but hopefully soon. I never noticed before that your initials are the opposite of mine. Thank God I'm not dyslexic as I answer these questions.

As far as time management, I try to make the most of every minute. I rarely just lounge around doing nothing. I'm big on multitasking, like folding laundry or ironing while watching TV. If I walk for exercise, I've got my handheld tape recorder with me so I can “write” (it's amazing how many pages I can dictate while walking two measly little miles). If I’m driving alone, I’ll also dictate. Most lunch breaks (I don’t want to be entirely antisocial) are spent writing. I’ll draft a blog idea as soon as it occurs to me. And I limit my time on-line (usually in the mornings; people who post blogs in the afternoon usually won’t see a response from me until the next day!) The fact that it’s just my husband and me is also a factor, I think. There are no children in our household.

As far as my doing things well, I’ll just smile and say thank you for the compliment.

Incidentally, when this interview hits your blog I’ll be on vacation in Colorado, preparing to return home. I’m a big believer in recreational travel.

GB: Vacation, lovely! Have a wonderful time! Okay, I heard that you’ve known you wanted to be a writer since the tender age of six. What was the spark that made you finally decide to really pursue your desire? What led to that first book being published in 1999?

BG: I’d flirted with writing from the age of 10, when I taught myself to type with an old textbook in the hall bookcase (I can do 90 words a minute) and spent rainy summer days writing my first novel. I will always cherish the memory of my father adhering stamps to a large manila envelope and mailing it off to Morrow Junior Books. I could tell he hoped it would be published. I was a child of his middle age, and I’m grateful he lived long enough to see my first book published (BTW, it actually came out in December 1998, although the official publication date was January 1999), passing away four months later.

I seriously decided in 1983 to seriously pursue my dream of professional writing. Just fifteen short years later ,
At Long Last Love was on store shelves!

GB: With your recent mainstream release, If These Walls Could Talk , and your recent romance release, A Love For All Seasons , you have thirteen published novels to date. Congratulations on being so prolific and getting your work out there. Has your writing changed over the years? How do you keep it fresh for yourself?

BG: Well thanks, but I don’t think I’m particularly prolific; there are many authors who produce loads more than I do (of note, all of my titles have been full-length novels; I’ve never written a novella). I do hope my writing has improved over the years. I do work at it. I’m always reaching to do better and am particularly proud of my two 2007 releases, one that weaved flashbacks into the story, and the other that balanced the stories of three marriages.

I did read somewhere that there are only X number of romance themes. I believe it takes great effort to take one of these themes and make it fresh, something you certainly know about, having written romances yourself!

GB: I know! It takes some creativity to make the classic boy meets girl… new. (Smile) What has your journey to publication been like? How did you get in print and remain in print? Are there any secrets to your success that you are willing to share?

BG: I wrote three romance novels before one sold, so I'd say that being hardheaded helps. I also work on my writing on a continuous basis – these books don’t write themselves, you know – to make sure I have a product to market so I can stay in print with reasonable frequency. Readers don’t like to wait a year-and-a-half between books. I’ve had two books out per year for the last three years, one romance and one women’s fiction, but I wasn’t ready to do this early in my career. My first agent lost interest in me after I refused to write a romance every six months (eventually I fired her). I love to write, but I don’t imagine myself lying (or is it laying? – the difference still confuses me) on my deathbed saying, “I wish I’d spent more time working on my books . . . .”

GB: LOL. That’s a funny one Bettye! Okay, with so many wonderful novels under your belt, do you find that there are any common themes in your work, themes that resurface or topics that you revisit?

BG: Someone once asked me why I liked to write about step or blended families. I didn’t realize there was a pattern, but in hindsight I guess there is. It makes for good drama. This dynamic played a part in At Long Last Love , From This Day Forward , One on One , The People Next Door , and Nothing But Trouble .



GB: You have published mainstream women’s fiction, romance novels and nonfiction. Do you find that you have to be in a different mental space or frame of mind to move from genre to genre? And I know this question is one you probably can’t answer, but… Which is your favorite? If you could write only one, what would it be?

BG: I’ve never had a book of nonfiction published, just articles going back many years now. To the frame of mind question, my answer would be, not really. A good story is a good story, no matter what the genre, and I find I easily get excited about/engrossed in whichever story I’m working on at the moment. I’ve been known to work on two manuscripts in a single session; when I get stuck on one and need time to work something out, I’ll go to the other. This is actually very efficient for me, and I find that I prefer working on two manuscripts at once. Sometimes, if I’m coming down to the wire deadline-wise, I’ll switch my background music – jazz for mainstream, romantic standards for romance, to help get in and remain in the appropriate mindset for the story.

