Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m just this guy living out in the woods and writing books. I make a point of helping out my fellow authors, and have a soft spot for good indie books that haven’t gotten their fair amount of press. I studied Physics, and I love writing speculative fiction and including real science elements as well as philosophical ideas that will give the reader something to think about long after they put the books down. I’ve put out around a dozen short Kindle reads, Viral Spark, and I’m currently building my Incorporated universe as a set of novels. I also write flash fiction.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Incorporated First Strike was probably inspired most by spending 10 years working for some of the biggest corporations in the world. The science behind the backdrop was gained by the Starfish Prime experiment in the 50’s. Most of the pertinent data is still classified, but it isn’t hard to fill in the blanks. The futuristic tech in the story was inspired from several sources and emerging technologies that I believe will soon be popular. When it comes to apocalypse, I wanted to present something thrilling that marks the point where the world changes, instead of glossing over that detail to rush ahead 200 years like some other authors do. I wanted the reader to feel it, and to be able to look at the world around them and actually see it happening.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not scared of Writer’s Block. I’ve heard that’s uncommon, though I’m trying to change the status quo by inspiring others. I also write with a fountain pen, and occasionally hammer out several pages of script on the typewriter as a sort of outline before I start on the actual first draft of a novel.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Douglas Adams, for sure. I love his wit, and noticed the influence while I was writing philosophy papers in college. Patrick O’Brian is an inspiration to me, not just because I love sea stories, but just the depth of research and realism in his Jack Aubrey books. Clancy is a common theme when I’m looking for an inspiring read, and helps me figure out some of the details about writing military oriented books. Incorporated sent my editor on a spree to figure out the handling of various names and topics that she hadn’t previously encountered, so we had a lot of fun sorting out those details.
What are you working on now?
At this exact moment, I’m finishing a final round of edits for the next book in the Incorporated Saga. Most of the characters will be different, as these books are really disconnected stories told from a very vast universe that I spent a lot of time working on, but Jacob and Gibbs make little cameos. I never really stop writing, so I have a horror book, Stone’s Shadow, that I’m hoping to release by October, and another Incorporated book called Endeavor will be next on the slate. Love that one because I get to use all of my physics and rocket-making skills 🙂
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The best promotion that I’ve ever found comes directly from my readers. I try to reach them through every platform available to me, but more important is to hook the few that I can grab. If the book is awesome, then the readers become my promotion machine, and I can watch a book like FTDB continue to spread without doing anything to promote it except being myself.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. Write all the time. Write every day. Write on napkins, tables, walls, etc. Construct clever posts on social media. Read every single grammar or writing blog you can find. Learn, grow, write, edit, and then write some more.
Don’t aim for one book or one trilogy. If you want to be a storyteller, be prepared to put in the work editing and learning, because you won’t know everything starting off. Submit, edit some more, write more books, keep going, keep growing, and never give up. Fortune favors the bold, and this industry doesn’t give itself over nicely to thin skin or quitters.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Pick one thing in life that you absolutely want to do, and focus all of your energy on accomplishing that one thing.” author unknown.
What are you reading now?
16th century philosophy for research of an upcoming book, hehe. Words were a bit different back then.
I think the last fiction set I really remember was one of Madeleine D’Este’s books. I like her novellas when I want to pick a book out of the air and just read for a bit. Lately my daily reading has included a lot of poetry from the blog of Mandie Heinz.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to be in St. Louis for Gateway Con in June, hoping to see some old friends there and maybe sell a few books. I might also be in Augusta, Ga later this winter for some writing conferences and things, not sure yet. I think my big thing right now is attracting 1000 fans. Once I have that, if I get that, 1000 TRUE fans, I’ll be pretty happy with my writing career at that point.
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?
A chemistry book, the Army survival manual, The Bible, and probably the next Patrick O’Brian book in line on my shelf.
Author Websites and Profiles
Martin McConnell Website
Martin McConnell Amazon Profile
Martin McConnell Author Profile on Smashwords
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