Guest Author, Cynthia MacGregor

Guest author, Cynthia MacGregor

Who is Cynthia MacGregor?

Multi-published freelance author/editor Cynthia MacGregor has over 50 published books to her credit, most of them conventional paper but a few e-books too. She’s written “everything from catalog copy to promotional video scripts to website copy to... you name it” in addition to all those books “and a great deal more books that haven’t seen the light of print yet...but I’m still looking for homes for them.”

As well, she has edited numerous magazines and books and websites. Writing is not only her career, it is also one of her hobbies, chiefly in that she writes all the plays produced by the Palm Springs Players, a community theatre group in the village of Palm Springs, “the one in Florida...not its rich and famous namesake in California. I don’t get a penny for the plays,” she says, “but it’s fun.” Not surprisingly, she also enjoys wordplay, specifically punnery, and is a member of the online punsters’ group PUNY and a frequent attendee at the annual O. Henry Pun-Off World Championship, held each May in Austin TX, where she sometimes appears as a contestant and sometimes is a judge. Her other hobby is cooking “and entertaining, ‘cause if you’re going to cook, you need to have victims...I mean beneficiaries...to eat up all that food.”

The self-described “happiest woman in the world,” Cynthia avers that “there is no one in the world I’d want to trade lives with.”

Tasty tidbits about Cynthia

Q: Do you write under a pseudonym?

A: Not normally. I once did 13 small children’s books (nonfiction) in one year for a publisher who would not allow a writer to publish that many books in one season under one name. He insisted I choose a pseudonym for six of the books. Other than that, all my books have been published under my right name, excepting of course for ghostwriting gigs, but that’s a whole ’nother matter altogether. You’re not asking about ghostwriting.

Q: Wow, you’re quite accomplished Cynthia. I would love to write a children’s book. What is your favorite season?

A: Summer—I love the heat—that’s why I moved to South Florida

Q: Florida is too humid for me. What is your favorite junk food?

A: I don’t really eat junk food.

Q: You have more willpower then me. I eat too much junk food. What is your favorite movie?

A: I suppose I’d have to say Singin’ in the Rain. I don’t ever go to the movies or rent movies but do have some on videotape and watch them on rare occasions. Being a fan of musicals (but I prefer stage shows over movies—for two years in New York I was a theatre critic, and it was WONDERFUL), whatever movie I name, it’s gonna be a musical. And I think Singin’ in the Rain is probably my all-time fave. Love that scene at the end where the guys all nod to each other and then join together to pull the curtain that reveals Kathy dubbing Lina’s voice behind the curtain, exposing Lina for the fraud she is and Kathy as the true star.

Q: I have to be honest; I’ve never been to a musical or a Broadway show. I would love to go sometime during my life though. What kind of vehicle do you drive?

A: A 2002 Saturn, the only car I ever bought new. Ironically, when I lived in NYC I drove a convertible, and now that I’m in sunny So FL I’m driving a hardtop!

Q: What genre/s do you write?

A: Primarily nonfiction and for both children and adults, but I do have four BookStrand romances and am shopping around two mainstream novels that I have yet to find homes for…but I don’t give up.

Q: Never give up, Cynthia! I bet those stories are wonderful. What made you decide to write the genre you do?

A: I don’t think “decide” is the right word. I don’t think I ever consciously decided to write nonfiction. But I mostly read nonfiction, so I suppose I naturally gravitated to writing mostly nonfiction. And since I’ve had ideas for books both for adults and for kids, I’ve written for both adults and kids. I mean, if you have an idea, and you think it’s commercially salable, you write it.

Q: So true on all accounts. Why write something that you would enjoy writing and that you know won’t sell. When not writing, what hobbies/interests do you have?

A: Well, writing is also a hobby as well as a profession for me. Here in Palm Springs (the one in FL, not the rich, famous one in Calif) I belong to a theatre group called the Palm Springs Players, for which I’ve written all the plays that the group has put on. I don’t make a dime from that. I do it for pure enjoyment. I also write haiku, a Japanese-style form of poetry (in English!), which I post to a poetry group online that I belong to. No money in that either. Just a hobby. Apart from writing, I love to cook and to have people over to share the food and good conversation with. Mostly I have one person over at a time, rather than dinner parties, but three times a year I do it up big and have more of a crowd than this little condo apartment can really handle. For Thanksgiving, Christmas, and my birthday I have LOTS of people over and cook LOTS of food for them…though last year, due to economic restrictions, I did a pot luck instead of doing all the cooking myself. That wasn’t nearly as much fun! Oh and then, I don’t know if you’d call this a hobby so much as maybe a pastime or interest, but I’m an avid punster (wordplay) and belong to a pun group online that I’m kinda an unofficial semi-co-leader of, and the years I can afford it I travel to Austin TX in mid-May to participate in an annual Pun-Off event there. Some years I’m a contestant and some years I’m a judge.

