Creedence Clearwater may have been singing specifically about Deborah LeBlanc in their “Born on the Bayou” anthem, which warns little Cajun children that the “man’s” out to get them.
Chasin’ down a hoodoo there.
Chasin’ down a hoodoo there.
Born on the bayou;
Born on the bayou;
Born on the bayou.
They needn’t have worried, though, because neither the “man,” spooky swamp hoodoos, nor anything else has ever come up against LeBlanc and won.
From her earliest aspiration of reading every single book in her small town’s library, LeBlanc’s drive to succeed in whatever venture captured her imagination has seldom been thwarted. Her business career includes serving as a sales representative for an oil company and overseeing a transportation company as executive vice-president. Today LeBlanc owns and operates two corporations she created in the male dominated fields of fuel and funeral service management consultation. Throw the rearing of three children into the mix and one wonders how LeBlanc even has time to sleep, much less read and write.
But write she does. And in her typical steamroller-get-out-my-way-and-let-me-lead fashion, LeBlanc wrote her first novel “Family Inheritance,” secured a topnotch agent to represent it, and garnered rave reviews. She presides over the Writers’ Guild of Acadiana and holds memberships in Mystery Writers of America, Horror Writers of America (mentor coordinator/mentor), National Association of Women Writers, and Garden State Horror Writers’ Association. LeBlanc has won numerous writing awards, and things just keep getting better. LeBlanc’s publisher recently informed her that Publisher’s Weekly wants to do a feature on her.
Between driving to meet with her agent and publishers in New York (she quit flying shortly before September 11, 2001), handling negotiations for her next book deal and pending three-book series, talking to Hollywood about movie possibilities, and before her next national book tour commences, Deborah LeBlanc carved some time from her packed schedule to visit with Rose & Thorn Literary E-zine. Grab a cup of coffee and join us.
R&T: With such an unbelievably hectic business life, how did you get into writing, and how do you maintain time for it?
LeBlanc: Writing has always been a passion of mine, even as a child. I was extremely shy back then, so writing became a natural venue for expressing my thoughts and emotions.
A lot of people ask me, “How do you find the time to write?” Sometimes I wonder about that myself! I suppose it all has to do with priority and what you truly want to accomplish in this life. We all have dreams and goals of one sort or another. However, to me, there’s a big difference between wishing for that dream to come true and doing what it takes to make sure it does. If you truly want to be a writer, you’ll make the time to write. And I can almost guarantee that establishing that priority will demand personal sacrifice. I choose writing instead of participating in other tempting activities, like watching television, listening to the radio, getting that extra hour of sleep, and sometimes even eating. I write while I’m driving, in hotel rooms when I’m traveling, in waiting rooms at a doctor’s office, basically just about anywhere and everywhere.
I read a speech by Vince Lombardi some years ago, parts of which really stuck with me. Since then, whenever I feel myself getting sidetracked, I read over Mr. Lombardi’s words, and they help me refocus. I’d be happy to share them with you here . . .
“Mental toughness is many things and rather difficult to explain. Its qualities are sacrifice and self-denial. Also, most importantly, it is combined with a perfectly disciplined will that refuses to give in. It’s a state of mind. Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.”
R&T: “Family Inheritance” has created a lot of buzz in the industry and I’m sure you get questions about the reality vs. fantasy of its plot. Are any parts of F.I. autobiographical?
LeBlanc: Yes and no. The cultural accountings are, for the most part, autobiographical. For example, I did play cards with my grandmother, and a sparrow did fly into her window. The depiction of that incident in “Family Inheritance” and the folklore surrounding its meaning all came from my childhood memories and Cajun heritage. The scene with Jessica [the main character], portrayed as a young girl, and the flooded bathroom did, unfortunately, come from a childhood memory as well. And for those who may still be wondering, NO, I have never been a patient in a mental institution!
R&T: How do you define your genre since F.I. contains elements of suspense, mystery, horror, etc.?
LeBlanc: Is this where I get to grumble? I see genre titles as labels that try to force writers into literary pigeonholes. All fiction books are simply stories, in my opinion, that evoke certain images and/or emotions in each of us. Those images and emotions in turn tell us whether the story is scary, romantic, thrilling, etc. When an author is slapped with a genre label, knowingly or unknowingly, there are readers who might miss out on some wonderful pieces of work just because they don’t read, “insert genre label here.”
For years, you would have never found me in the ‘romance’ section of a bookstore perusing books. Not because I had anything against ‘romance’ writers but because I’m about as romantic as the chair currently sitting on the other side of my desk. So, the way I figured it, why would someone without a romantic bone in her body want to read all that mushy stuff anyway? Fortunately, I had a friend who thought differently. She gave me a Sandra Brown book one year for my birthday and not many days later, I found myself engrossed in the book and saying, “Hey, this is really good!” I realized then all that I’d been missing because of a stupid label.
Having said all that, I suppose if I had to stick a genre label on my books, I’d feel pretty comfortable with, “psychological suspense/thriller.” I’ve heard “Family Inheritance” called a suspense novel, a horror novel, and a supernatural thriller. In fact, the only label it hasn’t been given is ‘romance.”
R&T: Please tell us what this last year has been like and how you managed a four-month national tour without flying.
