Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up all over the place. My dad gets restless, at least that’s what I told people who asked if I was an army brat when I told them how much I moved. I went to three different schools in seventh grade. I lived in several places in Texas. Lived in Superior, WI right after that, quite the change of scenery, I know. Moved around Illinois a bit. We finally settled in Peoria, Il, but we did move to three different houses while there. I then moved to Rochester Hills, Michigan after I finished graduate school. I was a librarian at one of the nicest public libraries I’ve ever visited, RHPL. I worked with teens, and in particular, planned the teen programming. The experiences I had with those teens will be some of the best of my life, even at the end, I can guarantee you that. But I ended up closer to family again after my aunt passed away rather suddenly. I didn’t like how far I had gotten away from everyone. Urbana-Champaign is a lovely pair of cities though, so I’m not unhappy to be back.
I’ve published three books, and written three more ready for publishing. One is very close to being done with the final edit. About 80% done. The other two will be published next year, with any luck.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The book that is just about to be published, Whom the Gods Fear, is the conclusion to a trilogy of books I wrote. I like swashbuckling adventures. I love The Princess Bride movie. The cast of colorful characters and creatures has always been inspiring to me. The lighthearted style in a dark tale, that was what I was going for in these stories. The first in the trilogy exemplifies this the best. The deeper inspiration for these stories is my passion for all things mythological and folktale. I did more than a few projects for grad school on mythology, folklore, legends and fairy tales… I just love these stories. I enjoy making my own myths and that’s the true basis for these books.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I often write a kind of encyclopedia for my books before and as I write them. I enjoy creating back stories for things, and most of the time these “entries” and their information doesn’t appear in the book. I tend to write in a more fluid manner, so I don’t stop to think about the tiny details as much as forward momentum of the action. But the details always go into the encyclopedia. I like to put entries up on my blog of things that might not have made it into the book because all that detail just didn’t fit.
I also play Om in the background whenever I write. I get distracted by sounds, and with two cats and a dog, these sounds can happen at any time.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Christopher Moore has to go in here. He also loves to play with myths and legends. And his writing style of using humor to lighten dark topics, it’s a style I aspire to perfect. Garth Nix, his dark fantasy series, The Abhorsen series, has to be next. His world building is fantastic. Elmore Leonard, his punchy, dialog heavy style of writing is very influential to my style. And really, anything dystopian. One of my majors in college was Political Science. I love exploring different political philosophies taken to extremes. That certainly comes across in some of my writing.
What are you working on now?
Besides editing, I’m currently working on a larger science fiction series. I have the first two books done. It’s a series about thirteen huge generational colony ships shot into space that are more than 600 years along their course. The story starts taking place roughly 2 years out from their ultimate destination. I’ve already written the first two, and am working on the third now. It isn’t the first time I’ve tackled sci-fi, but it’s the first time I’ve published it. I worked on several short sci fi stories for creative writing when I was in college. I enjoy writing fantasy, but I really love writing sci fi. Before I switched to political science in college, I spent three semesters as a pre-med major. I suspect there are a lot of people who have a similar background in college. While I wasn’t cut out to be a pre-med student, I never lost my fascination with science. Physics in particular was my favorite class. Because of my love of science, I still read a lot of books and articles about new and exciting discoveries. This new series was greatly inspired by the discovery of a gas giant in a solar system similar to ours.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I don’t really have one. I’m relatively new to all of this promotion stuff. I was interrupted just as I was ready to do start a promotional blitz. A couple years ago, as I was getting ready to publish my 4th book, I planned to go around and buy professional covers and start advertising. But life got in the way and I never got to that. So here I am, trying to start up again now that I’m ready for it. There are so many more options than there were before. I think I’ll start talking about the best and worst ones on my blog, just to keep a running diary of what ends up working.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write. There are a billion things that will try to eat at your time. Find a quiet space, and write until you finish what you’re working on. The TV shows, movies and other entertaining distractions, will still be there when you finish. And don’t be discouraged if something disrupts your flow. Get back up, and start something new if you can’t reconnect to that old thing.
I got caught up for two years with my cancer right at the end of writing my third book in a trilogy, the first two of which I already published. I felt immense pressure to finish it. Not many people had purchased the first two, and maybe they didn’t even remember it, but I still felt obligated to complete the story for those few. I just couldn’t find the groove again to start the editing process. So I switched rails and started something new. And it worked, I was ready to get back to editing that third book. Your imagination is like a muscle, at least I think so, and sometimes you have to warm it up before it’s ready to do the heavy lifting.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When you can’t think of something to write, read. I’ve read a lot of authors say this when giving advice to writers. And it is so true. Again, with that imagination is a muscle thing, reading a great story really inspires me.
What are you reading now?
Watership Down. Again. It’s been years since I read it last. And last week I read the new Garth Nix book, Goldenhand. I’m glad I got the chance to visit the world of Abhorsen again.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I will continue to finish the SciFi series I started. I’m working on book 3 of that series. I think I’ll just shoot through until the end of that series, since that’s where my head space is at right now. My brain is full of ideas for that story line, so for the immediate future, it’s going to be that series. I don’t have a name for the series yet, but the first book is called The Thirteen.
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?
One, Of Mice and Men, because I think this book is perfect. Two is To Kill a Mockingbird. I know, these are two books we were forced to read in school. So maybe I’m biased simply because I was exposed to them so young. But I can’t help it. I love them even though I know it’s probably cliche to pick two classics. I don’t care. And three, a book I hadn’t read before. Something from the science fiction best sellers list. Something that wasn’t in a series. Because I’d want to have something new to discover, something I knew I could read that I’d never read before. And I’d savor that book as long as I could.
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