The Disappearing Key by Wendy Paine Miller

I met Wendy about a year ago. The first thing I noticed about her was her warm smile, and then she hugged me. Wendy's a hugger. I was thrilled to hear about her new release, The Disappearing Key. The premise captivated me. 

I'm delighted she stopped by my blog for a visit. Here's some info about The Disappearing Key:

Gabrielle Bivane never expected parenting a teenager would be this hard, but she never expected stillborn Oriana to live to see fourteen, either. The night of Oriana's birth, Gabrielle and her husband Roy fused their genetic and engineering geniuses to bring back all that was lost to them—at a cost.

The secret must be kept.

Oriana Bivane senses she’s not like the other girls her age, but the time has come for her to change all that. She’s tired of secrets, but does she confide in the wrong person?

The life-giving key, suddenly missing, must be found.

Tell us how much of yourself you write into your characters.

This is the organic aspect of writing that has a tendency to surprise me most.  I’ve gone back and read some of my novels entirely amused when I recognize myself in the characters. I’ve found empathy to be one of my best resources as a writer. Culling experiences from my own life, I adapt them to my characters and their circumstances.

However, this is also one of the most mysterious aspects of writing. Because it occurs on such a subconscious level. And because as much as I’m constantly pouring myself into my characters, they act on their own volition and have minds of their own.

How do you keep your sanity in our run, run, run world?

Love this question. I am so not Mrs. Jones. It’s tempting to think I should be doing what so many moms in my community are doing, enrolling my kids in dozens of activities and well, running myself ragged in the process. But I just don’t play that. I’ve learned to protect the things I care about most in life and one of those things is my time.

So how do I keep my sanity? I’m intentional about carving out time to take care of myself. I paint and refurbish furniture. I run. I read far more often than I clean. I get together with friends. And I love being a member of several local book clubs.

What advice would you give to an author just starting out?

I remember receiving excellent advice regarding marriage. My friend said, “Whenever things get tough and you are at odds with your spouse, maybe you’re even struggling to love him, work hard to remember why you married him.”

This same advice translates to writing. The publishing industry sometimes feels like the wild west. When things get discouraging or disheartening, it’s essential to revisit why you fell in love with writing in the first place. Because if you love the writing and focus on the writing, all else won’t matter all the much.

What would you like to tell us about the featured book?

I hope it leads to a lot of great conversations. If you’re wondering what to choose for your book club pick this year, please consider THE DISAPPEARING KEY.

 How can readers find your book on the Internet?

My novella will be available on Kindle and Nook to start. Plans are in the works for other reading options.

Wendy lives with her husband, their three girls, and a skunk-dodging Samoyed. She feels most alive when she’s laughing, speeding on a boat, reading, writing, refurbishing furniture or taking risks. She’s authored ten novels and is currently writing what she hopes will be your future book club pick.

Her work has been published in numerous anthologies and online sites. Wendy graduated with a BA in English from Wittenberg University, where she earned an Honor of Distinction for her accrued knowledge of literature.

She’s represented by Rachelle Gardner of Books & Such Literary Agency.

Visit http://thoughtsthatmove.blogspot.com/  or connect with Wendy on Facebook or Twitter @wendypmiller