More with Suzanne Lieurance

Recently Suzanne Lieurance stopped by for a visit and while she was here I decided to ask her a few more questions about her work and her goals in being a writing coach. Read on for the full interview:

1. What one aspect of writing have you found to be the most difficult? How have you managed to conquer it?

Plotting is always difficult for me when I'm working on fiction. But, I've learned to create various plot points that move the story forward. And, I usually start out with a very general outline. Once I have all that done, I just start writing. The story changes a lot as I'm writing. But that's when it gets really fun to write!

2. What do you prefer writing more, fiction or non-fiction and why?

I enjoy both. I love fiction when I have huge chunks of time to write because I tend to get lost in the world of the story and I don't want to "come back" to the real world very often while I'm writing. But I also enjoy nonfiction because I can work on it in smaller chunks of time and still get a lot of writing done. I also learn so much about the topic I'm writing about. I love to do the research for both fiction and nonfiction.

3. What are some of your upcoming works?

I just finished another historical novel for Enslow Publishers. This one is about a young boy who lives through the Japanese-American Interment camps of World War II. The book is scheduled for release in 2009. Right now, I'm working on several nonfiction articles about writing for children for the Children's Writer newsletter, published by the Institute of Children's Literature. Plus, I'm always working on a variety of other nonfiction and fiction projects.

4. What are your goals in being a "Writing Coach?" How do you want to help other writers achieve their dreams?

I'm called the Working Writer's Coach because I help people who like to write become working freelance writers. By that I mean, they make a living from their writing. I help other writers achieve their writing dreams by first figuring out what it is that they truly LOVE to write. I have several coaching programs to help writers achieve their dreams. And, I offer free weekly teleseminars to anyone who wants to "write their way to business success." Anyone can register for these classes here

5. Can you tell us a bit about your recent release, "The Locket?" Who is it being published by?

A few years ago, I wrote a nonfiction book for Enslow Publishers about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. The Locket is my historical novel based on that same tragic incident. In The Locket, I created fictional characters who experienced this event. The book is also published by Enslow. Kim McDougall, of Blazing Trailers, created a wonderful trailer for the book. You can watch it at my website and find out a bit more about the story. The main character of The Locket is a young Russian-Jewish immigrant girl named Galena who works in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory.