Local author Bette Bono is writing the second in a series of novels about a group of unusual seniors with special powers that enable them to travel back in time to solve historical mysteries. I loved the first one, The Better Angels, which was published by All Things That Matter Press in 2019. I asked her where she did her writing, and what she needs to enable her to write. Here’s what she said:
I wrote my debut novel, The Better Angels, from the kitchen table. I had the house to myself during the day, so I could craft my time travel-history-adventure-mystery with few interruptions and easy access to coffee.
But as I began work on the sequel, the pandemic arrived. Suddenly, everyone in my household was working from home. The kitchen became Grand Central Terminal, the place to converge for a break, a snack, a meal, TV news, card games, drinks, and non-stop conversation.
I needed to order more coffee! More importantly, I needed a new at-home writing space. My brilliant husband suggested I take over the dining room. After all, we weren’t going to be hosting dinner party guests for a while. So, after a few hours work and a few improvised furnishings, my new workspace was created. The home-built, cement-block bookshelves look a bit like something from a college dorm, but the books I need—primarily history and biographies—are close at hand. My husband, knowing I love gardening, set up a green space for me in front of the windows. Houseplants, orchids, a Christmas cactus, chives, dill, parsley, and basil became my writing companions.
My new novel, Fear Itself, was completed in my new “office” and will be out later this year. This time, my time travelers voyage back to the 1930s to investigate some of the pro-Hitler groups that formed in the U.S. before World War II. Now I’m on to a collection of short stories and research for the next time travel book. I love my writer’s workplace and don’t plan on decamping any time soon.
You can find The Better Angels on Amazon and other retailers. You can connect with Bette on Facebook, Goodreads, Amazon, and  LinkedIn. Her website, Bette Bono’s Blog, discusses books, writing, history, time travel, senior superheroes, and our better angels.