by Lorie Ham

Today at the Café we have mystery author Silvia Foti, whose latest book is The Diva’s Fool from Echelon Press. So grab a cup of Drink Mate, a tea Silvia brought with her today that she picked up in Argentina, and enjoy the interview.

Café:
Tell us a little about your latest book.

Silvia:
The Diva's Fool is a mystery novel. A journalist detective is on a spiritual quest to achieve union with God by following the 22 steps of the Greater Secrets of the Tarot cards. At the same time, she solves a murder mystery based on each of the steps. The Diva's Fool is the first step and is based on the Fool card.

Café:
How long have you been writing?

Silvia:
I've been doing creative writing for 16 years.

Café:
When did your first novel come out? What was it called? Please tell us a little about it.

Silvia:
Skullduggery came out in 2002. It features the same journalist detective before she joined The Order of the Tarot to battle evil of the paranormal kind.

Café:
Have you always written mysteries? If not what else have you written?

Silvia:
I've been a journalist for more than 20 years, writing nonfiction for a variety of magazines and newspapers and websites. I've only written two mystery novels.

Café:
Tell us a little about the setting and main character.

Silvia:
It is set in Chicago. The character is a journalist, like myself. She has joined the Order of the Tarot, a secret society of aspirants on a quest for spiritual enlightenment, which involves battling paranormal evil. I've had a fascination for Tarot cards, own 32 different sets, and wanted to explore their mysteries while writing a mystery.

Café:
What is the main reason that you write?

Silvia:
To unify an otherwise ununified life, to make connections and deeper meanings between seemingly unrelated events.

Café:
Do you write to entertain or is there something more you want the readers to take away from your work?

Silvia:
As I am on my quest for spiritual enlightenment, I hope readers chase the spark of divinity within themselves.

Café:
Do you have a schedule for your writing or just write whenever you can?

Silvia:
My ideal schedule is writing in the morning and weekends, although mostly it's whenever I can.

Café:
Do you outline? If not, do you have some other interesting way that you keep track of what's going on, or what needs to happen in your book when you are writing it?

Silvia:
I do outline ... I like to use index cards first, then flesh it out.

Café:
Day job?

Silvia:
I'm a brand new High School English teacher after spending the last 20 years as a journalist.

Café:
Did you find it difficult to get published in the beginning?

Silvia:
Yes, and I still do. I would not say it's difficult to get published ... it's difficult to achieve a high level of creative writing ... I'm still not there yet, but am striving toward it. Once you get to that level, you will find a publisher.

Café:
Do you have a great rejection/critique or acceptance story you'd like to share?

Silvia:
I have a notebook of stock rejections, like most authors. It's nice to be accepted.

Café:
What kind of promotion do you find most affective?

Silvia:
Word of mouth is the best.

Café:
Heroes?

Silvia:
Mother Theresa and Allen Pinkerton.

Café:
What do you read?

Silvia:
Mysteries, young adult novels, best-sellers.

Café:
.Favorite TV or movies?

Silvia:
Sopranos, 24, West Wing.

Café:
Family?

Silvia:
Husband of many years and 2 children.

Café:
Any advice for aspiring or beginning writers?

Silvia:
Take classes in creative writing, keep writing on your own, keep a journal.

Café:
Good advice. Website?

Silvia:
www.silviafoti.biz.

Café:
Where can people purchase your books?

Silvia:
The Diva's Fool is at amazon.com and Skullduggery is at Fictionwise.

Café:
Thanks so much for joining us here at the Café. Happy reading and good coffee!

©2008 Lorie Ham. All rights reserved.