About Eris Field Perese (w/a Eris Field):
Eris Field was born in Jericho, Vermont, a small village in the Green Mountains where, when snowed in, she read what was available in her grandfather’s home—Zane Grey’s exciting westerns and the tortured love stories of Gene Stratton Porter. Later, when she moved to a small town in Vermont, she discovered the magic world of books that the library offered.
At 17, she left Vermont, moving to Albany, NY to attend Union University School of Nursing. During her first week there, she cut her hand, and, while in the Emergency Room, met her future husband, a surgical intern who had been born in Istanbul, Turkey and her desire to explore the world was born. After they married and moved to Buffalo, NY, Eris worked as a nurse at a cancer hospital and at a children’s hospital. When their five children were through high school, she earned a Master’s Degree in Psychiatric Nursing at the University at Buffalo. Later, she taught psychiatric nursing at the University. Eris served as a consultant for the World Health Organization in updating psychiatric nursing education in Jamaica and for the NOVA program, Depression: Out of the Shadows.
Eris’ publications have been in both fiction and non-fiction. Fiction includes: a contemporary novel, The Gift of Love, published by Soul Mates Publishing in 2013, an international novel, Lattices of Love, published by Soul Mate Publishing in 1914, and an international romance, No Greater Love, published by Soul Mate Publishing in 2015. She co-authored with her late husband, Dogan, a biographical novel, Legacy of Change: The Saga of a Turkish Family from Empire to Republic, that was published by ISIS Press of Istanbul, Turkey in 1998. Non-fiction includes a textbook, Psychiatric Advanced Practice Nursing: A Biopsychosocial Foundation for Practice that was published by F. A. Davis in 2012, psychiatric nursing articles, and two requested book reviews. She is working on a proposal for a non-fiction book, Writing Back Stories for Troubled Characters: What You need to Know About 25 Psychiatric Disorders to Provide Credible Rationales
Now, she lives in a small ‘snow belt’ town in Western New York. She is a member of the Romance Writers of America and the Western New York Romance Writers group. In addition to writing, Eris’ interests include supporting the Crossroads Springs Orphanage in Kenya for children orphaned by AIDS and exploring as many fascinating cities as she can.
What inspires you to write?
What inspires me to write is often a difficult situation in real life and the people involved in trying to improve the situation, often at a high cost to themselves. For example, in my first novel, The Gift of Love, the primary problem was an abandoned two year old child who was mute–a situation similar to ones I had encountered in nursing. In my second novel, Lattices of Love, the heroine is caught between loyalty to the customs of her Turkish grandmother and her refusal to accept an arranged marriage. As a psychiatric nurse, I had heard the despair of young women caught between two worlds. In No Greater Love, the situation is broader: refugees fleeing from conflict, trauma, or losses who yearn to go home even when there is no home. For me, inspiration to write comes in response to learning about people facing difficult experiences that they must overcome somehow.
Tell us about your writing process.
I combine seat of pants writing and careful outlining and computing ( A lot of math is involved.to get the dates of births, graduations, driving, marriages, grandparents’ deaths right). The first step in the writing process is becoming aware of the situation that will be the foundation of my story. Then the characters begin to arrive. They make themselves know to me and soon I have very carefully selected names for them that reflect their cultural heritage, their family position, and their personality. From that point on, it is a process of weaving the characters, settings, backgrounds, challenges, and changes with the situation/problem.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
My characters introduce themselves to me and then are never far from me until the moment I submit the final version of the story for publication. They ride in the back seat of my car. They sit on the couch beside me each evening as I watch Law & Order and sometimes, they even dare to make love in my bed! As I write, when I wonder how they feel, I let myself become them so that I can feel their sorrow or the beginning of arousal. I even talk to them as I browse through men’s after-shave lotions in stores, trying each one in my search for one that will be just right for my hero. When I finally release them to the publisher, I mourn them for days. I miss them. I think of things I could write about them. I feel as though I have lost dear friends.
What advice would you give other writers?
My advice to other writers is to read constantly and to write the stories in your mind if you aren’t able to write regularly. As one who has received many rejection notices, I would say,’ keep on writing’. Each rejection is a step closer to acceptance. Also, if a reader/editor has been kind enough to write a comment, treasure it. They are trying to help you.
Belonging to a writers’ group is a great help. As you listen to other writers, you can put things in perspective–submissions, rejections, acceptances, marketing, and career management. You need the combined knowledge of other writers.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
One of the most painful experiences in my life and the most valuable was pitching my book to an Harlequin editor at a conference. The editor was kind and tried to help me but I was terrified. Everything that I had spent my love on was on the line and I could hardly speak. I said never again! But an editor from Soul Mate Publishing came to speak at our local writers’ group and, with my friends behind me, I managed to tell her about my book. She explained the editing process and offered to read my novel. She has published three of my novels. Some of my friends self-publish. They enjoy the feeling of being in control of the process. They have good computer skills and are experts at gathering help from different sources. But I don’t have those skills and I prefer to work with an editor and the publishing staff who work with me on editing and creating the perfect cover.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think that book publishing will continue to hold its own and probably will flourish. The romance category is the largest selling category of books sold. Books are the avenue of escape for many people. When you are in medical waiting rooms, you see people, usually women but not always, reading as they wait for an elderly parent to have a procedure. You see parents reading in their cars as they wait for children. People in mind-numbing jobs carry a book to read on breaks and during lunch. In small towns, book reading clubs are still popular. Libraries are a meeting place for lonely people to be among others who love books. Our population is experiencing a stagnant or diminished financial ability to spend on entertainment but there is a flood of low cost books, books for everyone’s taste. Yes, book publishing will continue.
What do you use?: Professional Editor, Professional Cover Designer
What genres do you write?: I write contemporary, inspirational romance and contemporary, international romance.
What formats are your books in?: eBook, Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Eris Field Perese (w/a Eris Field) Home Page Link
All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit, to allow you, the reader, to hear the author in their own voice.
