My Book Place

Your place to find great books online!

  • Home
  • Featured Books
  • Submit Your Book
  • Author Advertising Pre-Pay
  • Author Interview
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Shop
    • My account
    • Cart
    • Checkout

Author Interview: SAJI MADAPAT

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
I am honored to have this amazing opportunity.
My real name is Saji Madapat, and for the past two decades rocking and rolling' on the banks of the mighty Mississippi river (Memphis, TN) and Great Lakes (Chicago, IL).
My pen name is "EPM Mavericks". EPM (Enterprise Performance Management) is the strategic financial engineering system used by CFO's (Chief Financial Officer) office. I am an EPM professional to feed my kids, and this book is my passion for greenwashing my guilt😊

I am also known as Tiger Rider, which I used for my photography hobby website

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I am born and raised in God's Own Country (Kerala, India). In the second half of my life, I am a globe-trotting explorer (as of now ~20 countries with camera & gear) searching for new horizons with Eastern roots and Western guts.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My book is NON-Fiction book (with mult-dimensional perspectives including Finance, Geo-Politics, Economics etc.), and I am afraid the name is a long title😊

What authors have influenced you?
I am born and raised in God's Own Country (Kerala, India). In the second half of my life, I am a globe-trotting explorer (as of now ~20 countries with camera & gear) searching for new horizons with Eastern roots and Western guts.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
"If you can dream it, you can do it.
Always remember that this whole thing was started with a dream and a mouse."
― Walt Disney
As I mentioned earlier, I paid a high price for my dreams and it was worth every penny. I had approached professionals, including from the leading publishing firms. Almost all of them turned me down. When the darkness rolled in, through thick and thin, an amazing community was there for me with helping hands.

Believe it or not, in addition to my network, I had used dozens of great PAID editors in Reedsy, FIVERR, and UPWORK. Since my book is a bit of a niche, my editors may not be strictly applicable to others. I highly recommend you to interview them, test them with samples. I had also immensely benefited from the professional editors in addition from the USA, from India, Pakistan, Nigeria, UK, Australia, Canada etc., to have multiple perspectives on the geopolitical Tiger I am catching by the tail.

Even on the book cover, I had reached out over a dozen artists and even attornies😊 When I reached out to Getty images, just the cover images alone were estimated to cost several thousand. Finally, one of those professionals advised me to check it out on the White House website albums – that saved me thousands in addition to all the legal troubles😊

In summary, I do have gratitude to countless, and I will be doing an injustice if I miss anyone😊

[Read more…] about Author Interview: SAJI MADAPAT


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

Author Interview: C.M. Santoro

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
C. M. Santoro is excited to share her writing journey with you. She writes romance, suspense, and thrillers. Her first book, His Deadly Betrayal: A Shattered Marriage, is the first book in its series. Her background includes being a teacher’s assistant, a PCA, and a mentor for middle school students that need academic support. She’s also an advocate for breast cancer awareness. She lives in a rural town in south-central Pennsylvania with her husband, three daughters, and 3 fur babies. When she’s not writing, she's supporting her special needs daughter—writing, taking walks and mentoring all her favorite hobbies.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in a small south-central Pennsylvania town. I think the way I was raised influenced me more than the town itself.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write my stories in chunks. If my characters tell me about a certain place or scene, I write it down. Then I piece things back together.

What authors have influenced you?
I grew up in a small south-central Pennsylvania town. I think the way I was raised influenced me more than the town itself.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don't worry about being a “perfect” writer. Do what works for you. Enjoy the process. Remember, you grow in your writing the more you write.

[Read more…] about Author Interview: C.M. Santoro


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Martin Hill

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
I'm the author of the Linus Schag, NCIS, thrillers, the Peter Brandt thrillers, DUTY: Suspense and Mystery Stories from the Cold War and Beyond, EDEN: A Sci-Fi Novella, the milscifi novel Polar Melt. My latest Linus Schag thriller, The Butcher's Bill, received the Best Mystery/Suspense Novel of 2017 from the Best Independent Book Awards, the Clue Award for Best Suspense Thriller, the Silver Medal for Thrillers from the Readers Favorite Book Awards, and the award for Adult Fiction from the California Author Project.

