MARSocial Special Interview

September 2, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #11

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? This is our last post for this interview series! Question #11 is “What is your writing process like?  Is it spontaneous or do you do a lot of planning in advance before you begin writing? ” by Marie Lavender.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

My process is spontaneous, I will forget something if I wait for the scheduled time to write.

2) Viv Drewa

I do a lot of research for my novels, even interviewed some people (an archaeologist and a medical examiner). Then plan the story and characters. Sometimes I get spontaneous from there on and add or remove characters or change the direction of the story.

3) K. J. Rollinson

I am at the computer every morning at 5 am and write the next chapter of the book, which I have already got in my mind.(see my answer to question 10). Then I edit the chapter I have written the day before.

4) Sam Reese

Very spontaneous. I just sort of sit down and write, with some music in the background. Nothing special really.

5) Neil McGowan

I find that, if I do too much plotting, my characters and story feel wooden and one-dimensional. I’m much happier throwing a bunch of characters into a situation and seeing how they get out of it. I know I’m on a roll when my characters refuse to do what I ask them and insist on doing things their own way. Although I usually have a pretty good idea of how a story will end, how it gets there often surprises me. I’ve even had a book go off on a completely different path to what I originally envisaged. I always enjoy the journey though, seeing how things work out. Having said all that, I do keep some notes – mainly lists of characters and the key events in their lives – although I stay clear of being too definitive about things. Even things like how my characters look – I have a mental picture of them, but try not to be too descriptive as I want the reader to imbue them with their vision. If I do my job right, then this makes the character come alive in the mind of the reader and makes it so much easier to make an emotional investment in. I recently read a book where there was a shock ending to some of the characters. On the whole, I enjoyed it, but what happened to these characters jumped out at me as a plot device that had been thrown in to help resolve a couple of plot lines. As these characters were pinned down to the page too rigidly my emotional investment was small in them – after I read what happened to them, my thoughts were more focussed on the main character (who was well written) and not on their fate – it barely registered with me. It’s not that they were likeable or unlikeable; rather, they were little more than cardboard cut-outs, and bland. I was more frustrated with the fact that the author had spent time and care crafting a believable heroine whilst neglecting some of the other characters. I try and get feedback from alpha and beta readers and, if I get comments about wooden characters, then it’s back to the rewrite stage to either cut them out or make them more realistic.

6) Marion Lovato

My writing process is very spontaneous.  Something will just hit me when I least expect it.

7) Jaro Berce

I plan in advance and carefully made a structure and main points. Then later (most of the times) I write spontaneously and sometimes do not care about my previous preparation. So I would say I build a structure – “bones”, then in the process of writing I “put meat to the bones”.

8) Marie Lavender

A bit of both.  It is pretty spontaneous until I get heavily involved in a project.  At that point, I start doing a detailed outline.  Then I do some research.  I also look at what I have written already and decide what needs to be done for each chapter.  Of course, the story will still surprise me with certain twists.  Then I get to the heavy writing and I will stop and research something if I am blocked.

9) LaRae Parry

Some of my writing is spontaneous. When I write fiction, I make an outline and loosely follow it–sometimes the characters don’t want to do what I planned, so they do what they want. But . . . I ALWAYS know the end from the beginning. How I get there is a mystery.

10) Theresa Moretimer

Most os my writing is spontaneous. I do do a lot of planning when I am writing horror or having my characters go to a place I am unfamiliar with. I have to do a lot of research and in that I incorporate the help of my friends and doctors for things I really need to know about. usually when I begin to write, I am blessed with the ability to sit down when the thought provokes me and write until it’s done. Sometimes that’s a few days straight and sometimes it’s a few weeks.  Of course sometimes I can’t always get to my computer when I have an idea so I keep a personal recorder with me so i can speak mt thoughts as I drive and translate them later.

11) Annie Edmonds

Hi Marie I will usually write a short outline about the main characters. Once I have that I  just start writing. I don’t know where it all comes from but I am more of a spontaneous writer. 
 
