thing you’ve written, how did you learn or know it was bad, and what did you
learn from it?
I made my first serious attempt at writing a for publication novel my sophomore
year in college. It was never finished, largely due to the initial feedback I
received from a couple close friends and family members. While I’ve certainly
learned a great deal about writing engaging prose, putting together well
thought out plot arcs, using proper grammar, etc. since then, the biggest
lesson I took from this was not to be so easily discouraged, and just how much
time and effort I would need to invest in order to achieve my goal of becoming
a published author.
writing and when did you decide to go professional?
provides for my overactive imagination. The first book I shared with anyone
outside of friends and family was a children’s novella written when I was 14
called The Bat Boy, which I still
have tucked away in my closet. I was one of five lucky students selected to
read our short stories to local grade school children. Of course at the time I
felt anything but lucky—I was so nervous reading in front of forty or so people
that I could barely keep track of what page I was on.
four years ago, while writing the first draft of what would ultimately become Dangerous Waters. The more people I
shared sample chapters with, the more encouraged I became that I was crafting a
novel with broad appeal, but I knew it would never be as good as it could and
needed to be for publication if my writing remained only a hobby.
than one genre? Which ones and which do you like the best?
genres. I find Urban Fantasy writing to be a little easier. By being rooted in
the “real” world, it provides the author and reader with an established
foundation to tie the magical / supernatural elements into. If, on the other
hand, your world is full of carnivorous jasperia vines, soul stealing mist
clouds and all manner of unique creatures, you need to get the reader’s head
around these elements in addition to introducing the main plot and your central
characters. On the other hand, Fantasy writing provides a blank canvas for the
author which is incredibly endearing to me. I hold Laini Taylor (Daughter of
Smoke and Bone, Days of Blood and Starlight) in high regard as a Fantasy Author
and have learned a great deal from her writing.
author’s books when you’re writing? If so, do you read the same genre or
something different?
helps keep the creative juices flowing and further hone my narrative voice. I
read mostly in the same genres I write in. Some of my favorite authors include
Kelley Armstrong, Peter V. Brett, Richelle Mead, Rachel Caine, Cassandra
Claire, J.R. Ward, Laini Taylor, Tessa Dawn and Yasmine Galenorn.
difficult part of the entire writing process for you? Queries, pitches,
editing..etc.
most challenging part is the editing. Changes I make that seem brilliant one
day I often second guess the next, and while editing for grammar and word
repetition, it’s all too easy to extract the life out of the text.
same type of career as any author currently publishing who would it be and why?
That’s a tough one! Can I select two? I’d choose Kelley Armstrong
due to her wildly successful Otherworld
series, which is still my all time favorite, and Abbi Glines, who has achieved
so much, including making it onto the New York Times best seller list, from a
similar starting point as my own writing career. She has also never lost the
intimate connection she fostered with her readers like so many authors do once
they’ve had a taste of success.
For Emily Waters, a nature loving small-town girl with an overprotective father, heading off to Boston University to study conservation biology is a dream come true—until a chance encounter catapults her into a mythical world she’d do anything to escape.
The latest victim in a rash of abductions near campus, Emily is brutally attacked before being rescued by a powerful new friend, whose family takes her in and prepares her for the unimaginable life she must now embrace. Clues soon emerge that Emily may not be entirely human, and her physical transformation awakens goddess-like powers that her new family cannot begin to explain. Dealing with her human first love, the not-so-platonic relationship with her coven “sister” and her new supe sort-of-boyfriend further complicates matters. Not to mention being secretly hunted by the psychopaths who attacked her. And as the only known offspring of a once all-powerful race, the climactic battle is only the beginning of her journey, one that ends with her leading a war against all humankind.
Chad Mcpherson
Author of Dangerous Waters
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/chad.mcpherson.142
http://www.facebook.com/UFAuthorCMMichaels
Twitter – https://twitter.com/UFAuthor
Blog – http://cmmichaels.blogspot.com/
Freya’s Bower – http://www.freyasbower.com/
Awesome interview. That cover looks incredible C.M.!
Thank you, Terri! I'm so excited to hear what you think!!
I definitely concur with Mr. King on that one 🙂
Great interview Chad! Editing is one of the hardest parts about writing. Stephen King calls it, "Killing your children."
I can't wait to read Dangerous Waters =)
Thank you so much for hosting me this week, Jenn! You're the best 🙂
Great answers!! Thanks for stopping by again, great having you here this week!