 Red Room Writer Profile
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Diane Chamberlain's Blog
November 21, 2009
- I drove down the long gravel driveway to the Weymouth mansion Thursday afternoon with a prayer of gratitude on my lips. Coming here is like flipping a switch from the world of laundry and grocery shopping and doctors’ appointments and phone calls to the world of writing and nature and friends. Sarah Shaber was the first person I saw when I climbed the stairs to the writers’ section of the ...
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November 20, 2009
- I asked my Facebook readers if they like books and movies that make them cry. I found the answers fascinating because there were so many different takes on the subject. Some people feel manipulated by a writer if they’re moved to tears. Others like a little tear-jerkiness as long as they don’t feel manipulated. Still others think a good cry means the author or screenwriter has done a good ...
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November 14, 2009
- I just returned from a reunion with my old critique group. We all lived near Mount Vernon–George’s home–when we first got together, so we named ourselves the Mount Vernon Writer’s Group. Our first meeting was a very long time ago. As a matter of fact, it was the day I sent my first full manuscript to my first agent. I was so young and nervous! I think we were all young and nervous ...
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November 9, 2009
- I’m not much of a believer in the occult, but I do love Tarot, not in any small part because the 78 cards in a Tarot deck can be so beautiful. There’s something undeniably fascinating in the symbols and images, and it’s easy to get caught up the magic. My first reading was done by a real pro: author Nora Roberts. We were at the Washington Romance Writers’ annual retreat at the fabulous ...
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November 9, 2009
- I’ve reached the age where I know what I do well: I write well. I can structure the heck out of a novel. I can create characters who will make you weep. I’m a pretty good teacher. I enjoy public speaking. Then there are other things that teach me humility. Today, I sat in Starbucks running through my notes for a characterization workshop I’ll be teaching at the November 14th ...
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November 2, 2009
- Ah, the title challenge once again.My publisher plans to reissue Cypress Point in late 2010–a plan which makes me very happy! This is the old cover, and I can’t wait to see what they’ll come up with for the new one. In addition to changing the cover, they would like to change the title to one that’s more in keeping with my more recent books. It’s true that my recent and upcoming books ...
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October 28, 2009
- Point of View. Every author has to figure out which character (or characters) is telling the story, and if she’s telling it alone, and if she’s telling it in first person or third (or sometimes from an omniscient perspective), and if she’s telling it in past tense or present. So many decisions! As I begin my new work-in-progress, tentatively titled The Midwife’s Confession, I’m ...
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October 21, 2009
- We had a friend over for dinner tonight and the conversation turned to travel. Given the fact that I just bought beach property, I won’t be able to afford to travel anywhere else for quite some time, but dreams are free!My dream is to visit Sicily, especially the village of Collesano where my grandparents grew up. It would be a moving experience to visit the places that were so much a part of ...
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October 18, 2009
- The original title for this blog post was “I Give Up,” but when I mentioned that to my significant other, John, he nixed it. He said I’m a positive person who has overcome adversity and embraces change, totally shaming me into taking a different slant on my topic. Until then, I was sounding like quite the curmudgeon in this post. Now, I feel much lighter. At least, I’m trying to feel ...
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October 12, 2009
- When I decided to set Before the Storm and Secrets She Left Behind on Topsail Island, I never dreamed how important this place would become to me. From my very first research trip, though, I knew I’d discovered something special. It reminded me of my childhood at the Jersey Shore and of my early adulthood on the Outer Banks. Like most coastal areas, it has way too many houses crammed together ...
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October 9, 2009
- I will say very quickly, before any of my readers totally freak out, this is not a new cover for one of my books. Not even a recent cover. But my last post led to a discussion on book covers and author input, so I thought I’d use this truly scary example as a jumping off point.This cover was the Norwegian edition of my third (and perhaps my personal favorite) novel, Secret Lives. I hasten to ...
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October 4, 2009
- The cover for The Lies We Told, which I just completed and which will be published June 2010. I love it, but the hair color of the sisters doesn’t match the story exactly. How much would that bother you as readers? If I view the image as more representational than literal, I can get past that fact.
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October 2, 2009
- Years ago, my then-husband and I were driving through the countryside in a pouring rain. I was working on my second novel back then, and was utterly entranced with the process. As we drove through the downpour, I noticed a group of cows huddled together under a tree, and my heart broke for them.“I feel so sorry for those cows,” I said.“Because they’re stuck out in the rain?” my ...
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September 27, 2009
- I’m at SIBA this weekend–the trade show for the Southeastern Independent Booksellers Alliance. What that means is row upon row upon row of publishers showcasing their upcoming books to booksellers, and in many cases, giving those books away. Publishers bring some of their authors with them to meet booksellers in the Southeastern US. It’s also a chance for authors to catch up with one ...
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September 23, 2009
- I didn’t think it was ever going to happen! After several months of “everything that can go wrong going wrong” (with the exception of a hurricane, but the season’s not over yet), I now own a vacation home–a two-bedroom oceanfront condo on my beloved Topsail Island! It’s hard to believe I’d never even heard of Topsail until about five years ago. I was invited to participate in an ...
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