I want to introduce you to the behind-the-scenes people who enrich your Sean McPherson reading experience.
CHRISTINE DESMET (upper left)
Christine has been my writing coach for over a decade. Her eyes are the first pair to see what’s happening at Pines & Quill. As I complete each chapter, she reviews it and then lets me know what’s working (and why) and what doesn’t work (and why). Then, she suggests how I might fix it.
CANDACE JOHNSON (upper right)
Candace is my copyeditor. Once the manuscript is finished, she finesses my prose to observe the conventions of good writing, verifying proper syntax, word choice, spelling, punctuation, and adherence to The Chicago Manual of Style.
REBECCA STERN (lower left)
Rebecca is the voice of the Sean McPherson novels. As the audiobook narrator, she embodies then speaks for each character, breathing three-dimensional life into them until they rise off the page (almost flesh and blood) for the reader’s listening pleasure.
LAUREN WISE (lower right)
Lauren is my project manager at SparkPress. From orchestrating book cover artwork to retail distribution and everything in between—page layout, in-house proofing, and final edits—she sets the deadlines I must meet to ensure an annual Sean McPherson spring release.
THANK YOU
Thank YOU for your readership and for posting reviews that bring new readers to the Sean McPherson novels.
Tuesdays with Laurie 
You are fortunate to have a quartette of reliable women in your writing corner. All best this season and in the year ahead!
Marian — Thank you so much!
I so agree! What a stunning group of talented women contributing to your process and writing outcomes. Until I started exploring the world of writing and authorship, I had no idea (as I’m sure is true for many lovers of your novels), all it takes to bring a book into the readers hands. Not to mention what it takes to create an award winning novel! It clearly takes a village! My hat is off to you and your team of expert supporters!!
Thank you for including me, Laurie; I’m honored to be in such esteemed company. I love every minute of working with you and the characters from Pines & Quill!
What a great group of creative collaborators you guys are! Candy, congratulations on this wonderful new adventure in your career. I used to teach and edit primary school students’ writing, which kind of allows me to relate, in some small way, to your passion of what you do. After reading various informal writing pieces on the Internet, I’ve noticed more careless editing issues than ever before where obviously the writers have no intentions to make corrections. The writers credibility goes right out the window for me. I think it must be very satisfying to be an editor where your expert editing skills can provide that the author’s intended meaning in their written words clearly match what they wanted to convey to their audience. Editing a serious author’s already brilliant creation with a professional editor’s fresh eyes, I think requires a mindful art of combining and applying a layered variety of intelligences, all at once, to weave time frame, concept, context, voice, detail, sequence, clarifications, besides grammar, punctuation and so many more pieces as the process goes along. Distractions to the text can stop fluidity of reading, thus, loss of focus and understanding and ultimately, the joy of what one is reading.
It must be such a joy to be part of this fine-oiled close knit network of women; all professional and masters of your crafts, joining together your ingenuity to polish, radiate, harmonize, and lift your novelist’s already rich manuscript. ( In my next life, I want to come back as one of you guys!)
San Marin High Alumni
Barbara Purdy Leiker
👏👋🏼