Romance and adventure abound in this story of a privileged woman, Mary Calvert, who is forced to travel West on the Oregon Trail. Travel with her as she encounters hardships that no woman should endure and the man who makes it all worthwhile.
Will the Oregon Trail prove too much for this privileged woman, or will she be able to endure all that she experiences and more? To guide us on these travels, Wendy L Courchaine, author of ‘A Woman in the Wild’ has kindly joined us today. Wendy, in this tale, some quite unique characters are introduced to the readers. How did they come to you?
I have a vivid imagination and I like to think outside of the box for my characters. To write otherwise, would be boring. I have to grab my own attention with the development of my characters before I can write about them. If I’m not excited about my characters than I’m sure no one else will be.
Do you find this excitement energises you, or does it become overwhelming?
It definitely energizes me.
I’m sure that some of that excitement and energy from the characters and writing bleeds over to the rest of the book, and in turn, drives the message that you want to share with readers. What message did you really want to share with readers through these pages?
I wanted to write a book that would take the reader on an adventure where they felt as if they are in the story experiencing it along with the characters.
Have you ever been lucky enough to embark on your own literary pilgrimage adventure?
It depends on what you mean by pilgrimage? Have I traveled to do research on a project? Yes. Mostly from libraries, internet, reading other’s writing, etc.
Awesome! With all of those tips you’ve picked up from research, you’ve no doubt improved your thought processes. Out of all of the things to think about, what thoughts do you keep in your mind as you write?
I want to be excited when I write. I want to be taken to “the zone” where the world disappears and I’m submerged in the story.
What have you personally learned as you’ve been taken to ‘the zone’?
I learned that I’m still a kid at heart.
And as a kid at heart, I’m sure you’ll indulge my love of games, and dig into the quick-fire question round! Let’s start the fun with the curly question, if money doesn’t grow on trees then why do banks have branches?
Well money is printed on paper and paper comes from trees so technically money does grow on trees.
Ah, I see, so it’s to make the money feel at home. Can you cry underwater?
If I were underwater, I would definitely be crying. I don’t swim.
Would you rather fly in space then, and answer a spacious question? Our spacious question for today is if space is a vacuum, who changes the bags?
God
Once the universe is tidy, we can answer the next question, why is a square meal served on round plates?
To soften the edges of the veggies that no one seems to like.
I do! And I love words too! What’s your favourite word?
Gosh darn double fudge banana
Good choice! If you invented a monster what would it look like and what would you call it?:
Just read my book, Bowden. There are plenty of monsters in it with names.
I’ll have to pick up a copy and check them out! On the topic of monsters, what do you think happens if Batman gets bitten by a vampire?
They become blood brothers.
A friend for Batman! We’ll leave Batman for now (you never know when he might want to pop-up again though), while we change gears back to books. As you’ve continued writing, do you feel that your voice as an author has improved?
I have found that I definitely have a unique style. It’s more structured now, more refined, but it’s still laid back and conversational in tone. I want the reader to be there in the story with me and I think I have accomplished that.
Has that unique style and conversational tone build up enough to the point where you’ve considered creating your own author brand around it?
I haven’t a brand as of yet. It’s fun to think about though. Maybe in the future.
Oh, I think it would be lots of fun! But, there’s still so much fun to be had writing! To close out our chat for today, can you share where you’re currently having writing fun!
I’m working on the sequel to “The Others Among Us”.
That’s awesome, I hope that you keep having so much more fun with it! Wendy, thanks again for chatting with us, and I hope to hear more about your journey soon!
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Excited to read the book we discussed today? Find it here on Amazon: ‘A Woman in the World ( ASIN: B00E6BI7EU )‘.
Want to find out more about Wendy L Courchaine? Connect here!