Shayna Matthews
BIO:
Shayna Matthews grew
up in the past. Active in 18th Century Living History encampments since she was
three years old, American history is in her blood. Taught to weave for her 13th
birthday, Shayna was soon producing period rifle and accoutrement straps for
reenactors, museums, movies and television. Successful as her weaving was, she
always wanted to write. Close-knit ties with other reenactors educated Shayna
beyond her years - she still loves to sit in darkened fields, illuminated by
starlight and the flicker of a good fire, and listen. The wild tales told to her
over the years from across the fire have only fueled her desire to write
historical fiction.
Despite Shayna's love
of 18th Century history, it is the lore of the American West that drives her
forward, chasing dreams and writing stories. Her grandfather introduced her to
Zane Grey at an early age, they passed his collection of novels back and forth
for years, sharing in something special. She says the American West is the
embodiment of human spirit - the freedom to survive and thrive on land as harsh
as it is beautiful.
Shayna believes in
fairy tales, and she says that her husband gave her one. A long-time reenactor
himself, Shayna met Dave at a Pennsylvania longrifle show they had both
attended for years. Having met at a gunshow, their first date was a tour of
Gettysburg and eventually became engaged inside the White House at Christmas
time. They married at a local plantation with the reception in a barn. They
manage adventurous travels whenever they can, (Shayna's favorite pastime)
spending a few weeks in Alaska, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Texas. You are
apt to find the pair of them gallivanting up mountains on horseback, floating
across the National Parks in a hot air balloon or off-roading in a Jeep.
Growing up in southern Pennsylvania, Shayna feels that the southwest is her
true home; they hope to return soon. "For research" she says with a
laugh.
Shayna now resides in
Maryland with her husband and their son, Zane, and two cheery Welsh Corgis,
Daisy-May Duke and Mason Dixon. Shayna, currently a cowgirl without a horse,
can be found at her keyboard late at night working on one of several western
novels set in Texas and in Arizona Territory. She has just finished writing her
debut short story, The Legend of Venture Canyon, for Prairie Rose Publications.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
What
is the most adventurous thing you’ve ever done?
~I love to explore
new places, whether they be an hour down the road or across the country. You
never know who, or what, you’ll meet around the next corner. I love that. My
husband and I took a trip to the southwest a few years ago - five states in
seventeen days. It was a trip of firsts for me. I am dreadfully afraid of
heights, and yet we took a hot air balloon ride over Arches National Park,
rising with the sunrise. Fear left me during the duration of the flight, until
we geared up for the landing. Wind was blowing crossways at 13 mph, driving us
steadily closer to the mountain. The landing was rough, but exhilarating. Over
the course of the same journey we went horseback riding to the top of South
Mountain in Arizona, off-roaded in rugged terrain where we found dinosaur
tracks, rode a jet-boat along the Colorado, and climbed 50’ ladders scaling
sheer cliffs to explore ancient ruins. A personal coup for a gal terrified of
standing too near the edge. I would do it all again in a minute.
What adventure would you like to have that you haven’t done yet if money and
skill were no problem?
~If money and skill
were not an issue, I would start traveling with my family, and only stop long
enough to write my stories - The American West, first, and I’ve always wanted
to explore Nova Scotia, Scotland, Ireland and Italy.
Who
are some of your favorite authors? What
commonality do you see in them?
~ I grew up reading
westerns. My grandfather has a full collection of Zane Grey novels; when I was
young, he lent me Riders of the Purple Sage. That was the end of me - I was
hooked. We shared every Grey novel he had, along with Louis L’Amour, Larry
McMurtry and other western greats - I adored that kinship with my grandfather.
I still do...our love of westerns is something we share apart from the rest of
the family. As far as commonality, I don’t think a writer can help but to be
inspired by their favorite literary greats. Zane wrote a great deal about the
landscape, he loved the land...he lived it. I share that same passion and
respect for the land, as well as for a way of life which is merely a distant
memory now. As long as there are writers like Mr. Grey, and raw, tough men who
work from the land, it is a life which will never be forgotten.
