What motivated you to become an indie author?
I kind of feel like I've been training to be an indie author for most of my career--even though I didn't realize it at the time! I have been part of the ebook industry since the late 90s (yes, that's the 1990s; although I suppose if I were one of the paranormal creatures I write about it could be the 1890s... Anyway, late 1990s). Back in those days, ebooks were sold on 3.5" floppy disks when we wanted a hard copy to hand out (remember those?), and buyers had to actually call in to my first publisher with their credit card numbers because easy shopping carts didn't even exist yet. Until the rise of the indie movement, I mainly published with small ebook first presses, which turned out to be a great training ground for going indie. And once I did, I loved it! The control is really fun--especially controlling my cover art. I couldn't do that before and got a few...interesting covers (to be kind to them). Now, I get to choose. And update them whenever I like. Of all the aspects of indie publishing that I love, the control of my time and my books is the thing I love the most.
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
I love when I'm so deep into the story I'm telling that I lose all track of the world around me and I'm "in" the story. My characters are doing things I hadn't consciously thought of, my fingers are flying over the keyboard, but I'm not really seeing the screen anymore. It's like I'm watching a movie, not actually writing. The story is... It's almost like the story is already there and I'm just transcribing it. Writers call that flow and being in flow with the story is The Best! The only thing that tops being in flow for me is when I get that giddy feeling of wanting to share the story I've just written. Some line or some scene will really stick with me, and I can't wait for readers to see those scenes or lines. Writing a story is delightful. Sharing it is wonderous.
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