Questions from my readers...

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One of the coolest things about awaiting your book release is the realization that someday soon you will have "readers" which translates loosely to "fans!" People who like the junk that floats around in my head. People who want to play with the made-up characters in my mind. That is so freaking cool!!

So, today I am answering questions from my readers.

Technically, I only have one reader. My editor extraordinaire. But my prospective readers have left questions on my facebook and I thought I would take some time to answer them.

And they READ my facebook, so maybe I'm not jumping the gun by calling them 'my readers.'

So, here goes:

What "told" you to write?! When you wrote your book, did it just flow freely or did you have to ponder about it often?! When and where did the idea come from?!? :) ~Stephanie

 

Well, since IN TOO DEEP is loosely based on my own experience with an abusive boyfriend, I guess the structure or the skeleton of the story has been with my for about 20 years. But because it is fiction, there were many parts I had to ponder or work out over a couple days. Some of the fictional pieces came completely out of nowhere and some of them were formed when I'd text my BFFs, "Hey, I need a ..... for when she .....! Tell me how you picture that happening."

 

What was your writing process from the beginning? When you knew you had an idea for a story how did you go about getting the story told? ~Jennie

 

I wrote about five chapters of IN TOO DEEP then walked away for a while to make sense of where the story was going. When I went back to it and jumped in where I left off I realized it wasn't a story I wanted sitting in a file cabinet for years before I finished it. So, I set myself strict goals and wrote at least 1,000 words without editing - just stream of consciousness writing. After I hit 50,000 words, the story wasn't finished but I went back in and edited. When that was done, I wrote the ending.

 

 Since your book is written from a personal experience, is there anything you would change about what happened? ~Myah

 

It's been fun making up scenes and conversations that I wish I would have had the nerve to entertain when I was fighting through my own heartache. I put Gracie in some similar situations to my own and in some cases I wrote into the story what I wish I had the nerve to do or say in the heat of the moment. But, much of the story is fiction so in a way, sometimes I feel like I did re-write history.

 

Do you have a particular time of day or place in or out of your home when/where you're most productive at writing? What gets your juices flowing? ~Denise

My most productive writing time is as soon as the last of my kids are on the bus. I grab my coffee and something to eat and sit at the kitchen table by our patio doors and start there. I have a beautiful studio my husband created for me a couple years ago but in the morning, when the house is quiet and I don't have to hide to get some private writing time, that's when I like to be at the table. Sometimes I start writing and the next thing I know my big kids are getting off the bus. That's when I know the scenes I wrote were good ones! :)

Thanks for your questions!
I love answering them! Feel free to leave questions on my facebook author page and I will periodically do Q&A style posts!

Peace.

Author Q & A...IN TOO DEEP

Well, I asked for it and I got it...QUESTIONS!

I wanted to do a Q & A for fun so I asked for questions on my AUTHOR PAGE. So, here are your answers...

HERE GOES.....

What inspired you to write a story?
I have been a story teller my entire life. I love to tell stories both truth and fiction. But to answer your question, I had a story to tell floating around in my head and it finally convinced me to let it out.

Will the book be available on Kindle?
Yes! I am so excited about that, too! I know, at least for me, I buy books most often when bookstores aren't open. Just the other night I finished a book and started another one while laying in bed after midnight! Having my book THAT available for people is so freaking cool!

Will you be doing a book signing tour?
I will definitely be doing some local signings. I have a speaking engagement set for a sorority event at Penn State and the Campus Bookstore wants me to do a signing there as well. I don't know if I am a big enough deal to have a "tour" yet but one day that would be really cool!

How long did it take to write the book?
This is a great question but I am not sure how to answer it. Most authors will probably tell you they've had a story in their minds for years before sitting down to write it. This story has been growing in my heart for two decades. The actual writing process obviously took significantly less time - exact amount of time, I'm not sure, as it was done in pieces and parts and then finally all fit together.

How do you kick writer's block in the butt?
Ugh. The dreaded writer's block. Everyone deals with this differently and some things will work for some people but not everyone. It really depends on your personality. But for me, personally, I do one of three things or bits and pieces of each...I listen to a huge amount of music and translate the stories and hurdles in the lyrics. Of course, I am not listening to dance beats, though, I am more into soulful alternative styles. The other thing I do is run through the story lines of movies I loved. What characteristics did the movie have? How did the couple interact? What did their issues or anxieties stem from? What drew me to that storyline? The whole time I'm jotting down these details and soon, hopefully, see a pattern in what drama I am drawn to and what friction between lovers do I find fascinating and I go from there. Or I take a long shower! Showers fix everything!

Did you pick names in the book based on names you liked or names that have meaning to the character's personality? Or did you know the character and then the name developed after?
What a great question! I did a bit of both for the characters of IN TOO DEEP. Gracie's name was definitely based on her personality and her values. When explaining the storyline and dilemma over names to my two closest friends, one of them said "I like the name Grace, and she gives so much grace in this relationship." She does gives GRACE...although, TOO MUCH grace when it comes to Noah...but I just thought her name spoke to her sweet spirit. Jake and Noah were just pulled out of nowhere. LOL. I had a ton of chapters written before I chose the guys' names. And it's amazing to me how well they suit them now that the story is finished. It's a very cool but arbitrary process for me.

Do you have an agent or do you just have a publisher? If you just have a publisher, did you query agents and then just decide to go directly with a publisher and not find an agent? How come?
No, I actually don't have an agent. I was approached by one that I had queried but she was about 3 days late as I had already signed with Sapphire Star Publishing. I actually only queried a handful of agents and editors but the owners of Sapphire Star found ME. Which is really kind of cool! Right before Christmas I participated in a Twitter event called #PitchMAS. There were strict guidelines and windows of time but basically in a specific number of words you had to PITCH your book and it would be posted on FEAKY SNUCKER'S blog. Agents and editors participated by browsing through the pitches and requesting queries, first 10 pages, etc. They requested, I sent, they offered my a contract on Christmas Eve!

If the story is based on your life experiences, how do you think the people in your life will react if they find themselves to be easily associated with any or all of the characters in your story?
I suppose many authors have that question floating around in their minds as they write. However, I think I can safely say that every character in every fictional book is based on someone the author knows, has known or knows about. I guess I think of it this way...
I write fiction. The end.
LOL! But I will say, IN TOO DEEP has the same pattern of abuse I endured but details, names and specific places have been changed. Much of what I wrote was literally pulled from my imagination in a new storyline but in order to make the story and its characters authentic, I did need to dig down into my own scars and reenact some situations in order to stay true to the recognizable pattern of abuse so the story remains believable.
We authors have an old saying, "Write what you KNOW!" So, in following that guideline, who would be writing about characters they DIDN'T know?

Thanks so much to everyone who contributed questions! This was fun! I hope to do this regularly, especially after the book comes out!

If you have a question, feel free to leave it in the comments and I will update this post with your question and my answer! :)

Peace.