Interview with Yvonne Eve Walus

It wasn't so long ago that the idea of blogging boggled my mind. Now I enjoy it and find it’s an excellent vehicle for keeping in touch with old friends and a fertile environment for making new ones.

Imagine my excitement when I received an email from Yvonne Eve Walus, a New Zealand author, saying she had visited and enjoyed my blog. I, in turn, visited her web site http://yewalus.kiwiwebhost.net.nz/index.html and blog http://yewalus.blogspot.com/.

I found that Yvonne is one busy writer, with award winning short stories to her credit, as well as novels, novellas and poems.

The short story, A bottle of hairstyling mousse, is a funny but touching story on loneliness. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered another short story, Small Price to Pay, from Fictionwise, http://fictionwise.com/. It's a fun read about the pleasure of revenge. I'm looking forward to reading more of her pieces, including her novel Murder at Work.

One thing lead to another and I am now excited to present an interview with Yvonne Eve Walus.

Jane: Yvonne, as a working mother of two young children, how do you find time to write?
Yvonne: I'm not being flippant when I say "between midnight and four a.m." - well, all right, perhaps a little bit flippant. My children are usually asleep by nine, so any time after that is my own. Sometimes the kitchen floor really needs mopping, but I am usually very good at postponing household chores. I am a night owl, so my best writing time is at night anyway. I'm sure if I had the opportunity to write during office hours, I'd end up cooking really elaborate meals and watching daytime TV!

Jane: Your short stories, poems, novellas, and novels cover a vast array of topics from dragons to murder mysteries. Do you have a favorite genre?
Yvonne: I always thought that what I wanted to do was write murder mysteries (of the cozy kind with no gore or violence), and that everything else was peripheral to my so-called true calling, but lately I've realized that I actually love all the genres. Some ideas want expressing in poetry and dragon images, others in non-fiction about education. I simply go with the flow.

Jane: Is it easier for you to find publishers for your novels or for your poetry or short stories?
Yvonne: Traditionally, novels are easier to publish than poetry or collection of shorts. The industry wisdom has it that people will only read your short stories if you are a best selling author of full-length novels. Be that as it may, I was first published by a small press specializing in collections of short fiction and poetry.

Jane: Have you found your publishers with the help of an agent or on your own?
Yvonne: On my own. I’ve always had my eyes open for publishers who were only just starting out, and I targeted them – this is why I managed to get in the door without an agent. I honestly believe that to get a reputable agent nowadays is as difficult as being picked out of the publisher’s slush pile – after all, agents also have slush piles. I recently attended a writers’ conference, where an agent told us her office received 100 enquiries a day!

Jane: Do you market the various genres in the same way or do you approach each differently?
Yvonne: Even though I've done heaps of marketing and publicity exercises, I still feel clueless as to what actually works. I see that "Small Price to Pay" (a romance) has done fabulously well in terms of sales, and yet I marketed it pretty much the same way as I did "Murder in the Little Bead Shop" (a murder mystery). Does that mean that romance sells better than murder in general, or that "Small Price to Pay" is a better story, or that my advertising slogan was wittier? I simply don't know. All I seem to have learnt so far is that marketing of e-books should take place chiefly on the Internet, not via a mailbox drop - what was I thinking? :-)

Jane: What are you working on now?
Yvonne: A short mystery story for the Fish Publishing competition and a novel that takes place in Poland of the 1970s.

Jane: Do you have any tips for aspiring new authors?
Yvonne: Believe in yourself. Be open to critique but listen to it wisely and trust your instincts. If you hear something you disagree with, ignore it. If you hear it again, think about it. If you hear the same thing from a third source - only then consider making any changes.

Jane: What is the best way for readers to purchase your novels, novellas, short stories or poems?
Yvonne: They are all on http://www.amazon.com/ or http://www.amazon.co.uk/ or http://www.fictionwise.com/. Please have a look even if you don’t buy.

It’s been a fun and informative interview, Yvonne. Thanks so much for stopping by. If any of you readers wish to contact Yvonne, her email is yve@xtra.co.nz.

Jane Kennedy Sutton
Author of The Ride (to be released by ArcheBooks Publishing)
janekennedysutton@gmail.com
http://janekennedysutton.googlepages.com/

Tags: The Ride, Archebooks, Yvonne Eve Walus, Small Price to Pay , Murder at Work, Murder at the Little Bead Shop

Fact or Fiction

One of the first complete strangers to read my novel, The Ride, though enthusiastic and encouraging, asked, “Is it based on your life?”

