Interview Series: Author Robin DeJarnett
Small Town Happenings with Robin DeJarnett
by Charmaine, Fictionista Workshop Volunteer
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When I asked Robin if we could meet to discuss her first novel, Whirlwind, she invited me to her home in San Jose to join her in watching the local high school’s Homecoming parade march through her neighborhood. Her daughter is a member of the award winning marching band that preceded the vintage cars carrying members of the Homecoming Court and the class floats. The entire experience felt like a scene from a movie, set in a small town. It was such an “Americana” moment, that it’s hard to believe I was in the third largest city in California.
Before the parade, we sat in her living room, me with my polka dot journal and pen in hand, she holding a very wide, blue binder, fat with the pages of her book and littered with post-it notes. We started chatting about her book, The Chicago Manual of Style, the weather and other random topics. After a while I noticed I hadn’t written any notes. Of course, I blame this on Robin. Her nature is so easy-going and welcoming that you immediately feel like you’ve been friends for years.
When Robin’s parent’s arrived to view the parade, I asked her how her family felt about her writing. She teared up a bit when talking about her husband (who she describes as her soul mate) and how supportive and proud of her he is. She then went on to tell me that her daughter, a very talented musician, composed the music for her book trailer. I asked her mother and father directly what they thought of their daughter and her work. Her parents, with wide smiles, could not be more proud of their daughter. Her sweet mother told me she couldn’t wait to read the final product.
When the time came for the parade to march by, we went outside into the chilly morning, the sidewalk filled with her neighbors, all wearing fleece scarves the high school sells as a fundraiser. It was easy to get into the spirit of the event and I found myself cheering along and wishing I had a scarf of my own. Afterwards, Robin and I walked to the nearby Starbucks to actually conduct the interview and warm up with some coffee.
How did Whirlwind come about and how long was the process from developing the idea to publishing?
The idea for Whirlwind came together very quickly. I was challenged to write a steamy sex scene, but found that I couldn’t do it without knowing some of the history of the characters. Why were they together? How did they meet? In answering these and other questions, the first half of the story flowed very quickly. By the time I made it to the requisite bedroom scene, the second half of the story started to take shape. From start to finish, the first draft probably took about eight to ten weeks to write. Things hurried along after that because the annual national meeting of the Romance Writers of America was being held in San Francisco just a couple months after I’d finished the first draft. I did a lot of research on the Internet about queries, then attended the conference. Within an hour of arriving, I met my first agent and was asked to send her the first three chapters of the book (and about peed my pants). I was rejected, but it was an amazing experience.
After that everything slowed down. Another rejection I received from the conference included a mark up of the first couple pages of the book and highlighted a TON of amateur mistakes. That led to the first big scrub of the manuscript and another round of querying. Yup, more rejections. It took about a year before I could bring myself to cut some of my favorite, but not really meaningful, parts of the original story out and tighten things up. I then sent more queries, and got more rejections. By the way, I only queried agents, not publishers at this time.
Finally, at the beginning of this year, after the third major scrub of the manuscript, I queried one more time. I included two e-publishers this time, and was offered a contract by one.
Prior to this novel, you worked in the corporate world. How has that influenced you as a writer?
It was when I was working for IBM that I really started to explore my creative side, putting together user training and team-building workshops. I’m used to deadlines and deliverables, too, so that helps when it comes to publishing my work. Having worked in technical support, I had to learn to see things from a user’s point of view—and be prepared to explain everything, depending on their experience. That probably influenced the way I describe things in writing.
When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I didn’t really know until 2008. Having been trained as an engineer in a time when creative writing wasn’t really taught in elementary school, I’d never done much before then. But looking back, I see that I’ve always been drawn to jobs or tasks that involved telling a story. Even my status reports were probably more descriptive than most.
You are a dedicated and supportive wife and mother of two, tell us about your writing schedule? Where do you write?
I write at home. If the ideas are flowing easily, I can drag my laptop anywhere and write, but if I really have to concentrate, I camp at my dining room table, away from the TV and music. The only thing I listen to is the sound of the fountain outside my window. If I’m REALLY stuck, I even turn off my network interface and the sound on my phone so I don’t get distracted by email or text messages, either. As for schedule, as a mother of teens, the morning is the best time for me to write. My week is broken up with various volunteer jobs at three different schools, so there are some breaks in the schedule. My afternoons are spent behind the wheel driving my kids to some lesson or school or activity.
There are some erotica elements in Whirlwind; would you want your family to read it? If they have read it, what were their reactions?
