27 November 2013

Author Interview - Amanda Alberson


Please welcome Author Amanda Alberson to the blog today!

I’d like to start by saying thank you so much for having me on your blog! Without wonderful readers, bloggers, reviewers ect indie authors like me would be lost.

Have you always had a passion for writing?   
      
Yes, I have written stories and poems all my life. I have had a passion for reading for as long as I can remember, and it doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon!

Does what you read influence what you write and what are some of your favourite authors/books? 

When I was younger I often mirrored the stories I wrote after books I loved. In junior high I wrote a book about two girls who go back in time and end up in the fifties. It was heavily influenced by S. E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. Now that I am older I write more about people or issues that touch my heart. I have so many favourite books and authors, I’ll read any genre almost so my books range from Stephen King to Anne Rice to Aprilynne Pike, Krystal George, Felicia Tatum, R.A Salvatore and onward.

What are your biggest inspirations?              

Emotions are my biggest inspiration. Love, fear, anger, I guess life really. Life is so many fleeting moments and while we can often feel our own lives are mundane, there’s so many possibilities out there. I love books that make me cry or make me so angry I want to scream, or make me think about something or see something in a different light.

Do you have a technique in how you choose characters and/or locational settings?         

I really don’t have a technique for anything, I can’t even follow a recipe right I always add something. An idea will hit me, either the last scene of the book or a scenario and everything else will follow. The character names are very important to me. The names have to fit the person I see in my head, they’re looks, they’re personality, everything. I mean, I can’t have a bad a$$, rough and tumble, hot guy named Petey or Timmy it just wouldn't work.

Do you listen to music while you are creating your masterpieces?     

Yes, I have to have music! All of my WIP’s have a playlist. There are songs that match the overall theme of the stories, songs that inspire certain scenes even songs that inspire and fit certain characters.

What do you do to stay motivated and avoid writer’s block?           

If I find myself stuck I go back and re-read my favourite parts, an especially emotional scene between characters, a moment that reaches into the chest and squeezes the heart and then I’m back on track.

How has becoming a published author (independent or traditional) changed your perspective on life and is it everything you expected it to be? (If you are not published yet – what changes do you foresee?)            

I was terrified to actually put a book of mine out there. I was half way through writing my first when I stumbled upon the Indie Writing community. I began making friends online with other authors/bloggers/reviewers and with their support and encouragement I finished my first book and set it loose into the world. It’s actually a little better than I thought it would be. I honestly didn’t’ think anyone outside of my circle would buy it or read it, and people did, and so far they’ve all loved it. I’m a terrible promoter but word is slowly spreading and I have a small but wonderful fan base, and it’s humbling and amazing and it keeps me writing.

What are your biggest challenges as an author?           

Money. I don’t think people outside of the Indie community have any idea the costs of publishing your own book. Editing, cover art, swag, it’s crazy and honestly it’s the only thing holding me back right now. I have three nearly complete books that I think everyone would really enjoy, I just don’t have the funds to get them out there yet.

Do you have any pets?          

Yes I have a small Chi-weenie named Jake (from Adventure Time although I call him Jake from State Farms) and a Beta fish named Ichabod Drain

What hobbies do you have outside of reading and writing?        

Well reading and writing are the biggest, I also love hiking, camping and photography.

Where is the most exciting/memorable place you have been in the world?                

Can Cun Mexico when I was 18 years old. It was beautiful and scary and so much fun. I hope to make it to Ireland one day as well as Greece, Italy, Germany ….everywhere, I want to see it all.

Tell us about your latest work in progress or most recent published work… 

My only published work is Losing Connor. It’s the tragic romance story of Cassie and Declan. It switches from past to present exposing their love and the impact their choices have made on their lives. Pregnant at 17 Cassie decides their child deserves more than they can offer. Declan wants to be a family. Years later their worlds collide again, can they lose one another a second time?  Can they let go of the anger and regrets?  

I am also working on a two part book, possibly a trilogy. The first book is titled When No One was Listening. It’s the story of Sloane, Eric and Barrett. It’s told from all three POV’s. Sloane is the outcast, she hears her dead twin’s voice in her head and does her best to hide her crazy as well as her guilt over Sara’s death from everyone around her. Eric is the son of the town sheriff as well as the high school football star who’s use to getting his way. Barrett is the town bully, with an addict for a mother and a father in prison for murder, everyone steers clear of him. But are people really who we think they are? Or are they much more? Sloane , Eric and Barrett’s lives mix and entwine ending in a climatic standoff in the end.




You can find Amanda on her Website, Facebook and Amazon!

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