Welcome to novelist Ann Simas, author of many mysteries!
Ann Simas lives in Oregon, but she is a Colorado girl
at heart, having grown up in the Rocky Mountains. She has been an avid reader
since childhood and penned her first fiction “book” in high school. She
particularly likes to write mystery-thriller-suspense with a love story and
paranormal or supernatural elements.
An award-winning watercolorist and a budding
photographer, Ann enjoys needlework and gardening in her spare time. She is her
family's "genealogist" and has been blessed with the opportunity to
conduct first-hand research in Italy for both her writing and her family tree.
The genealogy research from decade's old documents in Italian, she says, has
been a supreme but gratifying challenge.
Ann is a member of International Thriller
Writers, Northwest Independent Writers Association, Sisters in Crime, and
Italian American Writers Association.
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Social Media Links
Author
Website https://annsimas.com
What would
you say are your strengths as an author?
I’m
fortunate that I have determination, perseverance, and an innate ability to
write. I also have an inquisitive mind, a good imagination, and I enjoy doing research.
My books have lots of twists and turns, so for me, these attributes are a winning
combination.
How often
do you write, and do you write using a strict routine?
I
write every day, seven days a week. I used to write 10-plus hours a day, but in
December 2018, my husband and I were in a car crash that resulted in a torn
tendon at my right rotator cuff. The injury has curtailed my 10-hour writing
days, so now, I usually only write four-to-five hours a day.
I
wouldn’t say my routine is strict. Some days, I get no writing done at all.
Life and family intervene, and for me, family comes first. I’m good with that,
as long as I meet my self-imposed release deadlines, which are generally May,
July, October, and November, and my promos get done.
Five years
from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?
Five
years from now, at my current rate of writing, I will have reached my goal of
writing 50 books. It’s entirely possible I will retire from writing at that
point. However, since I can’t see into the future, I may feel differently by
then. I may want to forge on to 75 books. (I’m smiling.)
If you
could offer one piece of advice to a novice writer, what would it be?
When
I decided to write my first book, I bought a writing-romance how-to, because
that’s what I was reading at the time. I devoured that book from beginning to
end, then started writing in my spare time. Over the years, I attended
conferences and writing workshops, hoping to learn something new. It was beat
into my head that it was imperative to write an outline, character sketches,
and a synopsis. That stalled me, and it stressed me out like crazy, but I felt
compelled to do what I’d been taught.
I
sold a novella to Harlequin, and I wrote four books, three of which were RWA
Golden Heart Finalists, but still, they languished under the weight of
rejection letters that basically said “too much mystery, not enough romance.” Eventually,
it hit me that I should write a mystery, so I did. I finished Dressed to Die, but it wasn’t polished.
One day in 2012, I came to the realization that the outline-sketches-synopsis
method didn’t work for me. Keeping that in mind, I looked at Dressed with new eyes and it came
together perfectly. Thirty-one books later, I’m happy with the path I chose,
which included switching to the route of indie author, rather than traditional
publishing again.
My advice to novice authors is this: Not everyone is cut out to follow the established writing path of plotting the whole book ahead of time. Some people are born to be pantsters, or writers who plot as they go. If you’re not sure which you are, try it both ways and see what works for you. Another thing, don’t be afraid to approach experts when you research. No matter how famous they may be, you have a 50/50 chance they’ll speak to you. (Be sure to thank them in your Author Note.) Also, give serious consideration to whether or not you want to publish with a traditional publisher or go the indie route. Either way, you have your work cut out for you, which brings me to my last word of advice. Don’t go into writing thinking you’re going to hit the best-seller lists and make a fortune. That happens infrequently. However, if it does happen to you, congratulations!
What would
you consider to be the best compliment a reader could give your book?
Let
me cite a couple of examples of what readers have said that warmed my heart and
made me chuckle. One comes from a review written about Here and Gone (Fossil, Colorado Books #1). She said, “Loved Here and Gone, couldn’t hardly put it
down, but my animals and husband needed to eat.” Another came to me via email
about Taken to Die (Grace Gabbiano
Mysteries, book 5): “I swear, you had me believing in
extraterrestrials in Taken to Die.”
