Interview with Candace Havens : Mentors

Candace "Candy" Havens is one of the nation's leading entertainment writers. Candy has interviewed countless celebrities, including Tom Cruise, Nicholas Cage, Tom Hanks, Susan Sarandon and George Clooney.

In addition to writing columns on everything Hollywood, she has published biographies on Buffy the Vampire creator Joss Whedon, and actor George Clooney.

A Texas native, Candy attended Houston's prestigious High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and the University of North Texas. A 17-year veteran of the entertainment industry, Candy has written thousands of articles and conducted thousands of interviews. She attributes her success as an entertainment journalist to two rules. One, treat each interview like it was a one-on-one chat between two friends. Two, never be afraid to go after the interview you want, no matter how famous the subject.

Candy was a columnist for Tribune Media for 15 years, where she wrote weekly columns for an overall audience of 44 million readers. Candy is also an entertainment critic for the Dorsey Gang on 96.3 KSCS, which broadcasts in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and the Managing Editor of FYI Television Features.

I came to Candy for an article about writing mentors, because for a brief, valuable span of time, she became one for me. Her Write_Workshop yahoogroup reaches over a thousand writers, offering everything from Fast Draft and Revision Hell workshops to guest interviews with bestselling authors and publishing industry insiders. Here's what she had to say on mentoring:

L.A: When did you know you were ready to mentor others?

Candy: I've always been one to pass on information as I received it. If I learned something cool from a class, I told everyone I knew. *Smile* I'd been writing nonfiction for 20 years before embarking on a fiction career. Though they are two different things, the work ethic that it takes to succeed at both is not. I'm not sure there was a moment when I thought, "Now I'll be a mentor." It sort of grew out of people telling me they liked certain aspects of my writing and could I help them. I opened the Write_Workshop (a free writer's workshop) online because I was trying to help too many people and I wasn't getting my own work done. That allowed me the opportunity to help a lot of people at one time. It's been an incredibly rewarding experience.

L.A: You've been on both sides of the relationship. With that perspective, what's the most essential quality of a successful mentoring partnership?

Candy: I was lucky to have incredible mentors right from the start. I think it helps if you are on the same page. If you're looking for the same sort of things out of your career. Jodi Thomas was inspiring for me from the beginning because she had longevity. That's something I wanted-and to build a great career. She's also the most giving and friendly woman I've ever met. I always say I want to be like her when I grow up. Our writing is nothing alike, but we want the same things out of this career we've chosen. Jodi introduced me to my first agent, and introduced that agent to the woman who became my editor four months later. That whole thing made me a big believer in giving back, networking and mentoring.

L.A: What advice can you give writers who want to find a mentor?

Candy: This can be difficult. I won't say who, but I can remember sitting across from a very famous author and thinking, "Please, be my friend." I had this whole scenario where if she were my friend she would introduce me to her editor--you know how it works. You can't push these things. They have to develop naturally. Go to conferences and make friends with other writers. I had six really great mentors there at the beginning and I met them through other writers. I've had people ask me directly to help them and it's tough, especially for someone like me who needs to help, to say no. If I were starting out and I was on some of the writing loops with published authors, I might send a post that said what I wanted out of a career and ask if there was anyone who might have a spare moment to chat. I have people I'm helping out now, who emailed me one question and I've been working with them ever since.

For more information about Candy's novels and workshops, visit her website.

What has been your experience with mentors, writing or otherwise?

Winners and Mentors

A huge congrats today to Marilyn Brant, who should buy a powerball ticket for all the times I've drawn her name in giveaways here. Thanks to everyone who peeled themselves away from family and fireworks to visit this past weekend.

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I needed article ideas for the summer issue of PROspects, the online newsletter for PRO members of Romance Writers of America. Mentorship, specifically as it relates to writers, surfaced at about number eight on my brainstorming list. I'm not talking about the passing interest of an online professor for the duration of a month or an exceptionally helpful contest judge who leaves a score sheet weighted with comments. Mentorship, in its perfect form, involves a partnership that extends beyond the page. From those throw-in-the-towel moments of self-doubt to the zero-gravity moments of accomplishment.

