Guest: Interview with Cate Ashwood.
My guest today is the lovely Cate Ashwood. All yours, Cate, take it away!
*~*~*
1. Firstly, congratulations on your first novel! How did you come up with the plot and the characters?
Thank you! The whole book kind of evolved from a picture in my head, based on a line from a song I heard a few years ago. It was this image of a placid lake with reflections on the water, and the picture and the story kept evolving until one day I started to write it down. It’s been so long that the story no longer resembles the image in my head at all.
2. I love that you have a section on your site for playlists for your novels, how did you come up with that idea? (And I must pimp out 8tracks.com, which is awesome for playlists.)
Thanks! And I will definitely have to try out 8tracks. I created the playlists mostly for me to keep track of the songs I was using to put myself in a certain mindset for writing specific scenes in the book. I don’t listen to music while I’m writing (I don’t have enough capacity for concentration to do that), but I will listen to a song to pick up a mood, especially if I’ve left off in the middle of a scene.
3. What are you working on at the moment?
I’ve just submitted a three part series to my publisher, so right now I am mostly keeping fingers and toes crossed that I hear back from them soon. All three follow different couples in a fictional town in Maine. They were completed a few weeks ago and since then there has been a bit of a lull in my writing because exams have taken over. I am two weeks from completing the academic portion of my course and then it’s on to the practical experiential section where I will hopefully have a little more downtime to write because I have quite a few ideas swirling around in my head.
4. Who or what has been a big influence on you and your writing?
I read. A lot. Up until the advent of the kindle, my parents had to weigh our suitcases every time we went on a trip somewhere because my sister and I would pack more books than clothes. I think that every writer is (or at least should be) an avid reader. There is no better way to learn than from others
I was really lucky growing up where I did. We had an excellent education system and I was blessed to have wonderful teachers my whole life that instilled a love of learning and creativity. They did a great job inspiring most of their students, but I think it goes back further than that. My parents (thank god for my parents) read to my sister and me so often when were little, that we had most of our books memorized. Once I learned to read for myself, my mom used to walk my sister and me to the library every time we needed new books (which ended up being almost every day). We would check out the maximum number and haul them all back up the hill to our house. She was definitely dedicated.
5. If you could have coffee with anyone living or dead, but not a celebrity, who would it be and why?
My grandfather. He died when I was little… 4 or 5 years old… and I don’t remember him. My mom is always going on about what a wonderful man he was (and he was her father in-law!). I’d really like to have gotten to know him.
6. Is there anything that you've always wanted to do but haven't?
Sing karaoke.
I am a terrible singer. Bad enough that I turn up the radio in the car to drown myself out even when I’m alone, but for some reason I’ve always wanted to get up and sing a karaoke duet with my sister. I don’t know if I’d ever actually have the guts to try it (there would probably have to be copious amounts of alcohol involved), but it’s fun to think about.
7. What did you want to be when you grew up?
That changed a lot over the course of my lifetime. My goals were somewhat muddy for a while until about halfway through high school when my mom was diagnosed with cancer. She underwent treatment and won the fight, coming out the other side cancer free. I was so grateful that she was okay, that I decided that I wanted to be an oncologist. Once I graduated and realized that I would be a terrible oncologist (I would need to take stress leave every time I lost a patient), I took one of every class in first year university to figure out what I liked learning about.
That was the year I discovered psychology. I majored in it, focusing on development and learning, and after university began teaching. I have been doing that for the last five years, but recently decided I needed a change, and so I am taking a course to become a phlebotomist. So… ask me again in ten years what I want to be when I grow up and I might have a better answer for you.
8. What is your favorite quote, by whom, and why?
I don’t know if I have a favourite, but I like the sappy inspirational ones people plaster all over the internet, like:
“The two most important days in your life are the day you were born, and the day you find out why.” -Mark Twain
Or
“Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we're curious...and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” -Walt Disney
9. What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in your life?
I know it’s pretty cliché, but I would have to say that getting published ranks pretty high up on my list. I think it’s more of a piece of a larger picture that I think is my biggest accomplishment. The last few years have been a bit of a struggle. I wasn’t really sure what my place was in the world. My husband and I have been struggling to get by and it felt like we were waiting for our lives to start. Over the last year, it suddenly feels like everything is falling into place for us. Being published is a part of that. I found something that I’m passionate about, and I might be kind of good at too.
