Ask the Author: Chicki Brown
Answered Questions (6)
Chicki Brown
Since DON'T STOP TILL YOU GET ENOUGH is the third book in the Stafford Brothers series, I've been thinking about Greg's story for months. In fact, I started revealing what I saw happening with him in the previous book. Because the brothers featured in Books One and Two were such "good" guys, I wanted to make Greg a little damaged, so I gave him a secret that, if discovered, could ruin his career and bring shame to his well-respected family.
Chicki Brown
I've learned not to wait for inspiration to write. Writing is my job, so I get up every day and go to work whether I FEEL inspired or not. I am a plotter, so I outline, create character sketches, find photos of my characters, and do lots of research into their professions, the city/neighborhood in which they live, etc. If I've done the groundwork, I always have something I can write.
Chicki Brown
Right now I'm in the middle of my Stafford Brothers series. Book Three just released January 28, and I plan to start working on Book Four in a week or so. This book will feature the oldest brother in the family and is women's fiction, not romance.
Vic Stafford is a very successful surgeon and the chief of surgery of a major Atlanta, Georgia medical center. His wife, a former Miss Georgia, has been acting strangely, and he has no clue why. She has everything most women would kill for - a successful husband, two handsome young sons, a beautiful house, an unlimited allowance, a closet full of designer clothes and a Bentley convertible. So why is she so miserable?
Vic Stafford is a very successful surgeon and the chief of surgery of a major Atlanta, Georgia medical center. His wife, a former Miss Georgia, has been acting strangely, and he has no clue why. She has everything most women would kill for - a successful husband, two handsome young sons, a beautiful house, an unlimited allowance, a closet full of designer clothes and a Bentley convertible. So why is she so miserable?
Chicki Brown
Whenever I'm asked this question, my answer is the same -- learn everything you can about the craft and about the industry. In the past five years, publishing has gone through dramatic changes, and it continues to change by the week.
The biggest mistake new authors make is thinking they can write a book and just throw it out there when they don't know a thing about the steps they need to take to make their launch a success and to build a career as an author. It takes a tremendous amount of work to avoid being a one-hit wonder, whether you're self-published or traditionally published.
The biggest mistake new authors make is thinking they can write a book and just throw it out there when they don't know a thing about the steps they need to take to make their launch a success and to build a career as an author. It takes a tremendous amount of work to avoid being a one-hit wonder, whether you're self-published or traditionally published.
Chicki Brown
For me it's being able to silence the voices in my head! I constantly have thoughts/story ideas floating around in there, and I absolutely love putting them down on paper and watching them develop into a novel.
Also, writing is my only creative outlet. It relaxes me and makes me happy. It's the business part of being an author that stresses me out.
Also, writing is my only creative outlet. It relaxes me and makes me happy. It's the business part of being an author that stresses me out.
Chicki Brown
I don't really believe in writer's block. Rather, I believe when I can't write it's the result of another problem - fatigue, boredom, frustration with my story, lack of research, etc. When that happens to me, I step away from the writing and do something else - take a nap, read, watch a movie, go out. Usually that solves the problem.
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