A few have filled this role, in a diluted form, for a season of my long learning curve to publication. I have, without being aware, filled the role of mentor once myself. So, is mentor just a sparkling word for what we writers already do to pull each other along or is there something more?

Tomorrow, I'm proud to post the extended interview that didn't make it into the article. Valuable gems from someone who has made it her legacy to help other writers. A bit about her:

Candace Havens is a veteran entertainment journalist who spends way too much time interviewing celebrities. In addition to her weekly columns seen in newspapers throughout the country, she is the entertainment critic for 96.3 KSCS in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. She is the author of Charmed & Dangerous, Charmed & Ready, Charmed & Deadly, and the nonfiction biography of Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy, as well as several published essays. Visit Candace at www.candacehavens.com.

If you're interested in my article on writing mentors, you can find it here.

Today : The Texas Giant at Six Flags...squee!

Titanic:Relative Fate

The 1912 Titanic disaster casts a long shadow throughout the contemporary thriller, Titanic:Relative Fate. Filled with murder, suspense and a hint of the supernatural, this newest release from Canadian author V.C. King has earned her a publisher's choice award and the attention of readers far beyond Titanic enthusiasts. Recently, I had the opportunity to ask her about her inspiration for the story and Titanic's enduring legacy.
(read blurb~previous post)

L.A:Your previous work includes erotica, psychological thrillers and horror, so the leap to supernatural is understandable. What gave you the idea to revisit Titanic in a modern context?

King: My erotic horror phase of writing was more of a diversion from my passion of creating novels, though last year, Writers Digest did honor one of the stories in my book Seven Sexy Tales of Terror, so I guess it wasn’t quite as bizarre as I originally thought.

Titanic: Relative Fate, on the other hand, was a story I’d wanted to write for many years. I don’t know why I’m fascinated by the story of Titanic’s loss, as so many people are. I wondered if it was all the what-if questions ... had just one thing been different, could the ship and her souls have been saved?

Perhaps it was what the senior surviving officer, Second Officer Lightoller, had said, “The disaster was just due to a combination of circumstances that never occurred before and can never occur again.”

I wanted to explore all these things … the idea of fate, tragedy, how ordinary people respond when faced with extraordinary events. But so much has happened since Titanic’s time—World Wars, terrorism, the threat of global warming …

… So, could it happen again?

I had to find out. It may sound crazy, but I had to get on board that ship. And the only way to do that was to build one, in my mind’s eye, from scratch.

L.A: The amount of research necessary for a novel of this magnitude, not only of the Titanic but of modern shipbuilding, must have been extraordinary. Take us through your process.

King: The first thing I studied (and studied) was the British Government’s 1912 report of their formal investigation into the loss of Titanic. This document is a detailed, technical accounting of the circumstances surrounding the disaster, remarking on the many incidents contributing to the tragic outcome, from missing binoculars, the unusual weather, to the design of the ship.

This kind of research is often very tedious for a creative writer, but it paid off. I now had a far better understanding of what the passengers faced, and I reread survivor accounts with renewed fascination.

But could this incredible story be related in a contemporary setting? Thanks to tours of shipyards up and down the U.S. eastern seaboard, publications from the Royal Institute of Naval Architects in England and conversations with Canada’s Transportation Safety Board, I realized, yes, it was more than possible to write an intriguing, authentic tale about a modern-day Titanic.

No icebergs, though. Too cliché. But that, I discovered, was one of the notable differences between then and now. With a warmer North Atlantic, ice doesn’t cross Titanic’s path anymore.

L.A: When you began writing the novel, did you have an ending in mind? Did you feel restricted by the perceptions you knew readers would bring to the story through their historical knowledge? Through Hollywood's treatment of the event?

