Meet author Vicki M. Taylor

Award-winning author Vicki M. Taylor joins me today to talk about her latest release, Trust in the Wind. This is just one stop on her month-long blog tour. Welcome Vicki. I’m glad you’re here.

Thanks for hosting me during my Virtual Book Tour. I'm happy to be here.

Q: Let’s start by finding out more about you. Who is Vicki M. Taylor? How long have you been writing? Do you focus on a certain genre?

I'm a mother of three grown children, with one grandson and I live with my husband, dog, and parrot in Tampa, Florida. I wrote for fifteen years as a technical writer before turning to fiction around 1999. I call myself a Women's Fiction author because I think my stories go a little deeper into real life than a typical romance. I've written about teenage drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, domestic violence, teenage pregnancy, murder and more.

Q: I’ve read the reviews for Trust in the Wind, and I have to say, it seems like this is one book that every romance lover needs to read. What inspired you to write this novel?

Trust in the Wind developed from a dream. A very vivid dream. When I woke the next morning, I could recall everything clearly in my mind. I knew I had something special. I instantly grabbed pen and paper (which I always keep next to my bed for just such occasions) and started writing. Furiously. I didn’t want to lose any of the story before I could get it all out of my head and onto the paper. When I finished writing, I had an entire story. The whole synopsis of the book. Even now, I can still recall parts of that dream clearly in my mind; it was that dramatic.

Q: Trust in the Wind has a pregnant teen who has decided to go it alone after her family disowns her; an absent father who is not involved in the baby’s life; a widowed sheriff who has lost his wife and child and has since turned his back on love; and loads of well-meaning friends who try to keep the two main characters apart because of the difference in their ages. How do you jam that much conflict into one novel?

It's what real life is all about. Things aren't perfect. My characters don't have storybook lives. They show me what happens to them. I write it down. It's kind of fun to see how they're going to handle each situation and get through it.

Q: We meet Joanne (your female lead), in Chapter One, where she and a friend are accosted by a group of vulgar, drunken hooligans after leaving a community laundry room. Obviously, she isn’t living the high life. How did you go about creating the world in which Joanne lives? Did you do research? Did you take some pictures of a location similar to what you wanted to depict in your story? Or did you approach it some other way?

Joanne's world is a combination of places I've been and my imagination. I used my imagination to give it more of an unfortunate, run-down, poor side of town feel to it.

Q: Tell us a bit about Roy. He lost his wife and child during a burglary and he has sworn off love, but he finds himself attracted to Joanne, who is several years his junior. How did you create Roy? What do you like about him? Is there anything you dislike about him?

Ah, Roy. He looks like Ed Harris. Back when Ed Harris was in The Abyss. He's a bit of a loner and a risk taker. After his family was killed, he took all the dangerous jobs. He didn't consider his life important anymore. Roy needed to see there were still things in life worth saving. Including his own life. I like that he connected with Joey so quickly and they bonded. He has a bit of a temper. That's apparent when one of the other officers tries to make Joanne look like a prostitute.


Q: Trust in the Wind deals with what some might say is a sensitive issue—love between two people who are separated by nearly two decades. How do you get readers to concentrate more on the love story developing between two people, than on their chronological ages?

I think when people are reading Trust in the Wind, I think they forget about Joanne's and Roy's ages and just see two people falling in love. The story of their journey could happen to anyone, not just a younger woman and older man.

Q: This is what Georgia Richardson of http://www.queenjawjaw.com/ had to say about Trust in the Wind: “Strong characters, suspenseful, and a love scene that massaged my heart. This was one time where the romance was beautiful; a gift . . . in a sense. As I read parts of it, I found myself saying, "I want that kind of love!" Every scene, every exciting movement, and yes, even the kisses exchanged, were given to me in such a way that an artist could not have painted a better picture for my senses to enjoy.” How do you feel after such a fabulous review?

I'm thrilled with it. Georgia really got to the basics of the book, the senses, and saw what I was trying to communicate. I'm really glad she enjoyed it so much.

Q: Can you take a minute to tell us about some of the author and writing organizations you are a part of?

I'm a founding member and past president of the Florida Writers Association (http://www.floridawriters.net). I belong to the National Association of Women Writers (http://www.naww.org). I'm a member of Romance Writers of America, and of my local RWA chapter, Tampa Area Romance Authors. (http://www.tararwa.com/index.php) Also, the Short Mystery Fiction Society (http://www.shortmystery.net/)

Q: I’ll close here with one final question. What else would you like to tell us about yourself and your work? What’s up next?

