Describe your working relationship - who does what, and is it all done by email?
Jeff: When Nancy and I are in the early stages of working on a book, we usually sit down together and hash out at least the broad strokes of the plot. Then one of us puts it down on paper - well, virtual paper - and passes it to the other.
We go back and forth via email on this until it's in a shape we're both happy with, then send it off to our editor for approval. Once it's approved, we start writing, again passing the chapters via email. Generally we divide up the outline by chapters, and each do our ration of chapters, ideally keeping up with the other so when we write chapter five, for example, we know how chapter four ended.
Once it's all done we both go back over it all and smooth out the rough spots.
Nancy: Jeff summed up our working relationship pretty well. One thing you should know about their house is that it is like a movie set. It's warm and fun and there are lots of people running in and out - their daughter and her friends trying on Goth makeup; their son regaling you with endless details about some TV show or game.
Jeff's wife, the author Maryelizabeth Hart, collects action figures and toys - Xena, Ariel, Poison Ivy, all the redheads - and Jeff loves the West. He has more Playmobile Western figures than a toy store. It's fun to go over there to work.
My house, on the other hand, tends to be quieter (except for the incessantly barking dog from hell, Miss Dot). I go out into the world and then cocoon. I don't watch TV and I forget to listen to music. But I go out into the world a lot; I need a haven to return to.
As Jeff mentioned, once we've got the basics worked out, we work alone and email each other.
