Interview with Patti Geesey.

Full Name:
Patti L. Geesey

Do you have a nickname or what do your friends call you?
Primarily, I go by Patti, but I am also known to some friends as my middle name, Lynn.

Birthplace:
Lansing, Michigan

Current hometown:
Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania

Favorite city and why?
Hershey, Pennsylvania.  It is a beautiful town, with a lot of history that has sentimental value to me for several reasons.
Is chocolate one of the reasons?  I bet chocolate is one of the reasons.
Of course!  Chocolate is one of the biggest reasons!  One of the other reasons is my huge respect for Milton S. Hershey and the things he accomplished throughout his life.  Ever since I was a young child, I always wanted to do something to help better the lives of others, and he has always been a person I admired and respected.

Birthday / Age:
My actual birthdate is unknown to me, but my driver’s license says April 26^th.  I’m 44.

How would you describe yourself physically?
5’2, eyes of blue, light brown (with some grey) hair that goes a bit past my waist.
“Five foot two, eyes of blue, but, oh what those five feet could do.”

How would someone else describe you physically?
Probably the same as above, or at least I would hope.

The first thing people notice about you is…
They usually notice the length of my hair.

Religion, if any?
I was raised within the religion of Christianity.

Are you superstitious at all? Any phobias?
Not really superstitious, no.  Phobias, yes, I have two.  Dentists and poodles.  (Long story on both!)
So a poodle dentist would be the worst!
Well, yes, or a dental practice that had a pet poodle.

Do you smoke / drink? If so, what? Any bad habits?
I do not smoke or drink.  The last of the alcoholic beverages I consumed was in February 1994.   Bad habits?  I’d have to say not getting the proper sleep I need, because I find it hard to put down the manuscripts or books I am reading.

Current occupation / Dream job:
Editor, Author, and Hotel Night Auditor.  My dream job is doing what I am currently doing.  Yes, I love all three.

What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
I love to read, cross stitch, spend time with my teen son, and travel.

What is your zombie outbreak survival plan?
I think it would be more fun being one of the zombies, but if I had to have a ‘plan’, it would be to ‘throw meat while running!’

Weapon of choice:
For a zombie outbreak, or just overall? Does an evil eye count as a weapon of choice?
Ladies’ choice… and yes.
Evil eye, then.  They always say, “If looks could kill…”

Do you have any special skills?
Detailed beta reading, editing, proofreading, writing, hotel audit procedures in several different hotel computer programs, reading braille and doing sign language.

Did you go to college and, if so, what for?
I attended college for about a month, but at that time (1987), I was not doing too well health wise, and was unable to continue full-time college.

If you went to college, did you manage to pay off your student loans?
I had no student loans.

Any pets?   If so, what are they and what are their names?
I no longer have any pets, but a few years ago I had a Bassett Hound named Gypsy Willow, and a parakeet named Marty.

What is your favorite animal?
The white wolf.

Speaking of pets, any pet peeves?
I have several pet peeves, but the main one is when people use *than* when they really mean *then*.

Favorite / Least favorite Food:
I am known for being addicted to carrots.  So, my favorite food is carrots with a side of homemade macaroni and cheese.  My least favorite foods are sausage and other types of meat.

What is your favorite quotation / motto / saying?
"Don't believe what your eyes are telling you.  All they show is limitation.  Look with your understanding, find out what you already know, and you'll see the way to fly." (Richard Bach)

What is the best thing that ever happened to you?
Finding birth relatives after 44 years of not knowing they even existed.

What is the worst thing that ever happened to you?
The worst thing was being told while in the delivery room that I had a 95% chance of dying while giving birth to my son.
Shows what they know, right?
Right!  Keep on keeping on!

Ever had your heart broken? Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
My heart has been broken many times.  I’m sure there are quite a few stories that could come from those times, perhaps even a novel or two.

