One of
the great benefits of being an author is that I am always learning—learning
about my characters, learning about the craft of writing, and learning about
the people and places and cultures and decisions that impact my characters and
their stories. I get to vicariously live many lives through my characters, and
most important I get to control the final outcome to be what I want it to be. I
get to create a happily ever after no matter what tortuous journey my
characters have undertaken.
All of my
stories are some reflection of me. I can’t help but do that. It doesn’t mean
I’ve personally lived those lives, but I believe our human experiences of grief
and joy and discernment are universal no matter the country, the culture, or
even a different world than earth. Often the lives of my characters are ones that
I dreamed I could have for myself, but never had the guts or the time or funds to
pursue them. For example, in my Sweetwater Canyon series I follow five women in an
Americana band. I played piano and violin as a child and into high school and
college. I had dreams of being in a band, but I never pursued it as a career. I
couldn’t imagine supporting myself as a musician even though I often dreamed of
it.
In my Forest People fantasy series, my young adult heroine not only
has to figure out who she is and what her gifts are, but she has to save not
one world but two. And she is only sixteen! I can remember being a teenager and
feeling like the world was on my shoulders. I was bound and determine to make a
difference and to do the right thing. Figuring out how to do that is really the
journey of moving from young adult to adulthood. I’ve learned that most of us re-evaluate that
journey at every decade in our life. My path at 25 was not the same as my path
at 40, and now at 60 there is even more that I want to accomplish in my life.
In my new
romantic suspense Shadow Finders series, my Marine Corps buddies are
backed up by the women who love them. They take on truly evil people,
corporations, or governments to save those who are forgotten or lost. Though I
grew up at a time when women in combat or as police officers or other typical
male roles was not at all common, I still fantasized about being a big
hero—whether that was as an EMT or a mercenary or my version of superman as a
woman. Yes women can kick butt too, but I would do it with less violence and
more thoughtful and permanent changes. Shadow Finders allows me to explore the
tension between violence and peace and change while still believing that love
conquers all.
What were
your dreams for your future? Do you still have some of those dreams? Have your
dreams changed over the years? If so, in what way?
Because this is an important
birthday for me, I’m giving away a free fiction ebook of your choice. Anyone
who answers my question about your dreams for your future can choose any ONE of
my currently available fiction titles in the ebook format you desire.
Go to http://maggielynch.com to read more about each of my
books. Choose one that appeals to you. Complete this form and I’ll send you the book of your choice.
Happy
Reading!
After more than 30 years in careers including software
development and training, distance learning, and executive leadership in
academic computing, Maggie decided to follow her first love and pursue writing
full time. She writes adult fiction in romance and SF under the name
Maggie Jaimeson, young adult fiction under the name Maggie Faire, and
non-fiction under the name Maggie Lynch. You can find all of her books at http://maggielynch.com
