James Scott Bell: November 2009 Archives

Sandra Brown's position in the pantheon of best-selling thriller writers is secure. In fact, after so many New York Times bestsellers, you can say it's pretty much etched in granite.

But Brown had no idea this was where she'd end up when she was working as a model and doing the weather for WFAA-TV in Dallas. Especially when she was fired.

"It was devastating at the time," Brown says, "but also the best thing that ever happened to me.  I was urged by my husband to start doing what I'd always said I wanted to do, which was to write fiction. I had some stories already in mind, expanded daydreams that had been percolating for a long time.  So the creative process wasn't as difficult as adjusting to being self-employed.  I hung out my shingle, so to speak, but what is it exactly that a professional writer does?

"Well, in my case, it meant providing something to entertain the kids (two) while I went into the other room to concentrate on my plot.  It meant writing a paragraph or two between snack time, laundry, and skinned knees. But if you want to do something badly enough, you find the time to do it.  I'm a self-starter, and I loved the new path I'd chosen.  It was more difficult to define and explain my new career to other people."