I do stop writing for research. For me research can be to look up a street name or a landmark in the town I’m writing about. Or it can be about a certain subject.  
 
My stories tend to have at least one villain or bad guy. With book 2 I’m at the point where the research is imperative. I need to get it right. 
 
There’s not just one crazy real life scenario going on but many.  And they all need to be accurate. I need to know what I’m talking about so that the character doesn’t look stupid. Its all very exciting as I know where it’s going to end up. But sometimes I surprise myself and the plot will change in mid sentence. My brain takes me somewhere I didn’t think I was going. If I like it then it stays. If I don’t I re-write the entire scene or chapter. 
 
I have no doubt that as writers keep writing they get better. So I look forward to seeing this book through to the end. This story is different then Sammy’s story. And I can’t wait to finish and get it out there. I have a feeling about this one. 
 
Right now I’m looking for Beta readers that edit erotic romance. If anyone is interested please don’t hesitate to send me an e-mail.aedmonds315@gmail.com. 
 
Thanks to Jas and all the authors for sending making this group interview a great success. I look forward to reading your answers to these same questions. And I hope the readers like this interview as much as I liked being able to participate.  
 

Thank you Annie and of course all the other MARSocial participants! I look forward to interviewing you next time! 

Jas from IBP ! 

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September 2, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #10

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #10 is “When you hit a wall, how do you break through?” by LaRae Parry.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

My process is spontaneous, I will forget something if I wait for the scheduled time to write.

2) Viv Drewa

Save what I’ve written and, if the weather’s nice, take a walk. Or read. I do have a friend I use as a sounding board sometimes.

3) K. J. Rollinson

Sorry, LaRae I’m the wrong person to answer. I can honestly say I never get writer’s block. I swim every day and usually I am writing the next chapter in my mind as I swim. Great physical and mental exercise.

4) Sam Reese

Just keep writing. I find that if you hit a wall but keep typing away, the wall becomes less rigid. Even if what you wrote during the wall time is crap, you can always edit it out later.
 

5) Neil McGowan

I tend to leave what has blocked me and go on to something else. I’m also a keen cyclist so I’ll go for a ride; I almost always come up with ways to beat the block this way.

6) Marion Lovato

Go do something different that’s not even related to writing and take your mind off of it.

7) Jaro Berce

I try to prevent it so I normally don’t hit a wall – I predict, envision and look forward. But if eventually it  happens, I sit and rethink all over again.

8) Marie Lavender

Ah, the age old writer’s block.  I haven’t had official writer’s block in years, but I will tell you now that I often feel like I’m “almost” having it and that, my friends, is just as terrifying.  Sometimes it will have been weeks since I wrote anything just because my life has gotten too hectic.  

Eventually, I have to step away from these distractions and get back to the reason I went on this journey in the first place.  Writing.  Sometimes just journaling or freewriting gets some of that clutter out of your head.  I have a few writing reference books if I ever need help with freewriting or doing a random scene.  I would recommend Natalie Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones.  I have returned to it time and time again.  It is a great book to help cut through some of those blocks.  It may not result in a scene, but sometimes writing just to write, even if it’s crap, is just as therapeutic.  Hell, maybe you’ll surprise yourself with another medium – essays or poetry.  Another good book is Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird.

There are, of course, other resources.  Sometimes I even do a search on “writing prompts” online and print out a few pages.  I pick an exercise and go with it.  But, mainly, my “walls” have more to do with a current work in progress.  Occasionally, I will hit a place in my manuscript in which I don’t know what road to take.  Sometimes the best thing to do is to walk away.  That might sound bad, but even a little distance from a project for a few days can make you look at it from a different perspective.  Maybe when you come back, something will jump out at you and you’ll wonder why you never saw it before.  

