10 Questions with Rebeca Seitz, Author

I don't know about you, but I love to read. However, with scrapping, stamping, and general crafting sometimes it is hard to find the time. Well, you need to make time for this author-Rebeca Seitz! Not only is she amazing, her books are about scrapbooking . What better way to have fun than to incorporate those two passions? Currently there are three books in her scrapbook series: Prints Charming (book 1), Sisters, Ink (book 2), and Coming Unglued (book 3). She has two more books planned for the series called Scrapping Plans, which is due out in February 2009, and Perfect Piece,

1. How did you become interested in writing?
   I've been a lover of stories for as long as I can remember. I began writing in a journal when I was five years old and wrote my first short story at age eight. It's just always been in me to write! I wonder if that has something to do with all these voices in my head clamoring for attention...(kidding, kidding...mostly).
   
   
2. What books have you had published?
   Prints Charming was my first in 2007. This year saw the release of Sisters, Ink and Coming Unglued. Next year my next two books will release: Scrapping Plans in February and Perfect Piece in August.
   
   
3. How do these books appeal to scrapbookers?
   I hope that scrappers find a point of connection with the sisters because they scrap in the book. Scrapping allows the sisters a creative outlet while they talk through the difficulties or good times of life. Each sister is extremely different, so I also hope that scrappers can find a sister they relate well to. For instance, I'm a lot like Tandy and Kendra-headstrong, eclectic, stubborn, etc.
   
   
4. What types of research do you have to do to write your books?
   For Coming Unglued, I had to talk with a doctor in the burn unit at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville so that I would know the course of events Kendra would live through (don't want to say more than that or I'll give the story away!). I'm always trying out new scrapping products and techniques so that the sisters are working with the latest ideas in the stories. (Yep, that's my excuse for continually buying new products. Ha ha!)
   
   
5. How long does it usually take you to write a book?
   Two to three weeks. Crazy, eh? Ah, the power of caffeine! We won't mention that it then takes two to three months to edit the thing.
   
   
6. Is there something you want your readers to learn from your books?
   Hmm, I'm not really sure about this one. I want my readers, first and foremost, to discover engaging stories that draw them in and allow them an entertaining escape from the world for a little while. Of course, the Sinclair sisters grow and learn throughout the course of the stories, so I'd guess my reader would learn those same lessons right alongside the characters. Those lessons are generally about the power of girlfriends, of sisterhood, of dedication to a hobby, of commitment to seeing things through, etc.
   
   
7. When you are not writing, what do you like to do? What are your hobbies?
   Scrapping!! I'm also learning to quilt (my mom is a long-arm quilter) and am working on my second one right now. Hopefully, I'll get it finished before I give birth to my daughter in the next week or so since it's her crib quilt. I like interior design and have joined with my husband in the years-long project of renovating our 109-year-old home. As I type this, he's in the nursery painting the walls. He just finished the renovation of our upstairs into a master suite. I love picking out flooring and paint and fabrics to refinish old furniture finds. I also dabble in gardening (we have a little acreage that's in desperate need of good landscaping - any landscapers reading this?!). And, of course, I can nearly always be found with a book in hand (or purse).
   
8. Did you have any favorite authors as a child or teen? How about favorite books?
   Oh, yes! Madeleine L'Engle's Wrinkle in Time books swept me to far away lands. I solved mysteries with Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys while hanging out in the haylofts of our barns, several cats snuggled up to my side. I read all the Ramona Quimby stories. I religiously read the funny sections in Reader's Digest alongside my great, great aunt. My parents gave me the classics: Heidi, Black Beauty, Grimm's Fairy Tales, Alice in Wonderland, etc., and I devoured them. As a teen, I loved the Christy Miller Series from Robin Jones Gunn as well as Lori Wick, Davis Bunn, and Janette Oke novels. Oh! And there was a book called My Perfect Valentine that I still have. I'll give it to my little girl one day because I loved the story.
   
   
9. Who is the person who most influenced you in your writing?
   Oh dear, that's a hard one! If I had to pick just one person, I'd say my Great, Great Aunt Retta. It was her acceptance of my creativity and her encouragement of my story-telling that let me really fall into that world and embrace my personality and interests. She never made me put a book down and, so far as I can remember, never stopped me from telling her a story (no matter how busy she was!) or refused to supply paper and pencil when I wanted to write a story down.
   
   
10. Are you working on any new books?
    Always! I've already turned in the edited versions of the next two books in the Sisters, Ink series that release next year. Now, I'm working on a stand-alone book. Lots of ideas are rolling around in my head, and I've caught a glimpse of my main character, but she hasn't started talking to me yet. She's only given me brief glimpses into her mystery. I can't wait to find out more about her!

Oh, I hope you have enjoyed reading this and learning more about Rebeca and her books. I know I just fell in love with her. I hope you will too. And Rebeca has very generously given me a few books to offer to you! Come see my blog for your chance to win and fall in love with the Sinclair sisters!