The Book…

Three River Ranch

by Roxanne Snopek

Genre: Category – Contemporary
Length: 293 pages
ISBN: 978-1-62266-970-7
Release Date: August 2012
Imprint: Bliss

To save his ranch, he needs a wife. But can she save his heart?

Needing a fresh start from her two-timing fiancé, Aurora McAllister answers a realtor’s ad for a guesthouse on the beautiful, serene Three River Ranch. She shows up at Three River tired, heartbroken, and with no one but her trusty Labradoodle as a companion.

Cowboy Carson Granger has enough trouble in his life without adding a woman and her dog to the mix. There’s the untamed mustang he’s prepping to release into the wild, not to mention his father’s crazy will, which stipulates that if Carson wants to fully inherit Three River, he’ll need to find a bride. Carson wants nothing to do with love and especially not a marriage of convenience. But he soon realizes Rory, and everything she represents, might just be exactly what he needs.

Sometimes love arrives on your doorstep when you leastexpect it…

 Purchase from Amazon / Barnes & Noble

The Interview…

Can you tell us something interesting about your writing process?

I WISH there was something interesting about it! I imagine, ponder, consider, obsess and plan until there’s some vague sort of shape to the story. Then I start playing Tetris.

What part of the writing process is the easiest/hardest for you?

I’m very good at grammar. I’m very bad at logic. Which means my writing is easy to read, until later on, when you’re lying in bed wondering, holy cow, if they’re both talking on the phone just before they go to bed, but one’s in LA and the other’s in New York…

Who is your favorite character (that you’ve written)?

I’ve found that most of my books have an older snarky female character somewhere in them, the “crone” archetype that pops up to smack some sense into the heroine. Three River Ranch has two: Bliss and Blythe – warring twins who call each other Blister and Blight. Do not ask me from which part of my brain these two emerged. I have no idea… except maybe that I’d love to have a character like this in my own life… and I fear I’m destined to BE that character in someone else’s life.

Is there anything you’re working on now?

The next story in the Three River Ranch series: Desiree Burke, flashy, outspoken vegetarian physiotherapist who helps quiet cattle-rancher Zachary Gamble’s stroke-ridden father. Oooh, I love these two!

Where did the idea for your book come from?

Ideas aren’t the problem! They stream past my brain constantly. The trick for me is to reach out and snatch one… and then hang on so it doesn’t get away on me!

Are any of the characters inspired by someone in real life?

Everyone thinks they are, especially my husband, but I insist they are NOT. In fact, I guess that most characters *are* inspired by someone real, but then they morph into their own selves. IE: the heroines are not me, per se, but I put myself into each of their lives so deeply that I have to feel what they feel, in order to know what they do and say.

Do you follow a writing schedule, or just write whenever you get the chance?

Huh. I wish I had one, but I’ve accepted the fact that I’m, to use the term coined by author Candace Havens, a “Fast Drafter.” I write very quickly, and can pound out a first draft in a few weeks, while leaving everything else in my life on hold. Then I lift up my head, look at the chaos around me, and take my poor dogs out. I let the story gestate for a bit, then get to editing, which I do at a much more “normal” pace.

Do you listen to music while you write, or do you prefer quiet?

Music while I write? ACK. Never. I require either silence at home, but I also like the anonymous murmur of a coffee shop.

If you could jump in to any book and live there, which book would you choose?

Barbara O’Neal’s The Secret of Everything. It’s set in New Mexico, which I’d love to see, it’s got food and dogs and kids and a great love story. And the coolest restaurant. HEY: maybe I could be the snarky aunt at the virtual 100 Breakfasts!

Describe your book in a tweet (140 characters or less).

#3RR: A wounded cowboy who rescues horses, a heroine who rises above tragedy, the sweetest dog you’ll ever meet, in the wilds of Montana. HA! Three characters to spare!

What was last book you bought?

Some Like it Wicked by Teresa Medeiros.

If you could be any kind of creature (other than human), which would you pick and why?

I’d be an eagle. I see them flying over our place all the time, drifting on the thermals, looking so peaceful. Also, I wouldn’t need to wear glasses anymore, and I wouldn’t be afraid of heights.

Do you remember the first book that kept you up all night reading?  What was it?

I was reading before I started school, so I’m sure I don’t remember any one title, but there are some significant titles from my childhood: Hurry Home Candy by Meindert deJong (which I found in a used book store a few years ago, to my utter delight!) Even now, this book makes me cry for poor lost Candy. Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery. Oh, Anne. How I love her. I have a complete collection of Agatha Christie novels too, including the books she wrote as Mary Westmacott. I stayed up late reading a lot as a child. Still do. Probably why I need glasses!

Does writing come naturally to you, or did you have to work harder in order to get that story in your head down on paper?

