She also does a great job of modeling that behavior. After becoming a finalist in 2014, she went on to publish her first book, Must Love Plague, last October.
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You can read a sample chapter here if you're interested.
Her second book, Must Love Famine (are you seeing a theme here?) comes out in March. How adorable is this cover?
Question 1: On Jenny Crusie’s
Argh blog, she recently asked if anyone had ever bought a book just for the
title. I responded that I bought Must Love Plague for the title alone. Where
did you get the idea for this title (and this book!)?
Thank you, Jeanne, I’m glad it
caught your eye. I’ve definitely bought books for their titles! The idea for
the book, the series in fact, was the synthesis of a few different ideas. One
was the idea of a town for paranormal creatures, a sanctuary where they were
free to let their weirdness loose, safe from the “Normals” or people without
magic. After an initial book about an island sanctuary, I decided instead to
set my town in the sea of the prairies, isolated by miles of wheat crops and
forest—coincidentally the kind of place I live. This allowed me to base the
town of Beckwell on my local small town, although all the bad things I made
up…and I’m fairly certain Loki doesn’t actually live there.
The girls and the four
horsewomen of the apocalypse were another idea entirely. I liked the idea of
four friends who were inseparable during high school, but went very different
directions after graduation. I’ve also been intrigued by turning the
conventional four horsemen upside down, and what better way than if they were
women in this paranormal sanctuary, about to gain their abilities whether they
want to or not?
For the title, I’ll say up
front I hate coming up with titles, and I’m often frustrated by a title not
accurately conveying the tone or humor that a book might have—paranormal
romance seems notorious for this. So my title needed to say humor plus romance
plus something to do with the four horsemen. This led to such “beauties” as
Festering for Love and Love’s Headache (yes really – any guess why those didn’t
survive?) Thank goodness plague was the troublesome one, because when I thought
of “Must Love Dogs” and other similar titles, voila, it worked. Plus, I confess
I love the double-take people give me when I tell them the title of my book. J
Question 2: According to your
website, you’re in search of an agent. What do you feel having an agent will
add to your career?
I’ve been writing and
submitting since I graduated high school, so when I started, traditional
publishing was the only viable route. The industry has changed a lot since
then, and while I appreciate the freedom indie publishing has offered me, it
wasn’t the route I’d planned to take, and I’d still like to become a hybrid
author (and not just because it sounds like I could be a werewolf.) I feel an
agent is a way to help me achieve these goals, as they could help me navigate
those contracts and make sure I’m not violating competition clauses between my
self-published and traditional work. I look at an agent as a business partner
with more experience in areas I lack, but who could also help me plan and
further my career.
Question 3: You have a craft
blog, Craft
Room Chronicles, that includes some pretty amazing stuff—dollhouses with
tiny furniture, polymer clay figures, family crests and miniature houses, papier-mâché vases, quilts. Although your materials vary, one common theme runs
through most of your crafts--a sense of fantasy. Talk to us about the
inter-relationship of your craft-work and your writing.
Interesting question! And
thank you for checking out my creative work. So the short answer is that both
my crafting and writing are creative outlets, and I’d go crazy without them.
Crafting is what I often do between writing projects; if my hands are busy, it
partially occupies my brain, which allows me to think more clearly. The longer
answer is that there didn’t used to be as much fantasy in my crafting, just
like there didn’t used to be magic and the paranormal in my writing, but maybe
magic is kind of like glitter: it gets everywhere before you know it.
I truly believe that the world
needs more magic, by which I don’t mean witches and unicorns and the like (even
though those are fun too), but the sense of wonder, hope, and possibility
that’s at the heart of magic. The more magic and paranormal took up residence
in my writing (I do tend to lean toward the urban fantasy end of paranormal
romance), the more it seemed silly that it wasn’t in my crafting projects. And
that there wasn’t story in my projects as other artists seemed to have. So,
fantasy increased in my projects, with my latest being the miniature fantasy
house / shop I’ve been planning in my head for years that I finally built in
2017. In my own way, if only in my house and for my children and those who know
me, it means I get to add more magic to their world.
Shelly Chalmers writes stories that run the gamut from Regency shifters to space opera.
All include a touch of magic, a sense of humor, and a dab of geek. A member of RWA® since 2008, she was thrilled to final in the Golden Heart® Contest in 2014. She makes her home in Western Canada, where when not reading, writing, crafting, or hunting unusual treasures and teapots, she wrangles a husband, two daughters, and two nutball cats. Her first book, Must Love Plague, came out in October 2017, and Must Love Famine will be available in March of 2018.
Loved hearing about how you came up with the titles and background on the story! Best wishes with this fun sounding series and your agent hunt.
ReplyDeleteWonderful interview, Shelly. I am so excited for you!!!
ReplyDeleteHow thrilling- I love your next cover, Shelly! I'm so proud of all you've accomplished. Looking forward to reading your new release!
ReplyDeleteTracy - I’m glad you were able to stop by. Thanks so much for your kind wishes, and glad you liked the story. Now I have to up my title-game for future series too, LOL! Wishing you wonderful things in the year ahead too!!
ReplyDeleteSharon - Thanks so much, Sharon. I’m really excited about this next book too. Now just the rest of the series to write. ;) May 2018 bring you great joy. :)
Sarah - Thank you! I love this cover too. It did take a bit to select just the right pig, because a pig on a romance cover, LOL?? Thank you for your kind words - you’ve been such a great example. :) Wishing you great things in 2018 and look forward to your next release too!
I really enjoyed this interview, Shelly and finding out more about your writing and life. Your books have the most gorgeous covers! Wishing you all good things with this series, your agent search and developing your writing career.
ReplyDeleteC.R. Grissom - thanks so much! And thanks for stopping by. :)
ReplyDeleteJen - Thanks for stopping by, Jen, and glad you enjoyed the interview. Jeanne is the most gracious host, and asks wonderful questions. :) And thank you too for the good wishes and kind words. I love the covers (my cover artist is Christa Holland of Paper & Sage, and I am in awe of her talent.) Wishing you a terrific year ahead. :)
Excellent interview! Go Shelly!
ReplyDeleteHi Pamela! Thanks for stopping by, and glad you enjoyed the interview. :)
ReplyDeleteAnd Jeanne, thank you so much for having me. It's truly been my pleasure.
I love how you equated crafting glitter to magic, and the fact that it gets everywhere! You are such a talented creator- I stand in awe of your creations on the page and off!
ReplyDeleteHi Amy, Thanks for stopping by! Glad you liked the magic / glitter equation, as it certainly seems to have worked that way, LOL! And thank you so much for your kind words - I'm definitely in awe of your creations too. Love your series and can't wait to see what you're up to next!
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