I believe color says
something about a person’s personality.
What’s your favorite color?
~ Oh, my favorite
color. Hmm, I suppose I’m fickle when it comes to color. I could not choose
just one shade. I love jewel-tones; royal blues, brick reds, emerald greens,
and the rust-reds of the American desert. Of course, sometimes a woman just
needs to add a touch of bling to her wardrobe, I never go anywhere without
turquoise and silver jewelry and the occasional rhinestone, just for a little
extra ‘spirit’.
If
you could have a do-over life, what one thing would you do differently? What would you do again?
~I think each of us
have our struggles and mistakes we wish we hadn’t done, or had handled
differently. It’s a part of life, learning from our mistakes. I was very
fearful amongst my peers as a child, my school career from grade school on up
was miserable and I did my level best just to survive each day; I could not
find my voice, nor the courage to stand up for myself. I drifted, and even
changed school districts, but only managed semi-average grades due to my
inability to handle the stresses of childhood bullies, taunts and ridicule. I
was different, I understood adults, not kids my own age. I was labeled an easy target...something
which I have changed since, I assure you. I look back at the girl I was and I
wish I could help her face her demons, find her strengths and help her shine
through the awkward years. Those are the years I would do differently.
As far as what I would repeat? The
early years of our living history encampments. I grew up reenacting history
since the tender age of three - the lifelong friends I made are still precious
to me, some of them closer than family. Living for a week in tents, weathering
heat, cold, wind, rain and sun in a field with other like-minded reenactors,
dressed in period clothes and cooking our meals over campfires...swapping
stories while musicians tuned their fiddles, banjos and guitars...they were the
grand days. I would give anything to do it again, in the old days, where our
friends are all still with us, and share our life-long stories and laughter
over a fire together, and maybe...pass around that jug of homemade grog...
What
is your writing process from conception to finished MS?
~This question makes
me giggle. Oh, I fear other authors would gasp at my loose “process” when it
comes to writing. Ideas just sort of hit me...usually when I’m in the shower -
what is it with hot water loosening random thoughts from your brain? Once the
seed of an idea is planted, I focus on the people. I start going through old
western encyclopedias in search of names, and jot down the ones that speak to
me. I write and rewrite, rearranging them until I have THE ONE...the name of my
character. Once we have introduced ourselves, I immerse myself into the reading
and researching for the historical aspects of the story. For my short story,
“The Legend of Venture Canyon”, I didn’t even bother to write an outline. I
just wrote. I get close to my characters, until I can see them in my mind, they
guide me through their story, and it works. Usually. I do write outlines for
longer novels, but I find them to be a necessary burden. My finished work is
never very close to the actual outline. Each scene, chapter, and each story is
a learning process, a brand new slate...I am a firm believer in characters
“swaying” the direction of a plot - if it works, I go with it. I have been
known to “black out” while writing a scene. When I come to, I have finished writing
an entire chapter, and no recollection of writing any of it. It never fails to
surprise me, for none of the words are what I initially intended...usually
they’re better. Ha, I wish it would happen more often!
Are
you a planner, panster or both?
~A planner? No. I
write outlines, but rarely stick to them. I write by feeling and inspiration,
which, let me tell you, gets me backed into a few literary corners, don’t get
me wrong. But I love to research the historical background of each story. Even
if I don’t use half of it, I’ve learned about it, and that’s so important. I
think readers can tell when a writer is full of it - whether they really ‘feel’
a time and place, no matter whether they’ve been there or not. History inspires
me, sparks my fire to write about it...I mean, just think about it...writers
love stories, so do readers, obviously. And what’s history if not a vast
selection of personal stories that make up our very own lives? So, I would call
myself an “inspirational researcher”, if you don’t mind the term.
