Glad to
speak with you today L.M. Sherwin!
Tell us
about all about you…as the non- author first then about you as author.
First off,
thank you so much for having me “over” to your blog, Kristine! It is an honor!
As a non-author, I’m a pretty nerdy individual. I love reading (an addiction),
drawing, playing video games, fantasy/sci-fi TV shows and movies, knitting,
crochet, cooking, learning languages, creating languages....the list could go
on and on, so I’ll cap it off there. ;-) In all seriousness, I have many
interests and I try my best to give each one ample development time in my life.
I am the wife of my high school (and college) sweetheart and we have an
incredible life together. We have two fur-children in our fancy rats,
Winterbell and Snowbell. :-)
I’m a
fantasy/sc-fi author and I love to write books that involve magic, mystery, and
family connections. My novels (at the moment) are appropriate for young adults
and adults alike. I really want my books to be approachable for everyone. I
published my first book, Night Bells,
in August of 2012 and its sequel, Silent
Shades, in November. My most recent published work is a science-fiction
novella called The Dark Ship. All my
recently published novels and current projects take place in a fictional
universe I’ve created called The Primoris System. The idea is that humans colonized
another solar system in the distant future and find that they have to start
their lives over on these worlds without the technological advancements they
enjoyed on Ancient Earth. Most of the colonists discover that things they only
dreamed about back in their old world (things like magic) exist in their new
homes!
How long
have you been writing?
I’ve been
writing since I was too young to hold a pen by myself! I had all these stories
in my head and I rattled them off to my mother, who graciously wrote them down
until I was old enough to write myself. Once that time came, there was no
stopping me. I wrote short stories all growing up and we have tubs full of my
old writings. In third grade, I decided I wanted to be an author when I grew
up. In middle school, I started creating my own language and trying to create
an epic novel. I could never quite get all the story pieces together (I
honestly think it was a bit too grand for my adolescent mind), but I kept
writing over the years. In college, I began my work on Night Bells and I vowed to myself that I would finish it.
After my
husband and I got married, he challenged me to write an hour every day to build
up my discipline as a writer. That practice changed my life. Within a year, I
had written four manuscripts (one of which became Night Bells in its final version)! That was a very broad
explanation for a very short answer: I’ve
been writing all my life. :-)
What
inspires you to write in the style that you do? (what genre do you write in?
does it vary?)
As a fantasy author, I’m most naturally inspired by other
novels. I love reading grand, epic stories of magic, romance, adventure, and
wicked villains. An avid reader, I’ve always favored fantasy stories. As well,
I’m very much influenced by my love of nature and the world around us. For me,
a hike in the woods is akin to a trek through Narnia. I’m always finding new
characters in my head while out on walks and spending time outside helps me to
conjure up new plot ideas. My style sometimes forays into science-fiction
territory and many of my fantasy works (like Night Bells and Silent Shades)
have science-fiction aspects within the story.
How many
words per day do you like to write? Is that a daily goal or weekly goal?
On an “average” day, I try to write 2,000 words. Because I
also have a job as an administrator for a graphic design company, I have to
split my time between my author-stuff and my other-job-stuff. On a day when I
have little other-job-stuff to do, I can sometimes crank out 4,000 words. I was
sick one day about a month ago and I was able to work in bed and write over
6,000 words! So, I suppose it varies depending on the day, but my minimum daily
word-count goal is 2,000. :-)
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?
My first book is called Night
Bells and I published it last August (2012). For marketing, I mainly focus
on maintaining an active Twitter account, Facebook page, and other social media
outlets. I also ran an advertisement on Goodreads after I published it. While
focusing primarily on these things, I also reached out to book bloggers for
reviews, but most didn’t have the time. Most book bloggers these days are
extremely busy and slammed with review submissions. I also tried giveaways via
Goodreads with some good exposure. In “real life”, I had a book signing at a
local Barnes and Noble store (which went extremely well). My sales have been
steadily climbing. I’m happy with my consistent sales growth. More and more
people are finding out about my books and that is the goal.
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?
All of my books are available for Kindle, Nook, Novel Nook, and
Smashwords readers. In fact, my first book Night
Bells is free in eBook form at Smashwords and Novel Nook. It is my hope
that it will one day be free digitally on Amazon as well. I think eReading is a
terrific model. I adore my own Kindle and have thoroughly enjoyed reading books
on it. I still love print books (which is why I still publish my books in print
as well), but I think eReading will continue to grow in popularity.
Do you think
it’s worth to ask buyers to purchase a digital novel for the same amount of $
as a print novel?
Absolutely not. Part of the reason that print novels are (and
should be) more expensive to readers is due to reproduction costs. An eBook,
however, does not have to be printed and is therefore much “cheaper” to
distribute. I try to price all my eBooks under $5.00 and all my print books
under $15.00. I want readers to have access to my work and price should never
be outrageous, in my opinion.
How do you
think the change in the publishing industry affects authors today?
I think the biggest challenge with the publishing industry
today is its volatile nature. What worked for authors (marketing-wise) even as
recent as last fall may not work anymore. As an author today, you have to
constantly “study up” on the industry to find out what is trending in
marketing, what methods of publishing are working best, and how to reach
readers in the most genuine, efficient way. Honestly, this aspect of publishing
can be somewhat tiring, but with consistent effort, research, and social
networking, it is possible to “stay ahead of the game” or at least stay “with
the game”. :-)
If you could
give a budding author advice what would it be?
I would tell budding authors this: It is of the utmost importance that you manage your time well.
Becoming an author takes immense amounts of time, dedication, and hard work. It
can be overwhelming and it can even be hard to squeeze in writing time every
day when you’re busy with marketing, formatting, developing, and maintaining an
online presence. If you want to succeed as an author, however, you must continue
to write prolifically and get your work out to your dedicated readers. Learning
to split your time between writing, marketing, publishing, and social
networking is essential. You really do have to “do it all”, but the good news
is that, though it is challenging, it is totally possible. :-) You can do it!
Can you
recommend our readers a publisher that you like to work with?
Well, as an indie author myself, I’d tell them to go the
indie route and work for yourself! In all seriousness, being an independent author
is an amazing journey. Though you are solely responsible for every bit of the writing, editing,
formatting, publishing, and marketing, there is something extremely satisfying
about working for yourself. I don’t have to answer to a publisher about my deadlines
or about my choices regarding distribution. I can choose and hire my own
editors. I can develop my own cover art or hand-pick an artist. I can publish how and when I want. So, my advice would be to
seriously consider your options. There is nothing wrong with going the
traditional publishing route, but that was not personally the best choice for me. I have loved my time as an indie
author and have no future plans to approach traditional publishers.
If you could
be a famous author, who would it be and why?
I would be
Juliet Marillier. She is my absolute favorite
author of all-time. Her novels are so rich, beautiful, and enchanting! Daughter of the Forest, her first novel,
is my favorite story ever and I have read it more times than I can reasonably count.
I would be her, because her writing style speaks directly to the heart. Her
words are carefully woven into a tapestry of vivid imagery and immense meaning.
Her talent is astounding and I can only hope to aspire to one day be as
successful as she.
Tell us
where we can find your book(s) and provide a link!
Here are the places you can find each of my books! I truly
hope you’ll consider checking them out and if you do, enjoy!
Night Bells : Amazon (eBook and
print) // Smashwords (FREE in
eBook) // Nook (eBook) //
Wattpad (FREE in
serialized form) // Novel Nook (FREE in
eBook)
Thank you for sharing! I look forward to reading your work!- Kristine Sheehan, TheMerryBird Designs