LeBlanc: 2004 had to have been one of the most hectic, yet liberating and fulfilling years I’ve ever experienced. It was certainly a challenge driving the miles needed to cover the tour, but in truth, I would have found it much more stressful flying, much less having to schlep my bags and boxes through a gazillion airports. The answer to ‘how’ I did it reverts back to Mr. Lombardi’s quote mentioned above. I simply did it.
R&T: What comes next after the huge publicity blitz with F.I. and what are your pending writing projects?
LeBlanc: Currently I’m preparing for a tour that will coincide with the release of “Grave Intent,” my next novel, which is scheduled to be out on July 5, 2005. But the most exciting project I’m working on right now is a literacy challenge! The details of how the challenge came to be and its progress to date would take me too long to detail here, so I’ll give you the abbreviated version. In short, I created The LeBlanc Challenge in the hopes of enticing more people to read. The winner of the challenge gets $5000 plus $1000, which will go to the public school of their choice for the purchase of text or library books. Also, there’s been recent talk about Nissan and Gateway possibly joining the challenge. One would contribute a car, the other a computer to the winner. We’re keeping our fingers crossed! Anyone interested in finding out more about The LeBlanc Challenge, how the challenge came to be, or would like to keep up with its progress is welcome to sign up for my free newsletter at www.deborahleblanc.com .
R&T: Time management must be a problem for someone as busy as you. How do you deal with that issue?
LeBlanc: I keep time management to a relatively easy process. God first, family second, and everything else comes third. It’s juggling the things in that third slot that gets a bit tricky sometimes, especially since it includes bathroom needs and breathing.
R&T: Have you had writer's block and if so, how did you overcome it?
LeBlanc: Fortunately I’ve never experienced what many writers call ‘writer’s block’, or not being able to think of anything to write about. Truthfully, I don’t understand how that’s possible, considering the vast world available to us each day. What I do experience at times, however, is what I call, ‘Writer’s Constipation.” That’s when I’m in the middle of writing a scene and my brain suddenly becomes blocked to how a certain character should be reacting to a given situation. Unfortunately, there are no laxatives for the condition. The only cure I’m aware of is writing through it. If one scenario doesn’t work, I tear it up and write another. Eventually the one that’s supposed to be there will come.
R&T: What is the writing life to you?
LeBlanc: For me, the writing part of ‘the writing life’ is one of its most fulfilling aspects. It allows me the opportunity to (hopefully) entertain a reader, to share a story, an avenue of escape from the monotony of life, even if only for a few hours. Editing and rewriting, on the other hand, demand a lot of self-discipline on my part because I despise the process.
R&T: In your experience, what's the most important thing to know when looking for an agent? When writing a book proposal package?
LeBlanc: In my experience, the most important thing one can do when looking for an agent is research. Find out what agents are out there representing material similar to yours (A complete list can be found in Writer’s Guide to Book Editors, Publishers, and Literary Agents—by Jeff Herman.), and then do some investigating. Who else does the agent represent? What publishing houses has the agent worked with in the past and which ones do they currently work with? When was the agent’s last sale? To whom and for whom? How long has the agent been in business? Is the agent a member of AAR (The Association of Authors’ Representatives)?
If all of this seems like a lot of work, you’re right, it is. But gathering the information before you get an agent will save you from major headaches later. It’s one thing to have an agent, but the wrong agent can definitely do you and your writing career much more harm than good.
In my opinion, you should be especially diligent about the investigative process prior to submitting book proposals to anyone.
And what do I consider to be the most important thing to know when writing a book proposal? I’ll cheat and give you three things:
1. Make sure your proposal is brief, well written, and interesting.
2. Know your intended target.
3. Never let a rejection letter keep you from sending out another one.
R&T: Do you have anything you'd like to share with our readers, many of whom
are struggling writers?
LeBlanc: Yes. To every reader out there, I’d like to thank you for every time you handed over your hard earned money to buy a book. Without readers, we’d have no need for authors.
And to ever aspiring writer; when it comes to getting published, there’s only one piece of advice that’s proven itself true time and time again . . . N-E-V-E-R GIVE UP!
R&T: Lest readers think LeBlanc is all work and no play, her monthly newsletter is full of Cajun wisdom, homegrown recipes, and humor. Here’s a sample from her January edition:
Bayou Humor -
Operator: On Star, this is Bernard. How can I help you?
Boudreaux: Dis is Boudreaux. I locked my keys in de car.
Operator: Do you have your On Star account number, sir?
Boudreaux: Non, I don’t know dat number.
Operator: Can you give me your phone number?
Boudreaux: Yah, it’s 337-123-4567.
Operator: Thank you.
Boudreaux: You welcome, but can you hurry? It’s startin’ to rain and de top is down on de car!
Angie Ledbetter is a freelance writer and editor, author, and columnist. Information on her co-authored inspirational book, Seeds of Faith ~ An Inspirational Almanac
When not herding her three teens, Ledbetter can be found working on a fiction novel, a nonfiction inspirational book, a new column for “Pair O’ Dice” hosted on MomsVoice or various other writing projects. Ledbetter is a Regional Representative for the National Association of Women Writers , facilitates a Barnes & Noble’s writing group, and is a proud Rose & Thorn staffer.
