Deb Brod, a fiction novelist, visited Elgin Community College on Thursday, Oct. 19 to read three excerpts from her latest novel, “Getting Taken” for the Coffee House reading event.

The “Getting Even” series follows Robyn Guthrie, a freelance writer in her 40’s, and her relationship with her aging mother. This series is not yet finished as Brod is currently working on the unnamed fourth installment alongside a suspense novel titled “Gus”.

John O’Leary, an audience member from St. Charles who already owns several of her novels, states that Brod’s writing is filled with lively humor and “real learning”.

From a young age, Brod was continuously reading, to the point it inspired her to form characters in her mind with an urge to express them. With writing, she came to find that the experience was very creative, and “spiritual”. It allows one to “process life, [and] experience other worlds”.

She doesn’t use any standard outline, so developing her plot as she goes is one of the aspects she enjoys most about her writing.

When asked what she would offer as advice for aspiring authors, she says to keep reading, and that getting a Journalism degree is a must. It teaches discipline and trains your “writing muscle”.

Brod also, along with two fellow authors, writes on a blog called “3 writers in a cafe every Friday”, offering tidbits of her writing style.

The next reading event is on Nov. 16 with Mark Turcotte.