Q: Wow! You are multitalented and have your hands full. At least you are getting the most out of life and doing what you love! What is your latest book about?

A: An Appetite for Passion is about Kari, a rubenesque-figured woman who meets a man in a cooking chat room online and forms an online romance with him, then looks forward to meeting him f2f, though she doesn’t share with him in advance of meeting him that she has weight issues. Meanwhile, now that her best friend is pregnant and all wrapped up in baby plans, the friend has no time for Kari, who meets a guy, Jeff, who’s just as funny and fun to be with as Kari’s best friend used to be. Kari meets Jeff when she volunteers for an election campaign, where skullduggery soon takes place. The finger of suspicion points to Jeff, and Kari plots to discover and expose the real perpetrator and thus clear Jeff’s name.

Q: Sounds wonderful and suspenseful! If you could pick any celebrities to play your main characters in a movie, who would they be and why?

A: Since I never go to the movies or watch TV, I have no idea who the current crop of celebrities are except for the ones whose actions get them written up in the main news sections of the newspaper. (I don’t read the entertainment sections.) So I really have no idea who to cast. Don’t know who’s out there.

Q: That’s not a bad thing. Celebrity gossip can be consuming. Does your family know about your writing career?

A: My late mother was very proud of my writing and editing career. My dad died when I was 14 and so never knew anything of my career. My daughter grew up with me writing and editing, and so of course she knows. My goodness—how would she not know? Something was paying the rent and the groceries! And these days, my Significant Other obviously also sees me sitting at the computer all day. We share an office, one intended bedroom of our condo that, for us, is an office. So obviously, again, he knows I write and edit.

Q: It’s so wonderful to be surrounded by people who support you. It makes it that much easier. What do they say about it?

A: Well, as I said, my mother was proud of her daughter the writer. My daughter is glad of anything I write that’s not x-rated. I spent many years writing and editing for “adult” magazines—yes, I do mean x-rated—which mortified my daughter and still does, so she’s grateful when I have “clean” credits to point to…my 54 conventionally published books, my over-20 e-books, and of course all the business writing I do: ghostwriting, web writing, article writing, ads, bios, you-name-it. And as for what my S.O. says, he says that I don’t charge enough for the writing I do that isn’t royalty-based. You know—business writing, ghostwriting, anything where I set a fee as opposed to deriving royalties. As for my grandkids, they don’t say anything about it. Five of the six, sad to say, aren’t much for reading, so having a nana who writes is a big yawner for them. And the sixth, who does like to read, is big into Pilkey’s “Captain Underpants” series and unimpressed with my books, which aren’t anything like that.

Q: I don’t even know what to say. Your writing credits are impressive. When your grandchildren get older I’m sure they will appreciate the wonderful things
“nana” writes. What are your thoughts on eBook piracy?

A: That people don’t realize, don’t consciously think it through, about how they’re hurting us, taking money from our pockets. And that, moreover, they assume all writers are rich and so we’re not going to miss the few cents from one lousy pirated book copy. I am SOOOO far from rich it’s pathetic, and every penny I lose hurts, and I know the same is true for many of my fellow writers. But I think most folks who buy pirated copies truly don’t realize this.

Q: I absolutely agree with you and I know many if not all authors agree with you also. Every penny counts! That’s for sure. How old were you when you started writing?

A: I’ve been writing since I was old enough to spell C-A-T. I wrote stories, poems, anything I could. I even wrote a play. I co-opted the family typewriter when I was nine years old, set it up on a card table in my bedroom, and never gave it back. (I “let my mother borrow it” when she needed it! LOL.) That same year, when I was away at camp for the summer, the drama counselor asked if any of the campers had ever written a play. I wrote to my mother and told her where I had put the script of my play and had her send it up to the camp. The camp put it on for evening activity one night. One of the counselors picked a bunch of wildflowers up by the tennis courts and threw them “over the footlights” (there really was a stage but no real footlights) and yelled, “Author! Author!” It was one of the proudest moments of my life.

Q: So you were a natural from the very beginning! Those kind of memories are always the best and stick with you until the end. If you could do one taboo thing what would it be and why?

A: I can’t honestly think of anything taboo that I’d want to do.

