Interview with Liz Schulte

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</style> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can you
give us a brief overview of your latest book?</span></b><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Dark
Passing</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> is the sequel to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Dark
Corners</i>. Both are standalone mystery novels that follow the snarky,
sometimes reluctant heroine, Ella Reynolds. Having made it through the darkest
period of her life, Ella is in a good place, but when a woman whose daughter
was brutally murdered comes to her for help, she can’t turn her away. Once
again, Ella puts her life on the line and goes on the hunt for a murderer. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=twoen-20..." style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
have a favorite character?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It is hard to choose a favorite character that I write. I
love getting into Ella’s mind. She is my first character and therefore very
special to me. However, I have several other characters I enjoy writing too. I
tend to like the funnier, more ballsy characters best of all. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
belong to a critique group? Have they helped improve your writing?<br />
</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I belong to several writing groups, and I learned a lot from the people
in the groups. However, I do not like to let people read my work until it’s
finished, so I do not use a critique partner until I have a completed draft. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
factors influenced your decision to self-publish to Amazon?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
I never considered self-publishing as an option, but I then one day I read a
book by an indie writer who did quite well self-publishing. I contacted her and
she explained both sides of the industry to me. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What is
your writing process?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
I start with an idea and I let it roll around in my mind until I have a really
good first line. Once I have that I follow that line to an opening scene and so
on and so forth. I write linear and I do not often outline, but sometimes I do
create a time line to make sure I keep up with continuity. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Did you
hire an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
I hired two editors. The first editor is a copy editor and the second, just
before publication, is a proofreader. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What have
you’ve learned during your self-publishing journey?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
That you always have to keep thinking and stay on the forefront of the industry
of you will be buried in a sea of books. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Besides
Amazon, are there any other sites where your books are for sale?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">My books are also for sale on Barnes and Noble, Itunes, Kobo
and Smashwords. At the moment Dark Corners, the first book, is free at all of
these and on sale at Amazon for .99.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do you
find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and
writing your next book?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Time is always an issue for writers. It is hard to balance writing and
marketing, but it is a necessary evil. Neither one can be neglected. </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing
arena?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Start talking to other writers. Find a writing group and learn from others
successes and failures. Also if you can’t afford anything else, make sure you
hire an editor. It is the single most important thing you can do for your book. </span></div>
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