Feel like tearing yourself away is the worst thing you could possibly do?  Fine.  Do some research for the book.  Find some much needed information that you can throw in at any time.  Sometimes I find that filling in these blanks is just the boost I need to finish a scene.  In lieu of all that, I often will move on to a different project temporarily.  I will look through my numerous files and do some editing or write a little on those works in progress.  Any little bit helps, right?  Sometimes stepping away from the current work in question is just what it takes to get back on track.  Who knows?  Maybe reading a book, seeing a movie or having a conversation with a good friend will spark an idea.

9) LaRae Parry

I eat ice cream, watch movies, read, then smack myself. If that doesn’t work, I get on the computer and force myself. Sometimes, I don’t obey though. 

10) Theresa Moretimer

When I hit a wall I go for a walk, take a drive to the beach to walk, go horseback riding on the trails. I do the things that will clear my head and relieve my stress. stress is what causes the blockage and whatever it is that relieves your stress, that’s the thing that will clear your mind and let you get back to work.

11) Annie Edmonds

Hey LaRae,  When I hit a wall I save what I’ve written and close the computer. That’s when I need to walk away for awhile. Usually just taking a break will loosen those story bricks in that wall. 
 
Even though I’m away from the computer that story is still in my head. I don’t know about other writers but anything can jar a thought and make me want to get back to the computer or at least write it down on paper.
Does anyone else use paper and pen to write notes?
 

The next question is “What is your writing process like?  Is it spontaneous or do you do a lot of planning in advance before you begin writing?” by Marie Lavender. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

September 2, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #9

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #9 is “Who could/would help a writer to sell books?” by Jaro Berce.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

Readers and other authors, for some the biggest challenge is themselves

2) Viv Drewa

Social media if you’re an Indie. Otherwise agents or publishers.

3) K. J. Rollinson

See the answers to question one. Of course, you can pay for advertising, and you can also pay reviewers and others, e.g. Twitter accounts to advertise your books for you.

4) Sam Reese

I’m not sure I understand this question exactly, but I think family, friends, and a publisher if you have one would do all of this. As for who could, I’d say anyone could. Like all things, selling books is about building relationships and a fan base.

5) Neil McGowan

Anyone with an interest in books! If you’ve read something that moves you, tell others; leave a review. Promo sites are okay but unless you pay for it, you don’t get massive exposure and even if you do, there is no guarantee that you will recoup your outlay. Also, the authors themselves can drive interest in their work by interacting with people via social media, being visible at local festivals and events, giving interviews etc.

6) Marion Lovato

Family and friend, if they’re supportive, could really help sell your books just by word of mouth.

7) Jaro Berce

My, my … the toughest question to which I do not have an answer. If I had, I’d be selling my books in tons.

8) Marie Lavender

Tough question.  I think writers automatically assume that being an author is easy.  When they first approach the idea of publishing, they think, “I will write books and someone else, the publisher most likely, will sell them.  Easy!”  No, it’s really not.  And it doesn’t work that way anymore.  The industry has changed.  The term of “author” is changing.  Now an author has to be part writer, part marketing genius.  Publishers now are looking for writers who can not only write, but market themselves, basically “sell” their own books.  New authors tend to get jaded by this fact.  And, I agree, it is exhausting.  So, if you’re lucky, you get with a large publisher that has a whole marketing team to help you.  But, in most cases, you don’t have that.  And, even if your publisher has some marketing tools in place, they won’t cover everything.  You have to learn to be more than just a writer.  You have to be an author.  You have to sell your product.  You.  And your books, of course.  

Who else helps a writer sell books?  Fellow authors usually help by endorsing books or talking about them in social media.  Word of mouth is the best tool, though, and the best source is from readers.  So, how do we go about getting that?  That goes back on the reader in some ways.  All I can suggest is this.  If you are an avid reader of a certain genre, do your favorite authors (even if they are indie authors) a favor by doing these two things:  1) Leave a review.  You have no idea how much that helps an author, especially a fledgling one, sell books.  Be honest about what you liked or didn’t like, but be fair.  What one person doesn’t like may actually be someone else’s cup of tea.  2)  Tell your friends and family about this author and the books you loved, and why.  Chances are someone will get curious and look them up.  Word of mouth is everything in this business.