King: I didn’t have the exact ending in mind. That’s the great thing about writing. The imagination takes off once words start to flow. When the main character, Abram, went back on the ship in the end, I saw the tremendous parallelism between that and when he tried to save his friend trapped on the ship during her launch. It was Abram’s character, his internal conflict, which gave me the ending. I had no way of knowing that when I began.

Regarding the Titanic movie, that was a love story. There are romantic tensions in my book, and certainly Titanic: Relative Fate hopes to expose the many truths and myths about the ship. Just as important, however, Titanic: Relative Fate is a story about people, their struggles and their triumphs. But, in our time, not in the past. So, no, I did not feel restricted by Hollywood’s treatment in the least.

L.A: How did you come up with the title, Titanic: Relative Fate and how important was it from a marketing standpoint to have Titanic in the title?

King: Excellent question. The working title for Titanic: Relative Fate was Titan’s Sister, the name of the ship in my book. But titles are critical in terms of marketing. A lot of thought must go into them. In fact, well-known authors have told me that they’d prefer to have a great title and write a story around it, rather than the other way around.

L.A: What advice do you have for other authors considering self-publishing?

King: I’m an engineer by training, generally not someone considered to have great syntax skills. So before I started showing my novel to editors and agents, I wanted it professionally edited.

Subsequently, not only did Titanic: Relative Fate win an Editor’s Choice award through the publisher, but it also went on to achieve the Publisher’s Choice designation, an award endorsed by the bookseller Barnes and Noble, recognizing the novel’s editorial and design quality.

Therefore, my advice for any author starting out in the business, whether considering self-publishing or not, is to find a good editor. And trust that editor. They are the bridge between a good book and a great book that sells.

L.A: What's the greatest lesson from Titanic we've yet to learn?

King: In every disaster, we struggle to find the one thing that would’ve prevented it. But that’s an old way of looking at things. Tragedies of great magnitude can seldom be attributed to a single factor. Rather a number of causes come together at just the right and time and place, defying the checks and balances in place to prevent it. As Mr. Lightoller, Titanic’s senior surviving officer said, “Everything was against us.”

L.A: What is your view on fate?

King: I’m paraphrasing the Swiss philosopher, Carl Jung, when I say, “The probability of a certain set of circumstances coming together in a meaningful (or tragic) way is so low that it simply cannot be considered mere coincidence.” If not coincidence, then what is it? Fate? Destiny?

Carl Jung would’ve been 36 years old at the time of Titanic’s sinking. I wonder what his thoughts were about the disaster. Certainly, if any of your readers have an idea, I’d be happy to hear from them.

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To celebrate the first interview ever here on The Vortex (I know!) and to extend my heartfelt thanks to V.C. King for spending time with us, I'll be giving away an ebook, Adobe version of Titanic:Relative Fate to one lucky blog reader. Question or thought, Jung or otherwise, be sure to leave a comment before Monday, 12 am to be eligible.

R.M.S. First Novel

It could be that all historical photographs catch my eye because I'm so deeply entrenched in my novel's villain at this point, a man obsessed with being the first to capture the precise moment of death, but this time the pull is stronger.

Some of you know my history with all things Titanic. If you do, humor me. Aside from this little jaunt into wouldn't-it-be-cool-to-be-an-angsty-novelist, it was the topic that first peaked my interest enough to engage me into a full-length young adult novel eleven years ago. The fifth graders I was teaching at the time couldn't get enough facts, personal accounts and photographs. It became a safe way for their young minds to try on human tragedy, think beyond themselves and role play, and I became just as obsessed about feeding their curious appetites. Biographies, documentaries, navigation maps, I soon found them all and amassed a body of knowledge about the event, enough to think I could write a fictional account that would speak to young readers beyond the group assembled before me.

