How many books have
you written and which is your latest release?
I
have written almost twenty books, but I've only published two as of recently,
Alora under my name and Kiatana's Journey by Natalie Erin, which I co-wrote
with Krisen Lison. Both were released on November 1st, 2014. Even though I have
a lot of books I won't release them until each one is absolutely the best I can
make it. I'm a perfectionist that way.
Wow, it sounds like
you’ve been busy. What is your background? Were you a good English student as a
kid?
English
is all I ever knew, really. None of the other classes in school ever mattered
to me much, unless they had something to do with animals. History was another
one of my good subjects because I see History as a story, just like books. But
it was rare for me to get anything less than an A on an English project.
Well, that explains a
lot. What is your favorite genre to read? Do you read what you write?
I
write my favorite genres, which are Fantasy, Romance, and Contemporary/Issue
novels. I started writing for teens so I usually work in that age group, but
I'm also getting into more New Adult as well.
I too write what I
read. I suspect that it is a pretty common practice. We tend to put out what we
take in. What is your muse? Is there something special that inspires you?
I
think what helps most with my writing is nature. If I'm outside walking alone
and enjoying myself, the ideas just seem to come with me. I love being active
and getting out of the house whenever I can, and when that happens I usually
become flooded with tons of ideas. The more beautiful the scenery, the
better.
I can’t wait to read
some of your stories. It sounds like you have a lot of wonderful ideas swimming
around in your head. Do you have any writing rituals?
I
just sit down and write. There's nothing really I do that gets me in the mood.
I either want to write or not, and since this is all I've ever really wanted to
do, I usually want to.
I tend to sit down and
write as well. I let my characters take me for a ride as opposed to the other
way around. Are you a plotter or a pantser?
It
varies. Some of my more recent books I've plotted ridiculously, down to the
last word, but I've found that my best work comes from when I just spit it out
and then go back and rewrite it later, because then I've got more bones to work
with. I originally wrote a 90,000 word story that I cut the ending out of and
edited down to 70,000 words, and I'm a lot happier with it now. I'm more of an
editor than a plotter or pantser, I believe. The first draft is only the first
draft. You can do anything after that step.
After all the hard
work is done, the hardest part is getting word out about your latest project. What
is your favorite way to advertise your book?
Oh
my, I hate advertising, haha. I would think most authors do. But I think that
out of everything I've tried the best thing that really, truly works is to talk
to people about it. Word of mouth is the only thing that works in this
industry. It's slow but I've gained more readers just by talking to them like a
normal human being over any advertising gimmick I've ever done.
Do you expect to try
for a traditional publisher at some point or do you like being independent?
Ehhhhhhh
come back to me in a few years and ask me that, haha. There are so many pros
and cons to the indie industry, but from what I've heard about the traditional
route it isn't much better. Unless a publisher comes to me with a large advance
and a killer contract, I think I'll stay where I am. But that could change. It
all depends on the book too. I have novels that I know no traditional publisher
would consider in their wildest dreams, plus I like being in control of where
my book goes. I would like my company, Gryfyn Publishing, to become successful
enough one day where it's my main source of income, but that won't happen if I
take a contract from another publisher. I don't know what that would say about
having faith in my own company.
Thank you so much,
Megan for taking the time to talk with us today. Please leave some links where
my readers can learn more about you and your books.
Amazon
Page: http://www.amazon.com/Megan-Linski/e/B008REY2E6
Facebook
Pages: https://www.facebook.com/gryfynpublishing
Alora
on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Alora-Megan-Linski/dp/069230987X/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1420307503&sr=1-1
Kiatana's
Journey on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Kiatanas-Journey-Creatures-Lands-Volume/dp/0692309926/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0SEAYFBYBHB1RYCTN55P
Twitter:@GryfynPub
