Ask the Author: Elizabeth Bonesteel
Answered Questions (5)
Elizabeth Bonesteel
Glad you loved. :) Yes, there will be more, but I don't have a date for you yet!
Elizabeth Bonesteel
Alas, the list is not mine, but my publisher's, and I don't get input on it. They do generally do a giveaway of some ARC copies (I know the odds are low, but still!). I don't know if they NetGalleyed these books or not, but that'd be another place to check.
I'm very happy you're enjoying the book. :) Cheers!
I'm very happy you're enjoying the book. :) Cheers!
Elizabeth Bonesteel
Deadlines. Seriously. I've been writing all my life, but it wasn't until I did NaNoWriMo in 2010 and realized that I could actually set and keep to a daily word count goal that I started being able to focus on completing something as large and complex as a novel.
Now when I don't have a specific deadline for someone else, I set one for myself, and I tell people about it. Having external accountability is critical. And I've been doing this long enough that I know, no matter how much I don't want to cough up the words on one particular day, it's going to feel great when I have something end-to-end complete in my hands.
Now when I don't have a specific deadline for someone else, I set one for myself, and I tell people about it. Having external accountability is critical. And I've been doing this long enough that I know, no matter how much I don't want to cough up the words on one particular day, it's going to feel great when I have something end-to-end complete in my hands.
Elizabeth Bonesteel
It's a little unfair for me to answer this one just now, because I've been writing the same set of characters, even though I strive to make each book able to stand on its own. But obviously another book with the same characters is going to start with "what happens next?" The first book has an ending, and the purpose of the second book is to (metaphorically, at least) blow things to bits.
I started with an incident from one character's history (this is the prologue of REMNANTS, which you can download as part of the available sample at your favorite ebook retailer), and pretty much spun the story from there. Since I don't outline, though, it didn't go exactly the way I planned - among other things, different characters took over (Raman Çelik, for instance, wasn't going to get a POV, but he kept yelling at me).
So I guess the answer is...I don't really have light-bulb moments! I create characters in my head, and I get to know them, and for the most part story comes from the kinds of things I want to happen to them. A lot of REMNANTS comes from Elena's realization that her world is a lot more complicated than she thought it was, and the good and bad of that.
I started with an incident from one character's history (this is the prologue of REMNANTS, which you can download as part of the available sample at your favorite ebook retailer), and pretty much spun the story from there. Since I don't outline, though, it didn't go exactly the way I planned - among other things, different characters took over (Raman Çelik, for instance, wasn't going to get a POV, but he kept yelling at me).
So I guess the answer is...I don't really have light-bulb moments! I create characters in my head, and I get to know them, and for the most part story comes from the kinds of things I want to happen to them. A lot of REMNANTS comes from Elena's realization that her world is a lot more complicated than she thought it was, and the good and bad of that.
Elizabeth Bonesteel
Writing advice: Write. All the time. Write a lot. Also, read.
Use of language is a cumulative skill. Once you've mastered the basics, all the inspiring "how to be a writer" books in the world are no substitute for practice and experimentation. Reading - and re-reading, if you can, especially books you particularly enjoy - can help you get a sense of pacing and narrative shape. But when it comes down to it, you get nowhere if you don't just sit yourself down and get the words out.
Past that: Write multiple stories, short or long. Don't hang all your hopes on this one specific thing that you've always longed to write. And don't give up if you can't sell that thing you love. Write another thing you love, and another after that. There is value in the work that is independent of commercial success.
Use of language is a cumulative skill. Once you've mastered the basics, all the inspiring "how to be a writer" books in the world are no substitute for practice and experimentation. Reading - and re-reading, if you can, especially books you particularly enjoy - can help you get a sense of pacing and narrative shape. But when it comes down to it, you get nowhere if you don't just sit yourself down and get the words out.
Past that: Write multiple stories, short or long. Don't hang all your hopes on this one specific thing that you've always longed to write. And don't give up if you can't sell that thing you love. Write another thing you love, and another after that. There is value in the work that is independent of commercial success.
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