So it was through the story of a privileged girl and a steerage boy I tried on my novelist's boots. I own it enough now to admit it was ten chapters filled with the worst literary fouls ever committed to paper. But in the scope of the event, about which much is widely known, there is little room for a story to play out in any other way. Unlike period pieces or wartime dramas, the Titanic tragedy is a blip on history's radar, a few days confined to the parameters of a ship. Essentially, I'd written James Cameron's storyline before I even knew he'd spent a Hollywood fortune to dive down to the wreckage. I finished the novel the month before his movie was released and came out of the theater feeling like my dream had sunk right along with Jack. I knew the blockbuster would forever define the event, right or wrong, and my manuscript would always be the one that came after. The perfect, oh-so imperfect copycat.


This sepia photograph was taken on April 20th, 1912, six days after Titanic's tragedy, by a Czech sailor named Stephan Rehorek. En route from Bremerhaven to New York, the German ship Bremen diverted its course to assist with recovery. When the U.S. registered vessel Mackay-Bennett, chartered for the same purpose, arrived, Bremen continued its journey. Rehorek returned to New York and developed the photograph. He made two copies and mailed one to his parents and one to his brother in the form of a postcard with the following inscriptions on the back : Dear Mother and Father. This card is a view of the iceberg that collided with and sank the Titanic liner and Dear Josef. I am sending you, too, a postcard of the ship that sank. We were following about a thousand miles behind it. Next time you come home our parents will show you pictures of the icebergs which were photographed from our ship.

Friday, look for my interview with V.C. King, author of Titanic: Relative Fate, a fast-paced, suspenseful, contemporary tale with haunting echoes to the past. The premise is fantastic, the research exhaustive and accurate. The blurb:

Titan's Sister is about to set sail on her maiden voyage from a harbor in northern Florida. But just as the ship's brash young owner begins the sequence to launch, a sudden, unexplainable accident takes the life of one of the crew. Not long afterward, shipbuilder Abram Harwood watches in horror as the dock, on which the massive hull rests, catches fire, soon turning the area into a raging inferno. Against his own reasoning, Harwood slowly comes to the realization that a chain of unusual and dangerous events has begun that could launch his beautiful new ship straight into harm's way.

In Titanic: Relative Fate we meet Titan's Sister, the sister of the doomed Titanic. Built as a modernized replica of the legendary vessel, Titan's Sister is a wonder to behold. Yet Harwood begins to question whether there is more than just a physical resemblance between the two ships. Intrepid detective Melika Jones joins the ship's virgin voyage to investigate the strange accidents surrounding Titan's Sister.

Yet, instead of solving the mystery, Jones and Harwood are faced with a new nightmare once Titan's Sister is finally at sea, and they begin to wonder if she awaits the same fate as the Titanic.

Lastly, if you're interested in taking in the traveling, international museum exhibit, Titanic:The Artifact Exhibit, I have it on excellent authority that it's an incredibly moving, interactive experience you won't soon forget. I'm still plotting for a way to get to one. Anyone up for a road trip?

The Mathematics of a Mississippi Road Trip

I've come up with a new mathematical equation:

850 interstate miles/number of bohunks in the fast lane x 36 hours = another Vortex 10 list

1) Not even a Mississippi frog-strangling downpour can extract a Texas bug from its tragic end on your windshield.

2) More billboards on the stretch of I-20 between Dallas and Jackson are devoted to Jesus than casinos, truck stops and John Deere combined.

3) Nothing can light up a cloud-drenched Louisiana day like a technicolor casino billboard advertising the upcoming Chippendale's show. August 14-15. FYI.

4) Starbucks Passion Iced Tea tastes infinitely better during a stolen hour with an old friend.

5) In Cajun families, expletives like "hoo-lawd" and "shewt" exist to train words together into a confusing quagmire of the English language for outsiders.

6) What was, no doubt, a beautiful crystalline garden display in Martha Stewart Magazine can turn, in the hands of a Mississippian, into an excuse to display repeated conquests of Jose Cuervo and Maddog 2020.

7) The observed collective speed on Mississippi highways is directly proportional to the speed of the regional dialect spoken.

