April 08, 2008

Anne McDonald: I'll open in prayer, go over protocol and introduce tonight's guest.

Lord, thank You so much for blessing our lives. Please be with us tonight and especially bless our special guest. Let our conversation bless You and others. Help us to apply what we learn to our writing. In Jesus' name, Amen. 

Protocol reminder: when the floor is open to questions, please raise your hand by typing ? for questions, ! for comments. And to keep us from stepping on each others' toes, please type GA when you have finished typing. 

Anne McDonald: Tonight, I pleased to introduce award winning author Nikki Arana. She just recently sold the movie rights to one of her novels. Nikki, welcome. 

* Annie leads the applause 

Nikki Arana: Thank you so much for having me. 

* Dragon Riding Mouse applauds 

Undercoverangel: Welcome

Nikki Arana: I started writing in 2003. My first book was The Winds of Sonoma. It was based on the story of how I met my husband. It was followed by 2 more books and that made my first series. I then wrote a stand alone book and it was released last June. It was also based on a true story.  

While working on these books I have become VERY knowledgeable about women's fiction and commercial story structure. I now also do editing for authors and clients referred to me by agents. 

Anne McDonald: How much of your series is reflective of your life, and how much is fictionalized?