CHARACTER INTERVIEW: Life after Death on This Side of Heaven, by Darcy Thiel

This is my first non-fiction character interview, so today you are getting Darcy Thiel, the author. Enjoy!

Tell me a little about yourself:  

My name is Darcy Thiel and I am a Mental Health Counselor in Western New York. I also have an organizing business, and recently started Baby Coop Publishing. I have authored two books and lecture throughout the area. In addition, I am a mother of a 12 year old son.

What do you like to do in your spare time: Spare time with all that going on? LOL! I enjoy music. I am part of our worship band at church and also love to hear concerts and bands when I get the chance.

What is your favorite color and why: Purple. I think it’s a warm and inviting color but still has energy.

What is your favorite food? Why is it your favorite: Hmmm…. It’s a toss-up between ice cream and mashed potatoes with gravy. They are comfort foods. I can eat them both, any time of the year.

What would you say is your biggest quirk: I am silly. I don’t get embarrassed easily so I’m not afraid to make a fool of myself. As long as we are having fun, I’m game!

What is it about your antagonist that irks you the most, and why: Probably dishonesty. I guess because I am brutally honest with myself. If I’m willing to face the worst parts of me, why shouldn't he/she be willing to as well? After all, we are all human.

What or who means the most to you in your life? What, if anything, would you do to keep him/her/it in your life? I would have to say my son. He is a bit distant from me and I've already tried almost anything to get him closer. I think with our children, we would take a bullet, lose a limb… if they were in danger.

What one thing would you like readers to know about you that may not be spelled out in the book in which you inhabit? My book is pretty raw and honest so I think there are glimpses of all of me- my humor, my fears, my vulnerability, my strength.

If you could tell your writer (creator) anything about yourself that might turn the direction of the plot, what would it be? That things really will be ok. No, like I mean they really, truly will be ok, not just a cliché we tell ourselves to keep going.

Ask me any question. I've always wanted to know what a character thinks about writers like myself. I'll answer the question at the end of this interview.  

What’s one of the toughest things you have ever had to accept/endure in your life?

My daughter and her children living with me. I love them all, but I don't love that it's been almost 6 years. Can't I be grandma for a second? And what about keeping your space clean and doing your own laundry? Etc. Etc.

I want my daughter to be independent. She is 32 after all. And I want my grandchildren to learn what they need to learn in this life to be capable and independent themselves. I do what I can, but haven't I already done the raising of children portion bit? 

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Thank you Darcy!

Learn more about Darcy here:

Author website: www.darcythiel.com

Publishing website:  www.babycooppublishing.com

Counseling website:  www.marriageandfamilycounseling.net

FRIDAY FLICKS: Bitter and Sweet: A Family's Journey with Cancer, by Darcy Thiel

Click here to see the trailer

Get the book here

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Darcy Thiel

What does Darcy do when she doesn't feel like writing? What does she do in the marketing arena to bring in sales? How does Darcy feel about book signings?

Find out in today's author interview: 

Tell me about yourself. What got you started in writing? 

I am a couple and family therapist/counselor by profession. In May of 2010, my 48 year old husband was diagnosed with Stage IV Gallbladder Cancer. We found a blog site called CaringBridge where we journaled our story so people could follow what was happening. We started hearing a lot of “you really need to make this a book” comments and the idea started to grow.  In March of 2013, Bitter and Sweet: A Family’s Journey with Cancer was published.  I started blogging weekly in September of 2012 and have continued to do so. I am also currently working on the sequel to Bitter and Sweet.

How and where do you write? Do you prefer a lap top or do you prefer writing freehand?   

I write on my laptop. I like to be able to change things around easily. My computer is slow sometimes so it can be frustrating. I have a little office off my kitchen where I do most of my work.

What's your favorite part about writing? Your least favorite part about writing?

Once I get going, it flows pretty easily. I write about personal experience so it ends up being pretty cathartic for me. The least favorite part is scheduling writing. I hate when it’s Thursday and I need to blog and I don’t feel inspired. It’s hard to “make yourself” write. But with other professions, you have to work even if you don’t feel like it, so I try to push myself with the writing too.

How do you come up with your characters? Why would readers want to get to know them?  

My story is true to life happenings. I have had to change the names other than myself, my husband and my pets. Other than that, it’s all as true as I can make it.  Because of the “realness”, I think people can relate to the characters. Once they start reading, they want to continue. After this writing experience, I have a deep appreciation for authors that can create characters and plots. I have no idea how to do that. I can write about what I deeply feel. To create apart from that is not a talent I possess.

What types of marketing do you do to promote your writing? 

I have a dear friend that is the mastermind behind most of my marketing. Social media is the biggest one. I am on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Wordpress (blog), and LinkedIn. They are set up so that when I do something on one of those sites, they interact with each other and show up on all sites. I also have websites for my counseling practice and the publishing company.  We blitzed all email contacts we have.

The second area we have concentrated on is book signings and talks. We made contact with all the local bookstores and libraries in our area. We have found that signings are generally not as successful as having some sort of talk or reading.

The last area is making cold calls/email contacts to churches, book clubs, and colleges. We literally look up places online, find out contact information and start networking. And of course, wherever we go we are always talking, talking, talking.

How do you schedule your writing time? When do you write?  

I generally write Monday through Saturday, maybe an hour a day. Thursdays I also blog. I don’t have a particular time of day because I work around appointments, kids, etc.  Sometimes I write in-between phone calls and emails. But sometimes, like right now, my house is unusually quiet and I can just concentrate on what I am doing.

What are you currently working on? Do you have a new book out?

My first book Bitter and Sweet; A Family’s Journey with Cancer came out in March of 2013. It is the story of my husband’s terminal illness- the diagnosis and how we managed our lives until his death five months later. I am now working on the second book. I believe this one will be called Life After Death on This Side of Heaven.  It will pick up on the grief process after you get through the funeral and have to figure out how to make sense of your life again and develop a “new normal.”

Do you have a project on the back burner? Tell me about it. 

This wasn't part of the original plan, but now that we have the publishing company established we are thinking about publishing other people’s books. We are currently in the editing process with a children’s book which has been exciting!

What would you tell a beginning writer who wants to publish but doesn't believe he/she has enough talent? 

Write anyway. Anyone can publish so that isn't an issue. Realistically though, even good writing is hard to sell. So you have to do it for your own personal satisfaction. Helps if you have another means to support yourself financially!

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Thank you Darcy!

babycooppublishing.com has reviews of Darcy's book, the book trailer, links to television and newspaper coverage, speaking engagements, etc.; there are also links there to Facebook, twitter, linked in, and pinterest:  

Her blog:  helpforhealing.wordpress.com