1. What
does your writing process look like? Essentially,
screaming in my head at the characters while fighting off sleep and double
fisting Red Bull.
2. Do
you have any strange writing habits (like standing on your head or writing in
the shower)? I have to either be
watching a cooking show or listening to one of three songs: Africa by Toto, My
Way by Frank Sinatra, or Let It Go performed by Idina Menzel. If I’m not doing
any of the above I just can’t write and I’ll stare at the page for hours.
3. What
book do you wish you could have written? It’s
actually a short story called The Legend of Anna Barton. I absolutely loved it
and really wished I could have gotten to it first, but I’m not complaining. The
author did an amazing job with it.
4. Just
as your books inspire authors, what authors have inspired you to write? J.K. Rowling’s personal story inspired me
because she and I have both lived in poverty while Ernest Hemingway’s personal
style made me think harder about my own word choice and sentence structure.
5. If
you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of your book, who
would play your characters? For The
Temple of Cautherie, I would cast Benedict Cumberbatch as Elder Erik and
Jodelle Ferland as Tati.
6. How
important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on
liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Do you have any name choosing
resources you recommend? I chose names
based on sounds and how well I think the character fits the sounds. If I have a
tough character I’m going to give her or him a name with harsher sounds like
C’s and K’s. I love using Yahoo! Answers baby name section as a place to get
ideas and if I’m interested in knowing more about the name, I will look it up
on babynames.com.
7. What
do you consider to be your best accomplishment? Just getting myself out there has really been amazing, but publishing
Trans* has been my biggest step towards achieving my goal. I’ve gotten tons of
great feedback so far and I look forward to completing NaNoWriMo and The Temple
of Cautherie.
8. Where
do you see yourself in 10 years? Hopefully
I’ll have a couple more books out and be better known. It would be unrealistic
to say, “Top of the New York Times Best Seller List with millions of dollars in
sales and a movie on its way out!” but I think we all secretly wish that
happened. But I would be happy with just having a few more books out and
expanding my readership.
9. Were
you already a great writer? Have you always like to write? I’ve loved writing since I was a little girl, but I have grown so much
since I was a little girl. My two years in Creative Writing classes have really
helped improve my voice.
10. What
writing advice do you have for other aspiring authors? Just write. Don’t worry about names or titles, just write and the rest
will come to you. “The worst thing you ever wrote is better than the best thing
you never wrote.” – Anonymous.
11. If
you didn't like writing books, what would you do for a living? I am currently studying to become a
Certified Personal Accountant, so there is that. I also love baking so, one
day, I might open a bakery or something like that.
12. Are
you a plotter or a pantster? Total
Pantser! If I try to plan out a story I’ll change it a million times and it’ll
end up being bad. I write as I go and if I need to change something, I’ll go
back work it in during my seven editing phases.
13. Do
you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any
advice on how to deal with the bad? I
read them, but I don’t respond. Responding to them usually only leads to
negative outcomes and lowering your standing with the public and your readers.
As for when it comes to negative reviews: you can’t focus on it. If you tried
to please everyone then you’d end up losing your voice. Just take what they say
with a grain of salt because, chances are, they’ve never written or published a
book.
14. What
is your best marketing tip? Know your
audience! If you write erotica it would be unhelpful to market towards
Christians or young readers, and if you write science fiction chick lit
enthusiasts are not the best way to go. Also, hold lots of giveaways – once
they read one book, they’re likely to read another.
15. What
is your least favorite part of the publishing / writing process? Probably beginning the book. It’s hard to
determine where you want the story to start from, but once you get there it’s
easier to finish.
16. Is
there one subject you would never write about as an author? What is it? Not really. I love exploring new topics and
don’t think anyone should be ashamed to write something. There may be a genre I
won’t enjoy as much as others, but I won’t write one off indefinitely.
17. Do
you have a favorite conference to attend? What is it? I’ve never attended a conference, but I hope to in the future.
18. Is
there a certain type of scene that's harder for you to write than others? Love?
Action? Racy? Anything that involves
harming children. As a survivor of child abuse, it makes me uncomfortable to
write situations that may be similar in nature but sometimes you just have to.
19. Is
this your first book? How many books have you written prior (if any?) I have written one novella and one short
story, so The Temple of Cautherie will be my first full length novel.
