Hello, Therians!
I am honored to have the wonderful, Theresa Rizzo, stopping by for a chat today :) Check out the interview below and get to know the author of He Belongs To Me, a little better.
Be sure to check in tomorrow when I will be reviewing this amazing book in my second stop in the He Belongs To Me Blog Tour, brought to you by JKSCommunications.
He Belongs to Me is a love story . . . a tale of betrayal and deception and of a young mother's determination to recover what belongs to her.
Forced to leave her baby and tricked into relinquishing her parental rights, four years later Catherine Boyd is back and she'll do anything to regain custody of her son--even reconcile with the husband falsely accused of killing their son's twin.
All in the name of love for a little boy, generations of pain and tragedy are exposed in a courtroom drama.
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AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT
Hi Theresa,
Thanks so much for joining us today!
Hi
Roxy,
Thank
you so much for reading and reviewing He Belongs to Me and for having me on
your blog!
- Tell us a bit more about yourself.
I married my
high school sweetheart thirty years ago and I have four great kids-- 19-26yrs
old. I’m a transplanted
Michigander. I love Michigan and
Midwestern people, but the winters are G-R-A-Y and L-O-N-G. Just can’t compete with Colorado sunshine and
stunning mountains!
- Describe yourself in three words.
Kind,
creative, determined.
- What five things do you never leave
home without?
Wallet,
cell phone, keys, sunglasses, sweater/jacket
- What do you do when you’re not
writing?
I’m not one of those authors totally consumed with writing 24/7. I am very active in writers groups—running The
Sandy Writing Contest , co-coordinating
the Crested Butte Writers Conference, and helping judge other writing contests. It’s a ton of fun helping others realize
their dreams! Then I love walking/hiking with my pup and hubby. Recently I’ve
gotten into making mosaics with my tile saw.
And two of my three girls are getting married in the next 1.5 years, so
helping with wedding preparations. Then
there’s always travel to visit family, reading, playing cards, working in the
yard, thinking about getting back into golf and tennis . . .Oh and watching
movies!
- Who/What inspired you to start
writing?
Truth? Though being a stay-at-home
mom is a laudable profession, I found it a thankless job (at the time) and
living for my kids and husband was sucking the life out of me—all my fault by
the way. Writing was a wonderful
creative intelligent outlet and it fed my soul and made me a much happier
person and better mother and wife.
- What has been the most rewarding
experience on the road to being published?
The
most rewarding thing on the road to being published is the wonderful, generous
writers I’ve met and befriended through the years.
- What is the best advice you’ve been
given as an author?
FINISH
the book. Just make the story the best you can at the time and then move on to
the next book.
- What advice would you give to
aspiring authors?
Yes. Don’t expect this to be easy.
Spend
the time learning the craft. Be realistic. Realize that writing is the
entertainment industry and subjectivity reigns. Talent doesn’t necessarily mean
anything. There’s a LOT to learn, but writers are generous, fun wonderful
people. Go to conferences and be an active part of a writers group.
- Who are your favorite authors to
read?
A
few are Kaki Warner, Jodi Picoult, Harlan Coben, Jodi Picoult, Susan Wiggs and
dozens more.
- What research did you
have to do for He Belongs to Me?
I researched tons of
things from Chicago neighborhoods and shaken baby syndrome, to court
procedural. I did a lot of research with
regards to the social worker and legal aspects of this story. The internet is
such a blessing because not only could I find TONS of information there, but it
gave me resources so I could email experts in the fields to double-check my
facts.
It’s very important
to me that I’m as accurate as can be—or at least I want to know where I’m
taking creative license. Re the legal
scenes, I must credit my sister for how well they came out. Jayne was a trial lawyer for decades and very
patiently answered all my questions and read and reread my scenes for accuracy.
- Are any of your characters based on
real people?
To be honest, yes. Nothing in the circumstances were remotely
similar, but Thomas is based loosely on a guy I had a crush on as a young kid.
I didn’t know him very well and doubt he even knew I existed, but he was really
sweet to me, and a good person. He was smart, athletic, and handsome. He was a
guy with integrity and principles—even as a teenager. I admired him a lot.
- Who is your favorite character, and
why?
I’m torn between
Catherine and Thomas. I have a great deal of sympathy for each and can identify
with them both. I can’t choose.
I’m revising and
polishing my next book, Just Destiny,
coming out early next year.
Jenny is a
beautiful young woman whose seemingly perfect marriage to Gabe is shattered by
a tragic accident that leaves her husband brain dead. Devastated at the sudden
loss, she decides to preserve the best of their love by harvesting Gabe’s sperm
for later insemination.
But her
husband’s powerful, grieving uncle, the man who raised him, thinks of Jenny as
a gold digger and is willing to risk exposing long-held family secrets in court
to stop her.
The prospect of
a grueling trial tests Jenny’s resolve, until an unexpected ally comes to her
aid giving her the opportunity to win and the possibility of a second chance at
happiness.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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