I was born and reared in Southern California, in the Los Angeles County beach community of Redondo Beach.
In college, I studied journalism and afterward embarked on a journalism career during which I worked as a newspaper crime reporter, a national award-winning investigative journalist, and a freelance correspondent for LIFE Magazine and Newsweek, and finally as editor of a business newspaper. After twenty-some years of that, I grew tired of journalism and left it for a position as an analyst in combat medical operations for the U.S. Navy. I retired in 2018 to write full-time and start a freelance book editing business.

Besides my two careers, I also spent 27 years in three branches of the military reserves. I did search and rescue. medical response, and maritime law enforcement in U.S. Coast Guard Reserve for 13 years broken service, and counter-insurgency warfare in the Naval Reserve for three years in between my two tours in the Coast Guard. This was followed by 11 years in a component of the California National Guard, where I served first as a medical service corps officer, then as a military policeman. I retired as the executive officer of a state MP unit with the rank of major.

I've also been a member of a federal Disaster Medical Assistance Team and a local count disaster response team, as well as a reserve sergeant and medical specialist with the local sheriff's Search and Rescue Detail. All of this, of course, was part time.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up around the ocean in Southern California, and currently live in San Diego not far from the sea. I've traveled through most of the country and I've never wanted to live anywhere else. Growing up around the ocean, I developed a love of the sea and that eventually led me to join the Coast Guard, my first service branch. That experience played a big role in my writing, as several of my books and short stories take place aboard ships or boats. Several of my novels also take place in Southern California.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to write in coffee shops, usually sitting outdoors. Obviously, with the pandemic and social distancing I can't do that anymore. Now I do a lot of writing out on our deck sitting in a lounge chair with my laptop sitting on an adjustable lap desk.

What authors have influenced you?
I grew up around the ocean in Southern California, and currently live in San Diego not far from the sea. I've traveled through most of the country and I've never wanted to live anywhere else. Growing up around the ocean, I developed a love of the sea and that eventually led me to join the Coast Guard, my first service branch. That experience played a big role in my writing, as several of my books and short stories take place aboard ships or boats. Several of my novels also take place in Southern California.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. The art is not in the writing, but the rewriting. And never consider yourself an artiste who can only write under certain circumstances or when the mood hits you. Writing is all about self-discipline. I read an old essay by Alistair MacLean in which he described his workday as starting a six in the morning and ending sometime in the evening. There is an old saying about writing, usually attributed to Ernest Hemingway: "There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Martin Hill


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Victor Torvich

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
My name is Victor Torvich. I live in a center of Silicon Valley, which is in California, USA.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in Saint-Peterburg, Russia. It is a beautiful city, one of the cultural centers of the world.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I do not think so.

What authors have influenced you?
I grew up in Saint-Peterburg, Russia. It is a beautiful city, one of the cultural centers of the world.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My advice for authors, who are writing the first book, would be to start to work on your author’s platform ASAP. Better to start it even before writing the book itself.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Victor Torvich


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Scott Coon

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
Scott Coon is an award-winning short story writer and former U.S. Army Intelligence Analyst.

He served six years, rising to the rank of Sergeant. His service including a tour in Kuwait where he received a First Army Combat Patch and the Joint Service Achievement Award. Now a software developer for a major bank, Scott brings his computer and military experience into his work, along with a sense of spectacle.

His debut novel LOST HELIX, a sci-fi adventure/mystery, is available now. Scott's first published story, “Firewall,” appeared in Nth Degree Magazine in 2006. His short "Enduring Winter" was a finalist in the Writers of the Future Awards, won Second Place in the New England SciFi Writers Assn Contest 2016, and was published in Bewildering Stories, Issue 849, March 2020.

Scott Coon shares his knowledge of writing with others and helps other creatives do the same. He hosts the Writers of Sherman Oaks Critique Group meetings and National Novel Writing Month write-in events. His YouTube channel and websites provide insights into his work and give advice to writers. His Little Creative Interview series helps to foster learning in the creative community. See his websites for more information.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
Though Lost Helix is my first published novel, I have had several short stories published. Bewildering Stories recently featured "The Loneliest Advertisement Bot" and have published a few other stories over the years. My work is often influenced by my career as a computer programmer and also by my six years as intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army. Both played a role in Lost Helix.

I was born in Los Angeles, but my family moved back to Pennsylvania when I was still an infant. I grew up on the east coast. Then I traveled the world for the Army and traveled America for software companies. Now, years later, I am back in Los Angeles, where I was born but had never lived until now. I share my life with my cats Hank, Logan, and Princess.

