Glad to
speak with C.M. Fields today!
Tell us
about all about you…as the non- author first then about you as author.
I
am 42, an engineer and working for the high tech industry. I have more than 15
years of experience in this career and for a while I was sort of burned out,
gained weight and had lost my mojo. As I don’t have a family yet and wanted to
be prepared to have one, I took it upon myself to get in shape, live a healthy
life and I educated myself on nutrition and exercise. With a mix of nutrition,
regular workouts and yoga, I went from 220 pounds down to 165. Although I still
want to improve and stay fit for the rest of my life, I am comfortable with the
goals I have reached so far.
As
an author, one of the things that drive me is a passion for traveling and
experiencing new cultures. This passion has taken me to many different places
and has helped me expand my views of the world. Working in the high tech
industry with virtual teams gives you an access and a view to the world that
opens your mind and gives you a bigger picture. My first novel is a project
that I kicked around in my head for about two or three years. I would start
writing something and then would stop. Then I would start something else and
stop again. Eventually I realized that I simply had to plan my story and write
it, so I did. I put together a rough idea of what I wanted to have in each
chapter. Once I had this, things just flowed. I would come back from work, play
some music and things would just happen. As a self-published author, I realized
soon the road is long and there’s no easy way to make your message known. Just
like everything, you have to be persistent and believe in your message, stay at
it and keep going. So, this is where I’m at. I believe in the overall message of
my story and will continue trying to spread it.
How long
have you been writing?
I
have been writing since my early twenties. First I started with essays and
short stories. Over time, I realized friends and classmates liked what I wrote.
So, it eventually evolved into a desire to write a book. Off and on, it has
been all this long… approximately twenty years. Looking back, I gotta say, it’s
a long time! I guess I have to start
upping the gears and be more prolific.
What
inspires you to write in the style that you do? (what genre do you write in?
does it vary?)
This
is my first novel. What inspired me to write in this style is that I wanted to
give an overall message. There is a story in the book and I try to share my
view of where things might be heading to; I felt I had to make it more generic,
hence I chose this style.
In
my next book, I will most probably choose a story in the first person, it will
be a way more personal story and so will have to be in this style.
How many
words per day do you like to write? Is that a daily goal or weekly goal?
I
approach writing as a way to open your mind and your heart, as a way to pour
your heart out with what’s bouncing around in your mind. It’s a sort of
therapy, if you will. So, being that it’s something somewhat emotional and
whimsical, there are days when I was close to writing an entire chapter, and
there were other days where nothing came and I simply spent my time correcting
things in the story, adding and removing little things here and there.
What is the
name of your first book? How long ago was
It printed?
Where did you market it and did you have a good sale number?
The
name of my first book is “A Life as a Stock”. It was first printed in September
2011. I published it and marketed it through iUniverse and it’s available in
amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.com, Sony books, and other major online retailers.
My
sales have not been what I expected and I think it’s one of the things about self-publishing.
You have to try different formulas and find out what works and what doesn’t. Right
now, I had read different posts from successful authors that a low price for
the electronic version of a book is something that has worked for them. So, I’m
right now working on finding out how to lower the price of the electronic
version with the major online retailers. I have gotten overall good reviews
(you can find one at The Urban Times online: http://bit.ly/XJJ501) though.
Will your
novel become a series?
Right
now, I don’t have a series in mind. And it’s funny, I have been asked about
this before. Maybe I should consider it.
How do you
feel about online book reading? Do you have a book that you’ve written for a
digital shelf like ibooks or kindle?
Even
though I did not write my book specifically for the electronic version, I think
it’s a great new platform. Everything I have read tells that it’s a growing
market and platform. I’m all up for it!
Do you think
it’s worth to ask buyers to purchase a digital novel for the same amount of $
as a print novel?
I
don’t. When I first went into this I went with the same price thinking that
that was the way things were done. As I have learned more about it, it’s clear
that you can’t. And it makes all the sense in the world. With an electronic
version you’re not using paper or ink to produce a physical product. You’re
simply selling your story, that’s all.
How do you
think the change in the publishing industry affects authors today?
My
perspective is that with every major change, you have to focus on the big
picture. It’s great because now everyone who has a story has access to publish
it and have a shot at doing so. It’s not so great because anyone who self
publishes has to go through a learning curve, has to try different formulas and
find what works and what doesn’t. That assumes that your story is good and has
potential; if it’s not, then that’s a different story.
If you could
give a budding author advice what would it be?
Make
it look professional. Proof read a lot, polish your message and don’t give up.
Nobody’s going to do the work for you, you have to knock doors, try different
formulas and, most importantly, you have to realize that most successful
authors became successful until their second, third or later novel.
Don’t
spend your money unnecessarily with publishing packages that promise you the
stars. There’s a lot of cost effective alternatives. Look for those. Reach out
to the book clubs and introduce yourself to them, give books away. At the end
of day, it’s about making connections.
Can you
recommend our readers a publisher that you like to work with?
The
only one I have worked with is iUniverse.
If you could
be a famous author, who would it be and why?
Gary
Jennings. He had a way to transport you to the world he was describing. You
could see and smell the world in the story, you could feel the dust in your
feet.
Tell us
where we can find your book(s) and provide a link!
Thank you C.M.!
