Getting To Know Us -- Jean C. Gordon

 

Yes, we all have bios on this website, but there is so much MORE to know about our Classic and Cozy bloggers.  So the 2nd Friday of each month is dedicated to getting to know us better. This month I'd like to introduce you to me, Jean C. Gordon. I’m interviewing myself.

Okay, inquiring minds want to know…why a writer? Certainly not for the fame and fortune…or maybe it is?
I think my writing is a natural extension of my love of reading. All though school, I loved writing, even though my best subjects were math and science. I went on to study journalism in college and later combined my math skills with my writing to become a financial writer.

When did you first put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) to create your classic and cozy characters?
I started seriously pursuing fiction writing — romance novels — in 1995, after writing romance reviews for the now long-defunct Paperback Trader. I sold my first romance novel, Bachelor Father, to Avalon Books in 1999. Four more followed before Avalon Books was sold to Amazon Montlake. Since 2010, I’ve written for Harlequin Love Inspired. 

Do you have a set writing schedule?
Last month, after working for many years as a financial writer and Editorial Manager for a financial publisher in Albany, NY, I became a full-time author and freelance financial writer. I’ve been trying to maintain an at-home work schedule similar to my old day-job schedule, starting about an hour later than I used to and stopping about an hour earlier, for roughly a seven-hour day. But I’ve taken advantage of the flexibility to make exceptions for some volunteer work on Tuesday morning and mid-day walks with our lab-mix Xena. And no more writing evenings or weekends.

Is there a certain routine, food/drink, or location that summons forth the muses for you?
No, I guess my muse is every present. Or maybe that’s never present, so it doesn’t matter where I am.
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
As I said above, I love to read. I like taking walks with Xena and my husband and enjoy our grandchildren who live with us. We share a 175-year old farmhouse on 12 acres with my daughter and son-in-law. I have a small flock of chickens and volunteer one morning and one evening at my church’s Book Nook, a used book fellowship mission. My husband and I like to travel the U.S., and I have a collection of shot glasses from every state we’ve visited. Once I meet my current looming deadlines, my son-in-law and I are going to tackle some home repairs and renovations.

I imagine you’ve been reading all of your life (all great writers have.)  What was your favorite book as a child?
The one that sticks out most is The Secret Garden.

Do you re-read books?  If so, which one have you re-read the most?
I don’t re-read books. I have a few on my keeper shelf in the living room, but haven’t re-read them.

But there’s more to life than reading, writing (and arithmetic)…what is your most memorable adventure in your life?
The cross-country, from Western New York to Los Angeles, CA, that my husband and I took as 19- and 20-year-old newlyweds to finish college in Los Angeles. We drove an old F-100 Ford van with my piano and his motorcycle and all our other worldly belongings. Along the way, we camped without a tent, only our double sleeping bag, in Ohio, stopped in Iowa to see my husband’s cousin who couldn’t make our wedding. She was going to college at Iowa. My husband had the distinction (at that time) of being the only man to stay overnight at her sorority house. We go to stay in the rec room. Then, it was on to my aunt and uncle’s in Manhattan, KS. A perfectionist professor at Kansas State, he “helped” my husband repack the van for optimal weight distribution. We crossed the Texas panhandle at night. It was so flat and desolate, it was spooky. We’d seen the headlights of a car driving toward us, but the car wouldn’t reach us for ten minutes. We also went through the Mohave Desert at night to avoid the heat (no AC in our van). It was still 110 in Needles when we left. And, then we came back two year later in a Ford Courier pickup, but that’s another adventure.

If you were on American Idol, what song would you sing to WOW! the judges? 

Nothing I sang would wow the judges.

What are you currently working on? What can we readers look forward to seeing from you?
I’m working on copy edits for the second book, Holiday Homecoming, and writing the third book in my new series for Love Inspired, The Donnelly Brothers — Hometown boys make good . . . and find love. The first book of the series, Winning the Teacher’s Heart is in stores now

Celebrated motocross champion Jared Donnelly returns to his hometown Paradox Lake to rebuild his family’s tarnished reputation, a move that nearly tears high school teacher Becca Norton’s family apart.

Last question…movie rights…who’ll play your current main characters when Hollywood comes knocking on your door? 
Holiday Homecoming:  Chris Helmsworth as Connor Donnelly and Natalie Wood as Natalie Delacroix
Josh’s book: Bradley Cooper as Josh Donnelly and Troian Bellisario as Tessa Hamilton.
For a complete list of my books click on over to my Website, JeanCGordon.com, and while you’re there, sign up for my author newsletter. You can also keep in touch with me on my Facebook page.

Stories, stories everywhere

by Jean C. Gordon

Readers often ask, "Where do you get your story ideas? "My short answer is "Life." Maybe I should refine that to "Ordinary Life."

For instance the idea for my first published book, a sweet romance from Avalon Books, came from the experience of another family that was adopting a Korean baby from the same agency we used to adopt our son. The Korean agency had a strict rule of allowing only married couples to adopt its children. Sadly, after a child was placed with a local family, the mother died before the adoption was finalized. Initially, the agency wanted to take the child back. I don't know what actually happened, but the resolution in my story is a happy one--naturally.

An article I read at work in The Wall Street Journal  planted the seed of my second Avalon book. It was about a financial planner who scammed older people. In my book, the hero's grandmother was scammed. My heroine works for the practice that scammed her. Of course, she knows nothing about it. But the hero doesn't know that.

Small-Town Sweethearts, my first Love Inspired Romance grew from a comment a family member made about how she liked their new church because it was more formal, and she could worship privately there. In contrast, I really like our church because of the fellowship the congregation shares. I started thinking about the value of Christian fellowship and how different people perceive it, and the story unfolded.

An incident my daughter experienced as a midwife inspired my latest Love Inspired, Small-Town Midwife. I thought, what if Autumn, my midwife heroine, no longer has the confidence to catch babies. Then, I brought in Dr. Jon Hanlon who exudes nothing but confidence in his technical app roach to delivering babies. How could a romance not develop?

Think about your life. How many story ideas do you see?