Blog Tour - Whitney In Charge by Diane Carver

Whitney In Charge
Diane Carver


Summary
TV producer Whitney Benson is tired of her older sisters’ attempts to fix her up with every single male they meet. Shannon and Regan cross the line when they arrange for her to go skydiving with the simple excuse that more guys like to float in the air than women.

Whitney meets two eligible bachelors, Jack and Ben, who constantly battle for her affection. Which one will she choose? Both men make Whitney realize, even a heart shattered by her husband’s death, can once again be made whole.

But did she have to fall off a cliff to learn that?

About the Author
As the youngest in the family growing up on a farm outside of Findlay, Ohio, Diane often acted out characters from her own stories in the backyard. In high school she was the student sitting in class with a novel hidden in front of her propped up textbook. Her passion for reading novels had to be put on hold during her college years at Ohio State University with working part-time on campus and being a full-time student. Before embarking on her writing career, she was a school teacher and play director.

I asked Diane about her transition from teaching to writing, how teaching informs her writing and which she enjoys more:

Diane Carver on Teaching and Writing

My teaching career started at the Ohio Soldiers and Sailors Orphans Home in Xenia, Ohio. Back then, there was a surplus of English and History teachers. I wasn't able to get a job teaching English and Speech (received a dual major) so I settled for a job teaching business courses. I'm glad now I did because that's where I met my husband, Tom. With his broad math background, the only job he could get was at the orphans' home. I did leave after a year to teach junior high English in Wabash, Indiana, and Tom left to teach math in Virginia. Three years later we married and started a family. I decided to stay home full-time to raise our six children. However, teaching remained part of my life while volunteering as a teacher for Sunday school classes and vacation bible school. I also taught a preschool in own home using some Montessori methods and wrote a book about this experience.

There wasn't any problem for me in making the transition from teaching to writing. I think my teaching background gave me important skills when I turned to writing as a profession. As a teacher, you do research when instructing students on a new topic. In writing, I found myself researching locations for my settings and occupations for the characters. I bought a used book from Amazon on broadcasting for my Whitney in Charge book. The main character Whitney was a TV news producer. That's a great benefit in being a writer – you get to live through your character's occupation. By the way, Mallory in my upcoming January release, Marrying Mallory, is the only teacher I have for a main character. I love writing about different occupations.

Teaching gave me an edge when a teacher at a private school asked me to speak to his eighth graders about my Christmas book. He chose The Christmas of 1957, my "creative nonfiction book" for the class to read during the holiday season. He used my book until he moved away, so I was invited back for a few years. Each December I taught the students about the writing process and answered their many questions. When our county library system sponsored an author day, I was chosen as one of the local authors to speak at their workshop. It was a plus for me to be a former teacher, and I enjoyed speaking in front of this large group of readers and aspiring writers. I spoke about using beats wisely in your writing.

Do I miss teaching in a classroom? Even though it was an important time in my life and sometimes I miss the interaction with students, I definitely enjoy writing more. I might not be in a classroom now, but I've been amazed at how many aspiring writers ask me questions about writing and publishing. I'm still a teacher in a way. I take time to answer each one's questions, and I might read their first chapters. I understand how hard it is when you want to become a writer and want to get your books published. I had so many wonderful published authors help me in the beginning when I started on this writing journey. I think it's important to reciprocate whenever possible.

Is anyone else a former teacher? Or any occupations I can use in my writing?

Here's a book trailer for Whitney In Charge