C. Lee McKenzie

Young Adult and Middle Grade Author

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You are here: Home / Contests / Anthologies / The Art of Making Doughnuts, An Interview

The Art of Making Doughnuts, An Interview

September 14, 2022 By C. Lee McKenzie

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I’m excited to welcome Linda Budzinski, the author of the lead story in the most recent Insecure Writers’ Support Group Anthology. Thanks for joining us here today, Linda.

Lee:
What’s the greatest lesson you’ve learned as a writer?

Linda:
This is such a tough question because I’ve learned (and am still learning) so many!
Certainly one of the most helpful lessons has been that inspiration tends not to “strike.” It often comes slowly, through hours of toiling and noodling. Those hours can be difficult, frustrating, and even
painful, but ultimately they are what result in those fun flashes that make writing so rewarding.

Lee:
What has been the biggest surprise of your writing life?

Linda:
How incredibly supportive the writing community can be. I belong to a lot of writing groups on social media, and people are always so willing to offer advice and critique for those who ask, encouragement for those feeling discouraged, and congratulations for those with good news.
Writers by and large are just really kind people. (If only the rest of my social media would follow suit!)

Lee:
If you could choose a metaphor to describe yourself as a writer, what would it be?

Linda:
Ahaha, great question! I wish I could say I’m a spider meticulously weaving a web, but I’m more like a blind squirrel trying to find that nut. Every once in a while, I succeed!

That’s a great contrast in metaphors. Love it. Thanks, Linda.


https://www.facebook.com/LindaBudzinskiAuthor
https://twitter.com/LindaBudz

Linda Budzinski writes sweet YA and adult romance. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and two rescue pups. In between creating meet-cutes and happy endings, she works in non-profit communications and outreach.


So what’s this story and this anthology about?

First Love: The Art of Making Doughnuts
An Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology

The sweetness of first love…

Could a fiercely independent cop’s heart be stolen by the guy who makes her favorite doughnuts? Will a maid who used deceit to snare a mail-order husband get a dose of her own medicine? Can her handsome neighbor rescue a modern-day “princess” from a tenacious ex-boyfriend? Can two strangers in a rideshare be honest enough to fall in love for real? Can you remember your first love? How about your second? Third? Fourth?

Featuring the talents of Linda Budzinski, Melissa Maygrove, Michael Di Gesu, Sylvia Ney, Katie Klein, Kim Elliott, Templeton Moss, S.E. White, Denise Covey, and Sammi Spizziri. Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these ten tales will touch your heart and rekindle lost feelings. Prepare to return to that first love…

Release date: September 6, 2022
Print ISBN – 9781939844880, $14.95
EBook ISBN – 9781939844897, $4.99
Romance - Clean & Wholesome (FIC027270) / Contemporary (FIC027020) / Historical (FIC027050)
186 pages, Freedom Fox Press, an imprint of Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C.

Founded by author Alex J. Cavanaugh and a Writer’s Digest Top Sites for Writers, the Insecure Writer’s Support Group offers support for writers and authors alike. It provides an online database; articles; monthly blog posting; Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram groups; #IWSGPit, and a newsletter.
https://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/


I hope you’ve enjoyed meeting Linda and finding out more about First Love: The Art of Eating Doughnuts. Be sure to get your copy, read it, and by all means, leave a review!

Amazon . Barnes & Noble . iTunes. Kobo .
Scribed . Goodreads

Filed Under: Anthologies, Linda Budzinski

Comments

  1. H. R. Sinclair says

    September 26, 2022 at 11:58 am

    Congrats. I love the squirrel metaphor!

  2. Nick Wilford says

    September 19, 2022 at 10:14 am

    Congrats to Linda. What a fun interview.

  3. ShootingStarsMag says

    September 19, 2022 at 8:22 am

    This sounds like a cute anthology, and lovely interview.

    That’s great she’s found such a wonderful writing community. 🙂

    Lauren

  4. Hilary Melton-Butcher says

    September 18, 2022 at 1:41 am

    Hi Lee and Linda - what a great post - so much fun to read … and I love Linda’s metaphor about the spider and the squirrel - good luck to all IWSG authors/writers - cheers Hilary

  5. Stephanie Fairday's Blog says

    September 17, 2022 at 5:45 pm

    I enjoyed meeting Linda and learning about First Love: The Art of Eating Doughnuts!

  6. Kim Elliott says

    September 17, 2022 at 7:57 am

    Love that metaphor, Linda. Judging by the fearless and tenacious squirrels in my yard, even blindness wouldn’t hold them back from their goals!

    Thanks for hosting, Lee!

  7. Damyanti Biswas says

    September 17, 2022 at 1:19 am

    I’m so stoked about our blogging community. The support we get in this blog verse is insane! Congratulations to all the writers in the anthology! can’t wait to read it 😀

  8. C. Lee McKenzie says

    September 16, 2022 at 8:41 am

    I was a pleasure having Linda here, and I’m enjoying reading the stories in the anthology!

  9. Melissa Maygrove says

    September 16, 2022 at 8:18 am

    Great interview!

  10. L. Diane Wolfe says

    September 16, 2022 at 7:48 am

    Thank you for featuring Linda and the anthology.

  11. Alex J. Cavanaugh says

    September 16, 2022 at 4:44 am

    Noodling! I do that on my guitar as well.
    Yes, the writing community is very supportive.

  12. Michael Di Gesu says

    September 15, 2022 at 6:20 pm

    Hi Lee,

    Thanks for hosting! Yes… this community is amazing. I had SO MUCH help when I first started writing back in 2009 when blogging was at its peak!

  13. Denise Covey says

    September 15, 2022 at 4:54 pm

    Thanks for hosting Linda, Lee. We belong to a very warm writing community.

  14. Liz A. says

    September 15, 2022 at 4:42 pm

    The writing community is very warm and welcoming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h59dYGrVQvs

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