Maybe that’s a good thing…lol. If you could go on a date with anyone (and I mean anyone) who would it be and why? It would only be a friendly date, not a date-date (there’s no romantic or sexual attraction there), but I’d love to have spent an evening in the company of the late Benny Hill. (Well, you said you meant ANYONE, so I guess people no longer on this earth count too.) He was such a raucous hoot, and I bet his off-screen persona was similar to his on-screen persona. Back in—when was it?—the seventies?—back when I still watched TV on occasion (I don’t watch at all now), I used to sometimes watch his show and often thought I’d love to meet him ’cause I bet he’d be real fun. If by “date” you only mean romantic/sexual dates and not friendly dates, well if hypothetically I didn’t have my S.O., there are two former lovers either of whom I’d be very pleased to spend a long evening with. Both of them are also otherwise involved now, though, making it doubly unlikely that that particular history will ever repeat itself. I’m still in friendly touch with both of them, so I haven’t totally lost either of them from my life, but obviously I’m not in a sexual or romantic relationship with either one. We’re just friends now. I don’t cheat on my S.O. I don’t want to cheat on my S.O.

Q: Benny Hill I’m sure would be a riot! Hey, if your S.O. gives you what you need then that is all you can ask for. Anything else would just be greedy J. What is one thing about you that no one knows?

A: I don’t think there is anything about me that no one knows. There are some things about me that some people don’t know, but there is nothing about me that no one knows. My grandkids don’t know about my formerly writing and editing x-rated stuff. But pretty much my life has been an open book.

I want to thank Cynthia for taking the time to stop by today and answer some personal questions. Check out Cynthia’s newest story below.

I want to thank Cynthia for taking the time to answer some questions and share her thoughts. You can also find out more about Cynthia and her books on her website,  

http://oaboa.pair.com/cynthiam/cynthia/index.html

Cynthia's next read...


An Appetite for Passion

Book blurb:

Kari meets Max online, and the relationship sizzles. But there is a BIG obstacle – her weight. He knows she loves to eat but doesn’t know what that’s done to her figure. Will it bother him when he finally meets her in person? Meanwhile, Jeff is funny and fun, and Kari loves being with him as a friend…but he admits he has a secret. Is that he is, after all, the guilty party in the political campaign sabotage? But if he’s innocent, can Kari prove it and clear Jeff’s name? And can they be more than just friends?

Excerpt:

Lylah’s litany of possible problems echoed in her head all the way home, but she tried to dispel the gloom that had settled in her car. Everything’s going to be fine...if he gets here.

Which he intended to, as she learned when she got home and logged on.

My dear -Circle Friday night on your calendar. I’ll take off around 5:00, arrive your place around 9:00. Please send exact directions. I’ll stay till midafternoon on Sunday.

If you’d like, I can make a big dinner for Sunday at noon. Do you do breakfast-lunch-dinner on Sundays, or brunch-dinner, or breakfast-dinner-supper, or what? Do you object to a man taking over your kitchen for a meal? Give me your thoughts. I want this visit to be a pleasure for you, not an intrusion.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed last night’s conversation. My toes are still tingling...along with select other parts.

My maleness is swollen just since I sat down at the computer to write to you. “He” knows what’s in store for “him” this weekend, and “he” can’t wait! Neither can the rest of me. My arms long to wrap around you, my lips to kiss your soft lips, my eyes to feast on your beautiful body, my nose to inhale the sweet scent of your clean hair, my fingers to touch you all over and get to know you intimately, and my tongue to taste every inch of you.

Oh, my sweet Kari, what beautiful love we’ll make together...and what a wonderful time we’ll have out of bed, too. I want you to show me your favorite possessions in your house...your favorite places in Jeffersonville...and pictures of your family, because they’re a part of you.

No “hot talk” this letter...I don’t want to heat you up and tempt you into relieving the pressure yourself. I want you with a full head of steam, three days of pent-up longings and no satisfaction, when we meet, and merge, on Friday.

I’ve been at it since early this morning, sweet Kari, and I’m tired. I have another long day in front of me. Another breakfast meeting. I promise you it’s business! And so I’m going to download some recipes and then go take a shower. I’ll read a little and turn out the light by 10:00. By the time you read this, I may be asleep already...dreaming of you and our Friday rendezvous.

Till then -

Max

A sweet letter, she thought. And how nice of him to reassure her that his breakfast meeting was strictly business...how did he know she was worrying about that very thing? She was only worried about one thing he’d said: “My eyes to feast on your beautiful body.” What if he didn’t think her body was so beautiful when he saw it?

Want your own copy:

http://www.bookstrand.com/an-appetite-for-passion