9) LaRae Parry

Good question, Jaro. The best way to sell a book, hands down, is word of mouth. Readers who like your books will help sell them.

10) Theresa Moretimer

The media can help you sell books if you have a great press release. In my case, the persons involved in the prevention of domestic violence can help me due to the fact that write about it and I speak pubicly on the warning signs and what I personally went through.

11) Annie Edmonds

Well Jaro, I think anyone can help a writer sell their books. Readers do it all the time without knowing. One great review can sell books. Or telling a friend about a good book is helping the author sell books. 
 
Those two things are what I think every writer dreams about. Word of mouth and good reviews. And by the way as long as the reviewer is not attacking the writer their review can help that author sell books. 

The next question is “Who could/would help a writer to sell books?” by Jaro. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 24, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #8

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #8 is “What are your reasons for writing?” by Marion Lovato.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

To gain my sanity.

2) Viv Drewa

I love putting story to print. After reading all my life I thought it was time.

3) K. J. Rollinson

Inspiration, imagination, love of words. You have to is my answer. You have to express yourself, if you are a writer, artist, composer. It is in your soul.

4) Sam Reese

Simply because I can’t not write. Something inside compels me to do so, and when I stop doing so I tend to become a terrible person to be around.

5) Neil McGowan

I couldn’t imagine not writing. It’s something that is a part of my character. It allows me to examine ideas and themes from different perspectives, and lets me have fun playing around with characters and situations.

6) Marion Lovato

To share the uniqueness and comical side of this creature we call a cat.

7) Jaro Berce

To share my knowledge with others and to have fun discussing it with people that perceived the matter differently as I have meant.

8) Marie Lavender

I write because I can’t imagine doing anything else for the rest of my life.  There is no greater freedom for me than when I am deep in the construction of a scene, when so much is going on that I forget the world for awhile.  When I come out of it, there is almost a strange euphoria to it.  I blink and say, “Wow.  Did that actually happen?”  So much can occur.  I feel a lot while I’m writing.  With some scenes, I feel a character’s anger or what they would naturally feel if they were insulted or hurt.  Sometimes, with a particularly emotional scene, I know I’ve gotten to the heart of things when I’m writing with tears streaming down my face.  Neurotic?  Maybe.  But, that is the way of a writer.  We feel with our characters.  They become a part of us in a way, and when the book is finished, it is hard to step away from that connection.  So, why do I write?  Because doing anything else just feels wrong.

9) LaRae Parry

For me, writing is therapeutic.  Also, the stories inside my head won’t leave me alone. Grrrrr.

10) Theresa Moretimer

To help people to become aware of the dangers of domestic violence.  I write fiction but what I write as fiction is true to an extent due to the fact that I base a lot of my story on my life.  It’s not all true but a lot of it is.  I hope to prevent domestic violence cases by helping people become aware of the signs.

11) Annie Edmonds

Marion my reasons for writing are to get the little people out of my head.
If I don’t they just keep talking. And the story gets bigger and bigger. When I finally put the story into the computer it’s done. And I’m on to the next. Writing is not a choice for me.

The next question is “Who could/would help a writer to sell books?” by Jaro. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 24, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #7

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #7 is “What do you consider most important in  a novel – literary value or story? by Neil McGowan.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

The story

2) Viv Drewa

If you don’t have a good story your work won’t have literary value.

3) K. J. Rollinson

This is a difficult question to answer. Obviously, the story and the characters must be intriguing to hold the reader’s interest, BUT nothing annoys me more when an author makes obvious grammatical errors. I can accept the occasional ‘typo,’ this happens in any book, but I do think ‘Indie authors’, in particular, should ensure their spelling and use of English (or whatever language they write in) should be of a high standard.

4) Sam Reese

Probably story. I’ve read (or tried to read) a lot of so-called “literature” and I just don’t get the appeal. It’s trash from a writing perspective, and I think that there are many much better books that deserve to be praised by lit profs.