Yeah, I’d say it does. I’ve always kept a journal – a locked diary, when I was a girl. Now I blog instead. Does *fiction* writing come naturally to me? I WISH.

How long did it take you to write your book?

I wrote 3RR in about two months, I think. I’ve written a lot of my first drafts in November, as part of National Novel Writing Month, which I just love. Last year I wrote 70,000 words in 29 days.

Did you use an outline or make some sort of “book plan” before you started writing?

Outline? Not for 3RR. I’ve since streamlined my process somewhat. I use a combination of techniques: story-boarding, turning-points, three-act-structure. (“Thank goodness!” I can hear my editors muttering.)

How much research went into your book?

I wrote this book shortly after finishing a non-fiction project on wildlife that included a chapter on wild horses. I was so fascinated by what I learned about mustangs that I knew I’d have to use it somewhere. It fit just perfectly with Carson Granger. Same thing with Rory’s dog. A project I wrote about service dogs for kids with autism – amazing, just amazing – coincided with me meeting a woman who breeds Australian Labradoodles. Voila, bingo, shazam.

If you could no longer write, what career would you choose instead?

If I couldn’t write, I’d be a landscape gardener. Or a painter. Or a person who buys old houses, fixes them up, then sells them for enormous profits. Wouldn’t that be fun?

If you could live someone else’s life for two weeks, whose life would you choose?

I have enough trouble living my own life, thank you very much. Although if we’re talking pure fantasy, I’d be a dancer in Cirque du Soleil. Oh! This could be what I’d do if I couldn’t write! Wait. Does this fantasy include a new body?

If you could no longer write/read, what hobby/profession/habit would you choose to fill the void?

Nothing takes the place of reading. If I couldn’t read (and I’ve thought about this… if I had laser eye surgery and couldn’t read for a few days… what would I do?? Not get laser eye surgery, that’s what.) I’d need an unending supply of audio-books. With talented readers. No mealy-mouthed stutterers, please. Voice matters.

Of all the little things and simple pleasures in life, which one do you enjoy most of all?

Oh, where do I start? I love pie. I love the sound of crashing waves. I love the smell of lilacs. I love crawling into a freshly-made bed when the sheets are still cold and crisp, especially if I’ve worked hard that day and my muscles are all wrung-out and ready to rest. I love the smell of my dog’s feet when he’s been running in the woods. More pie.

Is there anything that you believe you still need to accomplish in your career for you – and you alone – to feel truly successful?

Well, someone once thanked me for a piece I wrote on depression. She said she never realized she wasn’t alone, and that I wrote exactly what she’d so often felt, but couldn’t put into words. THAT made me feel like a million bucks, I’ll tell you. Other than that, a million bucks would make me feel successful. And making a best-seller list.

If you could have a casual, 30-minute conversation by the fireplace with any author, living or dead, who would you choose, and what would you ask?

Anne Lamott. She may be the most heart-breakingly honest writer I’ve ever read. And the funniest. I’d get her to sign my copy of Bird by Bird. I’d also ask her how dreadlocks work. I’ve never understood that. And I have two poodles that I groom myself, so I’ve thought about this!

If you won the lottery tomorrow, what are the first three things you think you would do or buy?

If I won the lottery tomorrow, first thing I’d do is pay off the mortgage, thereby erasing the line between my husband’s eyebrows. Then I’d hire someone to finish the landscaping on my mountain of weeds. (I’ve done most of it myself… then my body started breaking down and I realized I may have bitten off more than I can chew. But I swore to my husband I’d finish it… and he doesn’t believe I will… so it’s not like I can stop.) Lastly, I’d take my parents somewhere tropical. They haven’t done a lot of vacationing, and I’d love to see them kick back and relax, without having to worry about the bill.

If you could change the ending to any book that you have ever read, what book would it be?

I’d never change the ending of a book. The author did whatever she did for a reason. I might argue about it on a blog somewhere, though!

Aside from family occurrences, what event or accomplishment would you consider to be the highlight of your life thus far?

Oh, that’s too much pressure. But I’ll share one cool thing that happened recently when I was in the bank. I was making a third-party payment to my web designer, so it was a bank I’ve never been in before. The teller looked at the name on the deposit slip and very casually said, “Oh, I’ve read all your stuff. I love your writing.” I HAVE NO IDEA WHO THIS WOMAN WAS!

If you could bring back any tradition that seems to have faded into the past, what tradition would you bring back?

I don’t know about that… but we did a cool thing at New Year’s Eve, when our kids were small and everyone else was at parties but we couldn’t afford sitters. I called it “Highlights and Hopes” night. We had fondue: cheese/bread/veggies and chocolate/fruit. While we ate, we’d each share our list of the highlights from the past year, and our hopes for the next year. Our girls mostly go to parties of their own now, but we still do a version of our H&H parties. I’ve kept all the lists from when they were young and if our house ever catches fire, they’ll be what I grab, along with the photo albums.

