After the Fairytale's End: Author Interview with Kristen Reed

What drew you to writing fantasy - specifically re-writing what happened after a fairy tale's end?

I've always been a fan of fairy tales and the fantasy genre as a whole, but when I saw an old musical version of Cinderella (The Slipper and the Rose), I began to wonder what would happen if the characters didn't have magic at their disposal. The protagonists could still have a happily ever after, but the prince's poor fiancée was another story. So, I decided to dive in and tell Demetria's story in The Jilted Bride: A Footnote to Cinderella's Happiness (Fairetellings #1).

When did you actually start writing your first book? How long did it take to write your first draft? Who encouraged you along the way?

My first book, The Kings' Council, was published in 2012. I probably went through about seven drafts, and that was after I re-wrote the story it was originally inspired by. My friends and specifically my community/Bible study group have been very encouraging.

Each of your books are indie-published. Did you first try the query route with agents and publishers? 

When I wrote The Kings' Council, I tried to find a traditional publisher, but I was met by a lot of rejection. I eventually discovered the world of self-publishing and I haven't looked back since.

Other than completing your novels, what was the most difficult aspect of publishing for you?

Editing is the bane of my existence, but it's worth it when I have a finished paperback in my hands that's an enjoyable read.

What has surprised you the most about getting published other than the joy of seeing your book in print?

The feedback! I've had people tell me that The Jilted Bride made them cry and gave them chills. An editorial reviewer even compared it to the musical Wicked, which was really flattering.

What do you know now about publishing that you wish you knew sooner?

That marketing is important. I was extremely lazy when it came to marketing my first books. Also, finding the right audience is key.

What’s been your best promotion for selling books?

I've tried to be better about writing blogs and social media posts. I'm not sure how many sales I can attribute to that, but I've noticed an increase since I started promoting The Jilted Bride online.

What advice would you give someone who wants to indie-publish? 

Don't skimp on the editing. I've paid professional editors to take a look at my last two books, and it was worth the money. Also, don't give up just because you get some negative reviews or feedback. Your book isn't for everyone. Just take the constructive criticism so you can grow stronger as an author, and keep going. Someone out there needs your book. They just don't know it yet.

What other works do you have in the process?

Eirwen's Dream: Inside Snow White's Sleeping Mind (Fairetellings #2) will be out on July 1. I actually just posted the book trailer on YouTube. You can find it at https://youtu.be/hBEoNOg3KTo. I also have a third book from the Fairetellings series in the works and an idea for the fourth.

Any last words you’d like to add?

Just that I hope your readers enjoy my books! The Jilted Bride and Eirwen's Dream are uplifting, quick reads that will warm your heart and bring a smile to you face.

That's all for today's interview. If you'd like to learn more about Kristen's books and upcoming projects, here's some links to get you started. 

www.facebook.com/TheJiltedBride

www.facebook.com/KristenReedAuthor

The Jilted Bride: https://www.amazon.com/Jilted-Bride-Cinderellas-Happiness-Fairetellings-ebook/dp/B01EUE2MPM

Eirwen’s Dream: https://www.amazon.com/Eirwens-Dream-Inside-Sleeping-Fairetellings-ebook/dp/B01G2H6KCG

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Kristen-Reed/e/B00A1OX9H6/

Finding Your Genre: Author Interview with Christine Grey

My interview today is with Christine Grey lives in Wisconsin with her husband, Dan, and their seven children, three dogs, and two cats. With a family like that, she knows how important it is to escape from reality from time to time. That's why she loves using her free time creating worlds of magic, romance, and humor.

What drew you to writing fantasy? Was there a specific author that you read that made you think, “I could write that"?

I have always enjoyed writing. My first foray into writing came in the form of a romance novel. It was hideously bad, and I threw it away in disgust. About a year later, an idea came to me about a girl and a magical sword. It was no more than a small flash of an idea, but I began to write. As I wrote, it became clear to me that fantasy was definitely my genre. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings was always a favorite, so I was inspired by that, although my style is quite different from his.

