Across the Beer Bar with Cindy Spencer Pape!
Cindy! Welcome to Ann Arbor (just a hop skip and jump from home for you!). What can I pour you to start?
Hey, I love A-squared. Umm beer? Huh? Okay, whatever you're having. Okay I'm having a lovely bright, crisp Czech Pilsner. See what you think.
You have been one of THE most supportive and helpful well established authors I have personally encountered. Was there someone like that for you when you were starting out?
Really? Thank you. I try to pay it forward a bit. There were so many authors I relied on when I was starting out. A few who were particularly helpful were Desiree Holt, Lynne Connolly and Betty Hanawa. I'm happy to say they're all still writing and I get to see them occasionally at conventions. There were also a bunch of us who all started at about the same time who really banded together and shared the learning process, especially my critique partner Anny Cook. Locally I need to give big props to the Greater Detroit chapter of Romance Writers of America, and The Untitled Writers Group for being y go-to people for advice and support.
Tell us the story of your first published book. Who? When? Why? How?
See, that's tough to answer. I sort of sold three at once, to different publishers, so the first one sold wasn't the first one published. I had three manuscripts, you see, all of which had been rejected by at least one NY house. I'd been submitting for a while and had grown frustrated. If at least one of these puppies didn't sell, I was going to quit. So I sent one to Triskelion, which was a big e-to-print house at the time, one to Ellora's Cave, and one to a brand new house called Wild Rose Press, because it was a Christmas story and they'd put out a specific call for those.
So, to my total shock, all three sold within the summer/fall of 2006. So in the course of a couple months, I went from no publishers to three publishers. Curses was the first one I sold, to Triskelion, (though after they folded, I re-sold it to Wild Rose, where it's still available. The first one actually published was The Cowboy's Christmas Bride in Nov. 2006, because they were anxious to have some holiday novels out that first year. The third one, which released in early 2007 was Dragon in the System, with Ellora's Cave Cerridwen Press imprint (now EC Blush.)
Yeah, I get that. This fall I went from 1 to 3 publishers myself. The facebooking and tweeting ramped up in a serious way. As did the editing...
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Motor City...series. Very Creative. I've noticed a trend in setting stories IN Detroit which is way cool. I have one myself. What has been reader response to the setting?
Awww, thanks, Liz! I love setting books in Michigan. Actually two of my first three books were set in fictional Michigan small towns, Dragon in the System in the Irish Hills and Curses in the UP. But Detroit is home and it's a great setting for a slightly darker paranormal world. The response to it has been very, very positive.
Ok, your glass is empty! What's next?
Eeep. Any more and I'll be falling off my barstool. Believe me, no one wants to see that!
You work with several publishers and an agent. Do you recommend the agent route for all writers? why?
No, I really don't. I wanted to take a shot at moving to a bigger, more traditional publishing house which is why I needed an agent. If you're in a good spot and not trying to make changes, there really isn't any need for representation.
Honestly, I am looking to move up a bit. If I would just hear from some of those bigger e-pubs.....taps foot...I've decided that if the 2 big novel projects ALL come back rejected (and that would be a crap day as there are 6 publishers looking at them or ignoring them as the case may be) I am gonna re-polish and only sub them to agents. A kinda big step for me...
What is your favorite character you ever created? why?
Yowza, you don't ask the easy stuff, do you? Hmm. Jonas Pierce, from Curses, will always be one of my favorites. He's a vegetarian werewolf with a creative mind, fierce protective instincts, and a ton of emotional scars. From a more recent book, Caroline, the feisty, illegitimate governess who breaks anything mechanical she touches, from Steam & Sorcery is one of my favorite heroines.
A Vegeterian Werewolf.....um....ok....
You told me once that crafting pure paranormals was fun because whenever you hit a potential "logic snag" in the arc you could write your way around it via the paranormal aspect OR through "dreams." But I notice you have some HAWT Cowboy love coming out soon. What is your fav?
I *do* love writing paranormal where literally anything is possible. It's the ultimate fairy tale, I think. I know I've used dreams to get a sex scene earlier in the book for an erotic publisher, when due to the plot line, the characters weren't getting in bed together for real. Having the shared dream ramped up the real-world sexual tension for those two a lot. I've also had my characters meet in dreams before they ever meet face-to-face, which was another fun storyline to play with. Every so often, though, I do like a real-world contemporary story, and cowboys are always fun to play with.
And now a nightcap. What's your poison?
(whispers) Ummm-Diet Coke please? I'm such a wimp.Sighs....it's okay. I'm getting used to it.
What is your advice to me? that is to say, I'm not a newbie but nor am I a pro. I'm dividing time between running my beer biz, writing and promoting. What's more important? Lots of releases? Or buzz? How have you done it?
Hell if I know! If I ever figure out this crazy business I'll be happy to share, but the truth of it is, what works for one person doesn't seem to work for another. Even from book to book, it varies, and even though I have a scientific and statistical background, I haven't been able to figure out a trend in the last 5 years. I went with the big backlist route, but I don't know that it's the best one. I've tried print ads, website ads, blog tours, you name it, and I just don't see any one thing as correlating to sales. Some books I don't promote sell big, others I do promote don't. As far as I can tell, you write the best book you can, get it to the best editor you can, and keep your fingers crossed.
