Please Welcome, J. Q. Rose!

Thank you so much for hosting me. I love the title of the blog and appreciate being an “honorary” fox for the day.

1. How would you describe your writing? My writing is based on storytelling in a casual, humorous way. My idol is Mark Twain, a journalist and a great storyteller. I began my writing career as a journalist, non-fiction writer. Those tendencies to get right to the heart of the story with no frilly language spills onto the page from years of writing articles for newspapers, magazines, and e-zines. All of the information in an article is found in the first paragraphs because space is limited in a newspaper by how much space is sold for ads. So I have developed a writing style that focuses on the plot and characters to move it along with small side trips into description and narrative. More action.
2. What is your writing space like? I have to say spaces. I don’t stick to writing at my desk in the office at home in Michigan or the desk at the end of the living room in Florida. I like to write at the kitchen counter, the dining room table, in my recliner, at the table in the Florida room. I guess I find inspiration by moving writing locations.
3. If you could have a writing space anywhere in the world, where would it be? Right here at home. I imagine if I tried to write in London or in the mountains or on the beach, I’d spend my time sight-seeing and taking photos instead of writing.
4. What is your current project(s)? This winter, I began sketching out a memoir about the first year we were in the floral business. I wrote the opening scene last week. I must say writing a memoir is a lot more difficult than writing fiction. Telling the truth is the number one responsibility I have to myself, my children and to my reader. Unfortunately I can’t remember specific conversations and exactly how a scene unfolded, but I am doing my best to get the feeling and emotion out truthfully. After making up mysteries and stitching together interesting characters, which is so much fun, in memoir I have to tell it like it really happened.
5. What inspires you to write? Most of my story ideas and scenes are sparked by stories in the news. In Coda to Murder, I included a kangaroo and a pig that were pets/service animals of campers whose motor home caught fire. This event actually happened in Florida, except they also had a goat with them. Go figure. In Deadly Undertaking, the location is a funeral home, because my dad was in the funeral business, but the crime of selling drugs and the news of legalizing recreational marijuana is a major part of the story.
6. What is your favorite book? Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Quick questions:

Coffee or tea?  Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon—(Favorite tea is Constant Comment)

Favorite superhero?  Superman. I love his super hero qualities, but always loved his relationship with Lois Lane.

Sandals or boots? Neither—Sketchers for me

Werewolves or vampires? If I have to choose, I’d say werewolves because our writing partner, Tess Grant, wrote a fantastic YA series with a high school girl fighting werewolves. Otherwise I wouldn’t have read the books.

Typing or handwriting? Typing fiction, but with poetry and this memoir, I write it out by hand in a spiral notebook. Somehow I feel more connected to my heart when using pen on paper.

 

Back of the Book: Deadly Undertaking by J.Q. Rose

Lauren Staab knew there would be dead bodies when she returned home. After all, her family is in the funeral business, Staab and Blood Funeral Home. Still, finding an extra body on the floor of the garage between the hearse and the flower car shocked her. Lauren’s plan to return to her hometown to help care for her mother and keep the books for the funeral home suddenly turns upside down in a struggle to prove she and her family are not guilty of murdering the man. But will the real killer return for her, her dad, her brother? Her mother’s secrets, a killer, a handsome policeman, and a shadow man muddle up her intention to have a simple life.

Welcome home, Lauren!

 

Amazon US  http://amzn.to/20kKUmN

Amazon CA http://amzn.to/1nFVuH4

Amazon UK http://amzn.to/1nrEx3v

Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/1H72tvV

Kobo https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/deadly-undertaking

Available at all major online booksellers.

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About J.Q.

After writing feature articles in magazines, newspapers, and online magazines for over fifteen years, J.Q. Rose entered the world of fiction. Her published mysteries are Sunshine Boulevard, Coda to Murder, and Deadly Undertaking. With her book for middle-grade girls, Girls Succeed! Stories Behind the Careers of Successful Women, J.Q. returned to her non-fiction writing roots interviewing real people. Blogging, photography, Pegs and Jokers board games, and travel are the things that keep her out of trouble. She and her husband, Gardener Ted, spend winters in Florida and summers up north camping and hunting toads, frogs, and salamanders with her four grandsons and granddaughter.

Connect with J.Q. Rose online at

 

J.Q. Rose blog http://www.jqrose.com/

Facebook http://facebook.com/jqroseauthor

Google+ google.com/+JQRose

1. Q. Rose Amazon Author Page http://tinyurl.com/aeuv4m4