Writing began for me in the third grade. I wrote poetry about chess and Norse mythology. With no writers in my life, I have no idea what inspired this. My first submission was an article for “Dragon” magazine. They rejected it of course. But I was on my way! …sort of. In high school, my senior year creative writing project was an Ann Rice clone. While reading weekly chapters to the class, no one seemed to be listening. But late in the school year, the novel reached a scene where two vampires were sentenced to death by sunlight. As a door opened to reveal their sun-bleached bones, someone yelled, “Hey! Why did you kill them? They never did anything wrong.” I was surprised and flattered. And hooked. I wanted to be a writer. It wasn’t until 2006 that I was finally published by Nth Degree Magazine. It was story about a psychic computer hacker. What’s that mean? Read it from my published stories page.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have a sixty-game arcade console with all Midway classics like Galaga and Ms. Pac Man. To take a break from writing and recharge, I'll stop and play a couple games. Then back to writing. I'm not getting much better at the games, but I'm getting a lot of writing done.

What authors have influenced you?
Though Lost Helix is my first published novel, I have had several short stories published. Bewildering Stories recently featured "The Loneliest Advertisement Bot" and have published a few other stories over the years. My work is often influenced by my career as a computer programmer and also by my six years as intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army. Both played a role in Lost Helix.

I was born in Los Angeles, but my family moved back to Pennsylvania when I was still an infant. I grew up on the east coast. Then I traveled the world for the Army and traveled America for software companies. Now, years later, I am back in Los Angeles, where I was born but had never lived until now. I share my life with my cats Hank, Logan, and Princess.

Writing began for me in the third grade. I wrote poetry about chess and Norse mythology. With no writers in my life, I have no idea what inspired this. My first submission was an article for “Dragon” magazine. They rejected it of course. But I was on my way! …sort of. In high school, my senior year creative writing project was an Ann Rice clone. While reading weekly chapters to the class, no one seemed to be listening. But late in the school year, the novel reached a scene where two vampires were sentenced to death by sunlight. As a door opened to reveal their sun-bleached bones, someone yelled, “Hey! Why did you kill them? They never did anything wrong.” I was surprised and flattered. And hooked. I wanted to be a writer. It wasn’t until 2006 that I was finally published by Nth Degree Magazine. It was story about a psychic computer hacker. What’s that mean? Read it from my published stories page.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Learn. Learn the art. Learn the business. Then assume that everything changed while you weren't looking and learn it all again. Modern readers are different from just twenty years ago. Learn what publishers and readers want now, both in content and presentation. But not in trend.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Scott Coon


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Lori Armstrong

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
From the time I was 7 years old, I had always wanted to be an author. I would write stories about animals and nature, tape the pages together and share my stories with anyone that was kind enough to listen. But life got in the way, there were bills to pay and being a dedicated mom required most of my time.

So, becoming an author was put on the back burner for decades. I was fine with that as I was blessed with two wonderful kids and a life filled with lessons, which I prefer to call stepping stones.

I worked in law enforcement for several years – later being offered a full-time position at my local district attorney’s office. While the pay was great, I always felt there was something missing.

I moved from Napa to a quaint country town in Lake County, up on the mountains, high above Napa. I spend endless hours in my writing cave, which overlooks the lake – especially during this unfortunate pandemic.

Here, in my writing cave, I create my stories (both novels and children’s books), editing, formatting and marketing each book after endless hours of author forums, webinars and zoom meetings in order to improve my niche.

I also ghostwrite, format and market books for others, treating each story as my own.

My latest venture has been to create a Book Marketing Plan for future authors, which provides everything they would need from the beginning stages of the process to the end.

Between writing projects and marketing, I am a criminal court reporter for my local newspaper. While I enjoy keeping my local community versed on the crime in my county, I am blessed to balance my brain with the lighthearted stories from within my heart along with stories forwarded to me for edits and formatting.

Life is good. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in Napa, California, raising a family with a now grown son and daughter who are my rocks. My life partner of 13 years is my best critic as he is always willing to share constructive criticism in regards to my writing (when requested of course). Lol

The wine industry in Napa was booming and the population grew to immense numbers with wineries being the staple point, wine bars on every corner and the tourists were more catered to than the locals. I started to miss the old small town Napa I grew up in and needed to make some changes in my life for this and other health-related reasons.

Several visits with my father to my hometown library influenced my love to read and write.

I lived above a creek and caught frogs, enjoying my alone-time with just my imagination.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Actually, yes.

