Interview with Author Jean C. Joachim

Welcome to Sinclair Books. We are going to start our very first interview with the talented Jean C. Joachim. Before we begin I would like to thank Jean for taking the time to stop by and chat with us. You can find out more about Jean at her website here.

                                                              Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights

Caroline Davis White is a well-known artist and married to a wealthy, controlling man. She has everything money could buy except one thing: Love. Brad refuses to give her a divorce she so desperately wants. With no money, family, or friends, she flees to the Catskill Mountains where she spent her summers as a young adult.

Mike Foster has achieved success and made more money than he could have thought possible, but it destroyed his marriage and cost him his son. He is wary of every woman he meets, knowing his money may be more attractive than his good looks.

Caroline reconnects with the life she had and friends from long ago. Mike stepped out of her teenage dreams into her life again, looking more handsome and tempting than ever. Caroline knew Mike back then, but is he still the man she fell in love with?

Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights can be found on amazon kindle at this location here.

What originally inspired you to write your first novel?

I woke up one day and my two main characters, Callie and Mac, were in my head, acting out their story. I couldn’t get away from them and within a short time I realized I didn’t want to. I wanted to tell their emotional story of loss and the healing power of their love.

Did you always want to be a Romance writer?

No. I was a non-fiction writer for ten years before writing my first romance book. I have had seven non-fiction books published. After writing my first romance, I was hooked. Now I love writing romance.

How long does it take to write a novel and what is your process?

If the story has been percolating in my head for several weeks, dominating my mind, it doesn’t take me long. I can write a novel in a month…even less. I prefer to work that way, while the passion for the story is hot within me.

Who is your first character that you created and why?

Callie Richards is my first character. She is a strong young woman struggling with overwhelming loss, pushing forward with her life. She knows a lot about love, not just sexual love, but true love. She and Mac form a tight bond, healing each other through their love.

What did it feel like to see the front cover of your first release for the first time?

It was the biggest high in the world. Once the book was printed, I carried the book everywhere with me, like a newborn infant. It felt like I had given birth, to Callie, Mac and their story. It was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

What would you say is the hardest part of being a writer?

Two things: First, having people ask me who my characters are in real life. Where did I get them from? People seem to think that writers lurk in coffee shops writing down what people say and copying it into a book. Rubbish! None of my characters are like anyone I know. They come purely from my imagination. Two: the outside world, where people judge your writing, like agents and publishers, sometimes in a fickle way, controlling whether your voice gets out to the world or not.

What would you say is the best part of being a writer?

Doing what I love, my own way. Being alone, unbothered to escape into another world where something exciting is going to happy and often I don’t know what it is, but am confident will somehow involve love.

What is your favourite novel that you have read?

Pride and Prejudice is the best novel I’ve ever read, although Dodsworth and Main Street by Sinclair Lewis are also strong favorites.

What advice would you give unpublished authors trying to break through?

Never give up. Keep writing and reading. Read everything you can get your hands on in your genre. Don’t listen to anyone who tries to discourage you, but do listen to constructive criticism from people who care about you.

What can we expect from your next release?

My next release, “Now and Forever 2, the Book of Danny” is an emotional story of an angry young man, a crack-shot sniper in the military, coming home from service in Iraq and trying to leave the anger and killing behind to have a normal life. Danny is a wonderfully imperfect character with a huge capacity to love and live life completely. He leaped out of book one, tugging on my mental and emotional sleeve until I wrote his story. He’s one of my favorite characters.

Thank you for stopping by and I wish you every success with your books.