Regarding my favorite, my first love has always been more general women’s fiction, so if I had to limit myself to one genre, that would be it. There are none of the restrictions that must be adhered to in romance (although writing romance is hardly easy, as I stated above). As you know, the purchasing of Arabesque by Harlequin has put a stop to my romance writing (at least for the time being). Arabesque is converting to a different focus, and my writing style doesn’t mesh with what Kimani is looking for.

GB: Your latest book, If These Walls Could Talk , seems perfectly suited to comment on these times of predatory builders and lenders. Can you tell us a little bit about why you decided to craft a story about three families going after that often out of reach American dream of home ownership?



BG: I’m always on the lookout for story ideas, and some years back I saw an article or a TV news report (I can’t remember which it was anymore) about the high rate of foreclosures in Eastern Pennsylvania, usually by black and Hispanic people from New York. These people took on the responsibility of home ownership and the improbable commute because impossibly high real estate prices in the city made them feel hopeless about achieving the American dream, but unfortunately they often bought without doing their homework. Shifty financing from one developer approved many who would not qualify at more traditional lenders. It had just recently all blown up in a huge scandal that stretched from predatory lenders to inadequate construction inspection laws in place at the time. Being from New York myself and having relocated to Florida so my husband-at-the-time and I could buy a home of our own, I saw the potential for a novel and started researching the situation. It’s merely coincidental that this is still in the news; I first pitched this story two or three years ago.

The ideas for many of my books come from the media. An article I saw in the local paper about a man who was found dead in his office Monday morning after an accident while lifting weights alone in the office gym on Friday evening became the basis for the opening chapter of Nothing But Trouble . I'm not exactly ripping from headlines, but those human-interest stories buried in the third column of Page Fourteen are just as interesting.



GB: Can you tell us a little bit about your latest romance novel? What would you say is the biggest difference between your first romance novel, At Long Last Love , and your latest, A Love For All Seasons ?



BG: A Love For All Seasons , published in May 2007 by Kimani Press/Arabesque, is about a woman who's gone through life without forming any close attachments to anyone and who likes her intimacy without strings. When friends of hers bring a friend of theirs to a party at her apartment, she is mystified by her nervous reaction to him. She doesn’t realize that seeing this man is the key to unlocking long-buried memories in her mind’s deepest recesses.

There are actually a few similarities between that book's heroine, Alicia Timberlake, and Kendall Lucas, the heroine of my very first novel, At Long Last Love . Kendall felt guilty because she had no maternal instinct whatsoever, possibly from a difficult childhood. But I’m sure the writing’s better. I keep saying I’m going to read one of my old titles, but I’m afraid of how I’ll react. (I’ll probably want to re-write the whole thing.)

Incidentally, I now own the rights to At Long Last Love as well as A Love of Her Own , my second novel, both of which are out of print. One of these days I’ll get around to doing something with them.

GB: It would be great if you could publish them again and make them available to those who didn’t catch them the first time around. Okay, you know I have to ask the cover question because I love your covers. I love that ever since around 2002 one could always tell a Bettye Griffin book by the cover. The covers all started to have those nice chocolate faceless people, really beautiful artwork. And it’s amazing because this is the case with your books from two different publishers. How did that end up happening for you? I have to ask this question as an author because covers are so-oo out of our control…

BG: One word: Luck. I can’t say I had anything to do with it. As far as I know, the faceless illustrations were the brainchild/personal style of the respective artists, first at Arabesque and then at Dafina. Whether it was a coincidence or planned in advance when I started doing mainstreams for Dafina is something I’ll never know. But I’m grateful. Every author didn’t have artists this eye-catching.

I can tell you this . . . that five-year streak is about to end. The cover of my next mainstream novel, Once Upon A Project , will usher in a new look for me. No more faceless drawings. I received a draft of the cover back in July, but since the book won’t be out until May I feel it’s still too early to unveil it to the public. I’ll probably wait until the six-month mark, which will be sometime next month. Book covers tend to go in cycles . . . remember those bright geometric designs in the beginning of contemporary A-A fiction boom? And how about the covers with all the appendages, arms, legs, feet wearing high heels in recent years? Now I'm seeing a trend toward the more dramatic, and that is reflected in my new cover. By next year this cover style will probably be all over the place.

GB: I knew you were gonna say something like luck! (Smile) So, how has your life changed since becoming published? Would you change anything if you had it to do all over again? What changes, if any, do you anticipate in the future?

BG: I can’t think of anything I’d change, but I’m sure there must be something. I’ve gone from being essentially lazy and undisciplined to much more organized. As for changes in the publishing industry, that’s like trying to predict the next late-life allergy I’ll develop (please Lord, don’t let it be shrimp).

GB: You have a wonderful web and blog presence. I love your website. And I adore the wonderful, witty commentary on your blog. Can you talk a little about what went into the creation of your various sites?

