Today, Bronwyn Elsmore is sharing her experience as an Indie author. Find out more about Bronwyn on her website, blog, Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, or check out her books on Amazon.
What do you think is the biggest challenge an Indie author faces?
Doing one’s own marketing. It takes a huge amount of time and is certainly not for the faint-hearted. I find it a lot harder than writing the book.
What are you working on right now?
Another novel. I’ve had some lovely reviews for the one before it – that’s my novel Every Five Minutes – and I’ll be really pleased if the next one appeals as much to readers.
They’re different, though both are set in New Zealand and have a woman as the central character.
Every Five Minutes is written with a unique format. It follows a woman, Gina, over a day of her life, through her thoughts every five minutes of each hour. Through these snippets she gradually reveals her life to this point. I’ve been so thrilled with the reaction of many readers. I’ve received private letters from several who have told me how they’ve identified with Gina, and how much the book meant to them. To touch people in such a way is really why writers love to write.
They’re different, though both are set in New Zealand and have a woman as the central character.
Every Five Minutes is written with a unique format. It follows a woman, Gina, over a day of her life, through her thoughts every five minutes of each hour. Through these snippets she gradually reveals her life to this point. I’ve been so thrilled with the reaction of many readers. I’ve received private letters from several who have told me how they’ve identified with Gina, and how much the book meant to them. To touch people in such a way is really why writers love to write.
What advice can you share with other Indie and aspiring Indie authors?
To have your book rise above many indie publications, have it proof-read and edited professionally.
What genre do you write in?
I’ve been a professional writer all my adult life, so my writing has covered a wide range of forms. My books include the genres: children’s, fiction; non-fiction; history, academic. These days I am keeping to fiction – novels, though there will be a collection of short stories coming up sometime.
How much research do you do when you write?
A lot. Research is always necessary. I’ve done years of research in the past to inform my non-fiction my works, but it is essential even for fiction. There are readers who know all about the background to your story, whatever it is about, and will pick up on any mistakes. Research used to be very difficult involving much time and travel. Thanks to the internet we have much more at our fingertips, but you still need a good basis of knowledge to use it – there are many traps for the unwary!
Do you work to an outline or plot, or do you prefer to just see where an idea takes you?
For fiction, a mixture of both. I start out with a plan of where it is going, but as it progresses my characters tend to take over. Good characters that an author has taken the trouble to know well before they start writing, will do this and should be trusted to write their stories, with some authorial guidance, of course.
Is there anything else you would like to add that you haven’t included?
Thank you very much for the invitation to be featured on your site.
Very nice interview, Bronwyn. No wonder your books read so well: you write so well.
ReplyDeleteI love research and agree, you've really got to get the details right. Nice interview!
ReplyDeleteWonderful interview, Bronwyn!
ReplyDeleteLovely interview and great to hear more about you, Bronwyn. Very interesting to hear about the unique format of 'Every Five Minutes'. And I think the cover of Seventeen Seas is simply fabulous :)
ReplyDeleteNice Interview, Bronwyn, and a great introduction for us to your books!
ReplyDeleteInteresting interview. I've put Seventeen Seas on my Amazon wish list. I love everything NZ :-).
ReplyDeleteGosh! Bronwyn--Thank you for introducing eNovel Authors at Work to Rock the Book! This is a fabulous site and your interview is tops. I read Seventeen Seas and loved it. Shared on Google+.
ReplyDeleteJackieWeger
Great Interview, Bronwyn. Looking forward to reading Every Five Minutes, it's already on my TBR list. I'm adding Seventeen Seas to my Amazon Wish List.
ReplyDeleteI love research too, but it can eat up your time as you go from link to link. New Zealand is beautiful and it has fine wine, yummy seafood, and hobbits. :D Not that your books have all those between the pages but, I agree 'Seventeen Seas' sounds like a great read and it's now on my wishlist. I've spent my book allowance this month already. :)
ReplyDeleteLovely interview and your books sound fascinating - am adding Every Five Minutes and Seventeen Seas to my tbr list. I agree with what you say about the importance of research in fiction as much as non-fiction.
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