Trust me, I have all the body parts capable of crossing, crossed, daily!Thanks for stopping by Cindy. Thanks for having me by, Liz! Love what you've done with the place!
Hey, I love A-squared. Umm beer? Huh? Okay, whatever you're having. Okay I'm having a lovely bright, crisp Czech Pilsner. See what you think.
You have been one of THE most supportive and helpful well established authors I have personally encountered. Was there someone like that for you when you were starting out?
Really? Thank you. I try to pay it forward a bit. There were so many authors I relied on when I was starting out. A few who were particularly helpful were Desiree Holt, Lynne Connolly and Betty Hanawa. I'm happy to say they're all still writing and I get to see them occasionally at conventions. There were also a bunch of us who all started at about the same time who really banded together and shared the learning process, especially my critique partner Anny Cook. Locally I need to give big props to the Greater Detroit chapter of Romance Writers of America, and The Untitled Writers Group for being y go-to people for advice and support.
Tell us the story of your first published book. Who? When? Why? How?
See, that's tough to answer. I sort of sold three at once, to different publishers, so the first one sold wasn't the first one published. I had three manuscripts, you see, all of which had been rejected by at least one NY house. I'd been submitting for a while and had grown frustrated. If at least one of these puppies didn't sell, I was going to quit. So I sent one to Triskelion, which was a big e-to-print house at the time, one to Ellora's Cave, and one to a brand new house called Wild Rose Press, because it was a Christmas story and they'd put out a specific call for those.
So, to my total shock, all three sold within the summer/fall of 2006. So in the course of a couple months, I went from no publishers to three publishers. Curses was the first one I sold, to Triskelion, (though after they folded, I re-sold it to Wild Rose, where it's still available. The first one actually published was The Cowboy's Christmas Bride in Nov. 2006, because they were anxious to have some holiday novels out that first year. The third one, which released in early 2007 was Dragon in the System, with Ellora's Cave Cerridwen Press imprint (now EC Blush.)
Yeah, I get that. This fall I went from 1 to 3 publishers myself. The facebooking and tweeting ramped up in a serious way. As did the editing...
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Motor City...series. Very Creative. I've noticed a trend in setting stories IN Detroit which is way cool. I have one myself. What has been reader response to the setting?
Awww, thanks, Liz! I love setting books in Michigan. Actually two of my first three books were set in fictional Michigan small towns, Dragon in the System in the Irish Hills and Curses in the UP. But Detroit is home and it's a great setting for a slightly darker paranormal world. The response to it has been very, very positive.
Ok, your glass is empty! What's next?
Eeep. Any more and I'll be falling off my barstool. Believe me, no one wants to see that!
You work with several publishers and an agent. Do you recommend the agent route for all writers? why?
No, I really don't. I wanted to take a shot at moving to a bigger, more traditional publishing house which is why I needed an agent. If you're in a good spot and not trying to make changes, there really isn't any need for representation.
Honestly, I am looking to move up a bit. If I would just hear from some of those bigger e-pubs.....taps foot...I've decided that if the 2 big novel projects ALL come back rejected (and that would be a crap day as there are 6 publishers looking at them or ignoring them as the case may be) I am gonna re-polish and only sub them to agents. A kinda big step for me...
What is your favorite character you ever created? why?
Yowza, you don't ask the easy stuff, do you? Hmm. Jonas Pierce, from Curses, will always be one of my favorites. He's a vegetarian werewolf with a creative mind, fierce protective instincts, and a ton of emotional scars. From a more recent book, Caroline, the feisty, illegitimate governess who breaks anything mechanical she touches, from Steam & Sorcery is one of my favorite heroines.
A Vegeterian Werewolf.....um....ok....
You told me once that crafting pure paranormals was fun because whenever you hit a potential "logic snag" in the arc you could write your way around it via the paranormal aspect OR through "dreams." But I notice you have some HAWT Cowboy love coming out soon. What is your fav?
I *do* love writing paranormal where literally anything is possible. It's the ultimate fairy tale, I think. I know I've used dreams to get a sex scene earlier in the book for an erotic publisher, when due to the plot line, the characters weren't getting in bed together for real. Having the shared dream ramped up the real-world sexual tension for those two a lot. I've also had my characters meet in dreams before they ever meet face-to-face, which was another fun storyline to play with. Every so often, though, I do like a real-world contemporary story, and cowboys are always fun to play with.
And now a nightcap. What's your poison?
(whispers) Ummm-Diet Coke please? I'm such a wimp.Sighs....it's okay. I'm getting used to it.
What is your advice to me? that is to say, I'm not a newbie but nor am I a pro. I'm dividing time between running my beer biz, writing and promoting. What's more important? Lots of releases? Or buzz? How have you done it?
Hell if I know! If I ever figure out this crazy business I'll be happy to share, but the truth of it is, what works for one person doesn't seem to work for another. Even from book to book, it varies, and even though I have a scientific and statistical background, I haven't been able to figure out a trend in the last 5 years. I went with the big backlist route, but I don't know that it's the best one. I've tried print ads, website ads, blog tours, you name it, and I just don't see any one thing as correlating to sales. Some books I don't promote sell big, others I do promote don't. As far as I can tell, you write the best book you can, get it to the best editor you can, and keep your fingers crossed.
Trust me, I have all the body parts capable of crossing, crossed, daily!Thanks for stopping by Cindy. Thanks for having me by, Liz! Love what you've done with the place!
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