VIP Interview #11 : Regan O’Leary

Hello everyone! First a question. I did mention that you CAN get an interview no matter who you are right? (Check here)

Anyway, this time I chatted with Regan O’Leary. For all the book lovers, I’d suggest you stick around. 

You can find her on:
Website: ReganOLeary.com
Twitter: @Regan_OLeary
Facebook: Regan O’Leary
Facebook Fan Page: R. O’Leary’s Bane Shaw

1)     Who is your favorite author and why?

I love mysteries and thrillers so I’m very fond of John Grisham, Lee Child, and Anne Rice, Southerners by birth, except for the tall Brit, but I’m a huge fan of James Lee Burke. Jim hails from New Iberia, Louisiana, and is one of the most gifted writers I’ve read. His skillful ability to twist out a mystery that is shockingly revealed on the last page is very impressive, but it’s his knack for weaving words his readers can smell. Scent is such a powerful sense and no author permeates a reader’s nostrils with words better than Jim.

 2)     What book character would you say is your soulmate?

Hands down, Bane Shaw! He’s my man! Lucky for me, I’ve recently met a real-life Shaw, who eerily has similar mannerism as my fictional bad-boy.

 3)     Where did you get the idea for your novel? 

I want to bring awareness to real life issues. With my first series, I focus on domestic violence and vigilante justice. While many people haven’t personally experienced the latter, most people have been touched by domestic violence in one form or another.

 4)     What was the hardest part about writing/editing/publishing your novel? 

I love writing and self-publishing is a breeze these days. Editing? Gads! All writers dread the editing phase. Thankfully, I have a wonderful copy editor.

 5)     Do you get any incredibly negative reviews? How do you handle them?

Thus far, I’m very fortunate. I’m blessed to have all 4 -star and 5-star reviews. I know that dreaded 1-star review day will rear its ugly head, eventually. My work is not going to please everyone. I hope I handle it like a couple of writer friends of mine: laugh and post the review all over social media. Life’s too short to sulk.

6)     What is your favorite childhood memory?

I grew up “in the country” as we say here in the South. I have many fond memories of picking pecans with my grandmother, baking cookies with my other grandmother, climbing trees, and running barefooted through the chicken yard (yes, chicken poop is disgusting!) I spent a great deal of time fishing off the Gulf of Mexico coast. To this day, it’s my favorite hobby.

 7)     If you could change one thing about the world, what would you change?

Maybe it’s becoming cliché, but all the entitlements strangling our world. We are raising generation after generation of wimps! Every worker doesn’t deserve a pay raise or promotion simply because they show up to a job, every child doesn’t deserve a trophy for participating, the same rules that apply to others, don’t apply to the few, etc. Entitlements, as defined, are something one earns, not something one is given. “But that might hurt someone’s feelings!”  Good! We need to have more hurt feelings – get over it! Get mad? Get glad! It’s a sick world where we’ve allowed the pacification of a nation, namely the United States of America. Or “pussification” as Radio Gawds @waltonNjohnson have coined over the years on their morning radio broadcast.

  8)     Is there anything you’d like to add?

Thank you for the opportunity to interview with you. I’ve enjoyed myself! I have a short story Atchafalaya coming out soon, and the third Bane Shaw novel in 2017. In the meantime, I hope readers will enjoy the first two Bane Shaw novels: Closer To Home and What One Leaves Behind – get to know the characters that I’ve fallen in love with!