Having co-authored a number of fiction and non-fiction books with an artist (my frequent co-author Sue Viders), I am very excited to present today's blog guest, Sheila Hansberger. She is both an artist and a writer. During the past forty years, she has created original watercolors for galleries and private clients and her artwork has earned numerous awards, and they have been exhibited across the United States. They are also part of many prestigious public and private art collections. She has earned the title of Signature Member at the National Watercolor Society and at Watercolor West. Both are international organizations. Prior to her art career, she worked for a local printing firm as their darkroom photographer and graphic artist, often designing logos for clients.
Her book club consented to be beta readers for her first attempt at a novel, a romance set in Cuba. Although they praised the manuscript, Sheila knew this initial draft needed work. After several rewrites, it won second place in a writing contest.
In Autumn of 2021, Hansberger again entered a competition. She earned first place for her manuscript, The Gardener’s Secret. The Wild Rose Press expressed an interest in publishing it, and on January 29, 2024, under the authorship of S. Hansberger, they will release the novel as an e-book and a paperback.
In addition to The Gardener’s Secret, Sheila’s work ialso ncludes The Better Than Average Apple Cookbook. Long ago, the Hansberger family owned an orchard and a century-old packing barn in Oak Glen, California. Her cookbook had its beginning there as a handful of typed recipes she put together to complement the apple sales. In 2014, she updated those recipes and self-published The Better Than Average Apple Cookbook, which features full-color illustrations of her original apple-themed paintings and drawings. Visit her website at www.s-hansberger.com
Let's find out more about Sheila and her writing. What do you enjoy about being an author?
Being able to set my own schedule! I can hover over the keyboard for hours or squeeze in bits of writing between appointments or family time. I also enjoy seeing my ideas come to life as the manuscript progresses.
What do you find is the most challenging part of being an author?
Deadlines! Whether it’s getting the next rewrites to my editor, or prepping for a Zoom meeting with critique partners, I’m not as creative nor efficient as when allowed to write during stress-free moments.
Tell us about your road to publication.
I had written magazine and newspaper articles for years, but my subject matter always revolved around art. I was a commercial artist and also painted fine art for gallery exhibits. I served for five years as the Newsletter Editor for the National Watercolor Society, an organization with thousands of members worldwide. I often had to finish someone’s last-minute article so we could go to press, which reinforced my appreciation for the written word. Then, after my husband died, when I couldn’t face the drawing table, I escaped into fiction, not just reading it, but writing it, too.
A music CD called Cuba sparked an idea for a romance novel. Ninety days later, the first draft of a 64K-word manuscript anchored a spot on my computer. Anxious to officially call myself an author, I immediately joined RWA (Romance Writers of America), and SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators). My excitement faded when I realized I still had a lot to learn before my novel could greet the public. I sought how-to classes, attended conferences, and devoured stacks of reading material about the art of writing. My education from these sources helped me through several re-writes of the manuscript. A more updated version even won second place in a writing competition. Yet, it still wasn’t the version I wanted to present to readers. I guess you might call it my learning pancake. Will I rewrite it someday? You can count on it!
How do you develop characters?
I like patterning characters after people I know, or people I witness displaying traits that seem interesting. When it comes to assigning names, I watch movie credits scroll by and select names, often matching a first name with a different person’s last name.
How do you come up with your plots?
I’m a visual person, so an image can spark an idea. I might see a magazine photo that leads me on a journey the photographer had never imagined. A scene out my car window can intrigue me. Another fun way to develop a story…sit in a restaurant and look around. What secret life lies within each patron?
What is your book that you will feature today, and how did you come up with the idea to write it?
Setting aside that first manuscript allowed me to combine my new-found knowledge with a fresh start. When composing a still life painting, I never sketch a traditional fruit bowl. Too boring. Instead, I look for an interesting item…jelly beans, a piece of ribbon, or an antique key, for example. Then, I challenge myself to invent a theme around one item, gathering others with it until the total items form a cohesive story. (To further understand what I mean, check out the paintings on my website at: www.s-hansberger.com.)