I am up early, writing in my pajamas, thriving in my writing cave as I always have dark chocolate and a run on my treadmill to break the writer's block that creeps in.

What authors have influenced you?
I grew up in Napa, California, raising a family with a now grown son and daughter who are my rocks. My life partner of 13 years is my best critic as he is always willing to share constructive criticism in regards to my writing (when requested of course). Lol

The wine industry in Napa was booming and the population grew to immense numbers with wineries being the staple point, wine bars on every corner and the tourists were more catered to than the locals. I started to miss the old small town Napa I grew up in and needed to make some changes in my life for this and other health-related reasons.

Several visits with my father to my hometown library influenced my love to read and write.

I lived above a creek and caught frogs, enjoying my alone-time with just my imagination.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Block out the negative thoughts and naysayers.
You have one life…through persistence and failures, you will reach your goals.
Always keep moving forward!

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Lori Armstrong


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Zeev Gilkis

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
Writing is actually my fifth "career".
The first one was in the Israeli Intelligence. I retired as a colonel. The second was leading R&D in Hitech, the third was Venture Capital, the fourth was managing an institute for biomedical development and now I see writing books as my mission in life to share all I learned during these years.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I was born in Poland and immigrated to Israel when I was 17. I loved books from which I could learn something significant for life and this is how I write; sharing experiences & understandings, which may be valuable for others.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes! I write one book per year, and I manage it like a project; beginning with the plan & the table of contents, and then progressing according to the plan.

What authors have influenced you?
I was born in Poland and immigrated to Israel when I was 17. I loved books from which I could learn something significant for life and this is how I write; sharing experiences & understandings, which may be valuable for others.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
yes! writing can be sometimes challenging, even frustrating, but it's worth the effort!

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Zeev Gilkis


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Cherime MacFarlane

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself.:
I've lived half my life in Alaska and I don't plan to leave.

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I was born in New Orleans but we moved a lot after I turned twelve. I've been a lot of places all over the US.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write best in the very early morning, around 3 am.

What authors have influenced you?
I was born in New Orleans but we moved a lot after I turned twelve. I've been a lot of places all over the US.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Take a chance, try something new if the chances are good you'll live through it.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Cherime MacFarlane


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Erasmo Acosta

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
I was born in Cantura, Venezuela, and moved to the United States in 1996 to pursue a software engineering career, sponsored by a small Silicon Valley company. I retired to Portland, Oregon, in 2020 after achieving 32 successful years in the industry. In 2015, I became interested in the implications of the Fermi Paradox as it relates to the prospects of finding another civilization in the universe. Further research into Futurism, upcoming technologies, and the works of American physicist Gerard O’Neill, led me to write K3+. The dystopian novel explores human migration, triggered by inequality and climate change, to rotating habitats in space, based on many currently available technologies. I tell the story of how humanity moved past the unsettling times we live in to a post-scarcity and egalitarian society—absent of fear, uncertainty, inequality, and despair.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I'm not sure if they're unusual. I write a note on my phone whenever I get an idea, so I won’t forget it. I also do tons of research and included references throughout my book in case readers want to dive deeper.

What authors have influenced you?
Isaac Asimov, Larry Niven, and Arthur Clarke are my childhood heroes. I make references to them throughout the story. J. K. Rowling had a different kind of influence. Ever since reading the Philosopher’s Stone—I read all seven books many times—I was deeply impressed by her light and easy-to-digest style. The interactions between Fedrix & SueLing are an example.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Erasmo Acosta


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

Featured Author Interview: Vickie Britton

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
My sister Loretta Jackson and I are the authors of over fifty published novels. Most of our books are in the mystery and romantic suspense genres. Our High Country Mystery Series is currently being published by Books in Motion.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Writing together is in itself an unusual habit. Through the years we have learned to work together and try to make our work flow so that it sounds as if it was written by one person. Both of us carefully read, edit and approve each chapter of the book.