How
did you research for your book?
~I am always
researching. I believe my research began long ago, when I began grabbing up
every book I could find pertaining to the west. My husband and I both grew up
participating in 18th Century Living History encampments, it’s how we met. I
have been sleeping in tents, cooking meals over campfires and wearing the
period clothing since I was three years of age. When history becomes such a
large part of your lifestyle, delving deeper into the why’s, when’s and how’s
of day-to-day lifestyle becomes a given. You never learn enough, and in
writing, it becomes evident. I will be working on a scene and stop to think…
“wait, how would they do this?” and then off I go, digging into my ever-growing
library (Amazon loves me) or typing little-known oddities into Google Search.
What
is your all-time favorite movie? TV
show?
~I’ll watch rerun
after rerun of Big Bang Theory. Love me some Bang, and I grew up with FRIENDS,
so I’ll turn old episodes of that on to keep me company while I tackle the
dreary old housework.
Movie? Easy. Lonesome Dove. It has become a philosophy of sorts to me. It is an
epic story - raw, truthful, full of grit and unyielding, if sometimes
disheartening, determination. Figure out
what you want, dig in your spurs, and you do it - even if you have to bust a
few noses in the process. Doesn’t have to make sense to anyone else, as long as
you believe in it. You follow your dreams, and you do it. Live life, it’s too
precious to take for granted. As Gus McCrae says, “It ain’t dyin’ I’m talkin’
about. It’s livin’.”
How
important do feel writing workshops are to any writer?
~I don’t feel I am a
good judge on the topic of writing workshops. I have not taken one, myself, to
date. I have heard well known authors rally behind the idea of workshops, and
others who abhor them, which leads me to think they are an individual thing - a
little like pineapple on a pizza. It’s not that pineapple is a bad thing, but
pair it with pizza, and it’s an acquired taste. Strange, foreign and
overwhelming to some, a perfect blend of ingredients to others. Whatever an individual’s opinion on writing
workshops, (or pineapple pizza,) there is always more to learn; to teach and to
be taught, in writing as in everything. Nowadays you have the internet, if you
can determine which sites are to be trusted as truth, and how many of us have
seen those “Dummy Guide” and “Complete Idiot’s Guide” books...the titles may
make you feel a little chastised, but there is valid information in them, I’ve
flipped through a few in my day. I think the bottom line is that one can only
get better with practice - and a lot of it - and if you pair that with talent
and a driven willingness to learn by whatever means you choose, you are setting
yourself up for success.
If
you could learn one new skill, fear and money no deterrent, what would it be?
~One new
skill...oooh, good one. Ahh, only one? Well, I have always admired my mother’s
talent to paint realism. Me, I paint with words. I’ve been known to draw stick
figures which manage to fall flat, if you’ll pardon the pun. I would love to
draw and paint the scenes in my head, and be able to illustrate covers for my
own books. Because no matter what you write, you can’t convey to someone else,
the detailed photographs within your own mind. Aside from painting, I’d love to
be able to play guitar, and be blessed with a singing voice, instead of the
screech-owl with a head-cold sound effect I obtain when I sing now. Ahh, if
only! Don’t worry, I won’t be trying out for American Idol anytime soon.
If you had a million dollars to donate to any one charity, what would it be?
~Oh, there are so
many worthy charities to choose from! But, I believe, for me, it would come
down to Wounded Warrior. My husband is retired military. I have merely tasted
the worries of a military wife, for my husband was never sent overseas while we
were together, though I knew there was always the possibility. Our soldiers do
not get enough gratitude for their sacrifices, nor do their families. They put
their own lives, loves and freedoms on the line for Family and Country. Every
single day. I cannot imagine what these brave men and women have endured, nor
do I wish to. I have walked the halls of military hospitals, and I have never
exited those halls without tears rolling down my face, and an even greater
respect for our beloved soldiers, both active and retired.
What advice would you like to give to an aspiring writer?