5) Neil McGowan

Story! It’s all very well doing clever things with language in the name of literature but if the story isn’t there then I’ll put the book down and move on to something else that does have a story.

6) Marion Lovato

Bottom line for me is the story

7) Jaro Berce

I think we all read because of a story. Kafka has literary value but no story.

8) Marie Lavender

I think the story is more important, and this is why.  Let’s say you read a book and you think, “Yeah, that was good.”  A couple of hours later, you are imagining the scenes play out in your head and you just realized a message could be drawn from it.  Did the author intend to convey that?  Who knows?  That’s the great fun about reading a book.  You have no idea what the author “meant” to do.  All you know is that there is something of value in any story, whether it’s a way to escape your worries for awhile or that you glean a message from it.  I think that’s the best part, not knowing what you’re going to encounter.  And maybe the author didn’t even intend to place a message or certain theme in the book, but inadvertently did.  Every one of us comes from a different background, went through different experiences.  What one person gleans from a text may be entirely separate from what the next person gets from it.  That’s the beauty of it.

9) LaRae Parry

Story, story, story. Story trumps everything.

10) Theresa Moretimer

Wow! That is a hard one because to me they are both important and to me you really can’t have one without the other. To me me literary value is based on the story content and life-like your characters and stary are and when they come to life in a story that a reader can’t put down then you have great literary value. Of course not everyone would share my views but to me they are both important.

11) Annie Edmonds

Ok it’s getting deep in here, and I love this question.  I think literary value IS in the story. If the story stays with you and you’re learning something you didn’t know, well too me that’s literary value. And I think it varies from reader to reader.

The next question is “What are your reasons for writing?” by Marion Lovato. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 24, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #6

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #6 is “If you could be transported into one of your stories as a character, would you or would you stay as far away from it as possible?” from Sam Reese. 

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

Depending on the character I would jump at the chance for some roles.
 

2) Viv Drewa

The killer in my new novel. Sorry, still in progress can’t divulge anything else.

3) K. J. Rollinson

No, I love all of my characters. Obviously, I would pick to be one of the ‘goodies’. I quite fancy being Black Bert, the captain of a group of pirates in the last of my ‘Fallyn trilogy’, ‘Fallyn and the Sea Dragons’. I intended him to be bad but he waved his cutlass at me and decided he would be a Johnny Depp character, handsome, debonair, and charismatic. I wasn’t going to argue so I let him have his way. (About his character I mean!).

4) Sam Reese

Hmmmmm, depends on the story. I would like to visit my fictional town of Sherman’s March sometime, and it might be fun to wander around with the protagonist of my recent WIP in his weird amalgamation of mythologies, but some of my stories…not so much.
 
 

5) Neil McGowan

 I’d stay well away – as a horror writer, the chances would be high that I would meet a messy, untimely end.

6) Marion Lovato

Oh, I would love to be Sammy and have the powers and adventures of a Superhero!

7) Jaro Berce

Interesting. Never thought about the main character this way. Always on the opposite: about the main character coming to a real world. Well, I think time in books and the real time are different. In books time passes too fast and I like the time to pass slowly.

8) Marie Lavender

You just made me laugh.  Would I be a dual character, meaning would I be aware of myself and my character?  Or, would I be totally unaware of myself as the author?  In that case, you can’t really avoid interacting with the story.  You are the character so you will act like them.  On the other hand, as the architect of the original work, I think I would have the insane urge to “observe”.  That’s what writers do best.  However, I would have to seriously reign myself in, knowing I was a certain character.  And while we’re on the topic, I guess it would really depend on what character I was.  A minor character?  More doable, I think.  It would be hard to be the main character because you would still be thinking about your own life as reality.  I have never been a great actress, and it would definitely be challenging.

9) LaRae Parry

I would be Marzee the Witch in my short story, Love at Tadpole Square

10) Theresa Moretimer

 I am a character in one of my novels LoL and I would honestly stay away if I could LoL but writing about a character based on myself has made me stronger. I have become brave and for the first time saw what I was doing to myself in real life so it gave me the opportunity to change.

