Do you have a
"lucky charm" or "lucky routine" you follow when waiting
for your book to be accepted by a publisher?
I work on
another book, which preempts fears of rejection. I mean, they could reject the
manuscript but I can always then mentally rebound with a thought like,
"Yes, but if they only knew what I was working on now!"
How long does it
usually take you to write a book, from the original idea to finishing writing
it?
Sometimes it can
take as short a time as a year and a half or so and with The Pure Trilogy --
the second and third novels -- I was on a yearly deadline so there was no
dawdling. The novel I have coming out next year, Harriet Wolf's Seventh Book of
Wonders, took about 17 years, and is now in edits on year 18.
Which of your
books were easier/harder to write than the others?
I whistle into
each one like I'm skipping into a meadow and then each one turns on me in
different ways -- bears, wolves, professional wrestlers...
What can we
expect from you in the future? ie More books of the same genre? Books of a
different genre?
I'll keep
writing across genres. Cross-training eases my restlessness.
How do you come
up with the Title and Cover Designs for your book/books?Who designed the Cover
of your books?
Titles are
either very quick and clear or they take forever. Sometimes a title shows up
years before the book. There's always an art department and usually a number of
covers get looked at before one is settled on.
Do you choose a
title first, or write the book then choose the title?
Both have
happened.
How do you come
up with characters names and place names in your books?
For The Pure Trilogy,
I'd heard that names often emerge following the sounds of other popular name --
Addison followed Madison, etc... So as I was writing into the future, I was
thinking sometimes toward names that might arrive at some point and nicknames.
I love nicknames because they each hold a back-story.
Are character
names and place names decided after there creation? or do you pick a
character/place name and then invent them?
Sometimes I have
to change a name for some reason -- too close to another character's name or
something... And it's very hard because the name was chosen so specifically for
them -- it can feel like a character edit.
Do you decide on
character traits (ie shy, quiet, tomboy girl) before writing the whole book or
as you go along?
My characters,
on the best days, do their own changing.
Do you basic
plot/plan for your book, before you actually begin writing it out? Or do you
let the writing flow and see where it takes the story?
I
do map the books, but I'm always wrong. The characters take on their own lives
and make more interesting decisions than I could ever invent for them; this is
when the book most comes to life.
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