Victoria Schade

This week: Victoria Schade!

This week is a big week for one of my favorite people! Victoria Schade, a dog trainer by day and animal lover/author by night, has her very first novel coming out this week! Congrats! This lovely lady has worked with Animal Planet for the Puppy Bowl, among other awesome stuff. Get to know Victoria below!

Name: Victoria Schade

Website: www.victoriaschade.com

Social Media: Facebook: facebook.com/VictoriaSchadeAuthor
Twitter: @VictoriaSchade
Instagram: @lifeontheleash

Genre: Women's Fiction, Non-Fiction

Where do you find inspiration?
Everywhere! In my social media feeds, the news, eavesdropped conversations, art, my own crazy brain … the world is filled to the brim with story inspiration.

Which character in literature do you associate yourself with the most?
Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables. We share many qualities, good and bad. And my hair wants to be red, but I won’t allow it. 

Which piece of your writing was the most entertaining/enjoyable to write? Why?
I loved writing the dance scene at the Latin club. In fact, I wrote it several chapters before it was due to happen because I was so excited to get to it. Dancing is one of my passions, and I wanted to capture the joy of dance in that scene. Cora’s perspective is of the reluctant, nervous dancer who comes to understand the magic of dancing with someone who knows what he’s doing (insert double entendre here – wink wink), and her friend Maggie is the person already in love with dance, who knows how to shake it!

Was the first novel you published the first you ever wrote? What was? 
Life on the Leash is my first novel (I’ve also written two how-to books Bonding with Your Dog, and Secrets of a Dog Trainer), so I consider myself very lucky that it was published. However, it was revised many, many, many times, with input from a dozen people before it reached its final form. 

When I’m not writing I’m usually…
Thinking about writing! Okay, that’s a cop-out. I’m usually hanging with my favorite crew; my husband Tom and my dogs Millie and Olive. We live in a 1850s house that leans more toward 1980s updates than charming vintage, so renovations are our life. We’re living proof that the only thing that works in an old house is the owners!

If you could tell or ask any character in literature or film anything, what would it be? 
I’d ask John Grogan, author of Marley and Me, why he didn’t seek out a qualified trainer to help him sort through his very typical new puppy challenges, instead of chronicling it in a bestselling book that was turned into a movie. (Oh wait, I think I answered my own question.) Pet parent ineptitude disguised as comedy bums me out.

If you had lived a different life, made different choices, what would you be doing now? 
Wow, there are so many options for this one. Pastry chef. Dancer. Professional napper. Certified Internet Searcher. Chief Reading Officer. Part time puppy cuddler. Oh wait – I am all of those things!

What are five things you couldn’t do without? 
1. The people I love
2. Animals – all of ‘em
3. Books
4. Music
5. Dance
5.5  Cupcakes

What do few people know about you? 
I can cry on cue, pretty convincingly. (Please note that I only use this power for playacting.)

Are you working on any current projects?
Always! When I can’t fall asleep I work on plotting, so I’ve got quite a few tales (tails?) bumping around in my brain.

What work of fiction made you want to be a writer?
I wouldn’t say a book made me want to be a writer, exactly. I grew up devouring books – the library was my church – and I was a storyteller even as a child. (“Bloody Gut Man” was a hit at sleepovers, about a man whose guts were on the outside of his body. Wait a sec - why am I not writing horror?) I didn’t make the connection that I wanted to actually write fiction until I worked on my first how-to dog training book. I had a tough time writing it, but I found myself sailing through the illustrative vignettes that went with each lesson. Something clicked for me – how-to is hard, but fiction is fun!

What tools do you use for writing, organization, marketing?
I write on my tiny laptop, which I call “Baby Lap” because it’s small and temperamental. I’m still a pen and paper gal when it comes to notes, calendars and to-do lists. I’m happily old school! Marketing is all about compelling images on social media … I’m lucky to have two very willing canine models who happily pose for me.

Do you find it difficult to manage writing with other aspects of your life (personal, professional, etc.)? 

Not necessarily … it’s also a big part of my daily work, so word count is my life. And I can very easily shift gears between a how-to piece I’m writing for a pet-centric website to fiction. 

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Author Bio: Victoria Schade is an author, speaker, and dog trainer known for her upbeat approach to living and working with dogs. She has been featured in The Washington Post, Martha Stewart Living, Real Simple, Reader's Digest, The Bark, and many dog-specific publications. Victoria has worked on Animal Planet's annual Puppy Bowl special for the past twelve years. She has served as a pet expert for Petside, Pet360, petMD and PawCulture, writing training and behavior content and appearing in educational videos. Life on the Leash is her first novel.