Ask the Author: Sara R. Cleveland
Answered Questions (8)
Sara R. Cleveland
I had to think a little bit about this one before answering. I think my favorite part of writing is the act of discovery as I write a first draft. Discovering who my characters are and what they really want is a thrilling ride. Especially when it turns out they've been keeping secrets from me!
Sara R. Cleveland
One of the things that I think will set my dragons apart in upcoming stories is that the reader will get to explore the dragons' culture. Rather being solitary creatures that live in a horde of gold or pets to humans, my dragons have a complex culture, social life and religion. Dragon culture plays a big part in the series finale for Penelope's Dragon.
Although "shifters" (which are a hot thing in paranormal/fantasy romance) do exist in my world, they are distinct from what are referred to as true dragons. I can't think off-hand of another series that has both actual dragons and shifters in it, although I'm sure one exists somewhere.
Although "shifters" (which are a hot thing in paranormal/fantasy romance) do exist in my world, they are distinct from what are referred to as true dragons. I can't think off-hand of another series that has both actual dragons and shifters in it, although I'm sure one exists somewhere.
Sara R. Cleveland
Dragons are such fun, versatile magical creatures. I think the best thing about writing them is getting to write them MY way. Book 3 of Penelope's Dragon is going to explore dragon culture, and why my dragons do the things they do, and I honestly can't wait.
Sara R. Cleveland
It's actually kind of a funny story. Before I wrote Saving the Dragon I was working on a Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) campaign. I was the game master. So, I had all these great non-player characters and this rich background. I was so excited to play the campaign. And then I remembered my players... Those wonderfully creative people who were going to come in and run amok and destroy all my carefully laid plans and probably ignore half the world I'd built.
So... I took all the wonderful NPCs I had and the rich background and I turned all that into a book instead. Of course, I had to make a lot of changes to the characters to strip out all the D&D nonsense. And I had to figure out how my dragons and my magic worked. In the end, it was actually a lot more fun.
See if you can guess which characters (somewhat) follow the storyline I originally planned out for my players ;)
So... I took all the wonderful NPCs I had and the rich background and I turned all that into a book instead. Of course, I had to make a lot of changes to the characters to strip out all the D&D nonsense. And I had to figure out how my dragons and my magic worked. In the end, it was actually a lot more fun.
See if you can guess which characters (somewhat) follow the storyline I originally planned out for my players ;)
Sara R. Cleveland
Finding something great I wrote years ago lying around on a hard-drive that makes me laugh or cry or any other strong emotion. Things that make me go "wow, I can't believe I wrote that." Surprising myself is the best part of being a writer (although being really forgetful helps with the surprise aspect, haha).
Sara R. Cleveland
I think I'm barely out of that category myself! My best advice is don't give up. Ever.
Sara R. Cleveland
Lots of coffee. Just kidding. I don't tend to get writer's block so much as writer's distraction. There's almost always words that want to come out... just not necessarily ones that have anything at all to do with the story I'm working on.
Sara R. Cleveland
I am currently working on the final installment in my Penelope's Dragon trilogy.
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