10. What are some of your favourite books that you've read?
Oh, there are so many. I think I read close to 300 books last year…
11. Can you share a little of your current work with us?
This is from "Keeping Sweets," when Evan walks to the ocean for a little self-reflection.
He was beginning to realize that his desire to be normal, to fit in with a loving family and friends who cared about him had fueled a sort of denial about what would really make him happy. He had been searching for all these years for a magic trick to instantly make everything better, but there was no magic.
The forest opened to the cliffs that outlined the beach. A set of well-worn wooden steps carved a path through the low brush toward the water. He walked toward the ocean, listening to the sounds around him. He crossed the dry sand and sat down, then pulled off his shoes and socks before dipping his feet in the water. He wiggled his toes, burrowing into the loose sand, letting the waves splash against his shins.
The water was cold, and felt a bit like needles piercing his skin, but the calm that overcame him with being this connected to the sea overrode any discomfort from the temperature.
Slowly, his skin numbing slightly, he became accustomed to the cold. He stared out past the slowly rolling waves toward the calmer water at the horizon. He closed his eyes and thought of how peaceful it was here. He would be happy to stay like this forever. Quiet, serene, and tranquil, it was such a change from the quiet that had permeated his life until now. What had once been loneliness, separation, and isolation had become a quiet strength and acceptance of himself.
12. Have you ever considered anyone as a mentor?
Not really a mentor. There have been people that have inspired and encouraged me, but not in such a formal or strict capacity.
13. What do you do to unwind and relax?
Day to day, vegging out on the couch in front of the TV or reading is a pretty good way, but my husband and I try to take a little vacation every couple of months to keep our sanity. Even if it’s just an overnighter to a cabin his family owns in Washington, it’s nice to just unplug and get away for a day or two.
14. What got you interested/started in writing?
Reading and a curiosity to see if I could actually do it. I had enough ideas floating around in my head, that one day I just sat down at the computer and started writing. That was the first chapter of Keeping Sweets. It felt so good to get the words out; to see them flowing onto the page, filling up the blank space. I just kept at it, and a couple of months later, I’d written a whole book (and I shocked myself with that).
15. Finally, the question I ask everyone I interview - if you were a plant in the next life, what would you be, and why?
Haha, that is a tough one. I’m going to go with Wisteria. It looks delicate, but it’s tough and the story behind its name is funny. It’s named after Caspar Wistar, who was an anatomist in the late 1700’s. A man in New Jersey found a giant thighbone but didn’t know what it was from. Turns out it was a dinosaur bone, but up until then, no one had ever seen a dinosaur bone. Wistar looked at it, described it as “a whopper”, but left it at that, and missed his chance at being the discoverer of dinosaurs one hundred years before anyone else. After he died, a botanist named Thomas Nuttall named wisteria after him. (More information that you needed to know? Probably. :D) [I dunno - I found that fascinating! -- L. J.]
And here’s all the extra stuff:
Title: Keeping Sweets
Release Date: March 11th, 2013
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Buy Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3620
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3621
Genre: Contemporary m/m romance
Blurb: Days away from high school graduation, with hardly a penny to his name, Evan Lowry needs to earn money for college. When he comes across an ad for modeling, he thinks his luck has changed-until he learns he’s interviewing for an adult film and will be expected to have sex. On camera. With other men.
For gay porn star Brandon Court, the shine has worn off of regular shoots. He and his producer, Les, decide to try something new: a reality-show porno set at a beach house. When he meets wide-eyed and naïve Evan for the first time, Brandon isn’t sure if he wants the kid to get lost or get naked. Naked wins.
On set, Brandon takes Evan under his wing, and over the next month, they are thrown together in every intimate way conceivable-except emotionally. Both Brandon and Evan are terrified of trying for anything deeper, and insecurities and doubts wear on their hopes, but the chemistry between them won’t let them slow things down.
Author Bio: Cate Ashwood wrote her very first story in a hot pink binder when she was in the second grade and found her passion for writing. Her first successful foray into romance writing came five years later when she wrote her best friend, who was experiencing a case of unrequited love, her own happily ever after.
