Interview with John A. Ashley

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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Can you give us a brief overview of your latest
book? Is it part of a series?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">The
Scrolls of Xavier</span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"> is a science-fiction/adventure novel. Set
in the year 2067, it follows the courageous Captain Michael Dawn as he
leads </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">a team of earth’s most skilled soldiers across
the globe of the breathtaking, yet deadly planet of Xavier997 in search of five
mysterious items known as the Scrolls. What seems like a routine mission,
however, goes terribly wrong as Dawn and his team quickly realize that Xavier
does not give up her treasures without a fight. To find the Scrolls, Captain
Dawn must risk everything, including his love, his career, and his life. The
Scrolls of Xavier is the first in a series, followed by the sequel, Before the
Storm.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Do you have a favorite character?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It's hard to narrow it down, but if I had to pick a
favorite, it would be the happy-go-lucky RAF paratrooper, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Benjamin
Roberts. His quick humor juxtaposes well with his skill on the battlefield, and
combining that with a past full of dangerous secrets certainly made him a fun
character to write about.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">What is your writing process? Do you listen to
music or do you like silence?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">I usually write late at night will listening to
music. I think if it's too quiet, my mind tends to wander, so some soft
background noise has always been a part of my writing routine.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Do you outline your story or just go where your
muse takes you?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">I daydream...a lot. So before I ever even begin
a book, I've got a fairly detailed outline on my head. On starting a new
chapter, however, I do sit down and jot down a few notes, but other than that I
just write it as I go. I've often wondered what different routes certain
scenes, (or the entire story for that matter) might have taken if I'd simply
sat down to write them at a different place or time.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Did you hire an editor to review your manuscript
before publishing?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">No, and it took a <i>lot</i> of work to make up
for this. I didn't want to publish a story with even a single error in it, and
I (along with my wonderful family and friends) spent many long hours going over
it with a virtual microscope to make sure this didn't happen. I'm sure a
there's a mistake or two buried somewhere in there still, but if there is, I
don't want to know about it.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">What factors influenced your decision to
self-publish your book(s)?</span></b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">To be honest, in many ways it was a decision that was made
for me. I was completely on the fence about whether to self-publish or go the
traditional route, when I happened upon a contest whose top prize was
a publishing package through a POD publisher. I entered The Scrolls
of Xavier right away, and wound up winning first place. With the prize in hand,
I decided to go ahead and self-publish, and I must say that I have no regrets.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">If you used a graphic designer/publisher’s
designer, how involved were you during the creative process for your cover?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">To create my covers, I hired an amazing designer
named Richard Green. From start to finish it was great, and very hands
on--something that I came to love. He took my concept and expanded on it
wonderfully, sending proofs of every small change to make sure I was still
pleased. This involvement is something that list very high on reasons to
self-publish, and is certainly something that I look forward to doing again.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Besides writing, do you have any other passions?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">I don't know if I'm as passionate about anything as I am
writing and publishing, but I do enjoy many other things. I am avid sports fan,
an outdoor enthusiast, an amateur astronomer, and a reader, just to name
a few.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Besides Amazon, are there any other sites where
your books are for sale?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">Along with Amazon, my books are for sell on my
website, www.scrollsofxavier.com, as well as just about anywhere ebooks are
sold, (including Apple iBooks, Kobo, and Smahwords). </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">What’s next for you?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">I suppose keep writing. When it come down to it,
that's simply the best thing to do. Nothing promotes you better than a new
book, and obviously, nothing makes your readers happier either. This has been
an incredible journey thus far, and most excitingly, I have a feeling that it's
merely begun. The idea of the books I still have in my head one day making into
publication thrills me. Now just to go write them.</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TwoEnd..." height="1" width="1"/>