BG: I was late coming to both a web site and a blog, but I was determined not to do it unless I could make a commitment to keep it up. I hate looking at blogs where the last entry was, like, March; or web sites that say, “Happy 2003!” (Remember that old adage, don’t start what you can’t finish?) I set up my own web site through a hosting company and keep it updated. It’s much easier to do updates myself at my convenience than to wait for a webmaster who can go AWOL on me.

I try to post a new column on my blog at least three times a week, and four is better. With all the blogs out there to choose from, readers will quickly get bored with the same old stuff and will go elsewhere.

My husband is designing a new website for me, which I’ll get unveiled within the next month or so. I think it’s wonderful.

Gwyneth, I did want to thank you for commenting on my blog a regular basis. (Ditto to Patricia and Donna). I wish more of the people reading would speak up every now and again.

GB: Your welcome. I like your blog a lot. I always know I’ll find something to either make me think or laugh or both. (Smile) So, what do you like to read in your spare time? What are you reading right now? Do you have any favorite authors that you would like to share with us?

BG: I can say that I don’t have favorite authors, but rather favorite books. I haven’t come across an author yet who hasn’t put out at least one book that didn’t work for me, but that’s part of being a writer. You don’t want to tell the same story over and over again, where only the names of the characters change. You have to grow and try new things. Readers can’t always appreciate that.

I’m presently reading a sort-of mystery that is just blowing me away with the quality of the writing. I’ll be looking at my own work with a much more critical eye after reading this. It takes me several weeks to finish a book – no reflection on the book, but nothing comes between me and my writing time. I won’t name the title . . . I prefer not to publicly comment on a book until after I’ve completed it. I might change my assessment . . . if I hate the ending, for example.

GB: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

BG: First, decide what kind of writer you want to be. Be honest. Are you looking for a quick payday, or do you want to produce truly good work? If it’s the former, good luck. If it’s the latter, keep your eyes and ears open for good story ideas. You’d be surprised how far you can go with a good imagination. Learn as much as you can about the craft of writing (is this a good time to mention my editing service?) and don’t lose all sense of logic by writing implausible plotlines (Sonny Crockett of Miami Vice couldn’t possibly afford to live the way he did unless he was on the take big time, so no secretaries with apartments on Central Park West, please.) Learn to overcome your bad writing habits (we all have them). Don’t assume that getting picked up by a publisher means you have nothing more to learn.

GB: What are you working on now? Tell us a little something about your future works.

BG: Once Upon A Project will be published by Dafina in May. It’s women’s fiction, about four friends from childhood, only two of which have stayed in close contact over the years. One of them organizes a reunion of former tenants of the Southside Chicago public housing project where they spent their earliest years, and as the friends reunite, it is revealed that each of them is at a crossroads in their personal lives as they approach fifty, the same age as their former home. The reunion sets in motion a chain of events that will change the course of their lives. I hope it will appeal to older readers who might want to read about someone older than the typical thirtyish heroines. I’ve got nothing against being thirty-five, but I’ve said good-bye to my thirties and my forties, so I’d like to take a one-time leap out of the box. (Of course, thirty-year-olds can still read and enjoy the book.) I will likely leap back to writing about younger characters after this book. I just hope I can still relate to forty when I’m seventy.

Because the reading public often doesn’t want to let a story end, I’ve given in to requests and am working on a sequel to my first mainstream, The People Next Door , in which one of the main characters, Suzanne Betancourt, is put up against another gold digger, Micheline Mehu Trent from Nothing But Trouble . It took me a while to come up with a storyline that I really liked, one that shows the characters maturing rather than doing the same old antics, but now that I have, I’m rolling with it. I’ve got a first-person chick lit that’s been bouncing around for more years than I care to admit (actually, since before the coining of the term ‘chick lit’!) that I believe is rather good. And I’ve fooled around a bit with the promised sequel to my Arabesque romance From This Day Forward , featuring the two much-younger sisters of that book’s heroine, who’d now be in their early twenties (and older than that by the time I can get it into print!) And I’ve got an amusing mainstream romance about three sisters I’m working on. I want to do a World War II to present family saga. So many ideas, so little time. I’m already fifty. I should live so long to get all my ideas into print.

GB: They all sound fabulous too. I love the idea of bringing characters from two different books together. And Once Upon a Project sounds like it could be made into a movie. Can’t wait to read it! Well… thanks for taking the time to chat with me, Bettye. Your work is phenomenal and we look forward to all of the wonderful projects that you have in store for us in the future!

BG: Thank you, Gwyneth!

Readers can find out more information about Bettye and her wonderful novels here:

http://www.bettyegriffin.com/homepage.html

http://chew-the-fat-with-Bettye.blogspot.com

Thanks for checking out the interview! Next month instead of the usual author interview we will have “Debut Authors Week.” We’ll have three short interviews from three new authors! And these new authors are sizzling hot. You’ll just have to come back to see who they are because I’m not telling… (Smile)