11) Annie Edmonds

I have to smile at this question Sam. Without a doubt in my mind I would jump into one of my books. Handsome men willing to please their women in every way. Beautiful women who genuinely care about each other. A private BDSM club called Desire. Scenes with feelings.  The beach, drama, friendships, suspense, and did I mention the hot kinky sex?  Hell yea, I’m in, Lol..
 

The next question is “What do you consider most important in  a novel – literary value or story?” from Neil McGowan. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 23, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #5

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #5 is “There was recently a message on ‘Books and Writers’ saying ‘please stop giving your books away’. What do you feel about this?” from Kathy.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

That is the beauty of self-publishing and being an indie, we can do as we like with our work, to each his own.
 

2) Viv Drewa

If it’s for a contest I think that’s OK. I did give my new releases away at first but decided not to anymore.

3) K. J. Rollinson

I am in agreement in giving your books away free. I do not publish to make money (although it would be great if I did). For me to be published is for my own satisfaction. Also, I think to promote your book for a free period, say for four weeks, can be an advertisement. I cannot remember the name, but one author recently promoted their book free on Amazon and was downloaded thousands of time and a publishing house picked up their book and it is now a best seller.

4) Sam Reese

I don’t know that I have an opinion one way or the other, though I will say that I think art should be shared and that an artist should be rewarded for his or her work. So, I hope that’s as clear as mud.
 

5) Neil McGowan

  As a writer, my goal is to reach as many readers as possible; as a reader, I know that I’m more likely to try an unknown author if I can read one of their books for free. I’ve discovered many great new authors like this, and have gone on to buy some of their other work. I think people can be put off trying books that fall slightly outside their usual choices if they have to pay for them – if they can be enticed to try new stuff for free, then I think everyone benefits – the reader gains a new writer and the writer gains a new reader. It’s great doing something I love and getting paid for it as well, but the pay check isn’t the reason I write. But I have to say, the sense of reward when someone pays you to read something you’ve written is fantastic.

6) Marion Lovato

Since I feel that I’m still new to the publishing industry, I often wondered why people would give their books away.  I know I need every penny I can make.  However, looking at the other side of the coin, if you can interest someone in your books with a free one, you would have a reader for life.

7) Jaro Berce

I would answer with my thought: »Knowledge is the only good that, when shared, there is more of it around and you don’t have any less of it!« and books are full of knowledge.

8) Marie Lavender

I am a total Libra on this topic.  I understand the message.  They are trying to discourage it because, as new or indie authors, we don’t reap any profits from it.  Although I do agree on some level, I also realize that word of mouth is everything in this business.  What better way to spread the word about your book than for a reader to tell his/her friends about it?  So, let me revise the original statement a bit.  “Don’t blatantly give your books away.”  Meaning, sure, offer a brief free period on Amazon.  And definitely promote it.  Run giveaways now and then with multi-author events if you find them.  Do a contest on your blog.  Don’t offer free books all the time because you’re devaluing your work.  But, do offer readers who haven’t even heard of you the chance to sample your work.

9) LaRae Parry

I feel who ever said that needs to mind his or her own business. Um, we can do whatever we want with our books. I was mad the other day and even threw mine. To each his own.

10) Theresa Moretimer

 I never saw the article so I really can’t comment on that one.

11) Annie Edmonds

Thanks Kathy, I haven’t read that article. This is one question I don’t mind answering. For a while now I have been watching writers give their books away for free. We’ve all done it. And I think it can be used as a tool to get readers to find out who we are. 
 
Or if you have a second book or a third to promote, then giving the first away is a good way to bring the readers to the writer’s work. And if giving your book away gets the readers to actually read our books how can it be wrong, Right? 
 
But then you have the writers that give every book they write away. So why would readers even search out books they have to pay for when they can get so many for free? And then do they even read those free books.  Or do the free books get pushed to the back of the list of books to read? I don’t know. 
 
