by Catherine Cockburn

With 70 million copies of her books in print and many titles on the bestseller lists, Debbie Macomber’s rise to the pinnacle of romance fiction might seem an easy ride. However, Debbie battled dyslexia, raised four young children, and wrote her first novels in her kitchen on a rented typewriter.

It took Debbie five years to sell her first manuscript, Heartsong, to Silhouette and untold sacrifices by Debbie and her husband, Wayne. In spite of a busy writing schedule, Debbie is a member of the Board of Directors for Warm-Up America!, a charity knitting organisation, and is actively involved in Guideposts Advisory Council, established by Norman Vincent Peale. She supports the local Literacy Council and is active in her church.

Catherine: So. Debbie, has your family life inspired you to write such memorable stories? Are you influenced by relationships with friends, other women, and your volunteering work?

Debbie: My family and my friendships are naturally a source of inspiration for my writing. As an example, my own group of professional women that meets every Thursday morning at 7.30 was the inspiration for Thursdays at Eight. The spirit of my group (the camaraderie and the support we give each other) translated well to the book, but the actual circumstances in the book are fiction.

In early June, while meeting with my Thursdays at Eight group, we all had the most extraordinary experience: a woman was reading Thursdays at Eight while our group was sitting directly across from her! One of my friends went over and introduced herself as a member of the original Thursday group, and invited the woman, Sue, to sit down and join us. This small encounter absolutely made our day.

Can you tell us a little of your early years of writing - your struggle to sell your first manuscript and who you approached? Did you have the support of any writing organisations back then or were you writing ‘in the dark’, so to speak?

When I first started out as a writer in 1978 it was with a rented typewriter on the kitchen table. I didn’t know another writer in the world. Romance Writers of America wasn’t founded until 1980, so I was basically alone in the dark. I did have a mentor - Virginia Meyers, whom I met in 1982, just before I sold my first book - so I fully understand the importance of mentoring.

I wrote four complete manuscripts and submitted them to Harlequin and later Silhouette. It was a long journey to publication for me; publishing that first book was the hardest goal I’ve ever achieved. I wrote four books in five years and underwent a barrage of rejections. Yet, I know that if I’d given up because it was just too hard to publish, I would have lost a piece of my soul.

I read that at your first ever conference as an unpublished author the organisers picked ten manuscripts to review in a group critique session and a Harlequin editor tore your manuscript up in front of the crowded room. Can you tell us a little about this? How did you overcome such a humiliating experience, not only to have the editor do that, but to have the other writers think it was funny? Did you ultimately sell that manuscript?

That romance writers’ workshop was a turning point in my life. My manuscript had been chosen to be reviewed and I was ecstatic, certain that this was the opportunity of a lifetime. The two editors stood at the front of the auditorium filled with 300 romance writers and announced that one of the ten manuscripts they’d reviewed showed a great deal of promise. I was certain it had to be mine. It wasn’t. In fact, the editor had the entire room laughing at the infeasibility of my plot. Although that was difficult enough to listen to, I know how important it is to be willing to rewrite. After the workshop I introduced myself to that editor and asked her if I revised the manuscript, would she be willing to look at it again. It’s been 24 years now and even now I can vividly recall the look that came over her as she leaned forward, put her hand on my arm, and said, “Throw it away!” This was after I’d written four complete manuscripts and invested five years in a writing career.

Yes, that manuscript did sell - the same manuscript - a little more than six weeks later to Silhouette Books, and launched a new line of category books for them. I learned valuable lessons from that experience - one of which is that a writer needs to learn to separate herself from her work and look at it objectively. Then she can revise effectively and turn the manuscript into a work that is saleable. That’s part of becoming a working writer.

How did the professional relationship between you and Harlequin Executive Editor, Paula Eykelhof, start? Have you presented any workshops together before?

Paula and I have worked together for almost 21 years. We have a fabulous partnership. Paula knows my strengths and weaknesses and is able to draw out the very best in me as a writer and storyteller. Paula works just as hard as I do and is a masterful editor. I feel blessed to have worked with her for the majority of my career. We like to joke that we’re like Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan, but we haven’t figured out yet who plays whom (or maybe the roles change from time to time!). Over the years we’ve done a number of workshops together (on the editor-author relationship, handling revisions, how to get published and other topics).

Can you give the readers a typical breakdown of your writing day and how you balance professional and family life?

On weekdays I rise at 4 am and take time for myself by reading my Bible and writing in my journal. Then I go to the local high school pool and swim a half-mile. By 8 am I’m in my office, where I read and answer my mail and email. Then I prepare my blog and take care of personal e-mail. Around 10 am I start my pages for the day. I have a number of pages set for each day and don’t leave the office until I’m finished. I generally stay until 4 or 5pm.

As much as possible I reserve weekends and evenings for family. Each summer we try to schedule a family vacation, such as a holiday weekend at the beach. Last year we had a fabulous Alaska cruise.

Do you have any favorite settings for your books? How many books do you aim to write each year? Do some books write themselves, while others are like pulling teeth? How many staff do you have to help you achieve this and what are their roles?

I grew up in Yakima, Washington, in a close-knit community with several cousins living nearby. My husband is from Colville, Washington, also a small town and we live in Port Orchard, yet another small town. It’s natural, I suppose, that small towns would appeal to me and inspire me. I love to write about the connectedness of women, neighbours and communities. They’re a microcosm for many different backgrounds and situations.

