First interview with Ghostly Publishing!
It’s been a while, but at long last here’s an update!
I recently had an interview with my publisher, Ghostly Publishing. You can read it in full here
But i’ll post it below also:
1. What is Writing?
Depends on the individual I would imagine. To me it’s a form of expression, a way of pulling all my bizarre and funky ideas from my imagination and placing them into a reality that transforms into a fantastic story.
2. Why is Writing so important?
It’s important on so many levels. Many creative minds are responsible for what we take as a given. Take blockbuster movies for example – all of which started out as a basic script written by a creative mind. Most these days are all adaptations of best-selling books.
That aside I feel it’s important as it improves literacy skills and expresses who you are as a person, most people who know me didn’t know I had these skills inside me. In all honesty – neither did I until recently!
3. Can you tell us about your background about how you got involved in Writing and what led you to become such an expert?
I always enjoyed reading young adult fantasy as a child and used to day dream about that sort of thing instead of concentrating at school! I wasn’t hugely academic and I’m still not now! My first experience of creative writing was in secondary school, we had to come up with a short story for our creative writing module. I did something crime novel-esq and suffice to say it wasn’t brilliant but earned me a grade C.
I didn’t really delve into it again until later in life where I began writing comic fan fiction for friends I played online games with. I would write about the stupid things we got up to within these mysterious online worlds and translated them into short novels of sorts. It sounds really geeky, but some of the ideas that were born in these fan fictions made their way into my debut novel.
I didn’t start writing ‘James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn’ until late 2011. I was working away a lot and spent many a lonely night in a hotel, so without anything to do I started messing around with story ideas and plots. I wasn’t expecting to write a full novel. But the more time I had the more the ideas kept spewing out of my head and onto the page. There were times where I wrote for hours on end!
But it wasn’t always so easy, my first few drafts were heavily criticised and that’s when you learn you HAVE to grow a thick skin and take it on the chin. Some advice and feedback you should take, some you should ignore. There are a lot of people out there who just want you to fail. Listen only to constructive criticism and people who offer advice and resources to assist you with your writing.
4. What are the main things we need to know about Writing?
It’s hard work! But there are ways to improve to ensure that you’re always writing your best. You should read all that you can, get as much done as possible. The last thing you want to do is to write something that’s already been done.
Also write something every day if you can! I try to, even if it’s just a few hundred words, it still counts. Gone are the days where I could write up to two thousand a day! Maybe one day that’ll happen again!
As I said above you will need to grow a thick skin and learn when to take the criticism and when to ignore it.
5. What’s the best way to get started?
Pick a subject that you’re interested in. Not what everyone else is interested in at the time, but what YOU love the most. I’m a huge geek and lover of steam powered things! So including Steampunk aspects were ideal for me.
However don’t just pluck a subject and start writing about it, research your idea – Is your idea for a story unique enough? Has it been done before? Who would like it? These questions popped through my mind several times when I was halfway through my novel. And the only way you’ll really find this out is by researching the idea that’s in your head.
If you want to write a fantasy novel, make sure it IS fantasy and doesn’t have aliens or spaceships! Make sure YOU understand the genre before you write about it!
Head to your nearest bookstore and see what’s in the current chart. See what’s selling, what isn’t. Does your idea fit the current market? Will it fit the niche gap that’s crying out for something new? I did a similar thing once I decided that I wanted to write a Steampunk style fantasy for Young adults/Older teens.
I headed into the biggest bookstores in Swindon and B-lined to the YA section. Straight away I saw that there were hundreds of vampire novels that were lining the shelves. Some were in the charts….some were not. My idea didn’t have vampires. So straight away I knew it was unique to the market – HOWEVER, that doesn’t mean it would sell. You have to believe in your idea and your story if you want to see it on the shelves, even then that won’t guarantee success.
Love your characters – I mean literally fall in love with them. Every single one. Even the villains. If you can’t love the fact your villain is a villain. Then you’re not doing your job properly as a writer. The best way I found how to do this was to get to know them. Yes that’s right – I “talked” to my characters. How did I do that? Well I made “mock” interviews with them. Asking them how they were finding their role in the “story”. Who they liked, who they didn’t like. Favourite things etc etc. It helped lift their personalities off the page and make them as real as you and me. If you’re struggling to do that, then look at your character and think who he/she reminds you of. Do it for about 4-5 people, combine their personalities and see what you come up with – It worked for me and Valeria Flintlocke was born!
6. What are the business and life benefits of writing?
Of course we all know what the business benefits are – getting paid! In an ideal world I’d love to write full time and write a fantastic novel every year or every other year and live off the royalties – But at present I can’t, so I’m happy to write when I can and I love doing what I do.
Since I started taking my writing seriously I’ve been far more dedicated to this as well as my working life, taking everything seriously. It’s also helped me unwind so much! I can’t believe how stress free I become when I’m lost in my own writing.
7. In what areas and circumstances does your advice about writing work best?
I’m not sure that it works at all! People have approached me and asked for advice and I’ve been honest with them and shared my experiences with them. If they can benefit from it then I’ll be over the moon that I’ve helped them take that step on their writing journey.
8. How long does it take to really become good at Writing?
How long is a piece of string? It’s really hard to say. It took me two years, give or take, to finish my first draft of “James Knight and the Orb of Ziarn.” However I believe that some people have a natural talent for being able to write perfectly without any assistance. For others it takes a bit longer.
Think of it as any normal hobby or skill – practise makes perfect.
9. Do you have some examples of other people’s success with writing?
I have several friends within the “Writing community” so to speak. Just to point out a couple – There’s Lisa J Hobman who has written four novels so far and has seen great success with these.
Rebecca Inman – Author of “The Blue-Eyed General” a fantastic YA novel all should pick up!
Moving away from writing novels, another friend, Vaughn Highfield is successful article writer and content editor for the website “The Gamer’s hub.”
10. What are 3 quick-start tips about Writing that you can give my listeners?
Write everyday – it’ll help you get better!
Keep a notepad handy – sounds strange but some of the best ideas come when you’re least expecting it!
Be patient – becoming successful doesn’t happen overnight. Keep at it, your time will come.
11. What are some of the common problems that people experience in Writing?
I occasionally suffer from bad cases of writer’s block. Sometimes I can go for weeks without writing anything as nothing pops into my head. Then it hits me like a brick to the face and ideas pour onto the pages.
Lack of motivation is another, sometimes motivation just walks away, try to keep motivated by writing as often as you can.
12. Are there any downsides or things to consider with Writing?
I’d consider setting up a budget for your writing. Sounds silly at first but when you get to the point of submitting your work to agencies and publishers you might find that they would like you to print off your manuscript and post it to them! That soon adds up.
And then there’s the option of editing. I did this and it cost over £100 to edit my sample works, It’s definitely something to keep in mind before you go ahead.
13. Where can people find more information about Writing?
There are many writing forums out there to use. Litopia and writing forums are two that I have used in the past. Also follow as many writing blogs as you can, these often give out tips and tricks. Also check with an indie publisher, some places, like Ghostly publishing have a media section that offer advice.
14. What is your website address? How can people contact you?
My website is currently a work in progress and will be http://www.allanbott.co.uk when it’s live, but I do have a blog that you can follow : http://allanbott.wordpress.com
I also have a facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Allan-Bott-Author/360983123998830
Im also part of goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7149638.Allan_Bott
Finally, feel free to follow me on Twitter – @azrall or click the link https://twitter.com/Azrall
Enjoy!
Allan