~For aspiring
writers, I relate to their desires, struggles and dreams, for I am still
“aspiring”, myself. I am on my way, celebrating my debut short story entitled
“The Legend of Venture Canyon” for the Cowboys, Creatures and Calico anthology
from Prairie Rose Publications. What I would say to others like myself - those
who dream of writing what you love, of seeing your name in print? Write. Write
with passion, write every day. Join a few online writer’s groups, talk to
successful writers, but write. You’ll probably have to grow thicker skin,
something I am still working on! I have had so much advice...usually
unsolicited...thrown my way, not to mention the thoughtless comments… “Oh, you
want to write a book. About what? Really? Is that even popular anymore?” I have
heard them all. Don’t get discouraged. Get indignant, if you want, and write a
rendition of these dream squashers in a scene to be killed off at whim, but
don’t ever get discouraged. Maintain that drive, that fire that spurs you to
write. You are creating entire worlds! Every story is deserving of being told,
and no one else can write the story meant to be written by you. Don’t be afraid
to dream big - and work your fingers raw chasing that dream. What some may
laugh off as unrealistic, is merely an opportunity worth chasing. Best of luck
on all of your endeavors, I congratulate each of you on what you have achieved
thus far.
Did anyone mentor you
or help you along the way? Please tell
us about your mentor and what you feel they contributed to your writing career.
~Mentor...my husband.
He is my support system. I remember sitting down with him over dinner, five or
six years ago now, and telling him I wanted to start writing novels. Just like
that, and I was nervous. I don’t know why, because he loved the idea. He’s been
my sounding board, my strength and support through all the trials of a writer.
We bounce ideas off of one another, he knows my characters, he reads my scenes,
chapters, stories, and edits with the mind of a logical historian. He grounds
me. If something is terribly cliche, I get it back in red pen, despite the
ever-present danger of a writer’s meltdown and a huff off to pout. He can’t
escape, but he tells me what I need to hear, not what I want to hear, and I
love him unfailingly for that. I could not imagine going through this obsessive
journey of mine - writing stories, epic novels, without him holding me up when
I waver and championing me when I get it right. I’m a lucky woman to be married
to my mentor!
What
is the best advice anyone ever gave you?
~I don’t know why,
but I find this is to be the toughest question. So many people have shared
genuine words of wisdom over the years, it’s hard for me to think back to just
one, or of who said what. However, one comment an old friend once said to me
was not necessarily advice, as it was an observation. And it is one which has
stuck with me. They said: "You have
a very old soul…it's ancient. Every time I see you, I look in your eyes and
wonder what it is you're searching for." I was in my early teens at the
time, and his comment startled me. It isn't often, after all, that someone
tells a fifteen year old they have an ancient soul. I still contemplate the
shrewd observation of that friend, and I can only ascertain that he saw
something beyond the normal struggles of teenage angst. I wish I would have
thought to question him further about what it was. What on earth did he see in
me to voice such a strange observation? Whatever it was, I took it as a
compliment then as I do now.
If you could live anywhere in the world you wanted to, where would it be?
(Language is no barrier)
~Oh, this is an easy
one! Given my love of landscape, the west and my artistic raising (my mother is
an artist, my father a blacksmith and a wood carver, and I am blessed with a
multitude of artistic friends) - my answer is Sedona, Arizona. My first and
only trip to Arizona, to date, left me breathless. The moment we drove into
Sedona, tears sprung to my eyes. I had an overwhelming feeling of “coming
home”...I was in love. It is a very powerful place, spiritual in rugged beauty,
a place where new adventures await every turn, and a community which celebrates
true art, both in nature, and in painting and sculpture. Someone recently told
me, “picture yourself in your dream. If you want to live in Sedona, hang a
picture of what you envision your home to look like, amongst the landscape, and
look at it every day, a hundred times a day. Put yourself in that picture,
you’ll be surprised how things begin to fit together, pushing you steadily
onward toward that dream...as long as you believe, and work at it without
despair.” Suffice it to say, I have several photographs of Sedona and the
surrounding region on my walls.
