Author of More than a Skeleton
by Trisha Bleau Smith
T4JYM: I absolutely LOVED More than a Skeleton and could NOT put it down. Where did the idea for the book come from? Where do you generally draw your ideas for writing from?
PM: Thanks much for your kind comments! The concept for More Than a Skeleton flowed out of the prior project, A Skeleton in God’s Closet. In other words, how could the discovery of a 2000-year-old skeleton in Israel change the world – the first project – to: how could the return of an Individual (who is obviously “more than a skeleton”) change the world today? Both ideas – and others – derive from my fascination with the First Century A.D., and how it impacts the 21st.
T4JYM: How much editing was involved? Did you do it all alone or did you send it to people to edit? How many times did you have to re-edit your works?
PM: I sent the manuscript to Thomas Nelson, we signed a contract, and they then assigned a very bright fiction editor, Jenny Baumgartner, as editor. We immediately got along very well, so far as edits were concerned. It was one editing.
T4JYM: How many publishers did you send your book to before it was picked up? Was it rejected by any publishers? What kind of feedback did you receive from them?
PM: I sent the manuscript to Thomas Nelson and two others. All wanted the book, but I chose Thomas Nelson because they published the original in what seems to be a “Skeleton” series.
T4JYM: How has this book been received by the general public? Has there been positive feedback? Any negative feedback?
PM: Early reader responses are very enthusiastic. The only negative comment appeared in one of the amazon.com responses from a prophecy fan who didn’t like the way I nailed the prophecy pundits early in the book.
T4JYM: Have you written any other books? Do you have plans to write anything more?
PM: Yes, fifteen others, both fiction and non-fiction. The non-fictional books deal with the rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire.
T4JYM: Do you do any other kinds of writing – magazines, newspapers, etc.?
PM: Yes. I have over 200 articles and reviews in print.
T4JYM: What are your next plans for writing? Do you plan to do any more books along the same lines as this book? Will you move on to new writing?
PM: I might do a third and fourth in the “Skeleton” series. I also have several non-fiction projects in mind.
T4JYM: When do you do your best writing and where? Do you have a special place that you go to for writing?
PM: For non-fiction and scholarly works, of course, I have to have resources at hand, and thus do much of my writing at my home office. With fiction, however, I can do much of it in airports and on planes using a laptop.
T4JYM: What training do you have in writing? Did you take any writing courses in college to obtain the skills you have currently?
PM: I never took a course in creative writing, per se, but the writing assignments – essays, theses, reports – in my other courses seem to have been preparation enough.
T4JYM: What advice would you give to someone who wants to pursue a career in writing?
PM: Begin by considering writing a “fun hobby,” without surrendering your regular job. Perhaps the “hobby” will take over and become your major profession.
T4JYM: What advice would you give to someone interested in publishing their works?
PM: Getting your first work into print is the big hurdle. After that, publishing is easier.
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