Cate’s life has taken a number of different and adventurous roads. She now lives a stone’s throw from the ocean, just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two cats. Her life is filled with family and friends, travel, and, of course, books.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.cateashwood.com
Blog: http://cateashwood.blogspot.ca/
E-mail: cateashwood@gmail.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cate.ashwood
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cateashwood
*~*~*
1. Firstly, congratulations on your first novel! How did you come up with the plot and the characters?
Thank you! The whole book kind of evolved from a picture in my head, based on a line from a song I heard a few years ago. It was this image of a placid lake with reflections on the water, and the picture and the story kept evolving until one day I started to write it down. It’s been so long that the story no longer resembles the image in my head at all.
2. I love that you have a section on your site for playlists for your novels, how did you come up with that idea? (And I must pimp out 8tracks.com, which is awesome for playlists.)
Thanks! And I will definitely have to try out 8tracks. I created the playlists mostly for me to keep track of the songs I was using to put myself in a certain mindset for writing specific scenes in the book. I don’t listen to music while I’m writing (I don’t have enough capacity for concentration to do that), but I will listen to a song to pick up a mood, especially if I’ve left off in the middle of a scene.
3. What are you working on at the moment?
I’ve just submitted a three part series to my publisher, so right now I am mostly keeping fingers and toes crossed that I hear back from them soon. All three follow different couples in a fictional town in Maine. They were completed a few weeks ago and since then there has been a bit of a lull in my writing because exams have taken over. I am two weeks from completing the academic portion of my course and then it’s on to the practical experiential section where I will hopefully have a little more downtime to write because I have quite a few ideas swirling around in my head.
4. Who or what has been a big influence on you and your writing?
I read. A lot. Up until the advent of the kindle, my parents had to weigh our suitcases every time we went on a trip somewhere because my sister and I would pack more books than clothes. I think that every writer is (or at least should be) an avid reader. There is no better way to learn than from others
I was really lucky growing up where I did. We had an excellent education system and I was blessed to have wonderful teachers my whole life that instilled a love of learning and creativity. They did a great job inspiring most of their students, but I think it goes back further than that. My parents (thank god for my parents) read to my sister and me so often when were little, that we had most of our books memorized. Once I learned to read for myself, my mom used to walk my sister and me to the library every time we needed new books (which ended up being almost every day). We would check out the maximum number and haul them all back up the hill to our house. She was definitely dedicated.
5. If you could have coffee with anyone living or dead, but not a celebrity, who would it be and why?
My grandfather. He died when I was little… 4 or 5 years old… and I don’t remember him. My mom is always going on about what a wonderful man he was (and he was her father in-law!). I’d really like to have gotten to know him.
6. Is there anything that you've always wanted to do but haven't?
Sing karaoke.
I am a terrible singer. Bad enough that I turn up the radio in the car to drown myself out even when I’m alone, but for some reason I’ve always wanted to get up and sing a karaoke duet with my sister. I don’t know if I’d ever actually have the guts to try it (there would probably have to be copious amounts of alcohol involved), but it’s fun to think about.
7. What did you want to be when you grew up?
That changed a lot over the course of my lifetime. My goals were somewhat muddy for a while until about halfway through high school when my mom was diagnosed with cancer. She underwent treatment and won the fight, coming out the other side cancer free. I was so grateful that she was okay, that I decided that I wanted to be an oncologist. Once I graduated and realized that I would be a terrible oncologist (I would need to take stress leave every time I lost a patient), I took one of every class in first year university to figure out what I liked learning about.
That was the year I discovered psychology. I majored in it, focusing on development and learning, and after university began teaching. I have been doing that for the last five years, but recently decided I needed a change, and so I am taking a course to become a phlebotomist. So… ask me again in ten years what I want to be when I grow up and I might have a better answer for you.
8. What is your favorite quote, by whom, and why?
I don’t know if I have a favourite, but I like the sappy inspirational ones people plaster all over the internet, like:
“The two most important days in your life are the day you were born, and the day you find out why.” -Mark Twain
Or
“Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we're curious...and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” -Walt Disney
9. What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in your life?
I know it’s pretty cliché, but I would have to say that getting published ranks pretty high up on my list. I think it’s more of a piece of a larger picture that I think is my biggest accomplishment. The last few years have been a bit of a struggle. I wasn’t really sure what my place was in the world. My husband and I have been struggling to get by and it felt like we were waiting for our lives to start. Over the last year, it suddenly feels like everything is falling into place for us. Being published is a part of that. I found something that I’m passionate about, and I might be kind of good at too.