When did you actually start writing your first book? 

I started that first novel eight years ago. The first draft took a bout three months, as I recall, but it took me another six years until I had it how I wanted it. Keep in mind that there were times that I put it down for a year and walked away, sure that it was no good, but it always called me back. 

How many re-writes do you think you did?

I had at least a dozen, and that was before I hired an editor to help me fine tune it. 

Who encouraged you along the way? 

My husband has always been my rock. He read and reread my work, offering suggestions when he could and was my cheerleader on the days when I felt like I would never get anywhere with it. 

Are you active with any writer’s critique groups? 

I do not belong to any critique groups. I am part of a large Facebook group of authors called CIR (Clean Indie Reads). I was introduced to my editor, Elise Abram, and cover designer, Victorine Lieske, through the group. My books tend to be a bit PG-13, so I don't fall in the "squeaky clean" category of writing, but I meet the standards for the CIR group. They have been amazing, and I find the atmosphere there to be supportive and welcoming. For me, it's a homey place where I don't have to be exposed to material that is beyond my comfort level.

Each of your books are indie-published. Did you first try the query route with agents and publishers? What type of research did you do before you chose you source to publish? 

I did try the traditional route first. I think I tried about a dozen agents. When the answer was always a polite form letter, I threw in the towel in frustration for a long time. My husband's cousin, Richard Houston, writes cozy mysteries, and has been quite successful independently publishing. He was the one who referred me to CIR. He was the one who inspired me to go Indie, and I have never looked back. The freedom and control I have are priceless to me. At this point, I'm not sure I could ever be persuaded to go to traditional publishing. Of course, never say never, but the agent would need to be something pretty special to take me down that road. 

What type of research did you do before you chose you source to publish? 

As far as research, I received most of my information from the CIR group. For me, it made sense to go with Amazon exclusively. Wide distribution has benefits, but I like the ease of doing business with Amazon. Wide may be an option down the road, but I'm happy where I am for now.

Other than completing your novels, what was the most difficult aspect of publishing for you? Advertising and promotion! More than anything, I wanted to share my story with people, but you can't do that if they have never heard of you. Today, there is more competition for readers than ever before. Self-publishing has been a Godsend, but it also means that anyone can publish anything at any time. In some ways, that's fantastic, in other ways, it makes it much more difficult to get your work in front of your target audience. When it comes to promotional sites, there are good and bad, and, like anything, there are scammers out there eager to separate naive authors from their money, so it takes time and effort to find what works for you.

What has surprised you the most about getting published other than the joy of seeing your book in print? 

The thing that delights me the most is reviews from readers. I love that they would take the time to write down their thoughts about my books. It is humbling, and just plain fun to see their reactions. I include an email address at the back of my books for readers, but, so far, no one has availed themselves of that option, but I'm looking forward to it.

What do you know now about publishing that you wish you knew sooner? 

You need a thick skin and persistence. I wasted so much time worrying about perfection. I am never going to please everyone, and that's okay. 

What’s been your best promotion for selling books? 

To date, Ereader News Today and Book Barbarian. They have great reach, wonderful customer service, competitive prices, and I have never been disappointed with my results. Bookbub is, without question, the big boy on the block, but I haven't been fortunate enough to secure an ad with them yet. They have so many submissions that their acceptance rate is only around twenty percent. There isn't a minimum number of reviews required, but when you're competing against authors who have hundreds of reviews, it makes a difference.

What advice would you give someone who wants to indie-publish? What is the best advice you’ve been given or learned? 

