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Showing posts from March, 2012

10 Questions with The New York Times best-selling author Philip Athans (@PhilAthans)

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This Author Spotlight features Phil Athans. Philip Athans is the founding partner of Athans & Associates Creative Consulting , and the New York Times best-selling author of Annihilation and a dozen other fantasy and horror books including The Guide to Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction and the recently-released The Haunting of Dragon’s Cliff and Tales From The Fathomless Abyss . Born in Rochester, New York he grew up in suburban Chicago, where he published the literary magazine Alternative Fiction & Poetry. His blog, Fantasy Author’s Handbook , is updated every Tuesday, and you can follow him on Twitter @PhilAthans . He makes his home in the foothills of the Washington Cascades, east of Seattle. 1. How did you get into writing? I don’t really even remember a time when I wasn’t writing. As soon as I learned to read and write, I started making little illustrated “books” out of folded pieces of paper. Only a very few have survived, and I shared on

10 Questions with Chick-Lit Writer E.M. Tippetts (@EMTippetts)

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This Author Spotlight features chick-lit writer Emily Tippetts. Emily writes under the name of E.M. Tippetts and is the author of SOMEONE ELSE'S FAIRY TALE and PAINT ME TRUE (see above). Emily also writes science fiction under the name Emily Mah (see below). Emily resides in London. 1. How did you get into writing? I was one of those kids who always wrote, from the age that I could hold a crayon. I’ve wanted to be a writer ever since I learned where books come from, but actually getting published has been a long road. My strategy was to get trained in a fallback career and then focus on writing, so I did a bachelors and then a law degree. In my last year of law school I applied to the Clarion West Writers Workshop for Science Fiction and Fantasy, and amazingly enough, got in. If I were advising someone who wanted to be a writer, I’d suggest taking classes earlier than I did, training will make all the difference. I have no regrets, but after Clarion West

10 Questions with Fantasy Author/Illustrator L.J. Carter (@LJCarterAuthor)

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Illustration by L.J. Carter This Author Spotlight features  L.J. Carter,  fantasy writer and illustrator and  author of the young adult fantasy novel KINGDOM OF LOST CHILDREN: THE BOOK OF REN (see above).   Watch the book trailer for KINGDOM OF LOST CHILDREN: Author photograph courtesy of Paul Ockleshaw http://www.paulockleshawphotography.com/   L.J. Carter was born in a small town in the southern US state of North Carolina. At the age of twelve, she moved with her family to England where her fascination with all things magical flourished. Graduating with a BA Honours from Kingston University, she began her career as a designer and illustrator before launching into her lifelong love of writing. She has traveled extensively throughout Europe, Asia and Egypt in a quest for her love of ancient history and her passion for ancient mythology. When she is not illustrating or writing, her head is buried in archaeology books and ancient text. She currently resides in Hong

10 Questions with Writer Dr. Harrison Solow (@HarrisonSolow)

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This Author Spotlight features Los Angeles-based writer  Dr. Harrison Solow winner of the Puschart Prize and author of Felicity & Barbara Pym A Lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley and Special Projects Editor for the University of California Press in the 1990s, and an English professor & Writer in Residence at the University of Wales in the 2000s, Harrison is a Pushcart Prize winning writer (non-fiction, fiction and poetry) and editor with expertise in literary and academic publishing, and writing for the arts, humanities, the corporate world and the entertainment industry in Hollywood. Harrison is published by major publishing houses, university presses, national and international magazines and journals. Between 2006 and 2011 she was honoured with eight writing awards. She is the author of Felicity & Barbara Pym (see above), two previous books, a number of short stories and essays and several forthcoming books. 1. How did yo

