Well…I think…Bertha…ate a little too much BBQ yesterday…or maybe…she 
stayed up too late…watching fireworks…whatever the reason…she’s decided to sleep in…and let me blog in peace…
Which makes this the perfect opportunity…to chat with my friend…Greta Burroughs…author of the children’s series…Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat…and two books for middle grade/young adults…Gerald and the Wee People…and…House on Bo-Kay Lane…she also wrote a nonfiction account of her experiences with an autoimmune blood disorder called ITP…Heartaches and Miracles…
Greta lives in South Carolina…with her husband Robert…and three dogs…Bertha…will be happy to note that there are no cats…so…she may be going there for a visit…just saying…
Speaking of…Bertha…I think I hear her stirring around…so I’d better get on with the interview…before she comes in and…takes over…
Greta…I hear you are a great cook as well as a writer…let’s combine the two…what is the ideal recipe for a good novel…
3 cups well developed characters
3 cups believable settings
2 cups action and adventure
2 cups good dialogue
Pinch of humor
Dash of the unexpected
Mix together thoroughly, then go over and over until you are satisfied with the finished result. For the icing, a good editing job to top off a job well done.
Yummy…that sounds like a book good enough to read…and speaking of reading…I hear that you love to read…always have a book with you…which I suppose makes you an expert…so it’s no wonder that…you’ve been contacted by…the Association of Libraries from the Alien Planet of Zaolia…they want to know the five most important novels in all of Earth’s history…which five novels do you give them…
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Tom Sawyer/The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Wow…that’s quite an impressive list…and shows that you are a serious reader…so…how did you shift…from a reader…to a writer…was there a turning point…
I was diagnosed with an autoimmune blood disorder called ITP and life as I had known it would never be the same again. I was no longer able to work a “normal” job and I had to find a “Plan B” before I went crazy from boredom sitting around the house all day. My husband, Robert DeBurgh, had just published “Riders of the Wind” and encouraged me to try my hand at writing. I wrote the first Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat stories and got a job as a freelance writer for a local newspaper. That was the beginning of my new life and I have loved it ever since.
Well…you definitely took lemons and made lemonade…what genre do you write…
Children’s books – Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat series
MG/YA fantasy – Wee People series
Nonfiction – Heartaches and Miracles (about my experiences with ITP)
What made you decide to write in your particular genre…
I used to be a teacher and loved reading to the kids. Story time was our favorite activity during the day. We “wrote” our own books for the kids to take home. I guess that’s why I was drawn to children’s books. I read a lot of YA and really enjoy it. My favorite genre to read is fantasy so I am very comfortable writing in that genre. My non-fiction book came about because there is not a lot of information about ITP. I was lost when first diagnosed and had to do a lot of research on my own to find out what was going on inside my body. Hopefully my ITP book helps others to understand and cope with this weird disease.
Greta…thank you so much for joining me today…it has been a pleasure getting to know you a little better…
Jane
You girls are both so lovely!!!! Love the page!!! 🙂
Thanks, Brenda…it was a pleasure to have Greta over…and…I notice that if I jumble the letters in Greta…it spells…Great…not an accident…I’m sure!
Far from great, but I did have a great time! Thanks, Jane!
Awww…I think you’re pretty great…Greta! It was my pleasure to have you!