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.
No comments:
Post a Comment