Media Kit

About the Author

Andrea O’Connor is the author of three award-winning texts in the area of nursing education and staff development as well as numerous articles in peer-reviewed nursing and education journals. Woodson Falls: 16 Lakeview Terrace was her first foray into the world of fiction. Having caught the mystery-writing bug, she’s thrilled to offer the second in this series exploring the people and events in the small town of Woodson Falls. She collects teddy bears and birdhouses, loves to garden and bake bread, and writes from Sherman, Connecticut.

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This author is available for interviews upon request. You can contact her through this website or find her on Facebook.

For inquiries about any of the Woodson Falls books, please contact the publisher, Emerald Lake Books.

In the News

• Sherman lawyer writes first in series mystery novel
• Former WCSU nursing professor publishes first novel
• O’Connor to sign new mystery novel
• Local Author to Discuss New Mystery Novel

Woodson Falls: 16 Lakeview Terrace

Woodson Falls: 9 Donovan’s Way

Woodson Falls: 2 Sunrise Trail

Sample Topics

How do you get inspired to write?

I find great joy in writing. Once I’ve hit on a theme to write about, it’s off to the races. But there’s a good deal of thinking that happens before I sit down to write.

Where do you get your ideas?

The main stories for most of the Gaby Quinn mysteries come from my practice as an attorney. Secondary story lines are drawn from actual events that I’ve fictionalized. The setting of Woodson Falls and the people in the stories come from the places I’ve been and folks I’ve met in rural Connecticut.

What are you currently working on?

I’ve started the next Gaby Quinn mystery. I have a list of past legal cases that might develop into mysteries and select one I think might be ripe for writing about. I’m also reengaging with a piece of fiction I started years ago, loosely based on my mother’s memoirs.

How much of the story have you planned out before you write?

I know how the story will end and what the secondary story lines will be about, but how I get there evolves as I write.

What is your writing routine?

I don’t have one. I think a good deal before I’m ready to write. Forcing myself into a routine would do damage to my creative process. When the writing is going well, I find myself pulled to the desk. I’ve learned to go with my flow.

Do you write longhand or on a typewriter or computer?

I usually start longhand. Once the creative juices are flowing, I turn to my laptop. I can create either way, but starting longhand seems to be how I tend to begin a chapter or section of something I’m working on. It helps to pull whatever is in my head onto paper.

How do you deal with writer’s block?

First, distinguish between the time needed for a piece of writing to be ready to write. I call this allowing the yeast to do its magic—most of it happens in your head. If you write before things have really matured, you may kill it.

Lately, I’ve dealt with writer’s block by writing in the present tense. I’m a visual thinker and writing in the present tense gets my juices going as I see a scene unfold and listen to the dialogue between characters. Then I can write about it, usually in the past tense.

I also use Julia Cameron’s “morning pages” from The Artist’s Way to get my creative juices flowing. Journaling of some sort is a perfect way to overcome a block.

A lot of authors work with a critique partner or participate in a writing group. Do you?

I participate in two writing groups and so value their input as a work is proceeding. I also enjoy contributing to other writers’ development of their work. An author usually uses beta readers once a work is complete. Having the critique available as you write is invaluable.

Why did you choose to publish with Emerald Lake Books?

I spent a few years in the publishing industry in my meandering career and had chosen the traditional publication route for my nonfiction books. I was fortunate in having my queries positively received by the first publishers I approached. The publishing world has evolved since then. Authors no longer are able to submit work directly to a publisher. Instead, an author must connect first with an agent, so the path to publication is rockier and longer.

I didn’t want to wait to publish 16 Lakeview Terrace, so either self-publishing or hybrid publishing appealed to me. I also know that the design of a book—both its cover and inside formatting—are critical elements contributing to the success of a title. I don’t have the expertise for that. And I needed help with marketing. Emerald Lake Books uses a hybrid model that worked for me.

What’s the best thing about being a writer?

You live in the world you are creating and, once you’re in that world, you occupy it whether you are actively writing or not.

What is your advice to aspiring writers?

Write. Thinking about writing—while useful—won’t get you where you want to go unless you face the dreaded blank paper or screen and get something down. Once you have something written, you can work to improve it, but without something written, you will get nowhere.