Raina's Blog: Q&A with Ann Swann

Meet Ann Swann

Ann Swann was born in the small West Texas town of Lamesa. She grew up much like Stevie-girl in The Phantom Pilot, though she never got up the nerve to enter the haunted house. Ann has done everything from answering 911 Emergency calls to teaching elementary school. She still lives in West Texas with her husband, Dude, one rescue dog, two rescue cats, and a part-time box turtle named Piggy.

Why did you start writing?

When I was around twelve, I began to write stories in a spiral notebook. But it wasn’t until a high school course in creative writing that I really fell in love with the language of writing.

What books have influenced your life the most?

Charlotte’s Web, Little Women, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Black Stallion (still a favorite), Call of the Wild, Black Beauty, Red Sky at Morning, Silver Chief, Dog of the North, The Hobbit, all of Edgar Allan Poe’s work, all of Stephen King’s books, all of Mary Stewart’s books, and above all, The Holy Bible.
What do you feel is the most important part of a compelling story?

First the characters, then the story because no matter what happens, if I don’t like the characters, I probably won’t finish the book.

What is the hardest part of writing?

Staying off social media.
What are your favorite books to give as gifts?

Biographies, cook books, and books about writing. Unless they specifically request one of mine *wink*

What is your must have writing accessory?

My computer and a yellow legal tablet for notes. And a diet Coke. And a bit of chocolate. Maybe a few nuts. And my iPhone and/or Bose stereo for music.

Have your books required any research? If so, how did you go about it?

Each book is different. When writing Stutter Creek I had to do a bit of computer research on Kazakhstan. When writing Lilac Lane, I did computer research on old bear traps, and when writing Copper Lake, I had to research handguns (got my CHL and learned to shoot), as well as refreshing my knowledge of latitude and longitude coordinates (old text books from my teaching days), and how to carve on bone (my friend’s husband—a physician—told me it would be very difficult to carve on a femur with a scalpel so don’t hold it against him, LOL).

What's your writing space like?

In my den my iMac sits on an old teacher’s desk (from the 1940s) that belonged to my dad’s elementary school teacher. I also have a Bose stereo and a fireplace flanking a wall of windows. But if I need a change of scenery I take the laptop and retire to my recliner in the living room with my 18-year-old cat, Maggie Mae. She is my furry little editor. Sometimes we head out to the back patio so we can both enjoy the company of the birds.
What are you working on now?
A romantic suspense set in California, a collection of short stories, and book number four in my Stevie-girl and the Phantoms series.

What do you have planned for 2016?

More of the same, and lots of it!

Books:

2011 Stevie-girl and The Phantom Pilot – Cool Well Press

2012 Stevie-girl and The Phantom Student – Cool Well Press

2013 Stevie-girl and the Phantom of Crybaby Bridge