My advice would be to get yourself a good editor. You will never find every mistake, no matter how many times you go over your work, but a good proofreader/editor can eliminate many, many errors that you don't even notice. When starting out, it's tempting to try and save money by skipping that step and doing it yourself, but you're not doing yourself any favors. Having a great story to tell is key, but if you have typos on the first page, you're going to lose readers before they ever have a chance to get to that story. I think the best advice I've been given is to be patient. Some folks are going to blow the doors off on their first novel, others are going to take a while to build an audience. If you write because you must, if you write for yourself, if you write because you have something to say, then how popular you are becomes less important. There's a freedom in that.

What other works do you have in the process? 

I am currently finishing edits on my third book in the Destiny Series. Echoes will be released on June 26, 2016. I am also well into the fourth book in the series, and I hope to have that book available this December. This series will be six books, but if it's successful and the readers are interested, I have a prequel trilogy that will go along with it. There are some notes and outlines for that trilogy, but I am focused on completing the six books for now.

Any last words you’d like to add?

It has been a tremendous privilege to interview with you. I thank you and your readers for your time. 

That's it for today's interview. If you'd like to learn more about Christine's current books and those to come, here's some options.

Christinegreyauthor@gmail.com

Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Christine-Grey/e/B0190O6K2I/
Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/christine.grey.587

Straight Shooter Writing: Author Interview with Heather Blanton

My interview today is with Heather Blanton, a bestselling author of several Christian Westerns, including the Romance in the Rockies series, which has sold over 40,000 copies. She was drawn to writing Westerns because she grew up on a steady diet of Bonanza, Gunsmoke, and John Wayne movies.  She loves exploring the American West, especially ghost towns and museums. She has walked parts of the Oregon Trail, ridden horses through the Rockies, climbed to the top of Independence Rock, and even held an outlaw's note in her hand.

What drew you to writing historical romance in a western setting? 

My dad was my hero. He could quick draw and shoot a hole in a quarter. Very impressive to see, trust me. So when we watched Westerns together, I always thought, “Wow, my daddy can do that! He’s just as tough as any of those guys.” Plus, he taught me to shoot when I was 5, about the same time I started writing (with a little help from my editor-mom). I lived in Florida when I was young and, man, did I ever dream about those cold Rocky Mountain nights. Roll it all together, and I grew up loving the Western and the West!

Was there a specific author that you read that made you think, "I could write that"? 

More like, “Wow, I wish I could write like that!” LOL. I’ve always been a huge fan of Louis L’Amour, of course, but I also idolize Francine Rivers. If only I could touch the hem of her garment maybe some of her writing mojo would rub off!

What type of research do you do in writing something with a historical base? 

I have been very blessed to travel much of the West, with a focus on Wyoming and Colorado. I read state history like a man starving for food. Can’t get enough of the lynching and mine explosions apparently. And since this is a life-long interest for me, I’ve watched movies and documentaries since I can remember. Literally, casual reading for me is a book on Doc Holliday.

Tell me about the process. How much “artistic license” do you use in creating locations for your stories? 

As far as locations, I get darn close and try not to monkey around with real geography if I can help it. In Hearts in Defiance, though, I did shorten the distance between a few towns, and I mentioned that in my Final Word at the back of the book. More often than not, readers point out how they’re from the areas I write about and they love the accuracy. If I get a complaint (and, praise the Lord, there are few), it’s usually about anachronisms in language. 

Since I see my books as something between a historical Western and a tribute to the Westerns that made TV fun in the 50’s, I don’t write pristine 19th century dialogue. As it is, my Western jargon gives my editors fits! If I wrote, “Let’s have some Arbuckle’s before we get into our best bib and tucker…” I think a few readers might spend more time googling phrases than reading!

How did you go about finding a publisher? 

My first book, A Lady in Defiance, made it all the way to the contract meeting at a MAJOR Christian publisher. Much to my and my agent’s dismay, the sales department shot us down; they said my sales projections were too low. Just before that meeting, I self-published the book with the goal of selling 200 copies for my Relay for Life team. ALID went on that year to sell over 8000 copies. To date, it has sold nearly 40,000 copies. The big Christian publishers, however, still had no faith in the book or the sequel. To make a long story short, I went with Rivulet Publishing, a small, niche publisher who trusts me to write what I think my readers want to read. So far, we’ve been on the money. I make a substantially higher percentage of sales here than I would have if I’d gone with the big dogs. I guess my first piece of advice, then, would be to determine whether you want prestige or a way to write what you want and pay the bills, too.