Ever broken someone’s heart? Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
Unfortunately, yes.  I broke a few hearts in high school, and beyond, by making foolish mistakes.  Again, I am sure there are some stories worth telling, but I will save them for an autobiography in the future, or a novel.

What is the best thing you’ve ever done?
I volunteered my time as a housemother in a school/group home setting with developmentally challenged youth and young adults.

What is the worst thing you’ve ever done?
I got married to one person, when my heart was set on another.  *sigh*

If you could kill one person, who would it be, and why?
No one specifically, but if I had to, it would probably be an oddball that phoned the hotel the other night sharing everything about his life, and never asking about the rooms or reserving one.  He killed thirty minutes of my time, so in one of my stories he will be killed.  *grin*

What do you do?
I edit for some amazing authors.  A couple of them don’t see themselves as authors in the real sense of the word, but they are authors, despite what ‘they’ think.

How did you get started doing what you do?
I started out after high school by becoming a beta reader for a few friends that were writers.  All of them told me I do more than beta read, and that I should take classes given by community businesses and colleges on editing.  I took non-credit courses, and enrichment courses in writing and editing.  Later I started editing for indie authors and those looking for publishing presses.
I have the same disease.  That’s why I only beta read for friends, because all of my beta reads end up becoming edits, and sometimes those edits end up becoming co-authorships.  Not that I feel the need to intrude into everyone’s work, but if I can improve the tone of the work to help the author accomplish what I think they’re trying to accomplish I’m happy to do so.  I’ve helped to write a lot more books than I have in my bibliography and I’ve done a lot of work-for-hire and ghost-writing.
It’s a disease?  So, that explains a lot! Yes, anything to help them accomplish their goals is #1 for me.

What is your advice to other people that want to get started doing what you do?
If you love to write, write.  Keep writing.  If you love to edit, study hard, learn the trade, and do it for the authors, not just for yourself.  If you want to be a night auditor in a hotel, be prepared for late night oddities, and keep watch for twins and big wheels. *evil smirk*

What are some of the projects you’ve worked on/finished in the past?
Give us a little history if you will.
I was first published in a poetry anthology when I was nine.  I wrote a few short stories in school that were also published in anthologies.  Recently, however, I have two flash fiction stories published.  ‘The Barren Blaze’ is in the Flash It! Anthology (with the Facebook Fiction Writers Group) and the other, Feast of Kryfifi, is published in an eZine by Sirens Call Publications.
What projects are you working on now?
I am working on a supernatural story titled Voices of Gaddis, which goes to my editor (Monique Happy Editorial Services) in April.  I am also working on two women’s fiction stories, and a collection of short stories based in the Southern Appalachia that are a mix of genre.

What are you watching?
I don’t watch television.

What are you listening to?
The laughter that is resonating from my teen son’s room.

What are you reading?
Besides some awesome manuscripts?  I am currently reading Your Love is King by Adrienne Thompson, and Grammatically Correct (2^nd Edition) by Anne Stilman.

Favorite author / book?
Stuart Woods has been my favorite for many years with his Stone Barrington novels. Although recently, I’ve come across several authors and books that I call favorites.  I really cannot choose just one.  T.M. Brown’s women’s fiction book Struggles of the Women Folk, has empowered me. D. Alan Lewis and his book The Blood in Snowflake Garden will always be on the top of my favorites list.

Favorite band / song?
Ritchie Kotzen- Faith

Least favorite band / song?
I dislike John Anderson’s song titled Seminole Wind.

If you could do anything other than what you do now, what would you do?
Why would I want to do anything other than edit, write, and be a night auditor?  Hmm… If I had to choose something else to do, it would be to go back working with developmentally challenged individuals.

Who would you want to meet that you haven’t met?
You get three choices: Alive. Dead. Fictional.
Alive: Jensen Ackles
Dead: Ernest Hemmingway
Fictional: A character named Sergeant Bill “Hawk” Hawkins, from a manuscript I am currently editing for an author.

