Interview W. C. Keesey

by

Cindy Christiansen

Hi Wanda, Congratulations, by the way. Your book sounds very interesting, and I love your cover art.

1. Is Lost in the Mist your first book?

It’s my first published novel. I have that long ago novel that will never be published sitting in the bottom of a drawer.

2. What inspired you to write your very first full-length book? What kept you going to the very end? How did you feel when you completed it?

I actually started my first novel just to see if I could do it. My writing back then was very bad. I did finish that book, it was initial in my husband finding out that I had a secret passion. He encouraged me and here I am. When I finished that book, I was pleased with the story, and missed the stress of feeling the need to write. So I started writing short stories, and didn’t know if I would do another full length novel. I was a little depressed that it was done. That’s probably the main reason I wrote another.

3. What genre is Lost in the Mist? Tell us a little about it.

I tried to sell Lost In The Mist as a time travel for years (I started the book in 1994, finished it in 1996), then last year (2007) I talked to an editor that I’d gotten to know through writers conferences. She asked details of the novel and suggested that I call it a paranormal romance--because that’s what it is, she said. Wings was the second publisher I approached with it that same year.

Lost In The Mist is about Connie Hart, who is a freelance Civil War writer. When her mother passes away and leaves her several heirlooms, she is drawn to head south, to Virginia. She’s had a disastrous relationship with a man and hopes the trip will dull her duel pain. She finds romance, suspense, mystery, and new friends while she is drawn to Civil War era Fredericksburg.

4. What part of the writing process do you enjoy the most? What part do you dislike?

I haven’t talked to many writers who “like” to edit, marketing, or even rewrite, me either, but I do all because its part of the process. I love the initial story building and getting to know my characters; seeing where they’re going to take me is a real treat.

5. What motivated you to write Lost in the Mist?

Friends were talking about their vacation in Fredericksburg, Va. at a B&B and all the ghost stories--it got me to thinking that perhaps a reverse ghost story would be fun to write. I started the research and the more I learned the more my story grew, getting Connie’s story on paper kept me going. This was also the start of my interest in the Civil War era.

6. A lot of authors listen to music while they write. Do you? Do you have any rituals you do before, after or during writing? 

When I’m on a thread that won’t stop, a bomb could go off in the house and I’d send one of the cats to see what happened. I do usually have a TV running with some inane rerun going with little or no sound. I don’t know why, but I seem to like the company. Cats being what they are, they will sometimes insist that it’s their turn for attention, and that’s a must cause if I don’t stop and pet them, they will walk on the keyboard, or kick the mouse.

 I don’t really have a ritual, but I do try to keep a schedule. House and yard work, shopping trips, etc. before lunch; writing and writing related work after lunch till around six (research sometimes interferes); and reading books for reviews, in the evenings. I take a day now and then to update my website, and try to keep the weekend for pleasure reading, and doing things with my husband.

7. If you could write yourself into one of your books what kind of character would she be? (The heroine, the best friend, the antagonist, strong, funny, supportive, etc.)

 Good question! That one takes some thought--and I’m stalling. I would probably be the quiet, strong, heroine who smiled knowingly and was there to support but wouldn’t take any guff, and once fooled--would never trust that person again--ever.

8. How much research do you do for one of your books? How much of your book is fact, and how much is fiction?

 I always seem to be trying to find answers to questions that come up while I’m writing. I set my novels in the mid eighteen-hundreds, and I do everything I can to keep the history accurate, but the entire story and all the characters (though some known ones may be mentioned) are fictional. Even some of the locations are fictional, and I take some literary license with buildings, and streets. I have a stack of books on various civil war related subjects, and lots of civil war web sites as favorites. I have reference books on word usage through the years, and one on events (inventions, publications of classics, political happenings, etc) that come in handy but aren’t always enough. So I also have friends that I can contact with questions.

9. What has writing a book taught you about yourself?

 I’ve learned that I can write a book. I can overcome my spelling and grammar problems. It sometimes scares me when I read some of my stories and novels (I like to build bad guys and their deeds), I wonder where that came from. Writing also has expanded my interest to not only the civil war, but forensic science and its history, and the history of crime and criminals. My latest novel has a serial killer in it; yes it is a civil war era novel too.

10. What do you want your readers to gain from reading one of your books?

 I think I would love to have someone come to me and say that their interest in the history or our country has been sparked, and they want to learn more. I would like to have someone tell me that my book encouraged them to read more.

11. Do you have any plans for another book? Can you give us any details?

 Wings is reading another of my novels right now. I hope to hear soon. The Walk Home is an historic suspense/romance. There are some really bad, bad guys, and two women who take their lives in their hands to travel to Richmond at the beginning of the Civil War as slave and mistress. They are in search of Hattie’s husband, taken into slavery by slave hunters (those bad guys), who kill Sara’s husband and son, and leave her for dead.

 I also have a series of stand alone novels, connected by characters. Each book is centering on a different boy’s life in Harrisburg, PA during the Civil War. I’m finding that each boy is selecting his own genre.

12. How can readers find out more about you and your books? Do you have a website? Where can they buy your books?

 Right now Wings is my only publisher, so anywhere that Wings puts there books, you’ll find me. Yes, I do have a web site, http://www.wandakeesey.com with everything under the sun on it.

This has been a fun interview. Thanks for taking the time to answer a few questions. I wish you much success with your book.