Interview with Page M. and Susan Page Davis: Meet the Author Monday

Interview with Page M. and Susan Page Davis: Meet the Author Monday

Today, we have a special treat for Meet the Author Monday. Instead of interviewing an individual author, we’re having a 2 for 1 special. A mother/daughter writing team, the authors of Down in the Dumpster, have joined me today. Down in the Dumpster is their new release and first book in a series published by Scrivenings Press. Keep reading after the interview to find out more about their book and where you can (until July 8th) pre-order it at a special price.

It’s time to get started on this interview with Page M. and Susan Page Davis. Ladies, please kick us off with a little about yourselves.

Page: I am a writer with a fascination for character psychology and development. I am particularly interested in exploring different points of view, showing how a single speech or incident can have many different interpretations to those who witness it.

I have a wide range of interests and hobbies, including art, dance and animals. Since I can’t fulfill all of my dreams in one lifetime, I live many of them through my characters instead.

Susan: I’ve been writing stories since I was a child, but this is the first one I’ve written with my daughter Page. I’ve also enjoyed writing two historical novels with my son Jim and three cozy mysteries with my daughter Megan.

I have six grown children and twelve grandchildren. All of my kids were home schooled. Before becoming a fiction writer professionally, I held diverse jobs, including shoeing horses (I am a certified farrier) and writing news as a local correspondent for a daily newspaper.

I love the idea of living out many dreams through characters. It’s one of my favorite things about writing. Do you have any writing routines or habits you follow for a productive writing day?

Page: I tend to do well when I set word goals for myself. I don’t always make my word count by the time I set myself, but progress is progress. Doing a chapter in a day is a great accomplishment. A thousand words is excellent. Five hundred is a good effort. One hundred is better than nothing. In general, my schedule is too irregular to form a solid writing routine, but I find time where I can.

Susan: I do. I’m usually at my desk early in the morning, as I do my best work then. I also have to take medication and then wait a while before eating, so I try to get some work in before breakfast. I often write all or most of the morning. If I have other tasks to complete, such as editing or promotion, I usually do those later in the day.

I wish I had the ability to stick to a schedule like you do, Susan. I can’t imagine your productivity. Page, I feel I’m more like you in that department. But I love how you’ve made goal setting work for you by using a word goal instead of a set time goal. I’dl like to know more about your new book. What prompted you to write Down in the Dumpster?

Page: Mom had the original idea over a decade ago, and we brainstormed together. We planned out most of the plot and even wrote synopses for sequels, but a lot of life happened between then and now. We finally came back to the idea, and I’m so glad we did.

Susan: Yes, Page and I hoped to write a cozy series with a different publisher originally, but the line we were targeting folded, and we set the idea aside. Last year, after I’d done several books for Scrivenings Press, we came back to it and reviewed our plan. We had a good story, so we decided to go ahead and write the book. Now we have a three-book contract for the Dumpster Diva series.

I love that title, as well as the one for this specific book. Writers tend to be readers. So, what was your favorite book you read last year and why?Page: Lately I have been listening to many of the old classics. I think my favorite from last year was A Tale of Two Cities. Many of even the minor characters are well developed, the setting feels real and the story is unmatched. The motivations and reactions of the characters are believable. It is obvious that Dickens led a colorful life and truly understood human nature.

Susan: I really like cozy mysteries, and I’ve read a lot of them this year. Some were mediocre, but some were great. My husband and I love Rhys Bowen’s series called Her Royal Spyness, and this year we read #18 in the series, We Three Queens. Heads up: these are secular books. They’re historicals, set in the time of King George V (1930s), when Queen Ellizabeth was a child. You need to read the first book, also called Her Royal Spyness. We also like T.E. Kinsey’s Lady Hardcastle series, and in May, Jim and I read book #12, The Beast of Littleton Wood. Start with #1, A Quiet Life in the Country, though.

Susan, I love that you and your husband read together. My husband and I don’t share tastes for the same genres. Page, I loved A Tale of Two Cities in high school. I was surprised my classmates didn’t appreciate it at all. If you could spend the day with any three authors, living or dead, which ones would they be and why?

Page: I could probably name half a dozen at least, but I would say a day with Jane Austen would be fascinating. I would like to hear firsthand about regency culture, etiquette and gossip. I would ask her perspective on the issues of her time and about her faith.

Mark Twain was known for his unparalleled wit, and just a few hours with him seems like a jolly good time, let alone a whole day. However, longer than that might be trying, since he could become caustic as well. 

Since much of his career was taken up with study, teaching and translation, and the books he is known for are few, I would love to spend a day with J.R.R. Tolkien. Like him, I have a fondness for languages, though I am not a master of them as he was. I also love the lore of fantasy, and I would like to tease him about America secretly being “the land beyond.”

Susan: I’m with Page on the J.R.R. Tolkien idea. I would also love to spend the day with Veronica Black, who wrote the Sister Joan mysteries (I read all 11 and wish there were more!). P.G. Wodehouse is my third pick. Yes, some of his stories are a bit silly, but I could use some tips on how to make my own books a bit more humorous.

I think if anyone ever arranged a brunch with Tolkien, there would be several of us in attendance. His imagination and attention to detail had to be phenomenal. I want to thank you ladies for the opportunity to interview you today. I appreciate the time you took from your busy schedules to be with us.

And readers, I appreciate you joining me for this interview with Page M. and Susan Page Davis. Keep reading for more information on both these wonderful authors and their new release, Down in the Dumpster.

More About the Author

Susan Page Davis is the award-winning author of more than 100 novels and novellas. Born in Maine, she now lives in western Kentucky with her husband, Jim, a retired news editor.

Page M. Davis is a Maine native now living in South Carolina. She earned a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and now works as a kennel tech. She has published several books and stories online, but Down in the Dumpsteris her first print book.

Connect with Page

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/19DYUss4Bo/

Connect with Susan

Website: https://susanpagedavis.com

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Susan-Page-Davis/e/B001IR1CGA

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/susan-page-davis

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susanpagedavisauthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/255473.Susan_Page_Davis

More About Down in the Dumpster

You never know what you’ll find in a Dumpster.

If Cassie had known the misadventures she’d get into on her stopgap job, she would have kept checking the help wanted ads. With her crabby dispatcher hounding her, she collects the rubbish from a senior citizens’ complex in her garbage truck.

When she empties the dumpster, a witness sees a body fall into her compactor. How will she explain this to Mac? And just as important, can rubbish and romance mix?

Purchase Down in the Dumpster  – Today (Monday, July 7th is the final day to save on the eBook)