About Me

I recently took on the role of VP of Communications for the Virginia Romance Writers. As an introduction to the group, I filled out a little Q&A and I thought it would be fun to share here!

Name: SH Burgess

What do you write: It depends on what mood you’re catching me in  I love creating characters with traits from paranormal/sci fi and mashing them up in an usual setting and they’re probably a sociopath with a killer smile. However, I recognize this is not for everyone so…Last year, I did finish a short contemporary romance. It’s going through some edits so we’ll see if it winds up a long contemporary, lol.

How long have you been writing? Since Kindergarten when I wrote the True Book of Paleontology instead of the standard My Dinosaur Book.

Published? Working on it, unless you consider my 11th grade English poem being published in an anthology of VA English students.

Best writing advice: Keep going until it’s a habit and you can’t imagine not writing every day.

Plotter or pantser: What is plotting? 100% panster. If I try and plot anything there’s a revolt in my brain and everything is full stop.

Favorite author: Preston & Child write my absolute favorite series. The Pendergast series are action packed, horror, science fiction, suspense, mystery, mind bending, spectaculars. I also love KMM and the Fever Series.

Last thing you read: Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho – Great kids story about diversity and representation.

Other hidden talents/hobbies: I’ve played the flute for over <gulps> 30 years. And due to Covid, I think I’ve become the ultimate multitasker trying to do the day joy, hustle job, teacher job and cat wrangler all at the same time.

What keeps you motivated? The idea that my story is not like everyone else’s and someone out there may read it and like it.

What is the strangest thing on your desk? Maybe it’s more around what is missing from my desk, which would be the kitchen sink with the amount of stuff I have residing on it. Currently, I have a cat, two computers set up, a printer, an ipad, two phones, a Nintendo switch, endless amounts of post-it notes, stickers, notebooks, journals, a desk fan, countless water bottles, a cup of coffee, random snacks, nail polish, rubbing alcohol, 2 boxes of pens, a cactus and 5 cups of pens…make that 6. And then there’s also the clutter  The creative brain is messy.

What do you listen to as you write? Going back to the second question, it depends on the mood. I love Sara Bareilles, she’s my music muse, so she’ll be on more often than not. I have a couple of writing playlists on Spotify containing everything from Linkin Park, 30 Seconds to Mars to John Williams and the Boston Pops to Bon Iver.

Thanks for learning a little bit more about me. The beginning of the year has already been slammed with non-creative time. I’ve been feeling very guilty about neglecting my writing but since it doesn’t pay the bills at the moment, I have to let it be a sidelined. Hopefully, only for a little bit longer. If you’re interested in following some of my other social media, here’s where you can find me.