GUEST INTERVIEW WITH RACHEL HAMM With me today on my blog, I have author Rachel Hamm!...

With me today on my blog, I have author Rachel Hamm! She’s very kindly popped over to tell me about her latest book as well as her debut novel!

Hey Rachel, welcome to my blog and also, have to say, I love your cover art! So simple and yet, it really stands out. Awesome! Now, let’s get down to it, would you say that writing is a hobby or a vocation?

For now, writing is a hobby. I have a full-time job and I write in the evenings and on weekends. I think most writers would love for their writing to turn into full-time, but for now, I’m pretty happy with where I am. If, someday, my books make enough money for me to quit my day-job, I plan on moving to London immediately!

Is it something you do out of love or out of a driving passion to exhaust your creativity?

I do it because it is fun! I write because when I get an idea, I love tinkering with it and seeing how it develops. I wouldn’t actually call myself creative. So, I guess a little of both? I love writing and when I start something, I have a driving passion to see it through.

Twenty-Five, what’s it about?

Sometimes, I’ll jokingly say that “Twenty-Five is the love story you’ve always wanted.” Really, it’s the love story I’ve always wanted.

Abigail Bronsen is sure her life is going nowhere when she turns twenty-five and realizes she hasn’t done anything on a list of goals she made for herself as a teenager. Ben Harris is looking to find “the one” after his last girlfriend cheated on him. When they crash into each other, it appears they’ve both found exactly what they wanted. A year of firsts follows: first date, first kiss, first “I love you’s.” The first fight is inevitable, but neither of them saw a breakup coming. When Abigail is offered a job overseas, they’ll discover that no relationship is perfect and even true love sometimes finds itself separated by time and distance.

What’s your current WIP?

I’m currently editing The Maidening Ceremony, which is a fantasy about a mermaid community incapable of love. Along comes Arilya, who can feel love, but has no context to understand it. She struggles with becoming an adult and facing an arranged marriage while trying to figure out why she prefers Finley (her funny, prankster best friend) to all of the other merphen in her class. I’m hoping The Maidening Ceremony will be ready for publication around the beginning of 2014.

I’ve also just started writing Lark. In this book, everyone has a life-mate hand-picked for them by the Gods. Each individual has a “pull” leading them to their other half and most people find their mates in their late teens and early twenties. Except for Honor. At thirty, she is still mate-less and she can’t figure out why, until a co-worker and new friend suggests that something tragic may have happened to her’s.

You mention moving to the UK, if your writing enables you to work at it full-time. And I know that part of your novel is actually set in the UK, why is that?

Two-thirds of Twenty-Five is set in Boston, but the other third is set in London. I have a love for all things British and when I was writing Twenty-Five, I just knew I had to get my main character to England somehow. Lucky for her, she gets the job opportunity of a lifetime - to not only live in the city of her dreams, but to tour all of Europe.

At one point in the book, Abby mentions that most Americans don’t get the opportunity to experience everything Europe has to offer. I know that’s been true for me. I want to visit so badly and see all of the places I’ve read about, but time and money have never been my friends. Sending Abby there was as close as I’ll get for a while, at least.

What is your favourite genre to write? Why?

Twenty-Five is Romance, The Maidening Ceremony is Fantasy, but relies heavily on Romance for the plot, and I’m not exactly sure what Lark is yet, but Love is a definite theme. I like writing about Romance because it feels real to me, even when it’s not. Love, falling in and falling out, is something everyone relates to.

Is there something you dislike about writing? Do you find the marketing side of writing hard? What do you do to temper it?

I dislike RE-writing! After I write the first draft and send it to my critiquers, I always know how bad it is and how much work there is to be done, but I put off re-writing like the plague! It is an absolute necessity, but I procrastinate as much as I can. There’s something about the first draft that I cling to, not because I think it is good, but I guess because I’m amazed that I even wrote it in the first place.

I am not cut out to be a Sales Person, so yes, I find marketing very hard! But I feel I’ve been very lucky to have amazing friends pimping my book out for me. I’ve also hit some jackpots when it comes to online networking. When I was workshopping Twenty-Five, I met a ton of writers and we all have each other’s backs. Since publishing Twenty-Five, I’ve met even more people by following authors, blogs, etc. on Twitter and Facebook. I’m not killing in sales yet, but I only have one book out. We’ll see how things progress when the second and third come out.

Do you have any advice for newbies?

I’m still a newbie myself, so I’m not sure how valuable my advice will be! For me, having a trusted group to critique and review my work before I put it up for sale has been the biggest help to getting me to the point I’m at today - a published novel. In today’s world, with today’s technology, there is just absolutely no reason to put out a book that is sub-par quality. Even if you can’t afford an editor, there are plenty writers out there willing to help. And I’ve found that reviewing/critiquing others has made me much more aware of mistakes in my own writing.

Thanks Rachel, your honesty is appreciated!
If you guys are interested in learning more about Abigail’s choices and that bucket list, then the links are here!

UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00DQEYUIU
US - http://amzn.com/B00DQEYUIU

Facebook: facebook.com/RachelLHammAuthor
Twitter: @RLHammAuthor
Goodreads: goodreads.com/RLHammAuthor