Interview with Vicki M. Taylor, author of Trust in the Wind - Page 2

I write women's fiction so my stories have strong female characters. I think that comes from having a strong mother figure. Aside from that, I think technical writing as really helped me in my writing fiction. It's helped to tighten my writing from the start. Stephen King has influenced my writing quite a bit. As a kid, I would watch his movies on screen and later as an adult, I devoured all of his books. He has a way of making scenes come alive. I strive to achieve his way of combining the reader's imagination with his words.

Do you write specifically for women readers? Do you think men read your books?

I don't have a particular woman reader in mind while I write, but I do believe that the majority of my readers are women. Men have read my books as well, and enjoyed them from what they've told me. But, I prefer to write a good story and not worry about whether or not my readers are men or women.

What character traits do your characters have that show the reader they are strong?

To me, a strong woman has strength of character. She faces adversity and becomes a better person for it. Devastating losses can occur, and my strong woman character takes away lessons in life that help her along her way. My characters go through life changing events and grow into an even stronger character.

Katherine Marshall (in Not Without Anna) lost her husband and raised her daughter alone. When she loses her daughter, she discovers that she never really knew her daughter at all. She learns some horrific secrets that she takes as lessons learned and wants to give back to her community by teaching other parents so they may avoid her same outcome.

Are your novels character or plot driven?

You know, I've never really understood that question so I'm not sure if I can answer it properly. However, I believe that my novels are character driven. My focus of action in my books is on characters. What happens to them, what they are thinking, and what they are doing. The book's plot moves forward around a character's actions.

Are characters in that book modeled after the teenagers you know? Do teenagers like this book?

Article Author: Parker Owens

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