Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve always written stories to entertain myself, ever since I was a little girl. Right after my second child was born, it hit me that, dude, I’m outnumbered! I didn’t want to completely change who I was, so I decided to focus on my writing as a way of reminding myself that I had my own separate identity, that I was still a unique individual.
I spent a year working on how to write short stories, and I love how it’s improved my novel-writing skills. I cranked out several dozen, and some of them have been published.
Then I returned to novels, got picked up by a small press, had that go pear-shaped, got into indie publishing, started writing in a new genre, and got a series picked up by an awesome small press. This year has been absolutely amazing as far as having previously written books all coming together to get published–either as indie works or through my small press. As of January 1st, I had three published books. To date, I have seven, and by the end of the year, I’m scheduled to have nine books released under two pen names (and in two genres). I’m sure I could be more excited somehow, but it would probably involve Johnny Depp asking me to sign his cheekbones or something.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book hasn’t quite come out as of the date of writing. Its title is TRAITOR SAVANT, and it’s book two, or the second seal, in the Seals of the Duelists trilogy I’m working on. It’s complete, and I have some ARC copies out to early reviewers, but mostly I’m just sitting around, wriggling in excitement for release day: September 20th.
The series takes place in a vast and multicultural empire where not every culture is happy with its lot. My magic system is based on jujitsu, in which I hold a black belt. Major themes deal with family, friendship, loss, finding one’s own path in an imperfect world, emotional struggle, and even a little romance. The writing, themes, and worldbuilding in my first book was kindly compared by a reviewer to Guy Gavriel Kay’s style, which I admire and enjoy.
Obviously I don’t want to give spoilers to anyone who hasn’t yet read the first book, REBEL ELEMENTS. While the first book deals with external threats (and some internal ones), TRAITOR SAVANT deals more with internal threats of various sorts–and in an empire as large as the Waarden Empire, there’s plenty of room for all kinds of internal threats. It also explores not one, but two, other styles of magic, so for those who love to read about magic, book two will be a special treat.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ve started using voice recognition to write my novels. Both of my arms suffer from tendinitis. After writing for a few hours a day, every day, they get pretty sore. So I’ve started using the basic voice recognition system that comes with my Windows 7. I got a nifty headset from Amazon that works amazingly. I love how I can program character names, places, and any other fictional terms into the speech dictionary–essential for any fantasy writer! It took me a bit of practice to change the way I think while I’m composing, but after I got the hang of it, I was writing faster than when I was clickity-clacking with my fingers. Which is saying something, considering how fast I usually write. I’m very excited about this transition in my writing, because it means I can actually go faster without any pain! Thanks, Technology!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
All of them. At first, they just made me happy. Then, they made me want to be like them. Then, they started showing me their tricks and skills at spinning excellent stories. I pay attention to the way books are written, all the way down to the punctuation and sentence structure. Once you become an author or an editor, there’s really no going back to the way you used to read books.
That’s not to say I don’t have my personal favorites, though. I cannot get enough of Lois McMaster Bujold’s worldbuilding in THE CURSE OF CHALION. I rarely read books more than once, but I’ve read that one a dozen times. Her magic/pantheon system blows me away with its elegant simplicity. Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera series also made my brain very happy with his political and battle maneuvers. And I cannot fail to mention the esteemed Terry Pratchett, whose ability to portray real-life issues through the medium of humorous fantasy continually amazes me. Humor is hard for me, but he has a way with his characters that always brings me back for more.
What are you working on now?
I’m in the early planning stages for the final book in my Seals trilogy, PRODIGAL STEELWIELDER. It will conclude the story of my main character, Bayan, and his friends, allies, and enemies. It’ll be truly epic fantasy, with the big booms and the impossible solutions and the final twist of pure awesome. I’ll be writing it during this year’s NaNoWriMo. Well, dictating it, to be more accurate.
I try to plan out my novels pretty thoroughly ahead of time, so that I can just power through the rough draft. That’s the most boring part of writing a book for me. I much prefer editing what already exists. It’s pretty dull writing thousands of words every day when you know basically everything that’s going to happen.
But at least once in every book I’ve written, some brainstorm strikes me while I’m hip deep in writing, and I realize that I need to add something I hadn’t thought of before. Once I invented a brand new character on the spot. Another time, I had to kill two more people off. I even had a minor character tell me halfway through that she kissed a girl and she liked it (no cherry chapstick was harmed in the writing of that book). I just never know what my brain is going to come up with next, but it’s always a fun bit of chaos when it strikes. I have to scramble to fit my new ideas in, but in the end, I’m always glad for it.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still determining what resources are out there. I have a major promotion coming up beginning September 20th, when REBEL ELEMENTS goes free for four days in celebration of TRAITOR SAVANT’s release, so that’ll be a big test to see if I’ve found some reliable sites and methods of getting the word out. If not, I’ll keep looking.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Oh, we always do. I see so much advice touted as The Only Way To Succeed, and plenty of it would be completely wrong for me, so this is what I think:
Research shows that mastery of a skill set comes with about 10,000 hours of practice. For authors, that translates to around a million words written while focusing on improvement with every new writing project. You have to earn it. Put in the time, focus, learn from all kinds of sources–classes, your own reading, editors, beta readers, and practice what you learn in your next project. Keep improving. Find your individual voice. Learn to write for your target audience. Accept critiques with gratitude–they tell you whether your message is getting across or not. No one likes a diva author, and they only put up with them when they have to, so don’t be the problem.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Never stop writing.” As if I could, though. Too many stories banging around in my skull. Seriously, I come up with entire series at once. If I don’t get my own personal clone army soon, most of these books will never get written. I wish I could just hire people to slam out rough drafts for me according to my notes, and then I can edit and polish them. Can that be a thing? I want that to be a thing.
What are you reading now?
I’m actually editing something. I’m a content editor at a small press. It’s a wonderful paranormal romance. Not your usual–this one has immortals with a cool twist. And though it’s the author’s first book with a publishing house, she’s dedicated to improving it, and she has a great handle on her worldbuilding.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Good question. I’m published in two genres, and I’m seriously starting to contemplate trying a third. Dare I try…romance? I’m jotting down concepts to see if I have what it takes to give it a serious go. I want to write about a location, an upscale resort hotel that attracts vacationers as well as business conferences, to get a full range of guests. Every book would have a new set of visitors, but maybe some of the same staff. And in this resort of possibilities, people would find unexpected romance while they were doing other things. I already have two basic plot nuggets that I’m just panting to get intimate with. Rawr!
What is your favorite book of all time?
That would be THE CURSE OF CHALION, by Lois McMaster Bujold. The worldbuilding and characterization is out of this world. The culture is based loosely on medieval Spain, which is something you don’t see often in fantasy. The magic system, as I said, is perfectly planned and easy to understand. The damaged hero, Cazaril, is one of my favorite characters of all time. And the plot twists! So many really good parts in that book! It’s just brain candy all around. If you haven’t read it, run, don’t walk, to the nearest bookstore or online market and nab yourself a copy. Just typing this makes me want to read the book again. Totally fangirling right now.
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