Prudence MacGregor has been a lifelong fan of exploring the realm of what could be. Or, as she puts it, "finding the extraordinary within the ordinary." She hails from the isle of Manhattan and among her passions are writing, travel and reading, especially about that which is in the realm of the impossible.
Interview
If you could meet one person who has died who would you choose?
I would probably want to meet
Princess Diana. I really was fascinated by her before, during and after the
whole royal wedding extravaganza. Whatever one may think about her and despite
the problems she had, she knew how to captivate the public by just being, if
you know what I mean. She had a rare charisma that I think can't be cultivated,
but is just natural.
Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects?
Of course! I have ideas
germinating in my head right now. I am thinking along the lines of a short
novel, centered on three or four main characters. I still am not sure though
what genre it will be, or the plot. I am toying with doing it in the first
person. Lots of ideas. But I will get there eventually.
What inspired you to want to become a writer?
You know, I can't answer that
concretely. I don't think that there was any one direct inspiration. I can say
that when I was a kid, perhaps in second or third grade, I really liked writing
short stories. I loved to use my imagination to create characters and
scenarios, and see where they would go. I would really delight in having these
stories come to life as it were. Also, I loved, and still love, the use of
language so that also influenced me.
What is your dream cast for your book?
Oh, my. What a question.
There are so many people that I would like to cast. Let's see ... a dream cast.
Well, for Parallelograms, since the
character has striking red hair and has a strong personality, I would say
Alicia Witt, or a lovely actress who has been on General Hospital named Erin
Chambers. Both are really versatile. For Random,
Jennifer Lawrence immediately comes to mind because like the main character
Ulyssa, she seems like the type of girl who isn't afraid to take chances. Now
for Up There, I know he isn't an
actor but the musician Moby comes to mind. I don't know. Something about his
and the main character's physicality seems in sync, along with their kind of
mysterious personas. How's that for a cast? Different, yes?
What's one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors?
I know this sounds really
cliché, but don't give up your dream, ever.
Keep writing, and explore all avenues to publish your work, be they
everything from magazines, journals, and online blogs to self-publishing. I
found writing courses to be very helpful as well, as your teacher and
classmates can constructively critique your work, as well as the classroom
being a great place to hone your writer's voice.
If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? If a movie was made about your life, who would you want to play the lead role and why?
Anywhere in the world ...
wow. Okay, I've narrowed it to two places. One would be Edinburgh, Scotland, as
I've visited the city several times and it is just magical. Plus, I have a fair
amount of Scottish heritage and I would
love to delve more deeply into it. Living in that country for an extended
period of time would be a great way to do it. The second place would be
somewhere in the middle Atlantic or southern United States, near the water, not
too far away from a city but with enough space and peace to write unencumbered.
Now regarding a movie about my life, well, everyone always says I look like the
actress Lucie Arnaz, who I happen to think is really talented and could pull it
off! She could play me in adulthood.
Who are your favorite authors of all time?
If I could narrow it down,
I'd say Fyodor Dostoevsky, Margaret Atwood. There are many more but I figured
I'd narrow it to two to keep it simple.
Can you see yourself in any of your characters?
I can see myself in all of
them, particularly Ulyssa from Random..
Tying a note to a balloon, letting it go and seeing where it lands is
fascinating to me, and something I secretly always wanted to do but was a bit
intimidated by, as you don't know where it could end up or in whose hands.
You have won one million dollars what is the first thing that
you would buy?
I can say with confidence, a
plane ticket to a beautiful yet interesting destination. Or more accurately,
destinations!
What's your favorite season/weather?
I am a summer girl. I love
looking at the ocean on a warm, cloudless day, the sun in the sky. There are
more activities to do and enjoy in the summer, too. Great time for travel. Now,
I also like early Fall, where it cools off a little but you still have that
hint of summer in the air.
Favorite places to travel?
Now this is a topic close to
my heart. Travel has always been a lovely luxury and I am aching to travel to
places I haven't yet been. I am from New York City, so perhaps it doesn't count
as travel for me but there's always something happening there so even when I go
there I am amazed by how much it offers, it really is buzzing. I love Paris,
London, and of course all of Scotland due to my Scots heritage. In the U.S.,
believe it or not Florida -- Palm Beach and Disneyworld in particular -- are great
destinations, as is Williamsburg, Virginia due to the fact that I am a history
buff, and there's loads of it to be found there. Plus which its surroundings
are so lovely. I also love the Caribbean, particularly the British Virgin
Islands. Bermuda's wonderful, too. I am longing to visit New Zealand and the
Shetland Islands of Scotland, plus more of France, which is vast!
How long do you generally let a story idea ‘marinate’ in your
brain before you start the book?
For Trilogy, the overall theme of the stories came to me pretty
quickly. I've always been attracted to the unknown and the mysterious, so I
knew the book would encompass those facets. The actual stories and characters
came to me over a period of months, after I made some changes here and there.
