It's a huge pleasure this week to have my friend Fleur McDonald, as my guest blogger to tell us a bit about her books and writing process.  Fleur is a full time farmer, mother and writer extraordinaire, living near Esperance in Western Australia.

Welcome Fleur! Your second book, Blue Skies is about to be released. Congratulations. Can you tell us a bit about it?

Thanks for having me here, Lisa! Blue Skies is due out on the 1^st of April. It tells the story of Amanda Greenfield, who is a head strong and stubborn girl, but full of determination to run her family's farm, Kyleena. Her father, battling grief and depression wants to sell Kyleena and get away for the variance of crop yields and stock prices. Amanda finally gets him to think about it, and she begins to think that things are looking up, when she experiences fear, like she never has before. The source behind it, is not only mysterious, but terrifying.

Wow! Sounds intriguing! Red Dust, your first novel is still selling very well. Where did you get your idea for that book? Does anything/anyone in particular inspire you?

The idea for Red Dust, just hit me one day. I had not long begun a writing course and my mentor said that he thought I could write a novel.  I had read Jillaroo by Rachael Treasure and knew that country stories had their place in Australian fiction, but I wasn't sure how I could be any different to Rachael. I knew I loved crime so I started to think about what crime happened in the country... that led to stock stealing, which is really entwined in Australia's history.

That's great. So is that how your writing career began?

Yes. This may sound silly but I just sat at the computer and wrote. I don't have any writing qualifications - I started a writing course, but I never finished it, because I got the Red Dust contract and didn't have time. I decided that I would write a book I wanted to write, so I did!

Any tips regarding common mistakes aspiring writers make?       

Hmm, interesting question. Probably not re-writing and re-reading their work enough. You can't hand anything sub-standard to a publisher.

Definitely good advice. Do you have any advice on how to handle the writing process and how not to get discouraged by rejection?

It's very easy to get distracted by outside influences. Marketing my books is something I try very hard at - I write my blogs, Facebook and Twitter but, at the moment, that's okay, because I have Blue Skies coming out. I'm going to get to a stage, when I start the next book, that I won't have the time to do that as often as I do now. So a single focus, for my writing, is what I need. I tend to only have two hours a week that I know I can write, so I have to make the most of that time.

As for rejection letters... well, when I submitted Red Dust to Louise Thurtell from Allen and Unwin, for the first time, she told me it wasn't what she was looking for. I re-submitted about six months later and got a contract. Just because a publishing house isn't looking for what you write today, they may well be tomorrow or next week. Don't give up, keep going until you get what you want... a publishing contract!

Fleur, it's funny you mention Facebook and Twitter. I'm struggling with both. They can be quite addictive and before you know it, you've spent three hours updating your status and tweeting sweet nothings! Very interesting that you submitted to A & U and then re-submitted six months later. A good tip for budding authors! Tell me what you love about being a writer?

The fact I get a break from my own mundane life! I get to live a life that maybe I wanted to (whether I knew it or not!) I name my characters; they become my (new) babies then friends! I also love that I can come into the office and shut out the world - if it's not raining in real life, I can make it rain in my book, if the stock are hungry in real life, I grow grass in my book! It is a real escapism for me and at times, I need that.

There are certainly many of us who love disappearing into that fantasy world! What do you find the most challenging about being a writer?

For me, it's finding the time. I still work full time on the farm and I have two children (ten and nine). My youngest has a learning disability, so there is a lot of work to put into him. The two hours I get are snatched from my day in Esperance (when I go to do the shopping.) I park myself in our accountants office and write, write, write! It's wonderful!

Fleur, given that you only get two hours a week to write, your output is incredible. You must have a very quick, determined mind, not to mention nimble fingers and extraordinary discipline! What are you working on now?  Future plans?

Well, Purple Roads is well under way, with a forth idea lurking in the background. (That one is tentatively called Silver Fences.) After that we'll have to wait and see, but I guess I'd still like to be writing in ten years time and loving it!

Thanks for dropping by, Fleur. Sounds like you have a very clear direction with your future books and a great theme with titles!

Fleur has very kindly offered to give away three signed copies of Blue Skies to readers (Australian readers only, sorry!). Please leave a comment and you could be a lucky winner. Competition closes Monday March 22^nd.

Also, click on the link to check out Fleur's website and learn more about her books and amazing life on the land. The photos are pretty awesome, too!

Update: March 25  Congratulations to Allison, Amy and Klaire who have each won a copy of Fleur's new book, Blue Skies.