Celebrating With Barri Bryan!!!

Like a bag chocolate at romance writer's conference another weekend has disappeared!

Unlike the real deal, a visit to TLN won't leave you with a bag of dirty duds to fluff and fold! If you're hunting for an excuse to savor your R&R time, well, kick up your high-heel blistered tootsies and . . . please help make welcome the witty and utterly fabulous BARRI BRYAN!!



1) If you were a book, what would your blurb be?

That’s a difficult question. I would be a lengthy book. I am an octogenarian. I would be an extraordinary book, not that I am an extraordinary person, but my life’s journey has been extraordinary in so many ways. I have stood on the sidelines of history and watched a rapidly changing world’s passing, panoramic parade. My personal life has embraced change, struggle, difficulty and an enduring love. There would be much drama in me, with some comedy. I’ve had my share of laughter. There would be some tragedy. I have known misfortune and heartbreak. There would be some adventure. I have gambled and often lost, but sometimes won. There would be regret. There are so many things I would go back and change, if I could. Finally there would be acceptance and a degree of reconciliation. I have pretty well come to terms with both my capabilities and my limitations. If I were a book my blurb would be: This is the story of the extraordinary journey of an ordinary woman. It is replete with drama, romance, heartache, regret, and finally reconciliation.

2) Using three words, describe your voice.

Three words that describe my voice are passionate, romantic and honest. My voice reverberates with passion because I am passionate about each project I undertake. My voice carries a heavy element of romance because I’m an incurable romantic. I thrive on love stories and adore happy endings. My voice resounds with honesty because each of my stories is a reflection of a personal truth or belief.

3) What's been the best writing or career advice you've ever received?

The best writing advice I ever received was from the teacher whose name I can’t recall. She was the instructor in an adult education class I took several years ago. She began her class by saying, “Be honest with yourself so you can be honest with your readers.” I thought that was a strange opening statement for the teacher of a course titled: How to Write Short Fiction. Wasn’t fiction an invented story, an imagined tale? She wasn’t speaking of literal truths, but personal truths. Throughout much of my writing career, I have tried to stay true to that premise. I have come to believe that writing fiction begins by discovering a unique way of seeing a personal truth. Then the task is to find a way to convey that personal view to your readers because memorable, moving books are not written from a sense of anything but the writer's deepest and most honest convictions.

4) Novice Writer to Published Author: How has your writing changed?

I would like to think my writing has become more polished and professional. I have come to recognize the difference between the art of fiction writing and the process of writing fiction. Fiction writing is a talent that can improve but it can't be taught. A good story teller is born with the ability to see things in a creative, imaginative way. The process of writing fiction is a skill that is both teachable and learnable. Like any other craft, it involves trial and error and improves with study and practice. I work hard to develop and practice skills that help me tell my stories with confidence and sincerity.

5) If you had to start all over what's the one bit of knowledge or know-how you'd want to bring with you?

If I could start over, wipe the slate clean and begin again. What fanciful visions that thought conjures up inside my head...

As a writer, if I could start over, wipe the slate clean and begin again, the one bit of knowledge I would bring along with me is patience and persistence are important assets to a writer. At the onset of my writing career I was sadly lacking in both. I have learned, sometimes the hard way, to practice both. I need more of each of them.

6) Since becoming published, has your outlook on the publishing industry changed?

My outlook on the publishing industry hasn’t changed all that much since my first e-book was published way back in 1999. There are those of us who have always believed that e-books were here to stay and that they would eventually be stiff competition for paper publications. It’s most gratifying to see this beginning to happen.

What about on becoming an author? I’m a little more practical now than I was at the beginning of my writing career. Initially, what mattered most to me was getting my work published and out there. Now I’m more concerned with offering an engrossing, well-written story.

7) What's up next for you? Barri Bryan fans want to know!

I have just published my first book with Classic Romance Revival Publishers and I’m very excited about it. The book’s title is A Second Splendor.

Blurb

When Julie Anderson’s ex-husband comes home to attend their daughter’s wedding he brings with him a host of old memories, that same old attitude and more trouble than Julie can handle. Max has broken her heart in the past - not once, but twice. Thank goodness she’s too wise to fall under his spell again.

Max Anderson has some reservations about his daughter’s coming marriage to the son of his ex wife’s business partner. He shows up early and walks into a situation that begs him to intervene. When he does all hell breaks loose

Excerpt:

Max dropped onto the couch. "This is what I was afraid would happen." He jumped to his feet and prowled across the floor like a caged animal. "This was Shannon's decision to make, not mine, not yours, and certainly not Dan Garner's." Turning, he faced her. "She made her choice. You and I have to respect that choice and our daughter's right to make it."

