An Interview with Samantha Chandler

Samantha Chandler has a Bachelor’s in Architecture from the University of Miami. She is the Design Director for an architectural firm in Miami therefore, she writes her first romance novel...of course.

Rachel: Did you enjoy reading as a child?

Samantha: I have always read, and if I wasn’t reading I was drawing as a child. When I grew, my favorite class was English, and my favorite place to be was my design studio in school. I read everything from Shakespeare to Existentialism. I had amazing teachers that made us read out loud in class and discuss the passages. How I hated to be called on to read! All in all though, these stories in school were my first book-cations.

Rachel: When did you first start to think of yourself as a writer?

Samantha: I started thinking about writing when I read all of Judith McNaught’s novels and felt...okay...now what? I fell in love with every one of her characters. I decided that I would write my own story because I had to wait for her next book and sometimes.... I have a problem with waiting.

Rachel: I have problems, too! What surprised you about being a writer?

Samantha: I surprised myself when my writing was instinctive. It has never been a task, and it has never stressed me out

Rachel: What inspires you to write?

Samantha: What inspires me is reading. When you read a truly good romance novel, there is a moment that you get that “falling in love” feeling; it is well worth your investment of time. I wish I could bottle the feeling and sell it.... I would make millions. So my quest is to make the reader fall in love with a character, a place, a gesture. If I can make you sigh...I’m happy.

Rachel: Do you try to write daily, and if so, do you set a goal of a certain number of words?

Samantha: Oh dear. I sit at the computer and write, and I never look at the word count. It’s like seeing a movie that’s playing in my mind. It’s time to get up when my back starts to bother me or when I feel like I need inspiration. The term “freshen up” was really meant for writers.

Rachel: So true. What gets in your way of writing?

Samantha: Life, composed of but not limited to: a man named Lester, two sons; 16 and 20 years old, an American bull dog, work, and of course laundry and groceries…. I won’t continue because you know where this is going...like I’ve told my friends the extra day of the week after Sunday is Someday.

Rachel: How do you get past it?

Samantha: I think best and write my best in the morning when everyone is asleep, even the dog.

Rachel: What makes you CRAZY about writing?

Samantha: Conceptually what drives me CRAZY is the fact that I would love the story to be an original...an angle left unexplored. This is difficult....I’m still on that quest. When I am actually writing, what drives me CRAZY are the quotation marks and the He said/She said. Uh!!

Rachel: How long does it take you to complete a book?

Samantha: DUTY was a few years because I never really thought I would publish it, and I would come back to it every now and then. I kept the heroine on her way to London for at least 4 month one time. I will keep better time on Remind Me Forever my next romance.

Rachel: Where do you get your ideas for your books?

Samantha: I love the settings, fashion, architecture - anything that involves design. I also like strong women that can hold their own but still realize that love is not a weakness. I marvel at how poorly we communicate with each other and how the truth can be interpreted in many shades of gray when it is truly black or white. Somewhere in that gray, there is a story.

Rachel: Yes. I often find it fascinating that the exact same situation can be interpreted many different ways. It’s very intriguing to me. What is your favorite writing food?

Samantha: Anything that crunches or Starbucks coffee...Bold, a little half/half and splenda

Rachel: Who do you hope reads your work?

Samantha: Everyone. Women that love romance and men that need to understand that women love romance!

Rachel: What is the best complement you have ever received from a fan?

Samantha: One lady wrote me and said that I had allowed her to escape. That was great because every now and then all of us need to escape.

Rachel: What are you working on now?

Samantha: Remind Me Forever, the story of Pierce and Laura. In this novel I want to introduce the OMG Society and establish an origin to Facebook...lol My first observation of the OMG Society: “A man always has a perfect plan, a woman’s plan is to make every man perfect.” Actually that pretty much sums it up, I think.

Thanks for stopping by, Samantha. If you’d like to know more about Samantha Chandler, visit her website.