“Why would you think that?” I responded. “It’s a novel. That means it’s fiction.”

She replied, “Many manuscripts, especially first novels, are based on the author’s experiences.”

Does that mean Stephen King went to high school with a girl with telekinetic powers? I wondered, thinking of Carrie.

I can’t speak for Stephen King or other authors, but in my case, what I write has nothing to do with me, my life, or the people I know. There’s a reason I write fiction—my life is rather ordinary (although I have some extraordinary friends and family). Although I enjoy my existence tremendously, most people (including me) would find it on the dull side if I were to write a book about it.

It is true that occasionally someone I see or hear can spark an idea for a character or a plot but so can fresh air. There’s nothing I love more than walks where I can’t wait to get home and write down an idea that popped into my head along the route.

While it may be true that fact is stranger than fiction, I personally find fiction more enjoyable to write. Although I have written a few true vignettes about blunders I made while living overseas, my focus is on writing fiction. It’s fun; almost like playing God—I’m able to create lives and control situations.

But, alas, I can’t control the production schedule for ArcheBooks Publishing, http://archebooks.com/. I’m still next on the list.

Next week, I’ll be interviewing a New Zealand author of short stories, novellas, novels and poems, Yvonne Eve Walus. I hope you’ll stop by. In the meantime, check out her web site http://yewalus.kiwiwebhost.net.nz/index.html and blog http http://yewalus.blogspot.com/ and let me know if you have any questions you’d like to ask her.

Thanks for your visit.

Jane Kennedy Sutton
Author of The Ride (to be released by ArcheBooks Publishing)
janekennedysutton@gmail.com
http://janekennedysutton.googlepages.com/

Tags: The Ride, Archebooks, Stephen King, Carrie, fiction , Yvonne Eve Walus

Judging a Book by its Cover or Genre

Good news. Finally, the ArcheBooks Publishing, http://www.archebooks.com/, production list is showing activity again. I am now next on the list. That means The Ride could go into production as early as today. Of course, it may still be weeks or months, but I’m thinking positive.

One step in the production process is the design of the book jacket. I can’t help but wonder how it will look. Will I like it? Will it appeal to other readers?

Not too long ago, my daughter walked into the room and said in an incredulous tone, “You’re reading a book with a unicorn on the cover.”

Not only was I reading the book, M.B. Weston’s, A Prophecy Forgotten, http://www.elysianchronicles.com/MBWeston.htm, I was thoroughly enjoying it. However, normally (had I not known the author) I would not buy a Fantasy book, much less one with a unicorn on the cover. Consequently, I would have missed a really good read.

I realized that I was guilty (as was my daughter) of not only judging a book by its cover but by the genre, as well.

On the ArcheBooks production list, The Ride, is listed as Contemporary Women’s Fiction. It can also be categorized as general or contemporary fiction.

Worried that people might confuse Contemporary Women’s fiction with Chick Lit, or Romance or even with Feminist Literature, I did a little research to try to figure out the most marketable category. I was surprised by what I found.

I read, Women’s Fiction or Romance, A tale of Two Genres, by Lisa Craig, http://www.hodrw.com/womensficorromance.htm. She said, “Trying to wrap a definition around women’s fiction is a little like trying to put a fence around a band of wild mustangs.” The article went on to say, “After examining industry statistics from the American Bookseller Association and Book Industry Study group, one can easily conclude that Women’s Fiction comprises at least forty percent of adult popular fiction sold in the United States and approximately sixty percent of the adult popular fiction paperbacks.”

According to Dummies.com, http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-1843.html, virtually all the selections of Oprah’s Book Club are in the Women’s Fiction category.

Forty to sixty percent of the market with the possibility that Oprah may one day talk about my book makes Women’s Contemporary Fiction sound like the perfect category.

I am curious, however, about how you view the subject of book covers and genres.

1. Have you ever not bought a book because you didn’t like the cover?

2. Would you be more likely pick up a book marketed as Women’s Fiction, Women’s Contemporary Fiction, or simply Contemporary Fiction or General/Mainstream Fiction, or none of the above?

Let me know by leaving your comments on my blog or in my guestbook, or by e-mailing me at janekennedysutton@gmail.com.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

See you next week.