He was asking her to do the one thing she couldn't do, forgive Shannon's headlong plunge into heartbreak. "I can't do that. I don't even want to try."

Max extended both hands in a pleading gesture. "If you don't want to alienate Shannon, you have to accept the fact that she's married to Brett Morrison."

"How can I accept the fact that my daughter made a foolish, maybe a fatal, mistake?"

Julie glanced at her watch. "I have to get back to work."

Max seemed determined have his say. "You don't even know Brett. Can't you at least give him a chance? He's very young and a little brash, but I believe he loves Shannon and I think she loves him too."

Julie placed her hands on the arms of her chair and raised herself to her feet. "I don't have to know Brett to know what he's like. He's not brash, he's arrogant. He doesn't love Shannon. He's suffering from a strong case of temporary lust. When that's sated, and with time it will be, he'll be gone."

"Will you please try to consider Shannon's feelings?" A pleading note crept into Max's voice. "In some ways she's little more than a child. You know how it is when a young couple is first married. The next few months will be a time of tremendous adjustment and she's going to need her family to be there for her."

"We are not a family." Julie’s anger flared. "How can you argue in one breath that Shannon has the right to make adult decisions and say in the next that she's a child?" Her voice rose as she felt her temper slipping away. "And don't try to tell me this marriage will work. I know it won't."

Max wasn't moved by her argument. "Yes it will if it's given half a chance. That's why Shannon and Brett need our love and our support right now."

Julie's hazel eyes blazed yellow fire. "Don't preach to me, Max, and don't talk to me about love or support. You don't know the first thing about either. All you've ever done is roar through my life every so often, like a Texas tornado, wreaking havoc, creating utter devastation and then you blow out again, leaving me to pick up the pieces." The anger of years was building inside her. "Don't come intruding into my life again, trying to tell me how to deal with my daughter's betrayal when you're her accomplice."

Answering anger tightened the muscles in Max's face. "Shannon didn't betray you!"

Julie's arms stiffened at her sides as she balled her hands into fists. "Yes, she did! And you helped her do it!" Her fingernails dug into her palms. "My God, Max, how low can a man sink?" She was saying too much, but she couldn't stop. "Couldn't you have found some other way to keep me occupied while Shannon ran off to marry Bret Morrison?"

Max's brows pulled together in a thunderous scowl. "I don't like what you're implying."

"Then I won't imply. I'll say it straight out. You didn't have to screw me in the back seat of your car to keep me away from home all night." Even as Julie spoke, she was appalled at the crude words that rushed in a torrent from her mouth. "Or did you throw that in for good measure as a way of twisting the knife you stuck in my back?" She was shaking now and tears rolled down her cheeks. "Maybe it was for old times' sake. Good old Julie was always a pushover for a quickie in the back seat of a car."

Max stepped back as if she had struck him a physical blow. "That wasn't the way it was and you damn well know it. Going to the gravel pit was your idea. And, if my memory serves me, so was making love."

"We didn't make love, we rutted around in the back seat of a car like two animals in heat."

Max's anger seemed to dissipate. "You're tired and hungry and emotionally spent. After you've had a chance to rest and think this over you'll see things differently."

His calm demeanor fuelled Julie’s rage. "Get out of my house."

Max stared at her, as if he couldn't believe the words she was saying. "You don't mean that."

Julie's anger cooled to a frigid fury. "I meant every word I said." She moved around him and walked toward the hall. "I'm going to take a shower. When I get back, I want you gone."

"Julie, please."

She didn't bother looking back. "Goodbye Max."

Now, that is a scene rife with tension! But, oh-la-la, a naughty nookie escapade at a gravel pit?! Sounds like A SECOND SPLENDOR really packs a punch. Will Max and Julie overcome their differences? One way to find out is to check out these handy Barri Bryan links:
http://www.classicromancerevival.com/a-second-splendor.html
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home
http://twitter.com/texpoet
http://www.myspace.com/barribryan
http://barribryan.com/

I'd like to thank Barri for allowing me the opportunity to interview her! I do so love to get the goods on writing and Ms. Bryan delivered some delightful tips. Join me in offering a hearty Congratulations to Barri for her new release. Best wishes for many more!!

THANK YOU, TLN'ers! How about a little shot of love from the big stage to get your tinker tinkin' for the new week ahead. Here's SARAH BRIGHTMAN singin' ALL I ASK OF YOU from Phantom Of The Opera. *sigh* I know I should like Michael Crawford's version, however, Gerard Butler's run as the Phantom kind of sealed the deal. LOL What a hunk and he sings too! Now, if he does dishes AND cooks . . . he really is a hero! *wink wink* Have a great Moanday.