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received in your life?

Oh, the pressure! I can’t commit to “best” but I’ll share a few favorites: “Don’t turn on the Internet until you’ve done your work for the day.” (Barbara Samuel) “You can do anything you want… but you must really want it.” (Dad) “You’re never too old, never too bad, never too late and never too sick to start from the scratch once again.” (Bikram Choudhury)

What thought or sentiment would you like to have copied and put into one million fortune cookies?

“When you’re right, self-doubt doesn’t help anyone, does it?” (Gregory House)

What is your favorite sight, scent, and sound for each of the four seasons (if you have four distinct seasons where you live)?

I live on the “Wet” Coast now, but I grew up in Saskatchewan, where there is snow. I still love snow, though we don’t see much of it here. But the sound of the world when it’s muffled with heavy, soft flakes of snow, well, there’s nothing like it. The chilly blue air smells good, too. In summer, I love the smell of smoke from barbeques and the sound of kids squealing and splashing in a pool. And the wild colors of my various clematis vines! In spring, nothing makes me happier than to see my purple-and-yellow crocuses popping up through the frosty ground. And in fall, I spend a lot of time walking in the forest, listening to the crunch of leaves beneath my feet, watching my dogs root and snuffle through the underbrush, shaking debris from their floppy ears, the very embodiment of joy.

If you got a parrot for a pet, what phrase would you be sure to teach it to say?

We have a cockatiel, and he doesn’t speak, but he does several whistles, including a wolf-whistle. Nothing makes you feel better when you’ve just gotten up, bed-headed and sheet-creased, to get a baum-chicka-baum-baum whistle from a bird.

Who is your all time favorite fictional book character?

AGAIN WITH THE PRESSURE! I cannot possibly choose just one! But I’ll give you a few: the horse from Walter Farley’s The Black Stallion. Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. (Oh baby.) Eve Dallas from JD Robb’s In Death series.

FUN STUFF:

• Coffee or Tea? I prefer coffee over tea, though I can only drink half-caf, two cups max. Any more and I start twitching.
• Paper book or ebook? I held out for paper books for a long time. But I love my Kobo now, especially for door-stopper books like Game of Thrones! And I LOVE one-click book-buying! But will I give up paper books entirely? NEVER. My very favorite books I’ll probably have in both formats.
• Summer or winter? Depends. I love winter when there’s snow, which is almost never in Vancouver. I love the dead heat of summer, when you feel okay about doing nothing because, you know, it’s too hot!
• Werewolves or vampires? Werewolves, man. Have you SEEN Alcide from Trueblood??
• Morning person or night owl? I hate this question. I’m more of an afternoon person. Say 3:00 to 3:15-ish. The word “kraken” has been used in describing my morning persona. I thought that was rather harsh. Then I saw the photo.
• Pantser or plotter? A bit of both. I’m a Fast-Drafter, mostly.
• Pepsi or Coke? Ick. I hate cola. I don’t drink pop. (That’s the Canuck version of “soda” for you Americans.) I do enjoy Perrier mixed with cranberry juice, however. It makes me feel fancy. And I confess to loving Vitamin Water, especially after hot yoga. I know, I know, I might as well drink pop.
• Dogs or cats? Let me check to see who’s listening right now. We’ve got three dogs and four cats so… they outnumber us.

FAVORITE:

• drink – Tantalus dry Riesling
• food – Mexican anything
• movie – Moulin Rouge
• TV show – currently loving Breaking Bad, but also a fan of Dexter, The Walking Dead, Rome, Firefly, ER… I might watch a bit too much TV…
• book – come on. We’ve talked about this. I CANNOT choose one.
• late night snack – cheesies will be the death of me. Or possibly salt-and-black-pepper potato chips.
• writing tools – I love my AlphaSmart Neo.
• sport – HAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh, you don’t mean to play? I enjoy watching hockey, especially play-off hockey. When the Canucks are in the finals.
• vacation destination – I love Maui!
• music – am an old-school rock-and-roll fan: Queen, Abba, ELO, Neil Diamond (do not mock me), the Commitments…
• place to read – in bed. In Maui.
• place to write – on a deck overlooking the ocean. In Maui.
• way to relax – snorkeling. In Maui.

The Author…

Roxanne Willems Snopek is an award-winning freelance writer of everything from corporate newsletters to personal essays. Author of the Amazing Stories series of true life animal adventures, she now focuses on fiction. Snopek grew up in Saskatchewan and now lives in
British Columbia.

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