Susan Coventry of Clarkston is working on her third romance novel. Photo by Phil Custodio
Writing has been a hobby for Susan Coventry of Clarkston for a long time, but she got serious about writing a novel about three years ago.
“My husband was the one who pushed me to do something with it,” said Coventry, 50. “I finally started researching self publishing and found it was pretty simple to do.”
Her stories reflect her interest in romance novels, mostly on the fun and flirty side.
“I use things I glean from what I read, and an active imagination,” she said.
She released her first novel, “See You Then,” in 2015, about an older woman and a younger man and their efforts at romance despite their age difference.
“She’s a widowed school librarian, who meets a young man and they form a relationship,” she said.
In her second novel, “Starring You and Me,” the main character is a realtor in Clarkston when a celebrity comes to town to film a movie.
She is working on her third book, “A New Chapter.” The main character owns a bookstore in downtown Clarkston when someone from her past walks past.
“I wish we had a book store in town,” she said.
Her stories all take place in Clarkston, and mention locations such as the Union, Rudy’s and Dixie Highway.
“I wanted to bring a small town feel to the stories,” she said. “They’re lighthearted reads, feel-good romance. In the times we’re living in right now, it’s something light and fun, not something to weigh you down. People looking for that type of story, I think, would enjoy it.”
The author is from Waterford and moved to Clarkston 20 years ago with her husband, raising two daughters and a dog.
“We heard a lot of good things about the school district,” she said.
She has worked in insurance and real estate, and is a stay at home mom who loves to write and read, with a degree in elementary education in language arts.
She also blogs on her website at www.susancoventry.org, and has almost 4,000 followers on Facebook.
“It’s going very good. I’m picking up some momentum here,” she said. “It’s interesting, a learning experience. People ask about self publishing. I’m new to it myself. It’s fun.”
She plans to go to the Romance Writers of America convention in San Diego to meet and network with other authors.
“I want to join that and become active in that community, too,” she said.
Her books are available at bookstores including Past Tense Books in Holly and Fenton’s Open Book, as well as online at Amazon and Kindlebook.