20. What
are you working on now? What is your next project? The Temple of Cautherie, the story of a young girl who wants to be with
a religious leader and how he uses her to get what he wants. I haven’t decided
on my next project but I think it might be The First Moon, which is about a
girl overcoming the death of her father.
1.
Do you write naked? Not completely, but sometimes I’m too lazy
to put on pants.
2.
What is your biggest failure? I left a publishing company after they made
changes that I disagreed with and didn’t feel suited my book appropriately.
Sometimes I regret leaving them, but other times I feel like I made the right
decision. It’s something I will have to live with for the rest of my life.
3.
What is the biggest lie you've ever
told? I look at my stories as lies,
because though many of them have real-life situations, a lot of them have happy
endings. Unfortunately, the situations I describe do not always end happily.
Besides that, telling everyone I was fine and coming clean about the abuse I
faced is another big lie I regret.
4.
Have you ever been in trouble with
the police? Nope. I’m a bit of a
goodie-two-shoes.
5.
Have you ever gotten into a bar
fight? I’m too young to drink, so nope.
6.
Characters often find themselves in
situations they aren't sure they can get themselves out of. When was the last
time you found yourself in a situation that was hard to get out of and what did
you do? The only thing I can think of is
leaving my publishing company. They wanted me to pay more than I was
comfortable for editing, whereas other companies I looked at were able to cover
the cost of editing and had a larger readership, increasing my chances of
sharing my story with the world. Though I had already signed and was working
hand-in-hand with many of the people at the company, I felt that I could find a
better publisher who wouldn’t ask me to pay a lot to edit my piece.
7.
Do you drink? Smoke? No and no.
8.
What is your biggest fear? Burning to death, which is something I face
with a first-person account of that same manner of death in one of my upcoming
major projects.
9.
What do you want your tombstone to
say? She wore sweatpants to her wedding.
10.
If you had a superpower, what would
it be? To have EXACTLY the right amount
of money I need in my pocket at all times. That would just be awesome!
11.
If you were a super hero, what would
your name be? What costume would you wear? The
Rich Bitch, I would wear an outfit of gold and a cape made of money…oh wait, no
capes.
12.
What literary character is most like
you? Hermione, believe it or not. I am a
total bookworm and studyaholic, plus I love to get involved with charities and
other beneficial organizations.
13.
What secret talents do you have? I’ve single-handedly written the recipes to
eighty-six different types of cupcakes. So…I’ve got that going for me.
14.
Where is one place you want to visit
that you haven't been before? I want to
go to the North Pole and watch the Aurora Borealis. If I saw that, I would die
happy.
15.
If you were an animal in a zoo, what
would you be? Probably a koi fish
because I get so excited at the prospect of food I will pile over others just
to get it!
16.
What is something you want to
accomplish before you die? I want to say
that I made the world a better place. Through my writing, charitable work,
whatever: I want to leave behind a world that is better for others.
17.
If you could have any accents from
anywhere in the world, what would you choose? I already have the only accent I want – a Southern one! I love it, even
though it’s not obvious through my everyday speech, when it comes out I get a
little happier because of how awesome it is to listen to!
18.
Do you have any scars? What are they
from? Surgery scars from having my
gallbladder removed, a scar on my leg from a Roman Candle hitting me when I was
little, and burn scars from all the baking I do.
19.
What were you like as a child? Your
favorite toy? I was bullied as a child
so I was very reclusive. I loved to read and write and stay away from the
others so they didn’t have a chance to bully me. I loved my PS2 because my
sister and I could become people who were so much cooler than ourselves.
20.
Do you dream? Do you have any
recurring dreams/nightmares? I dream
every night. My one recurring nightmare is having to watch all my family and
friends be murdered by the man who abused me growing up. I get it at least
twice a month and every time I get it I can’t sleep for another twenty four
hours. It’s one of the worst experiences I’ve ever gone through, though it has
inspired a short story I am currently working on to bring awareness to child
abuse.
For more information, please feel free to follow Zara Elise Thelms:
Zara Elise Thelms
zaraelisebooks.wordpress.com
For more information, please feel free to follow Zara Elise Thelms:
Zara Elise Thelms
zaraelisebooks.wordpress.com
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