Jane Kennedy Sutton
Author of The Ride (to be released by ArcheBooks Publishing)
janekennedysutton@gmail.com
http://janekennedysutton.googlepages.com/


Tags: The Ride, Archebooks, Lisa Craig, Dummies.com, Oprah’s book club , M.B. Weston , A Prophecy Forgotten , Women’s fiction

Anadiplosis

Once again, the production list did not change so I have nothing new to report. For some reason, I’m not as bothered by the lack of progress this week as I usually am. There could be several reasons for this:

A) I’ve come to expect no change since the list has been stagnant for so long.
B) Or, our condo is filled with family including my nine-month-old grandson and my granddog (a four-year-old whippet) so I’m having too much fun to care.
C) Or, since our condo is filled with family, Kim and I are staying in our travel trailer at the Red Coconut RV Park on Fort Myers Beach and it’s impossible to be stressed or cranky after therapeutic walks on the beach.

Most likely, it’s all of the above.

In the meantime, I keep editing the manuscript. I want it to be as perfect as possible once it does hit the desk of an Archebooks editor. Ruben Colon, a fellow writer I met through the Gulf Coast Writer’s Association, has been helping me by going through the manuscript chapter by chapter. I owe him big time. He’s taught me so much (some of which I should have learned in school had I been paying attention). He’s good at noticing the little details, such as someone can’t meander through tables as I’d written, but can meander around them. Duh—I knew that!

In this week’s email concerning the latest chapter from The Ride, he said, “I like the use of anadiplosis in this paragraph.”

I hoped that was a compliment.

My family was sitting around with me so I asked, “Can anyone tell me what anadiplosis means?” Their responses ranged from blank stares to shrugs, forcing me to lookup the word.

Anadiplosis means, according to the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, repetition in the first part of a clause or sentence of a prominent word from the latter part of the preceding clause or sentence, usually with a change or extension of meaning.

I was flattered that I actually wrote something that was considered an anadiplosis. I just wish I could say it was intentional.

So maybe, my manuscript not going into production yet is a good thing. At least until Ruben has a chance to wade through (not around) the last few chapters.

Thanks for stopping by. See you next week.


Jane Kennedy Sutton
Author of The Ride (to be released by ArcheBooks Publishing)
janekennedysutton@gmail.com
http://janekennedysutton.googlepages.com/


Tags: The Ride, Archebooks, Ruben Colon, Red Coconut, Fort Myers Beach, Gulf Coast Writers, anadiplosis

Serendipity

Sometimes another struggling writer will ask me how I found a Publisher. My short answer is ”Serendipity.”

Horace Walpole coined the word in 1754 when he described The Three Princes of Serendip (Serendip being an old name for Sri Lanka). By definition, serendipity is having good luck for making unexpected and fortunate discoveries.

My longer answer is that I was lucky to have discovered the Florida Writer’s Association (FWA) http://www.floridawriters.net/dnn/ shortly after moving here.
True, it was through this very organization that I had the bad luck of meeting my first (and only) agent, Susan Graham with the About Words Literary Agency. How was I to know that her friendly, helpful façade would change so abruptly into a inactive, silent stonewall? (See my May 18,2007 blog http://janekennedysutton.blogspot.com/2007_05_18_archive.html for more whining on this subject.)

Perhaps if I had visited Predators and Editors http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/peala.htm, I’d never signed that contract, but that’s a subject for another day.

Still, I considered myself fortunate because I was in the Southwest Florida division of the FWA and Bob Gelinas of Archebooks Publishing http://archebooks.com/ is the regional director of the group.

Although Archebooks Publishing only accepts submissions from agents, I got lucky again. At one of the luncheons I revealed the sad saga of my agent experience and how I dreaded searching for another. Bob agreed to bend the rules and take a look at my manuscript. And…well the rest is history.

Looking forward to seeing you next week when I hope to have some progress to report on The Ride. The production list has been stagnant for a long time, it’s bound to start moving soon. Isn’t it?

Wishing you all a little serendipity of your own.

Jane Kennedy SuttonAuthor of The Ride (to be released by ArcheBooks Publishing)janekennedysutton@gmail.comhttp://janekennedysutton.googlepages.com/

Tags: The Ride, Archebooks, Susan Graham, About Words, literary agent, serendipity, Florida Writers, Predators and Editors