8) If it crawls, scuttles or surfaces in the pond "out yonder", wrestle it to the red dirt, sprinkle Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning on it and call it a feast. Hoo-boy.

9) When you get that tingly feeling in your gut at a Shell station near Kilgore, Texas because the restroom has more amenities than a half-empty toilet paper roll, a can of Lysol and a fly to keep you company, it isn't the Cajun sausage you had for breakfast. You'll calculate every future nature call to hail this pee-mecca again.

9 1/2) Speaking of pee-mecca: You know your pit-stop is a Sunday regular for the locals when you find Hallmark cards, alligator jerky and Elvis bling all under one roof and you hear "Harlan, you don't need another bull's ball sack with a Texas star on it" over the snack food aisle.

10) Having watched Duel more times than you can count adequately prepares your imagination for encountering that rusted-out white pick-up with the illegal tint you're convinced wants to play cat and mouse on a Louisiana interstate.

As much fun as it is to envision missing teeth and stretched-out NASCAR tank tops, you'd be hard-pressed to find more gracious, hard-working, genuine people than those in the Magnolia state. My kind of people. Hoo-yes.

Double Release Week

I have a great week planned for The Vortex, including tidbits on cajun baptisms and redneck yard art fresh from a weekend jaunt to Mississippi and interviews with V.C. King, author of a fantastic supernatural tale about the Titanic, and Candace Havens, author of the Charmed and Dangerous series for Berkley. I love the company, so be sure to check back often.

Until then, this is e-book release week for two authors I feel blessed to have in my little corner of the publishing world. One writes steamy police procedurals, the other a perfect blend of contemporary romance and wit. Gritty or humor, take your pick:

Voodoo Bones by Melanie Atkins

Noel Galliano has always wanted her own business, and despite critics who believe she won't succeed, she opens a tiny French Quarter Voodoo shop. What she doesn't count on is finding a dismembered corpse upstairs.

Detective Mathieu Bergeron is considered a screw up around the district station, until he puts away the Bayou Ripper. Then another body is found mutilated, and both his arrest and his competence are thrown into question. Matt and Noel must work together to solve this terrifying crime in the Big Easy...and along the way, they fall in love.


Here Comes the Bribe by Sherry A. Davis

A single administrative assistant accepts her temporary boss’s offer to masquerade as his fiancée to keep his matchmaking grandmother out of his personal life and out of the way while he negotiates a high-profile merger for his family-owned company. In exchange, she’ll get the down payment for the loan she needs to keep her ex from selling her condo out from under her.

But neither of them counted on the lines blurring between real and pretend--or for the temporary arrangement to leave them both longing for something more permanent.

Really wishing I had a Kindle right about now...

Story Vows

Nearing the home stretch of a novel, the story begins to feel a bit like a tired friendship. At times, taken for granted and not recognized for the gift it has become. As guilty as I am of this infraction, it has been worse. This has been my most faithful and burning project to date and the most deserving of some promises to carry me to the end:

1)I promise not to bloat you with ten dollar words when twenty-five cent ones will do.

2)I promise to forsake all other ideas, even the sparkling allure of the holographic map story, as tempting as it may be, and focus solely on you until the last sentence unfolds.

3)I promise to leak out a line to my Twitter account sporadically, instead choosing to keep the magic between us.

4)I promise to return to you, even when you're difficult or have left me adrift, when life interferes and I can only imagine a root canal would be favorable to the bloodletting on the page.

5)I promise to check each historical fact against two sources, to ensure no critic will ever undermine what we created.

6)I promise to divorce myself from the subplot, even though it has amazing emotional potential, if it makes the rest stronger.

7)I promise to steer you away from the nebulous between-genre ditch the others have fallen into and keep you safely in the parameters of marketability.

8)I promise to always remember the spark I love most about you when all others doubt.

9)I promise never to demean you, curse you, or devalue the time we've spent together, for no writing is ever wasted.

10)I promise to wait to send you out into the world until I'm sure it's the best we can do.

What promises do you owe your story?