Welcome Naughty Boys and Girs! Give a warm Welcome for fellow Resplendence Author Regina Carlysle. Let’s Jump right in So Regina- What is your process for writing a book? For example, are you a plotter or a pantzer? Do you start at page 1 and write your book sequentially or do you skip around? Do you start with your characters or the plot?
First off, thanks, Tina for having me on your blog! Process? Umm..what process? I’m a total pantser. I begin with a germ of an idea and begin to form my characters. I imagine their strengths, weaknesses, flaws, everything and then I’ll jot down some plot ideas. I start on page one and continue to the end. I know lots of writers will write ‘scenes’ and put them all together later. Haven’t tried that and I’m not sure I could do it. As I move along, I’ll stall for short periods until my characters eventually tell me what they want to do next.
Q: Do you use any techniques, tools, or aids to help you write?
No, not really. I don’t hunt down pictures or imagine ‘movie stars’. The characters’ faces are already formed in my mind. I need total silence to write because I’m easily distracted but sometimes I’ll play ‘background’ music…rainfall, wind, or flutey-stuff.
Q: How do you make time to write?
Ah, that’s easy. I don’t work outside the home. Once I’m up, I answer emails and do my blogs. Usually I begin writing about mid-morning and will write until my brain is frozen or dead, whichever comes first. During the evenings, I chat on line with friends or spend time with the family. I often write on weekends too. We are real ‘homebodies’ around here.
Q: What advice do you have for other writers?
Don’t give up! Keep following your dream and improving your craft. Also be careful when subbing your work to be aware of what kind of stories any given publisher is looking for. For example, don’t send your erotic romance to an Inspirational publisher or your ‘sweet romance’ to a company that specializes in steamy stuff.
Q: What do you think is the biggest misconception about E-Pubs?
I think many people believe that e-published work is substandard to the books published by the big New York houses. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is good work and poor work to be found in both places and many of my favorite writers are to be found in the ‘e-world’.
Q: If you weren’t writing, what would you be doing?
My dream was always to own a quaint little bookstore somewhere. If I weren’t writing, I would be running my own small shop where people could browse, we’d talk books and I would serve the best coffee in town.
Q: What books can we expect to see in the near future?
I’m currently smack dab in the middle of a new paranormal series. The High Plains Shifters series Books One (Highland Beast) and Two (Lone Star Lycan) are available at Ellora’s Cave. Ringo’s Ride, Book Three, releases on August 28th. This is a series about a lonely, desolate town in west Texas that is completely inhabited by lycans. I’ve had a lot of fun putting cowboys, Texans, and lycans all together in one mix.
Q: Where can readers find you on the World Wide Web?
You can check out my website and blogs here:
http://www.reginacarlysle.blogspot.com
http://threewickedwriters.blogspot.com
Please join me again on Saturday when we get a naughty shifter excerpt…just in time.
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