What’s the best and worst job you’ve ever had?
The best job I held was assisting individuals with developmental challenges.
The worst job I ever had was when I worked as a night shift supervisor at a gasoline station in the 90’s.

Are there any questions that I didn’t ask that you wished I had asked that you would like to answer now?
You covered a lot of bases. I cannot think of any additional questions at the moment.

Anyone you recommend I interview that you can put me in touch with?
Robert Friedrich, D. Jonathan Brudie, Michael Bray, Ricky Cooper, Tony Baker, and a few others.
Cool!  I’m working on interviews with Ricky Cooper and Tony Baker.  As for the rest, you make the introductions and I’ll handle the follow-through.
Christopher D. Abbott is another one.  I highly recommend interviewing him.

Got any questions for me?
Not at this time.  I usually think of things after the fact.
Well, keep me posted.

Thanks for letting me subject you to being interviewed!

Pitch parade:
Give me all of your links for things you want to promote.   All of them.
At the moment I only use Facebook. I am making an updated website and twitter account.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pattigeeseyauthor

About the Interviewee:
Born in Lansing, Michigan, and raised in Mount Joy, Pennsylvania.
I’ve been writing since age nine when my first poetry works were published in anthologies.
I enjoy reading, writing, editing, and working in hotels as night auditor.
I started beta reading in 1989 for a few author friends. I took non-credit courses through local colleges and community businesses. I have edited horror, sci-fi, crime/mystery, paranormal/supernatural, women’s lit, fantasy, romance, and more.
I write women’s fiction, romance, and supernatural.
I love to research all things. I am very observant to the point it annoys me at times, but that is a good thing (being observant) in this industry.

About the Interviewer:

Scott Lefebvre can write about whatever you want him to write about.
Mostly because when he was grounded for his outlandish behavior as a hyperactive school child, the only place he was allowed to go was the public library.
His literary tastes were forged by the works of Helen Hoke, Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
He is the author of Spooky Creepy Long Island, and a contributing author to Forrest J. Ackerman’s Anthology of the Living Dead, Fracas: A Collection of Short Friction, The Call of Lovecraft, and Cashiers du Cinemart.
He is currently working on ten novel-length book projects which will be released in 2014.
He also publishes themed collections of interviews from his interview blog You Are Entitled To My Opinion.
His reviews have been published by a variety of in print and online media including Scars Magazine, Icons of Fright, Fatally Yours and Screams of Terror, and he has appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue and HorrorHound Magazine.
He is the Assistant Program Director for The Arkham Film Society and produces electronic music under the names Master Control and LOVECRAFTWORK.
He is currently working on a novel-length expansion of a short-story titled, "The End Of The World Is Nigh", a crowd-funded, crowd-sourced, post-apocalyptic, zombie epidemic project.
Check out the blog for the book here: theendoftheworldisnighbook.blogspot.com
Check out the Facebook Fan Page for the project here: www.facebook.com/TheEndOfTheWorldIsNighBook
Check his author profile at: www.amazon.com/Scott-Lefebvre/e/B001TQ2W9G
Follow him at GoodReads here:
www.goodreads.com/author/show/1617246.Scott_Lefebvre
Check out his publishing imprint Burnt Offerings Books here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Burnt-Offerings-Books/1408858196016246
And here: http://burntofferingsbooks.blogspot.com/
Check out his electronic music here: soundcloud.com/master_control
And here: master-control.bandcamp.com
Check out his videos at: www.youtube.com/user/doctornapoleon
Check out his IMDB profile here: www.imdb.com/name/nm3678959
Follow his Twitter here: twitter.com/TheLefebvre or @TheLefebvre
Follow his Tumblr here: thelefebvre.tumblr.com
Check out his Etsy here: www.etsy.com/shop/ScottLefebvreArt
Join the group for The Arkham Film Society here:
www.facebook.com/groups/arkhamscreenings
Stalk his Facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheLefebvre
E-mail him at: Scott_Lefebvre@hotmail.com