Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up on the outskirts of a town of 199 people. With no nearby neighbor kids to play with and no internet or cable for a long time, books were my main companions, and good company they were. I probably wouldn’t be here today without an early love of books. I have numerous novels in progress, with one finished that I am campaigning on Amazon Kindle Scout for publishing.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Un-Life of William Moore is my response to the over-romanticizing of classical monsters and bringing the idea back home that being a monster is a curse and not a blessing. However, I also wanted to humanize the monster so much so that he’s the most human person in the book, struggling with real world problems like homelessness, unemployment, hunger, and basic commodities. Nominate the novel on Kindle Scout and get a free ebook if it’s selected for publication: https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/QCD68QEN6NXC
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I journal on a daily basis and I have also participated in text-based and forum-based role playing. Interacting with other writers is a great way to build your skills and your network, and it also fuels a lot of inspiration.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
The book/author that made me want to write was Eragon by Christopher Paolini. He wrote the book at a young age, and I liked it so much, I thought that if he could do it, then so could I at age 12.
What are you working on now?
I’m campaigning my novel, The Un-Life of William Moore, on Amazon Kindle Scout. While I’m trying to generate buzz for it, I’m keeping up a blog about my progress and anything else that comes to mind about writing and books.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve been using facebook a lot. I got a promotion from them for some free advertising and have been utilizing it to spread the word. I’ve also been putting up flyers around town and advertising on local facebook groups, which has gotten me attention from two newspapers in my area.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
There’s a way to get it done! If you’re struggling with traditional publishing, like I was, look towards trying to get off your feet with publishing ebooks, which has been my strategy. Get your name out there while trying to save up funds for printing.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Even though I hated teachers reading us self-help, chicken soup, “proactive” books that only seemed to be filled with common sense and human decency, there was one part that resounded with me and still does: You are in control of your own emotions. No one “makes you” feel anything. You choose to be upset about something. I’ve tried to keep that mindset ever since and try not to let things get me down because I don’t want to be down. I choose to be happy, and so I am.
What are you reading now?
I’ve been slowly working my way through a large science fiction anthology that comprises mostly of older science fiction up to about the 1980s. Each story is blowing my mind with the way it makes you look at the world totally different. Where we are, where we are going…
What’s next for you as a writer?
I want to focus on getting another novel out as soon as possible and keep the content coming. My goal is for my next book to be something more original, more game changing, more unique, than my first one. I want to not only keep the books coming, but make a better one every time.
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?
Well, since I get more than one, I’d really like some kind of book on how to survive on a desert island that contained all the need-to-know like starting fires, building rafts, and how to tell which plants/animals are edible and which are poisonous. For recreational reading to kill the time until my rescue, I’d like something engrossing that could get my mind off my predicament. Something funny, something adventurous. Hmm. Let me take the Inheritance series with me. They’re large enough and I never get tired of reading the first one – I’ve read it probably six times by now.
Author Websites and Profiles
Dana Lockhart Website
Dana Lockhart’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account