What I did to prep for paintings easily translated into my writings. In the case of The Gardener’s Secret, I had a vision of a young woman home from college. Then I gathered other items: a sunny day, her beloved dog, a country lane. But where was the tension that would grab a reader? Maybe the dog has been in the house all morning and he was full of pent-up energy. Could she contain him? Probably. She was holding his leash. Again, kinda bland. Then, his leash tangles around her legs. Could she really hold him back if he was determined to chase a cat? And if he began a chase, what would happen to her that would help move the story forward?
Under the pen name of S. Hansberger, I wrote in the first-person voice of main character Callie Lou James and gave birth to The Gardener’s Secret, a contemporary novel destined to be published by Wild Rose Press in their suspense category. William Smith is a secretive gardener who’s hiding out in the deep south, thinking he’s safe…until he isn’t. Callie is a budding journalist and considers the gardener her friend after he rescues her from a fall. Learning his horrifying secret doesn’t deter her, even though loyalty will draw her into danger.
Believing she’ll get to report gritty news, Callie accepts a job at her hometown newspaper. Instead, she’s assigned the gardening column—a subject she knows nothing about. She begs advice from a tight-lipped neighbor when he admits he’s a retired gardener, even though his mannerisms and speech suggest he’s anything but. Not knowing the full truth doesn’t matter—she needs his help. The townsfolk think him strange and warn Callie to keep her distance, but she regards him and his family as friends. Learning their horrifying secret doesn’t deter her, even though loyalty will draw her into danger.
Excerpt:
“My goal is to work as a reporter for a big news agency like the New York Times. Who knows, you may be sitting here with the next Woodward or Bernstein.”
“A reporter?” He stared at me for a moment and then looked down, dusted off his hands, and rose to his feet.
I stiffened. “Is something wrong?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, his gaze searched the house’s dark interior. “I have to go. Will you be okay waiting by yourself?”
“Well, uh…yes sir, of course.” I scrambled to my feet and handed him the wet dish towel. “I appreciate you tending to my injury. Mama will want to thank you personally. We’ll stop by sometime and—”
He had taken a step toward the door but spun and thrust out his palm like a stop sign. “That isn’t necessary. Good luck with the healing.” He vanished into the house, closing the screen door, and the oak door behind it, and bolted the lock.
Seriously? Dazed by his icy send-off, I slumped to the steps and mentally repeated my words, wondering if I’d said something offensive.
What’s your next project or what are you working on now?
I’m still following the expert’s advice by writing about what I know. Art. The title is Runaway Artist and involves an aspiring artist, Brooke Arnelletta, who has secured an internship in a posh Beverly Hills art gallery. When she witnesses a murder, she must flee or face a killer’s efforts to silence her. But Brooke has led a sheltered life within a well-to-do family and has no clue how to navigate life without hired help. Can she remain hidden in a mountain community while learning to depend upon herself, or will she be exposed and become the killer’s next victim? The first draft has made it through many changes, but I’m close to having it polished and excited to send it off to my editor.
Another manuscript also in the works is Lost Pieces of August, which is half finished. The setting is glorious summertime in Cape Cod. Vacation is short-lived for Hannah Mertinson when she becomes the victim of a hit-and-run accident. She wakes in the hospital and finds she’s lost seven-days to a coma. The police want to tract down the guilty driver, but Hannah can’t remember the incident. Meanwhile the beach at her front door beckons as her health returns. When new people enter her life, she must decide which ones are keepers, and which ones are determined to keep her from regaining her memory.
What advice do you have for beginning writers?
Read. Read. Read. Not only to further your writing career, but to see what other authors write and how they handle a scene. Also, quiz yourself. Do you like Hallmark movies, or are you a thrill seeker? That should dictate the genre for your next book. Oh, and keep a pen and paper handy…everywhere! Bedside, in the kitchen, in the bathroom, in your car. You might not compose an entire scene, but just getting down a word or two might prevent writer’s block later.
Buy Links:
E-book link: https://a.co/d/3rXC7Vr
Paperback link: https://a.co/d/g6M9zcJ
Social Contacts:
Website: https://www.s-hansberger.com
Facebook: Sheila Hansberger, Artist and Author (1) Facebook
Instagram: Sheila Hansberger (@sheilahansberger) • Instagram photos and videos
LinkedIn: (24) Sheila Hansberger | LinkedIn
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