I love to write. That's what it's all about, really. Loving what I do. Even when it's writing humorous personal essays about my husband's latest handyman effort. I'm currently working on a women's fiction novel about a 39 year old mother of five who wants to adopt a 14 year old pregnant teenager and the tragic consequences. Pretty dramatic stuff.

Thank you so much for spending time with us today. It was a great pleasure. I wish you continued success in all you do.

Thank you, I appreciate that. I enjoyed my visit. I had fun!

Oh man! I guess I'm it.

Vicki M. Taylor, who is the author of the wonderful book Trust in the Wind (I reviewed this book here in May), tagged me, and now I have to come up with 8 unique things to tell you about myself. I'm not sure if these things will help you understand me or give you reasons to avoid me, but it's who I am.

1) I am a Laura Ingalls Wilder and Little House on the Prairie (LHOP) fanatic. I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to books by and about Wilder and her family. I've reviewed books about and by her daughter Rose Wilder Lane here at my blog. I watched Michael Landon's adaptation of these books when it originally aired in the 1970's and 80's. It remains my all time favorite show. I own a Dean Butler (Almanzo Wilder, LHOP) Yahoo Group, administrate a LHOP forum, and have written many LHOP fan fiction stories. I have two Laura Ingalls Wilder writing projects in mind if I ever find the time to put them together.

2) I taught catechism in the Catholic Church for ten years and ran the elementary age program for five years, which garnered me the Pope Pious X award.

3) I have a Christmas fetish. Christmas is my favorite time of year. Of course, around here it's almost an all year round event. I finally put my oldest daughter's tree down in the cellar tonight. From Thanksgiving until some time in January, I have 8 trees inside my home and 7 trees outside. My goal is to have every room of my house decorated during the season (even the bathrooms). I'm pretty close now, but my mother-in-law says she hopes she's gone home to meet her Maker before I achieve my goal.

4) I worked fourteen years in retail; I was a bank teller for two different credit unions; I worked as an office manager for a manufacturing firm, and was a data management analyst for a Fortune 100 company before I left the workforce in 2004 to stay home with my kids.

5) Speaking of my children, I have a son who turned 20 last month and two daughters who are 5 and 3. It is strange having a child in college and one in Kindergarten, but I figure it could make for some interesting story ideas.

6) I ran for public office in 2003. I lost, but I still got 40% of the vote against a person who had lived in town for over twenty years.

7) I danced for over nine years. I had dreams of touring with a ballet company. When my mother became ill, I quit. It is one of my biggest regrets.

8) I can spread my toes out so much that it looks like I have bird feet. I don't know how I discovered this trait, but I loved grossing out my middle sister with it when we were younger.

Now that you know more about me than you ever cared to, I'll tag the following people: Sadie, Amber, Candela, JoElle, Peg, Rhett, Karina, and Joyce.

Book review - Trust in the Wind by Vicki M. Taylor

What do you get when you put together a young single mother and a widowed deputy sheriff? A touching love story that you’ll want to read again and again. Vicki M. Taylor’s latest release, Trust in the Wind draws together two people who have sworn off love and makes them believe in its power.

Joanne Malone lost all she had when she went against her parents’ wishes to become a single mother to her son, Joey. Living in an apartment complex in an undesirable area of town, Joanne and her friend Sheila are accosted on their way back from the community laundry room by a group of drunken hooligans. In walks Roy Bonham, a deputy sheriff for Hillsborough County. He is instantly taken with the much younger Joanne, but the loss of his wife and child in a burglary a few years back has left him with a huge hurt and he has vowed he will never love again.

Roy keeps coming back to the apartment complex where Joanne and Joey live not knowing why he feels the need to stay in contact with them. Joanne’s and Roy’s friends discourage any type of involvement between the two. Roy is much older and has a dangerous occupation, Sheila warns her. And Roy’s best friend Tony questions whether it’s a good idea for him to get tied up with a young girl and her kid.

But the more time they spend together, the harder it is for Joanne and Roy to deny their deepening feelings.

Taylor weaves a group of unforgettable characters and real life issues into a story you won’t be able to put down. As you watch Joanne and Roy’s relationship unfold, you’ll laugh with them, cry with them, and cheer when true love conquers all. This is one novel that should be on everyone’s bookshelf, but it will never be there long, because you’ll be dying to read it again as soon as you’re done.


Look for my upcoming interview with Vicki M. Taylor on Tuesday, June 19th.

For information on how to order Trust in the Wind and other books by Vicki M. Taylor check out her Website at http://www.vickimtaylor.com/