Interview with Camille di Miao

Hi, Camille! Thanks so much for agreeing to be our March 2022 Author Spotlight. I know you a little bit because for a while we shared the same publisher. But can you tell our readers about yourself generally?

Hi! Thank you for having me. I live in coastal Virginia after having lived in San Antonio, San Francisco, Denver, and rural Pennsylvania. I’ve been married for twenty-four years and have four children, two of whom are grown and flown. And one rambunctious German shepherd puppy. After working in politics and real estate, I fulfilled my life-long dream of becoming an author. So I’m excited to visit with you about my sixth book, Until We Meet.

When did the writing bug first hit you? When did you know you wanted to be a writer? I know you were in real estate for a while, but I have a sneaking suspicion that you have always written.

I wrote short stories since as long as I can remember and my mom really encouraged me in that. But the writing bug hit me at age twelve when I was really bullied in school (Coke-bottle glasses, stringy hair, crooked teeth), and I’d spend recesses in the library. I read through nearly everything they had – Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, the Bobbsey Twins. Those authors really helped me escape my pain and I wanted to be like them one day.

For our readers who are interested in writing historical fiction, can you give us insight into your writing process?

Sure! I never set out to write historical fiction – I don’t think I could have even told you that it was a genre, though looking back, l see that it was a significant portion of what I read. But my first book, by the nature of what the story was, had to start in the 1930s, and I knew that I had to make it feel authentic. So I went online (often Wikipedia as a launching point), watched videos on You Tube, and I especially found it helpful to use Google Maps to “walk” streets. Obviously, lots had changed over the years, but that book was set in Liverpool and many of the buildings that were there in the 1930s are still around today.

I know one author who read two hundred books about her subject matter before writing her novel, but I cannot conceive of that!! Instead, I research as I go – I write until I need to look something up such as – What did telephones look like in 1955 and would they have had a party line? – and then I add what I find.

How did you manage to do all your research during Covid? Did your methods have to change because of Covid, and if so, how?

I have often been able to travel to the places I write about, so that definitely set me back. But since most of my research is Internet-heavy, it wasn’t too bad. In fact, I spent a great deal of Covid time researching my next historical fiction book, Come Fly With Me, for which I interviewed a lot of former Pan Am stewardesses from the 1960s. So that was actually easier because of Covid since they were all at home sheltering in place!

Did you find anything in your research that was particularly fascinating or that helped shape the novel?

I knew that I wanted my main characters to work in a real-life factory, not a fictional one. So I researched what was going on in and around Brooklyn during this era and I found out how significant the Brooklyn Navy Yard was. They were hiring women as more and more men went to war, so it was the perfect setting for my three female characters who were finding their place in the world.

In February 2020 – just before the world changed so much – I was in Honolulu as part of a family Pacific cruise and we toured the USS Missouri in Pearl Harbor. Little did I know that just a few months later, I would be writing this book and that the Missouri was actually built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. So it acted as a bookend to the story – my characters work on the ship as it’s being built, and then the ship is the site of the ending of the Pacific part of WWII.

What has been your greatest challenge as a writer? How have you been able to overcome it (if indeed you have!)

My greatest challenge is overcoming the belief that writing is all about ongoing inspiration. It’s actually such a roller coaster – you get an idea that you’re very excited about, but after that initial spark, it’s very much like a job to continue with, punctuated by moments of excitement and inspiration again. I think I always romanticized the profession, thinking that writers were constantly in the creative zone. And when I am, it’s really exciting. But like Edison said, it’s “10% inspiration, 90% perspiration.” I definitely find this to be true.

Who have been your writing inspirations?

My all-time favorite author is Agatha Christie. I’ve read all of her Poirots and have never once figured out who did it. She is a master!! And as much as I love mysteries, she is why I don’t write in that genre – I don’t feel like I could even attempt to do what she does.

For historical fiction, Kate Morton is by far my biggest inspiration. Her books are like dessert on a page – lush writing, perfect word choices, compelling stories. If you haven’t read her, run to your local bookstore right now!!

And finally, I was good friends by the late author Leila Meacham, who wrote Roses, Tumbleweeds, and many other 600+ page historical fiction books. Over frequent pancake breakfasts, she taught me how to be an author – what all of the different editing titles meant, how to not lose yourself to the business, etc. I miss her.

What are some things we wouldn’t know about you just by reading your work? I.e., are you a sports fan, Salsa dancer, equestrian?

Great question! Hmmm…I have always loved the Denver Broncos! When I was growing up, my dad worked at the television station that broadcast their games. So we frequently got tickets to go to then-Mile High Stadium. Sometimes in the corporate box, and sometimes—my favorite—the “cheap” seats in the South Stands. In one game, there was a blizzard, and so few fans showed up that the fans were named the MVP of the game! So I can say that I’ve been the MVP of an NFL game…

On Mondays, the station hosted “The John Elway Show,” in which the famed quarterback would interview one of the players and recap Sunday’s game. My dad often took me to that, and as there was no studio audience, it would just be my dad, the cameraman, the producer, John Elway, and the guest.

What books are on your bedside table?

As we are building a house and about to move, I’m reading a bunch of what I call my “B-list” books. Titles I’ve picked up at used book stores over the years, etc. Books that I don’t plan to keep and can donate or sell later. That way I don’t have to move them. So I’m excited to move in in a few months and get back to my “A-list” books. It has taught me to be a little more discerning about what books I pick up in the future. Additionally, I’m really on a kick of reading romance by Sariah Wilson, most of which are published by Montlake [an Amazon imprint]. The books are sexy, but I suspect she has religious views that keep her from crossing the line. I’m a PG kind of reader and writer, so the level of heat she writes with is just perfect for me.

What’s next for you?

I am part of a wonderful new contemporary series with a group of other authors called The Wishing Tree series. My book, a novella, is called A Parade of Wishes and comes out at the end of this month!