10 Questions with Paranormal/Fantasy Romance Writer Deborah Court (@Deborah_Court_)

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This Author Spotlight features Paranormal Romance writer Deborah Court. Deborah is the author of BOUND TO THE PRINCE (see above) and watch the book trailer: Deborah is also the author of HOUSE OF PLEASURE. At the age of 20, while still in college, Deborah worked as a translator/editor of romance novels, particularly historical romance. She credits this experience with teaching her a great deal about the form, structure, and mechanics of how to write a good novel, good and bad writing, and what a reader looks for in a story. Deborah lives in a picturesque European small town. 1. How did you get into writing? Actually, I wanted to write my own stories when I was old enough to read, and this hasn't ever changed since. As a child, I was constantly thinking about new endings to stories I finished. It is what I felt I had to do, always. But professionally, I began as a translator/editor of romance novels before I decided to write my own. 2. What do you lik

10 Questions with Writer John Black (@JohnBlackWriter)

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This Author Spotlight features UK-based writer John Black, author of WORK OF ART (see above). John has an interesting and varied background, as do many writers, as he says: I am a writer living in the UK. I was born in Yorkshire but grew up in Lincolnshire. After living in various other parts of the country I am currently back in, as Henry VIII called it, ‘The most brute and beastly of my shires’. (It’s not that bad…) Avoiding anything as sensible as a career, I’ve tried to do as many jobs as possible that would sound interesting in a writer’s CV. These include postman, night receptionist in a motel, running a market stall, ebay trader and something involving chicken bones and a skip I’d rather not think about, plus a lot of much less interesting sounding jobs in IT. When not writing I tend to do things like walking, watching films, surfing the Internet, photography and drinking the odd glass of whiskey. 1. How did you get into writing? Many many years ago I re

10 Questions with Writer Tammy Bleck (@TammyBleck)

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This Author Spotlight features Los Angeles-based writer Tammy Bleck, author of  SINGLE PAST 50, NOW WHAT?  (see above). Tammy describes herself as a writer, life commentor, social observer and provider of the profound written word; in other words a blogger extraodinaire. She is also a non fiction writer, author of the book Single Past 50, Now What? and a freelance writer for hire. 1. How did you get into writing? I think I first started writing when I realized that no one was listening to me. I must have been about 15. I quickly discovered that when I wrote, people paid attention. By the way, they’re listening now. 2. What do you like best (or least) about writing? Everything. It’s private, it’s public, its truth and fiction. It’s a world where I can say what I can’t speak, share what I feel and report what I see. It is a safe place where other people are allowed to share but no one is allowed to change it. Writing is the sacred place where I am the boss of everything.

10 Questions with Fantasy Writer Debra L. Martin (@dlmartin6)

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This Author Spotlight features Boston-based fantasy writer Debra L. Martin. Debra is the first writer I've featured who is part of a writing team, along with David W. Small. 1. How did you get into writing? I have been writing since I was a teenager. I’ve always loved to put pen to paper and share the stories in my head.  I wrote my first novel years ago and that was an excellent exercise in actually finishing a project.  Unfortunately, that novel will forever stay in a dusty desk drawer, but it taught me a lot about plotting and pacing within the story. 2. What do you like best (or least) about writing? I love to write especially since I write with my co-author and brother, David W Small.  We both have similar tastes in books and have always traded books back and forth. When we started writing together in 2006, it was amazing how well our writing styles blended. That’s not to say, everything seamlessly flowed together, because it took us awhile to find our

Will Amazon Become the Microsoft of Digital Publishing?

Consider this an imromptu blog consisting of an informal poll. The matter of KDP Select has been on my mind for some time. When Amazon first announced it, I had mixed feelings about it. I still do. If you enroll your titles in KDP Select, you can't publish or promote or sell your work anywhere else. This means not publishing on Smashwords with the sole goal of having the title(s) distributed to the other major e-tailers: Kobo, Barnes&Noble, and iTunes. Enrolling in KDP Select means people who read ebooks on a Nook, Kobo, Sony Reader, iPad/Apple device will never see your title available among the virtual shelves where they shop for and buy ebooks. Does this concern you? (Granted, Amazon has free apps which enable people to read Kindle ebooks on non-kindle devices, but how many people know about this and use such an app?) For writers trying to make a name for themselves, should they be concerned with not having their work distributed to Nook, Kobo, Sony, iTu