Look, we know that for an authors story to hit the big leagues its like looking for a needle in a haystack. Everyday there’s more and more writers publishing their books. And Maybe we all should stick together and only give free books one month out of the year. Then maybe readers would search through the forest of books and hopefully find an author that might have never been discovered if not for having to pay for that book.  
 

The next question is “If you could be transported into one of your stories as a character, would you or would you stay as far away from it as possible?” from Sam Reese. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 23, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #4

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #4 is “When did you decide to become a writer?” from Viv Drewa.

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

I have wrote since Grammar School, maybe I should have been listening more?
 

2) Viv Drewa

In 1963 after reading JR Greene’s “The Whistling Sword”. I had read all the Hardy Boy and Nancy Drew mysteries and wanted to try something new. Greene’s novel took me on an adventure in the Middle East following a young boy who met a group traveling led by Ghengus Khan. It was thrilling and I was interested in writing from that point on.

3) K. J. Rollinson

I have written stories as long as I can remember, but it was not until I joined Wordplay Writers’ Forum, Spain, which has its own publishing firm, that I thought having my books published.

4) Sam Reese

I’ve always written and told stories of some sort, but I started actively writing back in college, probably ten years or so ago.

5) Neil McGowan

  I’ve wanted to write for as long as I can remember – I think I was 4 or 5 when I wrote my first ‘book’ and illustrated it. (It was a sheet of paper folded in half to make the pages.)

6) Marion Lovato

I started writing poetry when I was in college and always thought about writing a novel.  Thinking was as far as I got!  However, when I became a cat owner, I had to share all the funny things.

7) Jaro Berce

It was not a time stamp somewhere in the past. It was rather a process that I followed. It begun by publishing professional subject articles about the researches I did. Becoming more conscious of the society I slowly moved to a “lighter” genre writing for public newspapers. As there were thoughts and subjects accumulating in my mind writing a book was not so far apart.

8) Marie Lavender

I often chuckle at this question because I can recall at an early age telling people, “I’m going to be a writer!”  Actually, I used the terms writer/author/novelist interchangeably, and this is the truth.  The moment you put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard with the intent of “writing”, you’re a writer.  The moment those words spill out of you, sometimes even chaotically, you’re automatically a writer.  I have always been a writer, and I probably started this wild journey when I was nine years old.  Another thing I want to point out is that I didn’t just up and decide to be a writer.  It chose me.  I could no more stop “writing” than I could stop the passage of time.

9) LaRae Parry

I didn’t decide. My desire to write is an umbilical urge.

10) Theresa Moretimer

 I have been writing all my life. I started at the age of 5 telling scary stories about the areas we would drive through and after the ordeal I went through I wrote a book and published it.

11) Annie Edmonds

Thanks Vivi, I love this question. I don’t think it’s a decision that you make. You either are or you aren’t. I have to write. I constantly have one or two stories going on in my head at all times. It’s just finding the time to put them down on paper so to speak. 
 

The next question is “There was recently a message on ‘Books and Writers’ saying ‘please stop giving your books away’. What do you feel about this?” from Kathy. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 23, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #3

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #3 is “What’s your favorite color and favorite dessert?” from Annie Edmonds. 

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

Red and all things chocolate
 

2) Viv Drewa

My favorite color is emerald green, I love fruit.

3) K. J. Rollinson

Colour (English spelling) is blue. Favourite dessert (ditto) anything with chocolate.

4) Sam Reese

Favorite color is black, favorite dessert is probably apple pie, though I love me some dessert.

5) Neil McGowan

Favourite colour is a deep emerald green; I a savoury guy when it comes to desserts, so probably cheese and biscuits, preferably a good blue cheese!

6) Marion Lovato

My favorite color is lilac.  My favorite dessert is cherry cobbler.

7) Jaro Berce

I’m not really into favorites as they tend to limit a person. All depends on the atmosphere, situation, feelings, needs and much more. Listen to yourself and then you will definitively know which (favorite) color, food and place fits you best at that proper moment. Listening to yourself proves to be harder but when you know yourself it pays greatly! Only then you begin to understand others and accept them the way they are and not the way you wish them to be.

