Interview with Joy V. Smith

Published 2023-05-29.
What motivated you to become an indie author?
So I could share my stories sooner. Though I appreciate the publishers who also published some of my novels and stories, some of my stories didn't fit certain niches because of length, etc.. And some editors wanted me to make my stories longer. (But It's a patient's hospital chart!) Of course, editing is important, but I'm an English major--and I have a friend who really knows her stuff 'cause she's published books on writing--and I have readers who catch mistakes and typos. Look! There's another one!!
When did you first start writing?
When I was a kid and made my own little books, and I continued through college (Uh, I could have studied more) and beyond.
How has Smashwords contributed to your success?
I published most of my ebooks with Smashwords and relied on them for help to make it through the process. I published some of my science fiction stories, including Pretty Pink Planet, Hot Yellow Planet, and Hidebound, with them, and my non-fiction book, Remodeling: Buying and Updating a Foreclosure.
Who are your favorite authors?
Terry Pratchett, Lois McMaster Bujold, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, James H. Schmitz, ... I love their stories and their heroes and heroines; and Terry Pratchett's stories are fun. It's hard to choose my favorite characters from his series: the Nightwatch; the Witches, especially Granny Weatherwax; DEATH; ... But the other authors have a variety of fascinating characters too.
What are your five favorite books, and why?
Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett, Cold Snap by Codi Schneider, The Sound and the Furry by Spencer Quinn, Cryoburn by Lois McMaster Bujold, and The Revolt of Sarah Perkins by Marian Cockrell.
What do your fans mean to you?
A lot! Being appreciated is encouraging.
Smashwords Interviews are created by the profiled author or publisher.

Books by This Author

Crystal Quest
Price: $1.99 USD. Words: 4,970. Language: English. Published: September 29, 2023. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » General
(5.00 from 1 review)
Crystal Quest (Seedlings sequel) includes another mad mage, plus hostile plants (those vines are nasty) and a search for missing crystals. Juul and her companions, including Pink Fingers and desert claws, head into danger--this time seeking it out.
Seedlings
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 6,050. Language: English. Published: September 15, 2023. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Adventure
Sentient plants and their human companions and dangers surrounding them. .
Well Met by Water
Price: $3.99 USD. Words: 57,840. Language: English. Published: June 29, 2023. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Space opera
Cathay saved Rand's life after he'd been chained in the water and cut to attract the sharks by fellow gangsters. However, Cathay and her dolphin companions freed him. Cathay and her family are not fantasy mermaids; and only the females in her family are mermaids. Cathay and her siblings are the result of her mother rescuing a seaman.
Velvet of Swords
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 76,870. Language: English. Published: May 30, 2023. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Space opera
Velvet of Swords (Swords is the name of her family keep) is a science fiction adventure set in the far future on a planet colonized by Terrans. Well, there were complications because of the first settlers (humanoid), who amused themselves with genetic engineering, among other things.
Detour Trail
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 51,730. Language: English. Published: September 22, 2013 by Melange Books, LLC. Categories: Fiction » Historical » Western & American frontier, Fiction » Women's fiction » General
(5.00 from 1 review)
Westward bound on the Oregon Trail, Lorena Emerson is alone after her uncle is killed by a thief trying to steal his money belt. Ignoring the wagon master's advice to go home, she rounds up others needing help, and they join a later wagon train and are soon slogging through dust and mud and steep mountain passes. It's a long way to Oregon, and because another woman needs her help, Lorrie again goe
Hot Yellow Planet
Series: Lori and Chiing, Book 2. Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 4,900. Language: English. Published: October 4, 2011. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Adventure
(3.67 from 3 reviews)
Sequel to Pretty Pink Planet. Lori and Chiing continue their adventures, meeting up with Chameleons, Ghosters, Splurts, and other aliens and humans.
Pretty Pink Planet
Series: Lori and Chiing, Book 1. Price: Free! Words: 3,250. Language: English. Published: October 3, 2011. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Space opera
(4.33 from 3 reviews)
Lori, an agent of SOESFOL (Search Out and Establish Sentient Forms of Life) visits Prism, a popular tourist destination, to track down planet pirates and rescue aliens, if she can find and talk to them.
Hidebound
Price: $1.99 USD. Words: 22,490. Language: English. Published: August 17, 2011. Categories: Fiction » Science fiction
(4.50 from 2 reviews)
Not long after Anfissa and Ferenc meet, they’re trapped on a planet where even the grass is deadly. Contest winner twice.
Remodeling: Buying and Updating a Foreclosure
Price: $1.99 USD. Words: 8,450. Language: English. Published: July 6, 2011. Categories: Nonfiction » Home & Garden » Home remodeling
(5.00 from 3 reviews)
How one woman coped with selling a house--at last, looking for a new house, buying a new house that was a foreclosure and needed lots of work, and then remodeling it since it didn't even have a kitchen sink!