Second, network. Literary agents Steve Laube and Chip MacGregor are famous for saying, “Get thee to a writers conference,” and they aren’t kidding. I met the editor there who got me my agent, and I made friends for life. I’ve met dozens of editors, agents, and authors and had wonderful conversations with them. My favorite event is the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. It’s all very personal and intimate there.

How long did it take you to write your first book? 

It sounds like a long time now, but from concept to publishing, it took me 4 years—those were really informative, formative years for my writing.

How many rewrites did you do on it? 

I took my first draft of A Lady in Defiance to the BRMCWC for a critique. I had written the whole thing in Omniscient POV. A big no-no for a beginner. So I re-wrote it in third person. However, a lot of people told me to substantially limit the POVs to no more than 3 or 4. Well, Defiance is an ensemble piece. It reads like a TV show: multiple story lines, multiple POVs, and there was only so much “dumbing down” I was willing to do. I’m glad I listened to my gut. The story of three sisters trapped in a rowdy mining town needed to be told a certain way. 

Who helped you with the editing? 

My sister, God love her, paid for my first professional edit with David Webb, former Sr. Acquisitions Editor at Harvest House. He was very encouraging and believed in me enough to recommend me to an agent.

  

Did you ever want to give up writing your first book? 

Yeah, right after my first rejection letter. And then again when the major Christian publisher decided not to make me an offer. Yet, I kept going, and that’s the secret to success—plugging along.

How long does it take you now to write a book? 

I can do a thousand words a day pretty easily and still raise kids and do laundry. So, 3-4 months for a novel with limited POVs. Longer for my Defiance series because I have those stories within the story.

How do you write? Did you do an outline first? Did you do individual character development before doing the full plot? 

OK, this is weird, but I’ll throw it out there for what it’s worth. I start with a scene. One, single scene. It’s a mushroom, you could say. The other scenes pop-up around it and I sort them into a novel. I do a little outlining, a little writing by the seat of my pants. Somehow it works. I’ve tried a detailed outline before. It helped some, but I careened off the path a lot, which I found frustrating.

What are some of the more difficult aspects of writing historical novels? Have other novels been started and stopped along the way? 

It’s the little details that make a novel seem real and authentic to a reader. You can’t just dream those up. I am a firm believer a historic writer should be extremely well-versed in a century, and especially a decade. I think this is the sort of thing that makes an author tuck a book away for years because they feel overwhelmed by the unfamiliar. I’ve been fortunate to finish everything I’ve started, but I sure do have some stinkers hiding in the closet.

What do you know about writing/publishing now that you wished you had known sooner? 

Work social media as if your life depends on it … because your career does! Having said that, I love Facebook. I actually know and like most of the people I’m friends with on there. I don’t accept every friend request. I don’t have time for debates so I stick to letting in like-minded folks. Facebook is my happy place and my friends are really good to me. They share anything I ask them to. They are awesome.

What other books do you have in the works? 

I wrote a script for my first book, A Lady in Defiance. It has been viewed by some producers in Hollywood and I am working with award-winning scriptwriter, Zena Dell Lowe, tweaking it because it has really conjured some interest. Brian Bird, a partner at Believe Pictures, wants to see it, and Hollywood producer Mark Headly is extremely interested in the possibility of producing it. Still lots of hoops. I’d say the project is moving in the right direction, for sure. 

I am also planning on releasing book 2 in the Love and War in Johnson County series, as of yet unnamed. And I’ll also be releasing two novellas for Christmas, one in a trilogy from Rivulet Publishing!

What is the best advice you’ve been given about writing or that you’ve learned along the way? 