Well, the first one to read the spicy chapters was my husband, and he thoroughly enjoyed them! I expect my mom to read the book once it’s out, but she’s only read the first three chapters so far. As far as the rest of my family, they all know what I’m writing, and that reading the book is their choice. I totally understand that it’s not for everyone, and expect some of my family won’t pick it up. My teenage daughter is dying to read it, so I might have to make her an abridged edition. She definitely won’t be reading the spicy chapters, at least until she moves out!
What are you reading right now? Are there any authors (dead or alive) you would say have influenced you?
I’m currently between books. I’ll either start Truly, Madly by Heather Webber or The Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry next. Oh, and I have Animal Farm by George Orwell on loan from my daughter’s English teacher…that’s another possibility.
As far as authors, it’s hard to name an author that hasn’t influenced me. Dan Brown and Tom Clancy have brought home the value of research for me; JR Ward and Stephenie Meyer have opened up the emotional side of my writing. Janet Evanovich tickles my funny bone and has an exceptional talent for the dreaded “showing not telling.” Everyone has some impact, even if it’s through a style I don’t particularly favor. While many love The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, I learned the value of brevity from Stieg Larsson (and wish his writing had been a bit tighter).
What are your reading guilty pleasures?
As a mom, reading itself is a guilty pleasure! I have a bad habit of immersing myself in a book—as in once I start, I don’t do anything else until I’ve finished it. Okay, I do eat and use the bathroom (but take the book with me), and I do make sure my family is fed and gets to where they need to be. But I’ll blast through a book in a day, staying up ‘til one in the morning if I have to, just to get to the end.
But specifically, I think the only thing I’d feel really guilty about is re-reading books that I’ve read many times. Harry Potter, for example. When a book gets tattered in my house, it’s only because it’s been read tens of times… and yet I still pick it up and read it again instead of finding something new. Yup, that’s guilt, right there…
What are your five favorite books? Why?
This is the hardest question for me to answer. Picking five books that have stuck with me over the course of my life is REALLY difficult, but here goes…
The first one that comes to mind is The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown, because of its fast pace and believable story. It’s one I re-read almost every year.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett has always been a favorite; I still have my childhood copy. It, and the companion book, The Little Princess, are both Cinderella-like.
Patriot Games by Tom Clancy is my favorite of his. It’s where we see all the sides of Jack Ryan: smart, angry, fatherly, and heroic.
Ugh, two more! Okay, here’s one that’s out of left field: Token Chick by Cheryl Ladd. This is a book about women breaking into the world of golf—not professionally, but on that most holy of all days, Saturday morning. Having worked in a man’s world for a lot of my adult life, and as an on-again-off-again golfer, I really enjoyed this one.
Finally, I suppose my list wouldn’t be complete without at least one vampire book, though I think I’m kind of overloaded with the genre. The fantasy of saving the irredeemable man is always a draw. It’s hard to choose just one though. I find myself leaning toward a Sherrilyn Kenyon book, Night Pleasures. I’ve always had a soft spot for Greek mythology, and really enjoyed the combination of that with vampire lore.
What is next for you?
I’m currently working on the sequel to Whirlwind and have started plotting the third in the series. After that, I hope to flesh out a new series based on a contest entry I wrote called Lifeblood. It’ll have a bit of a paranormal element to it, and I’m not sure if it’ll be as spicy as the Whirlwind series. I have a lot of research to do on that one, though.
Whirlwind is now available through her publisher, Omnific Publishing, the Amazon Kindle and the Barnes and Noble Nook. To learn more about Robin, please visit her homepage http://robindejarnett.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lvJOyHMWtQ&feature=player_embedded
Whirlwind Summary:
Love at first sight is a myth to aspiring journalist Melissa Williams, but when she meets Jason McAlister at a friend’s wedding, a Cinderella-like fantasy turns her no-nonsense world upside down. She sees in his penetrating blue eyes not just an evening, but a lifetime together that includes much more than a glass slipper and a kiss.
Realizing she shared a few salacious emails with Jason months ago, a humiliated Melissa loses herself in the crowd, thankful he doesn’t know who she is. But he does know—and with a gentle touch and a steamy kiss, he soon picks up their flirtation right where it left off.
As midnight strikes, Melissa succumbs to Jason’s sexy pull, unaware that a woman’s body has been discovered in the wake of the party. When evidence points to Melissa as the killer’s next target, the lines between fantasy and reality blur. She goes into hiding, charmed by one mysterious man and hunted by another. Cinderella lost a shoe—Melissa could lose both her handsome prince and her life.