10. What are some of your favourite books that you've read?
Oh, there are so many. I think I read close to 300 books last year…
11. Can you share a little of your current work with us?
This is from "Keeping Sweets," when Evan walks to the ocean for a little self-reflection.
He was beginning to realize that his desire to be normal, to fit in with a loving family and friends who cared about him had fueled a sort of denial about what would really make him happy. He had been searching for all these years for a magic trick to instantly make everything better, but there was no magic.
The forest opened to the cliffs that outlined the beach. A set of well-worn wooden steps carved a path through the low brush toward the water. He walked toward the ocean, listening to the sounds around him. He crossed the dry sand and sat down, then pulled off his shoes and socks before dipping his feet in the water. He wiggled his toes, burrowing into the loose sand, letting the waves splash against his shins.
The water was cold, and felt a bit like needles piercing his skin, but the calm that overcame him with being this connected to the sea overrode any discomfort from the temperature.
Slowly, his skin numbing slightly, he became accustomed to the cold. He stared out past the slowly rolling waves toward the calmer water at the horizon. He closed his eyes and thought of how peaceful it was here. He would be happy to stay like this forever. Quiet, serene, and tranquil, it was such a change from the quiet that had permeated his life until now. What had once been loneliness, separation, and isolation had become a quiet strength and acceptance of himself.
12. Have you ever considered anyone as a mentor?
Not really a mentor. There have been people that have inspired and encouraged me, but not in such a formal or strict capacity.
13. What do you do to unwind and relax?
Day to day, vegging out on the couch in front of the TV or reading is a pretty good way, but my husband and I try to take a little vacation every couple of months to keep our sanity. Even if it’s just an overnighter to a cabin his family owns in Washington, it’s nice to just unplug and get away for a day or two.
14. What got you interested/started in writing?
Reading and a curiosity to see if I could actually do it. I had enough ideas floating around in my head, that one day I just sat down at the computer and started writing. That was the first chapter of Keeping Sweets. It felt so good to get the words out; to see them flowing onto the page, filling up the blank space. I just kept at it, and a couple of months later, I’d written a whole book (and I shocked myself with that).
15. Finally, the question I ask everyone I interview - if you were a plant in the next life, what would you be, and why?
Haha, that is a tough one. I’m going to go with Wisteria. It looks delicate, but it’s tough and the story behind its name is funny. It’s named after Caspar Wistar, who was an anatomist in the late 1700’s. A man in New Jersey found a giant thighbone but didn’t know what it was from. Turns out it was a dinosaur bone, but up until then, no one had ever seen a dinosaur bone. Wistar looked at it, described it as “a whopper”, but left it at that, and missed his chance at being the discoverer of dinosaurs one hundred years before anyone else. After he died, a botanist named Thomas Nuttall named wisteria after him. (More information that you needed to know? Probably. :D) [I dunno - I found that fascinating! -- L. J.]
And here’s all the extra stuff:
Title: Keeping Sweets
Release Date: March 11th, 2013
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Buy Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3620
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3621
Genre: Contemporary m/m romance
Blurb: Days away from high school graduation, with hardly a penny to his name, Evan Lowry needs to earn money for college. When he comes across an ad for modeling, he thinks his luck has changed-until he learns he’s interviewing for an adult film and will be expected to have sex. On camera. With other men.
For gay porn star Brandon Court, the shine has worn off of regular shoots. He and his producer, Les, decide to try something new: a reality-show porno set at a beach house. When he meets wide-eyed and naïve Evan for the first time, Brandon isn’t sure if he wants the kid to get lost or get naked. Naked wins.
On set, Brandon takes Evan under his wing, and over the next month, they are thrown together in every intimate way conceivable-except emotionally. Both Brandon and Evan are terrified of trying for anything deeper, and insecurities and doubts wear on their hopes, but the chemistry between them won’t let them slow things down.
Author Bio: Cate Ashwood wrote her very first story in a hot pink binder when she was in the second grade and found her passion for writing. Her first successful foray into romance writing came five years later when she wrote her best friend, who was experiencing a case of unrequited love, her own happily ever after.
Cate’s life has taken a number of different and adventurous roads. She now lives a stone’s throw from the ocean, just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and two cats. Her life is filled with family and friends, travel, and, of course, books.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.cateashwood.com
Blog: http://cateashwood.blogspot.ca/
E-mail: cateashwood@gmail.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cate.ashwood
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cateashwood