Attack the senses and you will drag your readers by the hair into your story. Draw blood; fill their nostrils with smoke.” Brutal but brilliant and I try to write by it.

That's all for today's interview. If you'd like to know more about Heather's books and upcoming projects, here's some links to get you started

http://amzn.to/1r4oUQk      https://ladiesindefiance.com/
https://www.facebook.com/heatherfreyblanton
https://www.facebook.com/authorheatherblanton/
https://twitter.com/heatherfblanton

Keeping the Tension Ticking Way: Author Interview with Ed Markham

My interview today is with an author who works full time Monday through Friday as a freelance magazine writer and editor and devotes his weekends and evenings to his novels. Read on to learn from his writing experiences.

What drew you to writing psychological thrillers? 

I'd been attempting to write something literary for years, and could never get more than 10,000 words into a project without feeling discouraged and bailing out. I was trying to be Richard Ford or Jim Harrison, and that wasn't working. My dad is the kind of guy who reads one or two books a week, mostly thrillers, and he kept encouraging me to give one a shot. I felt from the start I was writing Founders' Keeper for my dad, and that's probably why I ended up making it about a father-son team of FBI investigators. 

Who are your favorite authors in this genre?
I was (and am) a big fan of Thomas Harris and Stephen King, both of whom kind of blur the lines between horror and thrillers. And of course I like a lot of our great contemporary thriller writers like Michael Connelly and Jo Nesbo. So I took my dad's advice and tried writing a thriller, and I realized quickly that I was enjoying myself a lot more and the whole undertaking felt more manageable (though still really daunting). 

How long did it take to write your first draft? 

Probably five months. I remember my wife and I went out to dinner to celebrate. I knew the book needed more work. But just getting to the end and having a complete draft to tighten and clean up felt like a major accomplishment. It still does. 

How many rewrites did you do on it? 

Oh wow, at least a dozen. The first few were on my own, and then feedback from friends and family and prospective agents instigated big rewrites. The draft my wife and I were celebrating that night at dinner is only vaguely recognizable as the book now available on Amazon. 

Founders' Keeper was always about a father-son team chasing a Constitution-obsessed killer, but nearly every detail has been reworked over and over again. My second book, Son of a Gun, was a much smoother effort. By then I (kind of) knew what I was doing, and was able to avoid a lot of the pitfalls I'd fallen into while writing my first book.

What do you think makes for a good thriller?

A lot of it is reader preference. But to even be considered a "thriller," I think there has to be what one agent I spoke with called a "ticking clock" element, or something that urges the characters and plot forward to accomplish or prevent something before it's too late. At the same time, I like a thriller that has some real meat to its middle. You see a lot of books in this genre where, once the initial story and plot are established, it kind of feels like the characters are just running in place and burning pages until everything reaches the big surprise or reveal at the end. I think of it as tap dancing. There's a lot of noise and movement, but nobody's going anywhere. To me, having a cool twist at the end doesn't cut it if the rest of the book was a lot of nothing.

What type of research do you do to give a sense of reality to your stories?
I spend a fair amount of time reading through old transcripts from law enforcement and FBI conferences. Google Maps is a great way to revisit a place and get the feel of it again, or to explore a town or city I haven't visited in person. Wikipedia. Google Scholar. 

Like all authors, I'm lucky to have the internet at my disposal. But sometimes I don't know what I don't know, and I make mistakes. I had a reader point out to me that the thing that spins on top of a helicopter is called a "rotor," not a "propeller," which was embarrassing
(but I appreciated hearing about).

Did you go through the normal process of pitching your book to agents and traditional publishers? What feedback did you get? 
I did try the traditional route. It was really a tough experience. Not altogether horrible, but just difficult. After about six months of querying agents and having no luck, I attended Thrillerfest in New York and pitched my book to about 15 agents. The one I was most interested in connecting with accepted the first few chapters, and then requested the whole book. She read it in two days. We spent an hour on the phone, and she told me she loved it and had publishers in mind for it. But she had a couple minor issues with the ending and wanted me to fix those. I agreed, spent three weeks tuning it up based on her feedback, and sent it back to her. She said she was caught up with some existing client projects, but would read the rewrite as soon as she could. 