What authors have influenced you?
Both of us enjoy the works of Tony Hillerman, who influenced us to become writers. We are both also big fans of Aaron Elkins, especially the Gideon Oliver Series. We also were influenced by the gothic writers Phyllis Whitney and Virginia Coffman, as well as Agatha Christie and Erle Stanley Gardner. We enjoy all types of mysteries.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write the book that is in your heart. If the book is interesting to you, others will also likely find it of interest. Always write for the love of it and not for the money.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Vickie Britton


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Featured Author Interview: Mark Wilson

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
I've worked in the field of motion pictures and video for nearly 30 years. I variously produce, direct, write, photograph and edit. My credits include: “Pop Kowboy” “Bubba And Sissy Git Hitched?” and “Disposable.” I am on the Internet Movie Database as Mark J. Wilson producer of “Time Bomb.” I currently have two novels, a thriller titled, “Time Bomb” and a comedy, “Change Of A Dress.” I'm usually writing screenplays.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I just try to write it all down as fast as it comes. I don't always know where it's going to and am surprised myself by what comes out of my head and what's coming next. I make myself laugh quite often while writing.

What authors have influenced you?
Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury and Groucho Marx. I know it's an odd mix, isn't it?

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don't give up and rewrite, rewrite, rewrite! I go through at least a dozen rewrites of everything I do. Find and correct vague, confusing and awkward wording. Consider the reader. You know what you're talking about, but will they? Be concise.

[Read more…] about Featured Author Interview: Mark Wilson


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews, Featured Authors

Author Interview: Richard Skorupski

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
After a 21 year career in the Navy, I returned home to my native state of New Jersey. Following my passion for the open waters, I started a second career in the recreational marine parts business. After ten years of dealing with the dense population of New Jersey and its high cost of living, we had had enough. My wife, Cheryl, and I sought to find a peaceful, friendly environment for our second retirement. We now happily reside in Spink County, South Dakota.

I reveal my love for South Dakota and appreciation of its people through my third career as an author of six books centering around the fictional town of Helen, South Dakota. All my novels and stories tell a tale of middle America and the rural lifestyle.

My current books are:

Tom And Sarah – The Beginning
Flyover County
The Fred Weber Story
The Frank Stanbauer Story
Whiteout! And Other Stories
River Of Destiny

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My wife and I are both retired and therefor are home with each other 2/7. We have adjusted our schedules to each have private time.
I am up around six each morning while my wife prefers to sleep in until ten or eleven. In the evening I am in bed before eleven and she stays up until one or two AM. We each get time to ourselves.
I use my quiet mornings to write. I get my morning coffee, chose the door to my den and start to type. I am a “seat of the pants” writer so I have no idea where the story is going to take me when I sit down each morning

What authors have influenced you?
I like homespun fiction. Some of my recent favorites have been Carol Cox, Debbie Macomber, C. J. Darlington, and Vickie Kestell.
Now I know these authors lean toward the romantic, but the background and the people in these stories touch me.
I also enjoy Historical Fiction. I like reading of simpler times and less complicated people. Carol Cox and Vickie Kestell both write in that genre.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice I can give is, “Sit down and put your fingers on the keyboard and start typing. Don't get all wrapped up int the nuts and bolts of it at first. Tell your story. There will be plenty of time to go back and correct, revise, and edit. However, you can't do any of those things if you do not have a story. Write your story.”

[Read more…] about Author Interview: Richard Skorupski


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

Author Interview: Douglas Busby

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
I am a physician and theologian with a longstanding interest in spiritual healing. As a physician (M.D., M.Sc.), specialized in Aerospace Medicine, I wrote the first book on Space Clinical Medicine. As a theologian (D.Min., Ph.D), ordained as a minister and engaged in spiritual healing, I have written four books on spiritual healing, the last two being revisions of the first two.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not that I know of!

What authors have influenced you?
Morton Kelsey, Francis MacNutt, Ron Roth, Larry Dossey, the writers of the Gospels, Marcus Borg, John Dominic Crossan, Bart Ehrman.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write clearly and understandably, and be patient.

[Read more…] about Author Interview: Douglas Busby


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

Author Interview: Mark Geatches

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
I'm 54 years old and live in beautiful Murphy, NC. I love music of all kinds. I love great sound systems. I love nature and God — I happen to believe they are not one and the same. I love leisure time but I also love hard physical work. I try to stay in good shape. I love my family and friends and I love beer.

Tamar & PJ: One Giant Adventure – teen fantasy
Love in Cardwell: A Christmas Romance – lighthearted and humorous romance
Under contract and coming soon… A Road to Redemption: America's Second Revolution – two part dystopian series. Epic – tragic – yet filled with humor.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I guess not. I'm a predictable person and I handle my writing the same way. I devote my mornings to writing. I treat it like a job, especially when I'm working on a book. I much prefer writing to doing the business of writing. I'm a little bitter about the latter. This is a very impersonal profession. For some reason, agents and publishers don't necessarily feel like they should be nice to the people who take the time to submit to them. Not cool and not understandable to me. Unfortunately it doesn't get a whole lot better once you have a publisher. Oh well.

