Five Questions for... Roseanne Dowell

Tell us about your latest book, Connection of the Minds.
Did you ever have a feeling something bad was going to happen? You know kind of a premonition, intuition, omen or whatever you want to call it? When it happens, goose bumps run up your arms and the hair on the back of your neck stands on end. You try to pass it off as a coincidence, but deep down you know it’s not. That’s what happened to Rebecca Brennan. Her dreams and visions link her to another person. At first it was pleasant, feelings of accomplishments, pride, sometimes melancholy and contentment. But when danger invaded her dreams, and she actually felt someone's pain, she was bound and determined to find out who shared her mind. Her search takes her to a quaint Victorian town and puts her life in danger.

What drew you to writing a blend of mystery and romance? 
I grew up reading Nancy Drew Mysteries and my love of mysteries continued to grow, eventually to include Victoria Holt, Phyllis Whitney, and Agatha Christie. I guess I'm a romantic at heart so it seemed natural to bring the two together.

Tell me a bit about yourself and how long you've been writing? 
I've been writing ever since I could remember. When my children were younger I took a writing course - Writing for Children. I envy people who can write for children. It wasn't my cup of tea. I just didn't have it in me. Maybe I didn't think enough like a child. I wrote off and on during those years, but never submitted anything. Around 2002, during a conversation with my mystery reading book club, we started discussing what we regretted. I mentioned I regretted not pursuing writing as a career. That's all it took, they were on me with a million idesa for stories. I started thinking about it and decided to give it a shot. It wasn't until 2006 that I published my first novel, Satin Sheets. Since then, I've published several with MuseItUp Publishing.

Connection of the Minds was released as an eBook – are you a fan of this increasingly popular medium and what has your experience been like working with MuseItUp? 
Truthfully, I love holding a book in my hands, but the wave of the future is eBooks. The great thing with MuseItUp is the novel length books will probably be available in print also. Working with MuseItUp is great. Lea Schizas is a one of a kind publisher. Not only does she involve all the authors in decision making, she helps promote our books. Not many publishers do that. She's constantly coming up with ideas for the Muse Blog.

What books and authors have inspired your writing?
Well, to go way back, the Nancy Drew mysteries, Victoria Holt, Phyllis Whitney and more recently Nora Roberts, Mary Higgins Clark, and Lisa Scottoline. There are many others I enjoy reading, Sandra Brown, and well, just too many to mention.

Find out more about Roseanne at her blog at this link.