Months and months passed, and eventually I had to give up on her because I'd found another agent who wanted to sign me. The new agent was with a great agency, but was very junior and had never represented a thriller author. He was great, and pitched Founders' to all the big publishers. We received a lot of encouraging feedback. But ultimately everyone passed. My agent wanted to pitch some smaller publishers, but I'd heard some horror stories about authors selling the rights to their books for peanuts, and seeing it fail because there wasn't much marketing or resources to support it. 

At that point, publishing on my own seemed like the better choice. All in all, I think I spent about three years querying agents and trying to secure a traditional publishing deal. It was a learning experience, and I don't completely regret it. But it's hard now that I have two young kids to look back at those prime, productive, childless years and wonder how much I could have accomplished focusing on writing new books and publishing them myself. 

How do you write? Did you do an outline first? Did you do individual character development before doing the full plot?

I'm a big process guy. I sit down every weeknight at 9 pm and work until I hit 1,000 words. Weekends I do the same thing around midday during my kids' nap times. I did a lot of character planning for my first book. But now the main characters have carried over, so there isn't as much of that. I lightly outline--mostly the first 50 or 100 pages so I know how I'll get rolling. I also try to have a conclusion in mind, though it tends to break down on me halfway through. Personally, I've found it's better to have a premise and an idea of where I'm headed, but to spend most of my time writing, not planning. I get into some trouble this way when I realize after a few days of work that a brilliant idea I had one evening doesn't fit--and needs to be rewritten. But I think letting the story and characters dictate what comes next feels more natural and helps me avoid that tap dancing I mentioned.

What type of publicity do you do to promote your book? What has worked best for you in generating sales?
Like most independent authors, I use sites like BookBub and Robin Reads and many others to get my books out there. Honestly, that's about it. I'm grateful you came to me with this opportunity, because I really haven't been great about marketing my books. I work full-time during the day. And with two kids, I only have a small window of time each day to work on anything relating to my books. I choose to spend that time writing, not marketing.

What do you know now about writing/publishing now that you wished you had known sooner?
A great deal of success in self publishing is about volume and marketing. That's not inherently a good or bad thing. But when I decided to self publish, I had this image of myself writing a book a year, formatting the thing for Kindle, clicking "publish," and waiting for readers to (hopefully) like what they read and spread the word. In reality, I've learned very few authors have much success that way. Some do. But many more find success by churning out a new book every few months and promoting the crap out of it. One way isn't better than the other. But you learn very quickly that the number of books you produce and how much you market them are huge factors when it comes to making money at this.

What is the best advice you've been given about writing or that you've learned that you would like to pass along?

Whether you're writing your first book or your tenth,  daily word goals are indispensable. They're the only way I got through my first book. Even if your goal is modest--say, 250 words a day--all you have to do is hit that number and eventually you'll have a full manuscript in front of you. It's like magic. But to be clear: Editing or revising what you already have DOES NOT COUNT toward your daily goal. You need to write 250 or 500 or 1,000 fresh, piping hot new words every day. 

What other works do you have in the process? 

I've finished a draft of my third book, which is tentatively called Ghosts in the Machine. Like my first two books, it features the same father-son team of FBI investigators. In this book, David and Martin investigate the disappearance of an internet mogul-- a Mark Zuckerberg type. I'm hoping to have it published by the end of July. I'd originally wanted it up by the end of this month, but my wife and I had our second son a few months ago, and that's really slowed me down. (He's not the sound sleeper his big brother was at that age.) 

Thank you, Ed for all your insights about your writing and publishing experiences. If you'd like to get a start on reading his series, here's a link to his website...  EdMarkham.com.