8) Marie Lavender

My favorite color is hot pink.  My favorite dessert?  Chocolate.  Anything chocolate, and the darker the better.  

9) LaRae Parry

Gotta love our Jersey Girl, dontcha? My favorite color is butter yellow. My favorite dessert is the Blondie at Applebee’s.

10) Theresa Moretimer

 My favorite color…That’s a hard one, I love a lot of colors especially green, blue and red and my favorite dessert is chessecake.

11) Annie Edmonds

It’s funny answering your own question. 
My favorite color is the turquoise blue. It’s the color of the ocean in Siesta Key, and the Caribbean. Two places that hold a special place in my heart. I’ve always loved blue. But as I got older I’m just drawn to the turquoise blues. 
 
I love pastries. namely Italian pastries such as Connoli, Tiramisu, Napoleon even biscotti.  Anything made with Ricotta cheese and or thin pastry dough is Ok with me. And I don’t mind a gelato every now and again.
 

The next question is “When did you decide to become a writer?” from Viv Drewa. Stay tuned with us for the next post !

August 21, 2014

MARSocial Special Interview: Question & Answers #2

Hello everyone! So, finally we received all answers from our participants from MARSocial author network. Are you excited to read the answers yet? Question #2 is from author Theresa Moretimer and her question is “What made you choose the genre you write?”

Let’s check out the answers from all 11 author participants !

1) Coleman Weeks

I write about whatever is rattling around in my head, it is therapeutic

2) Viv Drewa

I love anything scary. Especially having to do with ghosts. So after reading all genre’s I chose paranormal.

3) K. J. Rollinson

I do not have a particular genre. I write fantasy, murder. My present book, which is approximately half finished, ‘Where Lies My Heart’ will be an adventure/love story.

4) Sam Reese

It’s really two things. I love horror as a genre, and when I try writing anything, somehow horror becomes at least an element of the story. I guess it’s in my brain.

5) Neil McGowan

I’ve loved horror since I learned to read, so I guess it was natural for me to lean towards this genre. Quite often – especially with short stories – I don’t start out with the intention of writing a horror story, but it nearly always tends to end up that way. I have written in other genres, but I find it harder to achieve a convincing voice; I also enjoy writing horror – it seems to come easy to me, and I usually finish a writing session with a smile when writing it.

6) Marion Lovato

I actually didn’t choose my genre because it chose me.  Owning two cats gave me a ton of raw material to work with.

7) Jaro Berce

It was natural for me. I like science fiction. A fiction that has a lot of content and connects to a real world can be pretty much expressed by my flow of writing of the subject I would like to present.

8) Marie Lavender

I love romance, the concept of “love”.  I always loved reading romance novels and watching romantic comedies.  It appeals to something deep inside of me.  I can’t imagine not writing about love.  It is essential.  To me love is more than an idea.  It is real, the fabric of the universe, what connects us as human beings.  I believe in the kind of love that can last lifetimes, cross time and place.  Why do I believe so wholly in such a thing?  I have my own true love story playing out in my life every day.  Have I always had that?  No, but I always believed I was meant to find that special someone, just as I believe there is someone for everyone.  It is this essential belief that inspires my characters and their stories, that I pour into my books.  When I am writing about romance, even if there are obstacles blocking the characters, I think there is no better high than telling someone’s story.

9) LaRae Parry

My first publisher MADE me choose ROMANCE. I like writing humorous memoirs, comedy, mysteries, and paranormal with a little romance thrown in.

10) Theresa Moretimer

I actually didn’t choose my genre because it chose me.  Owning two cats gave me a ton of raw material to work with.

11) Annie Edmonds

Good question Tre. My first thought was to write a children s book. I had done this before, but something inside me told me to leave that for later.

The next question is “What’s your favorite color and favorite dessert?” from Annie Edmonds. Stay tuned with us for the next post !