Interview with Paula Goddard

Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?

I recall writing a very good story in high school (either my Junior or Senior year) about taking a car and driving over the speed limit down the highway. I received a good grade for it. I recall thinking to myself, “This is a good story”. However, I did not think at that time to pursue a degree or career in writing.

What is your writing process?

I write whenever and wherever I can. Sometimes you have to capture the verse or it may never come again. When I was writing the personal finance book, “Money Minute: Financial Food for Thought – Volume 1” I stayed up until 3 and 4 AM every day for at least two weeks. My hair looked like “Roseanne Roseannadanna” , the character from Saturday Night Live played by the late Gilda Radner. 🙂 I was sleep deprived but I was on a mission! 🙂

Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?

I love Roald Dahl’s books. I remember being particularly touched by the father-son relationship in his book, “Danny, the Champion of the World”. Unfortunately, I feel that women have false expectations of a “handsome prince charming” coming to rescue them from singleness because of all of those fairytales we experienced as little girls. Whoa! When the reality of the “dating jungle” hits it really hurts. Ouch! 🙂 🙂 Thankfully, I also grew up with my Barbie townhouse and pink corvette. Barbie was “large and in charge”. Yeah! 🙂

How do you approach cover design?

Fiverr, baby! www.fiverr.com

What is your e-reading device of choice?

Ahhh! True confession. Other than my “smart phone”/mobile telephone, I really do not use any e-readers. (Exception: I was gifted with an Amazon Kindle Fire HD in December 2015 as an employee Christmas gift so now I can read my own electronic books.) 🙂 I’m “old school”. I love physical books. I like the feel of the books, the covers, the spines, flipping through the pages, highlighting them and keeping them as reference material. I have and continue to spend an incredible amount of time in front of the computer either in my profession as a technical editor/writer and software trainer, producing manuscripts / books, and working on proposals and other business for my Horizons Youth Program. I do not really want to read books on an electronic device. My eyesight is bad enough! 🙂 However, I do appreciate that technology has advanced to provide us with devices to read digital books (ebooks).

Describe your desk

It’s a mess. Uuugghhh! 🙂

What is the greatest joy of writing for you?

Being able to express my internal thoughts and follow the flow of creativity. As my father used to say about ‘passing gas’, “Better to let it out and be ashamed then to keep it in and bust a vein.” Ha Ha 🙂

What are you working on next?

A story about an American little boy who discovers his Italian heritage.

Who are your favorite authors?

Briefly…. Roald Dahl, James Baldwin, Shakespeare, Maya Angelou, Oscar Wilde, Akosua Busia