Where
do you write?
~With the three of
us, plus two dogs and a plethora of hobbies and interests, we have outgrown our
little home. My writing desk is nestled between the kitchen and the couch, my
back faces the television. It’s tight, but when I write, my mind is not at my
desk. It is in the old west, where I am in 1880s Texas, or Arizona, or Utah.
These are the locations of my current work in progress novels.
How
much time do you devote to writing each week?
Do you have a day every week that you take off?
~With a nearly two
year old boy running amuck in our household, writing time is quite precious. My
job, first and foremost, is devoted to my son. His nap-times present me with a
daily dilemma - do I nap? Clean the yogurt off the furniture? Applesauce off
the cabinets? Or do I sit down, block it all out, and write? Usually, I attempt
the latter, although that is often when the phone will begin to ring off the
hook. So my primary writing time is between 10pm - 1, 2 or 3am, depending upon
when the caffeine fails me. I write best in complete solitude, no tv, no music,
no phone. I usually manage to steal a few hours of late night solitude every
evening, no matter what. Writing takes determination and drive, I don’t like to
lose “focus” by allowing too much time to pass between writing sessions.
What is a genre that
you have not attempted that you would like to try?
~Hmm, this is a difficult question for me -
historical western fiction is my passion, I adore immersing myself in the midst
of it every day. But, I do have a rather unusual plotline on the back burner
for a western novel set...well, I cannot give it away, now can I? Let’s just
say I could be persuaded to weave a little light fantasy/sci-fi into my
stories. Mystery is another great genre, and it is one that I enjoy sprinkling
throughout my work.
CONTEST ALERT!! Shayna will be giving away an ebook copy of Cowboys, Creatures, and Calico, Vol. 1 to a commenter. Be sure to include your email address in your comment to enter.
COWBOYS,
CREATURES, AND CALICO Vol. 1, anthology
Prairie Rose
Publications
The Legend of Venture
Canyon
~by Shayna Matthews
Deception,
my pet, is always our Master
In the traveling
show, deception is Master. But for Marah, deceit was merely a means of escape.
All she needed was a fool willing to fall into her hands. She never meant to
fall under the power of a mortal cowboy. Unfortunately, the show must go on…no
matter what the cost.
Blurb:
Chasing legends for a small-town newspaper has its pitfalls - and some stories
are best left alone. But when your job depends on interviewing the unwell, you
do what you must. It is All Hallow’s Eve, after all.
Marah’s world revolves around trickery and deceit. She is destined to dance for
money, for no man has ever successfully freed her from the traveling prison.
Some have tried, and failed. No one wants to become part of the show. No one.
Venture is a man who abhors lies and deception, but sometimes curiosity can
take hold of a man, in very forceful ways.
With an assignment like
this, don’t be surprised if you get far more than you bargained for. Some
people don’t know how to die.
Excerpt: THE LEGEND OF VENTURE
CANYON
“Tell
me about Cowboy,” I whispered. Only part of the woman’s face was visible in
profile, shadows masked the rest of her and her chair. I didn’t dare speak any
louder, nor did I wish to repeat myself. She heard me, I knew she did, for the
shadow twitched. Her glazed expression seemed to soften.
Vacant eyes, I thought. Never before had
I seen eyes so devoid of soul. She never turned them loose from the dreary
window, and I was glad of it.
“Cowboy...” she whispered, and
giggled. The sound rang through the emptiness, echoing in my ears like little
secrets best left unspoken.
I
wanted to be shed of this nightmare. To be home, or safely tucked within the
sanctuary of my writing desk. Not here...anywhere but here!
“He will come,” she said,
interrupting my musings of escape. “You will see. They will all see! Then,
they’ll be sorry.”
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