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| Marjorie Owen |
Dee Owen Interview
Heidi:
First, Dee, tell us a little about
yourself.
Dee:
I am not an
author, but love to read. I am retired and decided to
transcribe Marjorie Owen’s (my deceased mother-in-law) writings for publication.
I have recently moved to Cyprus.
Heidi:
What made you decide to move to the
Cyprus?
Dee:
We have lived in the USA for over
thirty years. Born in England but travelled the world. The reason we left USA
was for several reasons. The first was due to Hurricane Charley hitting us in
Punta Gorda, Florida. We had spent nearly eight years re-modeling our ‘ideal
home’ and it was very badly damaged in the hurricane. We had been away for a
month in our motor home and could not get back to our home for two weeks,
therefore more damage was done. Once we were able to get back to our home,
three more hurricanes went over us! We
fixed up the house and sold it very quickly. Another reason for leaving was
Mike, my husband, needed to retire. He was working all hours and getting burnt
out. Also, both being self-employed, we found medical insurance very expensive
to have proper coverage.
We chose to retire to Panama, Central
America, bought a lovely house and stayed four years. Unfortunately, we had to
have metal bars on all windows and doors for safety. It became more like a
‘prison’ and many of our friends had suffered home invasions, some even injured
or killed. So we thought, where do we go in the world? For some unknown reason Malta came up. We
moved and stayed in Malta for four years. Loved it, but it is a very small
Island.
Where next? We have good friends in Cyprus and have
visited several times…so here we are…giving it a try!
Heidi:
What genre did Marjorie Owen write?
Dee:
She wrote English Detective Mysteries. I
would love to write and may try one day!
The only writing I do at the moment is on my blog, Book Readers. I still have two
books and about fifty short stories of
Mum’s to transcribe.
Heidi:
When did Marjorie start writing?
Dee:
I am not sure when Mum started writing.
But Mike and I believe she began back in the 50’s.
Heidi:
What are you working on now?
Dee:
Nothing at the moment, but I plan to
start working on one of Mum’s love story books. She wrote two mysteries, now
published with Vinspire and two love story books.
Heidi:
Who is your favorite character in her
stories?
Dee:
Well it has to be Chief Detective
Inspector Richard Haywood. Who couldn’t love him?
Heidi:
Do you see yourself in any of her
characters?
Dee:
Not really. Perhaps CDI Richard
Haywood’s wife Kate, or her sister Lucy.
Heidi:
Where did Marjorie write?
Dee:
Good question. Where did Mum write? We
believe in her little flat over-looking the park in Burgess Hill, Sussex,
England which is part of the setting in ‘Ladies of Class’ renamed Burshill.
Heidi:
Who were her favorite authors?
Dee:
Mum loved Agatha Christie, also Lilian
Jackson Braun who wrote the ‘Cat Who’ series. Mum spent many hours in the
Burgess Hill library, and was well know to the Librarians who would always keep
books on hand for her.
Heidi:
Did you find writing a query letter a
challenge? If so, how did you overcome it? Do you think there was a key phrase
or idea in your query letter?
Dee:
As a novice I had to go to the library,
read, and learn how to write a query letter. Many were rejected until our
wonderful publisher, Dawn Carrington agreed to read and publish Mum’s first
book.
Heidi:
What advice do you have for a writer
aspiring to be published?
Dee:
Believe in yourself, write from the
heart, and keep writing.
Heidi:
Would you like to acknowledge someone
for their assistance?
Dee:
Yes, I give my sincere thanks to Dawn
for helping me, in more ways that can be expressed, to honor Mum’s memory and
writings.
Heidi:
How can Marjorie's readers learn more about her and her writings?
Dee:
Either Vinspire or Book Readers
