The Write Way Café welcomes Carole Price, author of the Shakespeare in the Vineyard series and seventeen-year veteran of volunteer police work.When did you first have the thought you'd like to write a book?
As a big reader, I had moments where I thought it would be fun to write a mystery novel, but lack of confidence held me back. Then our daughter moved to Ashland, Oregon, home of the famous Shakespeare Festival. I attended and fell in love with the Bard. That sparked an idea - Why not bring Shakespeare to Livermore, CA, where I live?
What was your path to getting your Shakespeare in the Vineyard mystery series written and published? What type of research did you do?
My daughter introduced me to a couple of people connected with the festival. I interviewed a stage manager and took a behind the scene tour. A class I took on Shakespeare at our junior college was one of the best things I did, in terms of research.
Where did the idea for the Shakespeare in the Vineyard series come from?
Thanks to my daughter who lived in Ashland for eight years, opportunities occurred to attend plays and meet those connected to the theater. Their willingness to answer my questions encouraged me to write my first book, Twisted Vines.
Why did you pick the setting you did for the series?
Livermore is in wine country and where I live. There is a Shakespeare festival that produces plays three months of the year. Tourists flock here for wine tasting and to enjoy lunch in the rolling hills. But I created my own Shakespeare festival and vineyard that my protagonist inherited from an aunt she’d never heard of. Thus, the mystery.
Are your main characters completely imaginary or do they have some basis in real people? Do they reflect aspects of yourself?
The only connection that Cait Pepper, my protagonist, has to me is that both of us are from Columbus, Ohio. She was a crime analyst with the Columbus PD before inheriting the Bening Vineyard & Shakespeare Festival.
Did you face any blocks while writing Vineyard Prey, book three in the series, and if so, how did you handle them?
It helped that I lived here and was familiar with the Bay Area. When I retired from a national laboratory, I signed up for the Citizens’ Police Academy. I’ve been an active police volunteer for seventeen years. The police officers have been helpful by answering my police procedure questions.
What have been surprises you've encountered while writing Vineyard Prey and after?
I don’t outline, which has, too often, gotten me into a dead end. The positive and surprising moment was a last-minute change in who I had pegged as the bad guy. That change worked out for the better. Now I’m in the same predicament with my new series.
What did you learn? For instance, what did you learn about yourself, your process, the writing world; about vineyards and Shakespearean festivals?
Oh goodness, the whole writing process has given me more confidence, perseverance, endurance, and patience. My critique group has supported me for many years. I wouldn’t be published without them. There are usually two plays going on simultaneously at “my” festival, giving me the opportunity to read and learn from each of them. You could say, I’ve rediscovered Shakespeare in a good way.
What aspect of writing gives you the most trouble?
Marketing has been a little difficult for me, but it has to be done to introduce yourself to the public. I do enjoy book signing opportunities at libraries and bookstores. Conferences are good for interaction with other authors and for exchanging ideas, but I have cut back on them.
Tell us about your writing space and how or why it works for you.
I have a home office where I can close the door, play a CD, and think out loud. I’m surrounded by books, fiction, how-to books on all aspects of writing (there is no end to learning), and a file cabinet. Some of my stained-glass projects are in the window. My dog, Shilo, my constant companion, let's me know when it’s time for a break.
What are some of your favorite books and why?
I have many, mostly mysteries, but Gone with the Wind hangs in there as a favorite. Daniel Silva’s international intrigue books (The English Spy) staring Gabriel Allon, an art restorer, are probably my favorite. David Baldacci’s books (the Camel Club series) are always favorites, where four political watch-dogs keep an eye on government, looking for government conspiracies. Then Stephen King, some I really like, others can be difficult. Yet, I keep reading them.
What are you working on now?
There will be one more book in the Shakespeare in the Vineyard series, but I have started a new series, as yet untitled. An old jail, earlier a music store, is now a glass studio, something I know about. The building was left to my protagonist by her grandmother and is now called Sundance Studio.
Would you like to try your hand at writing a different genre? Which one and why?
I’m trying my hand writing a cozy, mentioned above. The switch from suspense to cozy has given me a few problems. Cozies are thought of as “gentle” books with no graphic violence, no profanity, or explicit sex (which I don’t write).
If you were not a writer, what would your dream job be?
Can I admit I still don’t know?
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Carole Price is a Buckeye! Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, she attended The Ohio State University. She worked for a national laboratory in northern California before turning to writing mysteries. Carole fell in love with the Bard after attending plays at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. She graduated from the Citizens Police Academy and is an active police volunteer for the Livermore Police Department, a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. She actively promotes her books at conferences, literary groups, and many other venues. Carole and her husband reside in the San Francisco Bay Area in the middle of wine country.
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