Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is CM Francis. I graduated undergrad bachelor’s in film and animation from Rochester Institute of Technology. I fell in love with writing screenplays and took four years to complete one (with many, many drafts). But I never really had the emotion and everyone’s perspective, so I spent three years changing it into it’s novel form. This the first book I have ever written.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my first book is “The Day I Died.” My story inspires Cat’s (the main character) story. We both have brain aneurysm occurring at a young age and struggle with everything physically and mentally.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not that I know of. I have a writing friend who she create tri-boards, notebooks, stickers, and different colored paper to help her through the outline phases. I only outline every chapter, approximately 500 words as I go.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
They Both Die In The End (I have used the author’s technique of having the perspectives sign characters being in third person while the main characters have one), Before I Fall (it’s has a sad ending, but hopefully in other ways) and Scarlet (from the Cinder series, and with every book in that series, you pick up a new point of view, first person).
What are you working on now?
Currently, I am working on “One Term Left (title is subject to change).” Taking place in Falmouth, Massachusetts, three friends – Sarah Sullivan, Alice White, and Makayla Kissoon – reach the start of their last term of high schooler when something changes in each of their life. I don’t want to spoil it to anyone, but I am on Chapter 9 as we speak!
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is my first week of publishing, so I would have to say Awesome Gang :).
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Sometimes, you need release it. You will never truly be done writing, and you can edit it a million times. You might be scared with a lot of “what if,” but there’s a time you need to let it go and publish it into the world.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Do what you love, and F the rest,” Little Miss Sunshine.
What are you reading now?
I just finished The one memory of Flora Banks, and I’ve picked up a few books since – Broken Things, Nine Perfect Strangers – but nothing really grasps my attention.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Currently, I am still taking courses to to earn my masters, so hopefully next fall I am hired as a full time teacher instead of a teacher’s aide. I don’t think I’ll ever become just an author; sometimes, it is when you are concentrated on one thing that you find the greatest inspiration for another.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I rarely read a book more than once, but if I were stranded on a desert island, one of them would be Hatchet. It’s about a boy named Brian who crashes. I would use his survival skills as my own. The second one is Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Everyone loves Harry Potter and if I can’t find any wood, I would burn different pages whenever I got desperate. And I would have to say, Love Like the Movies. I love, love, love this book, and it is honestly my favorite of all time.
Author Websites and Profiles
CM Francis Amazon Profile