What authors have influenced you?
Piers Anthony – Amazing and prolific writer who cares about the profession and young writers.
I love writers who are able to make me believe in the worlds they create. Frank Herbert's Dune, as well as the entire series, Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games, Card's Ender's Game, Martin Cruz Smith's Arkady Renko series, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, Piers Anthony's Bio of a Space Tyrant – part one Refugee, Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, Saul Bellow's Mr. Sammler's Planet, Daniel Keyes' Flowers for Algernon, Ian Rand's Atlas Shrugged….

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Know what you're getting into. Every step of the way is a very small step. Much smaller than they seem at the time. If you're into writing because you love it and having a local presence is your goal, by all means pursue it. If you expect to be rich and famous, this is probably not the profession for you. I recently watched a movie that documented the zombie craze from its roots until today. They interviewed writers, directors, and producers. The executive producer of The Walking Dead was asked how Dead took off like it has. He laughed and said, “Blind luck.”

Incidentally, I don't want to be locally or otherwise famous. I just want the money. Lol

[Read more…] about Author Interview: Mark Geatches


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

Author Interview: Sallie Cochren

Leave a Comment

Tell us about yourself and your books.:
I am a retired middle school teacher and I have published several novels and short stories. Writing has always been a way for me to relax and I started writing as a child, often creating my own scripts and stories. I don't have a specialty as I simply enjoy writing whatever I'm inspired to write at the time. Genres I've published include science fiction, dark fantasy, dystopian fiction and several others. When I'm not writing, I enjoy watching movies, going for walks, spending time with my sister and friends, and of course, my cat!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I think one thing that is unusual about my books is the wide variety of genres that I write. Most authors I know tend to write one or two genres. The other thing that may be unusual about my writing is that an idea for a book often is inspired by a dream. I will frequently wake up after having a dream (or sometimes a nightmare) and I wind up mapping out an entire plot for a novel right on the spot.

What authors have influenced you?
There are so many authors that I'm sure I will forget some! For dystopian fiction, I love Suzanne Collins, Marie Lu and Veronica Roth. I also think I have been inspired by Stephanie Meyer, Dean Koontz and Richelle Mead. I had a friend tell me once that when she was reading my horror novel that she felt like she was reading a Stephen King novel. I took that as a real compliment!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My best advice is to just start writing! Don't worry at first about making everything perfect. Just start putting your ideas down. Once you see that your ideas are coming to life, it should inspire you to continue. Also, if you have trouble starting, find a graphic organizer to map out the plot. That is what I had my middle school students do when they had writer's block. Finally, once your work is done, be sure it is edited properly. If you can't afford to hire a professional editor, let the book sit for a while and then go back to it. I find that I discover a lot more I want to change if I let my books sit for a while. Often, it takes me several edits, not just one, to get a book to where I want it prior to publishing.

[Read more…] about Author Interview: Sallie Cochren


This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Filed Under: Author Interviews

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 27
  • Go to Next Page »

Connect with Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Search

Subscribe to our mailing list

* indicates required

Categories

  • Author Interviews
  • Book Categories
    • Action & Adventure
    • Art/Photography/Coffee Table
    • Autobiographies, Biographies & Memoirs
    • Body/Mind/Spirit
    • Business Books
    • Children
    • Christian Fiction
    • Christian Non-Fiction
    • Cooking and Food Books
    • Educational/How-to
    • Erotica
    • Fantasy
    • Fiction
    • Historical
    • Horror
    • How To
    • Humor (Fiction)
    • Memoir
    • Mystery/Suspense
    • Non-Fiction
    • Paranormal
    • Personal Growth
    • Poetry
    • Romance
    • Romance – Adult
    • Sci-Fi
    • Spiritual Growth
    • Thriller
    • Travel
    • US History – Local and Regional
    • Women's Fiction
    • Young Adult
  • Book Formats
    • Audiobook
    • Kindle/E-book
    • Print
  • Card of the Day
  • Daily Healthy Sleep Tips
  • Featured Posts
    • Featured Authors
    • Featured Books
  • Giveaways
  • New Books
  • Special Pricing Options
    • Bargain Books Under $3
    • Free Books – Limited Time
    • Kindle Unlimited
    • Permafree

Copyright © 2021 MyBookPlace.net