My writing commitment for the next several years is one women’s fiction hardcover, one original mass paperback novel (that would be a Cedar Cove book) and one gift-size romantic comedy for Christmas each year. That’s three original books. I occasionally write a series book, as well. In July I’ll have an American Romance, The Wyoming Kid, and in 2008, I’ll be publishing an Everlasting romance.

I moved my office out of my home and into an office in the business community starting in 1994. The small rented office has evolved into a two-story complex with two full-time assistants and two others who work part time. Renate Roth has been my personal assistant for nearly twelve years and is my right hand- I couldn’t function without her. Heidi Pollard is Renate’s assistant and takes care of all the guest book entries, reader mail and whatever else Renate assigns her. Wanda Roberts handles all the finances and bookkeeping matters, and Doris LaPorte comes in once a week for errands and odd jobs, plus cleaning the offices.

Where do you get the ideas for your books? I’m particularly intrigued with your upcoming release from Mira, Christmas Letters, about (and I quote) “a woman who earns extra money for the holidays by writing Christmas letters for her friends. She makes the trials and tribulations of the year sound like triumphs.” (As the Christmas newsletter is the only way many of us keep in touch with extended family, I’m sure this will strike a chord with many readers.)

Like most writers, I find that my ideas come from anywhere and everywhere. This story, however, is based on my own experience. I’ve always been the family communicator, and have always written the annual family Christmas letter. Family and friends would tell me that they particularly looked forward to these. Early on, they encouraged me to be a writer after reading my Christmas letters.

Most people try to put a positive slant on their annual Christmas letter, even if the year hasn’t been the greatest. I just took it a little further and made it a little more humorous.

It must have been a thrill seeing This Matter of Marriage turned into a movie in 1998! Were you happy with the result? Are there any more movie adaptations of your books planned?

I had my own two seconds of fame as the words “based on a book by Debbie Macomber” flashed on the television screen. We had a small party with my local writers’ group to celebrate when the movie premiered on television on Valentine’s Day 1998.

So far, no new adaptations have taken place. Two books were optioned a couple of years ago but those options have since lapsed. So much for my brilliant Hollywood career, but who knows what the future holds?

Several of your latest books, Susannah’s Garden, The Shop on Blossom Street and A Good Yarn, feature gardening and knitting as themes. The way these activities are woven into the story seems to be a metaphor representing life’s threads coming undone, new life, healing, family bonds. Was this your intention when writing them? Do you feel this made the stories more powerful?

Gardening is featured in Susannah's Garden, as I wrote this book shortly after my father passed away and my brother and I were helping Mom adjust to life without Dad. She was an avid gardener and her garden was the envy of my Yakima neighborhood. Many of the emotions involved with her slide into ill health and Alzheimer’s disease are reflected in this book.

Many women in my age group are experiencing the problems of the “sandwich generation” - the situations inherent in coping with aging parents and at the same time taking care of our own families and children. These situations are of universal concern to women. So I took the experiences I’d had, added a few twists and turns and came up with the idea for Susannah’s Garden. I think because the situation was so real to me, it rang true for my readers, too.

I love the covers on many of your single title books, they are immediately appealing. Do you have much say in the artwork, or does a particular artist supply your covers?

I have been extremely fortunate with the gorgeous covers that Harlequin and MIRA produce for my books. The artist’s name is Deborah, so we have a connection there. I would love to meet her because I feel she’s perfectly captured the tone of my books.

What do you like to do to relax? I believe you’re a keen knitter and have a room full of yarn! Are we likely to see you doing a bit of knitting during the conference and who do you like to knit for? Do you use your yarn for anything other than knitting?

I usually knit while traveling in the car or on a plane trip, but don’t knit during a conference or a lecture. My favorite projects are socks knit on two circular needles; I make them for all the members of my family. And, of course, I knit all sorts of garments for the grandkids. Yarn is a sensory thing for me, with all its colours and textures. It also affords me the opportunity to dream of future projects. And it’s a tangible way of reliving the wonderful adventures I’ve had, as I try to visit a yarn store wherever I am (and I certainly expect to find some wonderful yarns in Australia!).

Can you tell us a bit about your mentoring work for young people and prisoners?

Unfortunately because of time limitations and my traveling schedule I don’t mentor young people any more. The prisoner is from Prison Fellowship, a Christian organisation, and I write about once a month and encourage him in his faith. I do try to help other writers as much as possible and encourage those who are as yet unpublished.

Are you hoping to see any particular sights while in Australia?

My husband is eager to scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef. I recently purchased a book about Australia and look forward to delving into it in preparation for our visit. I can’t wait to meet people, to explore your beautiful country and (of course) to shop.

What tips or advice do you have for writers still hoping to be discovered?

I would suggest that writers pay close attention to the market; read current bestsellers, analyse each story, and look for the key element that is drawing an audience. Who would ever have imagined that The Life of Pi by Yann Martel would command the audience it has? Or The Da Vinci Code? As writers, it’s important for us not to follow trends in fiction, but to analyse life and start our own trends. Here’s an example: It was when I saw a lot of angel figurines turning up in catalogues that I wrote the first Shirley, Goodness and Mercy Christmas book (and readers are still asking for stories about those characters). When I saw that others were as passionate about knitting as I was, I decided to write The Shop on Blossom Street.

Can you give our unpublished authors some words of wisdom and inspiration about realising their dream of being published one day?

What I’d like to say is to believe in yourself and the power of your dreams. Breaking into publishing isn’t for the faint of heart. Selling that first book was the hardest challenge I ever undertook and even with determination and an unwillingness to quit, it took me five years.

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