When
someone says they couldn’t put down one of my books, or that I drew them thoroughly into the story, I take it as high praise, indeed.
What are you working on now?
My current work-in-progress is The Wrong Wicca (Andi Comstock
Supernatural Mysteries, Book 5). This series was inspired by a real-life event
I had on my last job. I smelled smoke in the building, but no one else did. A
year or so after I left that job, it came to me how I could use that experience
in a book and the Andi series was born. Suffice it to say, that building was on
the opposite corner from a crematorium.
Wicca
deviates from Andi talking to the cremated dead (Smokies) when a murdered woman
asks for help to find her body. Andi’s cohorts in crime-fighting are her new
husband, Jack Harmon, a homicide detective, and Father Riley O’Shaughnessy, the
priest at the Catholic Church down the street from where Andi works. In Wicca, there’s also a magic trunk that
contains a huge clue to Cassie’s killer, if only Andi can figure it out.
GRACE GABBIANO MYSTERIES
PRAYING
TO DIE (Grace Gabbiano Mystery, Book 6)(New
Release)
Father Sidney has gone off to find
himself, even though he knows someone is stealing valuable items from St.
Anthony Church. Chief Aidan Cruz decides it’s time for Grace to go undercover
as a nun to find the thief. It doesn’t take “Sister Agatha” long to discover that
Father Sidney’s search didn’t go well.
Other Book in the Series
Dressed
to Die, Book 1
Sliced to Die, Book 2
Buried to Die, Book 3
Quilted to Die, Book 4
Taken to Die, Book 5
Sliced to Die, Book 2
Buried to Die, Book 3
Quilted to Die, Book 4
Taken to Die, Book 5
FOSSIL. COLORADO BOOKS
HERE AND GONE (Book 1) A thriller…and a love story—both will leave you breathless!
Hannah Clarke, a wife and mom one day, is a widow without a child the
next. Two years later, living as H.L. Mason in Fossil, Colorado, her safe new
world explodes with a revelation so shocking and horrifying she can hardly
grasp it. By chance, she meets Sheriff Noah Ward, and though she’s leery of
cops after being accused of killing her family, she needs help. Noah, a former
Navy SEAL, agrees to do what he can, but they both soon discover that the case
is far more insidious than parental abduction.
DISAPPEARING ACT (Book 2)(New Release) Even when you run, love can find you.
Georgina Flannery has a new name, a new occupation, and trust issues.
She’s lived in six states in eight years, and she has no friends. Fossil,
Colorado is her next destination, but she takes a wrong turn and ends up in a
creek, only to be rescued by Brant Ward. Georgie prefers to keep men at a
distance, but circumstances have taken that away from her and she’s forced to
reveal her past to Brant. The more untangled her family dynamics become, the
more twisted they get. When the ultimate secret is revealed, it’s
incomprehensible. It also raises the question, will Georgie and Brant survive
the evil pursuing them?
Other Book in the Series
Run or Don’t (Book 3, coming May 2021)
ANDI COMSTOCK
SUPERNATURAL MYSTERIES
THE WRONG WICCA (Book 5)(Release date, October 31,
2020; pre-order on Amazon)
Andi
Comstock has grown used to talking to the cremated dead (Smokies), so it comes
as a surprise when a non-Smokie speaks to her about finding her murdered body.
Andi has no idea what awaits her once Cassie’s body is found. First, there’s
the magic trunk. Then, there’s Cassie’s golden retriever, Trigger. The dog she
can deal with, but what’s inside the magic trunk is another story. Are its
magical contents really significant to Cassie’s death? Will they lead to
Cassie’s killer…or will the killer find Andi before she finds him?
Other Book in the Series
Holy Smoke (Book 1)
Penitence (Book 2)
Angel Babies (Book 3)
Hellfire (Book 4)
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