My first view of Catherine Coulter was walking toward the restaurant exit where we were to meet for lunch. The beautiful and stylish lady moved fluidly to the front door to await her assistant, Karen, who was on her way to meet Catherine with a present left behind. Since I corresponded with Karen for weeks to arrange our meeting, I was overjoyed to say hello and give her a hug for being so good at her job.
A few minutes later we arrived back at our white linen adorned table. The setting was spectacular. The Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz landmarks were perfectly framed by the window a foot away. While sharing an appetizer, a US Air force Blue Angel on a practice run flew over the Sausalito, California ridge. The pilot was joined by four more F/A-18 Hornets maneuvering into formation as our meal progressed.
While waiting lunch, Catherine signed her hot off the press historical, THE VALCOURT HEIRESS. The cover was stunning and so was her latest picture on the back cover—I can’t wait to read the book. Catherine also signed one of my old favorites, THE SHERBROOK BRIDE, 1st edition from my own collection. If you are curious about racing cats, don’t bother researching—Ms. Coulter writes fiction after all.
Like me, Catherine has a business background and began writing as a second career. She was in New York at the time, and had just left Wall Street. Catherine had determined Opera singing or Piano playing, like her grandmother and mother before her, wasn’t an option and set out to write her first book. With her husband’s help, she plotted out her first chapters and hasn’t looked back.
As our meal progressed, Catherine gave snippets of sound advice. The following are some basic writer’s rules to consider: Use no more than three exclamation points or adverbs. Always question word usage. Remove unneeded adjectives. Study your two favorite authors and understand why their writing works. Sleep with THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, by Shrunk and White, under your pillow. When you get to “the end” get your piece in front of someone—don’t let fear hold you back. Remember: absolute perfection is never achievable. On edits, the only person you should listen to is the person who pays you—your editor. Get a good NY Agent. Always read and understand what you sign. Write 5 pages a day, no excuse. Learn the industry.
As you might expect I was nervous meeting someone so special, which for me, translates into talking too much. Catherine took pity on me, to my relief, and directed the conversation. We covered everything from book conferences, to other authors, to sports. Catherine, an avid football fan, mentioned a survey she was conducting on facebook to find the nicest NFL rear, as in buttocks. Not sure which player was ahead in the polls, but if you want to add your opinion, check it out. One of the neatest discoveries was while retrieving our cars from the valet. All of Catherine’s vehicles are named and are referred to by their designated titles. How fun.
The day, just like Catherine, was fabulous. Check out all of Catherine’s latest work on her official web site: http://www.catherinecoulter.com/
A few minutes later we arrived back at our white linen adorned table. The setting was spectacular. The Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz landmarks were perfectly framed by the window a foot away. While sharing an appetizer, a US Air force Blue Angel on a practice run flew over the Sausalito, California ridge. The pilot was joined by four more F/A-18 Hornets maneuvering into formation as our meal progressed.
While waiting lunch, Catherine signed her hot off the press historical, THE VALCOURT HEIRESS. The cover was stunning and so was her latest picture on the back cover—I can’t wait to read the book. Catherine also signed one of my old favorites, THE SHERBROOK BRIDE, 1st edition from my own collection. If you are curious about racing cats, don’t bother researching—Ms. Coulter writes fiction after all.
Like me, Catherine has a business background and began writing as a second career. She was in New York at the time, and had just left Wall Street. Catherine had determined Opera singing or Piano playing, like her grandmother and mother before her, wasn’t an option and set out to write her first book. With her husband’s help, she plotted out her first chapters and hasn’t looked back.
As our meal progressed, Catherine gave snippets of sound advice. The following are some basic writer’s rules to consider: Use no more than three exclamation points or adverbs. Always question word usage. Remove unneeded adjectives. Study your two favorite authors and understand why their writing works. Sleep with THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE, by Shrunk and White, under your pillow. When you get to “the end” get your piece in front of someone—don’t let fear hold you back. Remember: absolute perfection is never achievable. On edits, the only person you should listen to is the person who pays you—your editor. Get a good NY Agent. Always read and understand what you sign. Write 5 pages a day, no excuse. Learn the industry.
As you might expect I was nervous meeting someone so special, which for me, translates into talking too much. Catherine took pity on me, to my relief, and directed the conversation. We covered everything from book conferences, to other authors, to sports. Catherine, an avid football fan, mentioned a survey she was conducting on facebook to find the nicest NFL rear, as in buttocks. Not sure which player was ahead in the polls, but if you want to add your opinion, check it out. One of the neatest discoveries was while retrieving our cars from the valet. All of Catherine’s vehicles are named and are referred to by their designated titles. How fun.
The day, just like Catherine, was fabulous. Check out all of Catherine’s latest work on her official web site: http://www.catherinecoulter.com/
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