Favorite place you've been and/or would like to go
Okay, this is a tough one.
I'd have to say Edinburgh, Scotland
is the favorite, and New Zealand is where I would love to go.
Which of your characters is a portrayal of you?
Again, I do think Ulyssa is the
one most like me, though I wouldn't go as far as to say she is a portrayal of
me. If I had to further develop her
character, many facets of her would be markedly different than me.
What is
your favorite scene in the book? Which scene or characters were the most
difficult for you to write and why?
If I had to pick a favorite,
it would probably be the scene where Ulyssa lets the balloon go and awaits the
many possibilities that might happen after it lands. The most difficult characters probably were
Justine and Kenny, as she is a complicated character and he may or may not be
real. I also wanted to make the interplay between them tense as befitting their
particular situation, and that took a bit of fleshing out before I was
satisfied with the dialog.
Do you like the spotlight or lurking in the shadows?
I really am more of a lurking
in the shadows person, although it is tempting to be in the spotlight at times!
How do you come up with the characters names/personalities?
Well, the three main
characters all have back stories behind their names and personalities. I have
always loved the name Justine. If I ever had a daughter, that would have been
her name so I chose it for my character in Parallelograms.
I have always been intrigued by red hair, so I made her a red head with a very
strong personality, which is what I can say is one of my traits. Ulyssa from Random is more of a free spirit
but with a cynical touch, which I thought made for an interesting blend. I
always thought the name was a lovely, unique, feminine take on the male name
Ulysses, plus which the character is from a theatrical family which also lent
her name a dramatic edge. Gregory is another name I have always liked, so I
used it for the main character from Up
There. It also has an air of formality to it, and the character does have a
formal way about him so I think it suited him.
Top 3 things on your bucket list?
1. Travel to the
aforementioned places that I said I'd like to visit, plus many more after that
and hopefully gain inspiration for my writing from these travels. Related to
this, I would like to hone my travel writing as well.
2. Write another book, this
time a short novel. I don't know in what genre yet, though.
3. Meet my favorite writers
for coffee at a secluded cafe in a Parisian village and just shoot the breeze!
I don't know if that's possible, but one can always wish!
What makes your novel standout from the crowd?
Well, they are short stories
that don't have concrete endings. I leave it up to readers to decide what is
real and what is not, and what lessons or morals the stories offer, if any.
What is your view on self publishing?
I think it's a great way for
new writers to get their work out for the public to enjoy. Getting a
traditional publishing deal is very difficult, what with all the competition
and the established writers out there. The self-publishing world, along with
ebooks, has really taken off and I think each makes for wonderful opportunities
for writers to market their work.
Do your friends or enemies ever find themselves in your books?
Let's just say in a word,
yes. How about more accurately, the characters in my book are amalgams of those
folks.
If you were not a writer, what would you like to do?
Well, this isn't too far from
being a writer but be a creator of a successful soap opera. I love the soap
genre as it always was a mainstay of daytime television while I was growing up,
and the soaps really told great stories as well. I am glad that they have survived after all
these years, though regrettably there are not as many as there once were.
What drives you insane about the writing process?
I would say developing plot
more than characters. It's so important to me to get it right in my mind,
though I inherently know that there is no "right" and
"wrong" there. I just want to make my plots interesting and thought
provoking, something that readers can really connect with. I guess it's
subjective because everybody has different tastes, so I go by what would
captivate me and hope it resonates with others.
What made you decide to write in this genre?
Again, the unknown and the
mysterious have always held an attraction for me, so the decision was an easy
one. I also found that the paranormal genre offered so many possibilities for
characters and plots, as in that genre there are no concrete answers to things.
Harder though for me was deciding the type of stories to write, as there were
so many choices I had.
Trilogy
Trilogy is comprised of three stories, all of which have an otherworldly, paranormal theme to them. Each of the main characters in these stories wrestles with extraordinary circumstances in an otherwise ostensibly ordinary world. Journey with the stories' main characters as they navigate the unplumbed depths of the unknown.
The first story, Parallelograms, centers on protagonist Justine, a determined yet troubled young woman who, quite by accident, discovers that she has a double and thus finds herself facing unexpected and ultimately terrifying consequences. Her previously tightly controlled world spins out of control, causing her to question her very existence.
The second story in the trilogy, Random, concerns Ulyssa, a young woman who is intrigued by the possibility of releasing a balloon with a note and seeing where it lands. This seemingly innocent activity will take her down a dark path, the circumstances of which may or may not be resolved. This will conflict with the outwardly picture perfect world that she thought she inhabited.
The final title, Up There, focuses on Gregory, an unassuming office worker who is fascinated by the airplanes he sees in the sky. Quite by accident he meets Sherry, a beautiful motivational speaker who just may have a connection to one of the planes he has seen. An activity he previously saw as harmless and a bit innocuous - watching planes fly overhead and guessing their destinations - turns questionable and ultimately forces him to take a look at his world: is it real or has it always been an illusion?
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