Ask the Author: Nephylim
Answered Questions (6)
Nephylim
My editors are constantly telling me to 'show not tell' so I wondered what it would be like to not be able to do this. I have written a book (The Face in the Window) about a boy who is blind, so I thought it might be fun to write a book from the perspective of someone who is blind - which is what I'm doing and it is really really hard. You can't say things like 'he smiled at me' or 'he rolled his eyes at me' or 'he shrugged his shoudlers' because the character can't see the other person's face or body, so no body language.
It's one of the biggest challenges I've set myself and I'm really getting drawn into it
It's one of the biggest challenges I've set myself and I'm really getting drawn into it
Nephylim
Everything inspires me to write. From an overheard conversation, to a leaf, to a video game. I guess you could say life inspires me to write.
Nephylim
Loads of things.
I belong to an excellent flash fiction group and instalments go out on Wednesdays. Not only do you get to read my flashes but there are links to all kinds of awesome writers who are also flashing that day.
I have a book with Wayward Ink Publishing which comes out sometime in August, which I am very excited about. It's called Project X and is about sinister scientists and a love affair that (almost) no one thought would ever happen. The first line is "Morgan Bentley is a bastard" and the book, while being sinister and scary in places is a lot of fun.
I also have a second book coming out later this year with Featherweight Press, which is a YA murder mystery, except no one actually dies, so I guess that makes it just a mystery - you'll see what I mean if you buy the book.
I have four books finished and getting polished ready for submission, and I have lots of free reads on GayAuthors,org
I belong to an excellent flash fiction group and instalments go out on Wednesdays. Not only do you get to read my flashes but there are links to all kinds of awesome writers who are also flashing that day.
I have a book with Wayward Ink Publishing which comes out sometime in August, which I am very excited about. It's called Project X and is about sinister scientists and a love affair that (almost) no one thought would ever happen. The first line is "Morgan Bentley is a bastard" and the book, while being sinister and scary in places is a lot of fun.
I also have a second book coming out later this year with Featherweight Press, which is a YA murder mystery, except no one actually dies, so I guess that makes it just a mystery - you'll see what I mean if you buy the book.
I have four books finished and getting polished ready for submission, and I have lots of free reads on GayAuthors,org
Nephylim
Write. Write for the love of it, then take what you've written and find someone else who will read it. Someone who will not be gentle with it, who will tear it apart, but gently. Then take all the bits and put them back together again with the same love. Edit it to the best of your ability.
It is a good idea to research the publishers in your chosen genre and examine their requirements. Also look at other books they have published to see if they are doing well, if they are being well publicised by the publisher etc.
Send off your book and expect to be rejected - then when you aren't it's a great surprise and delight.
Getting your book published is only the first step. Get out there on the web. join every social media you can manage. Think carefully about who you are and who you want to be, that is who you want the world to see. Once you know who you are market yourself and your work, even before it's accepted. The more you are known, the more pull you have especially if the prospective publisher has heard of you.
Put free stories on your blog. If people can see how good your writing is for free, they are more likely to buy your books.
Help other authors, for example by advertising their work on your blog and social media. What goes around comes around. Never diss another writer. Get a reputation for being respectful.
Most of all...have fun. If you don't love what you do, no one else will.
Oh, and be a lot better at promo and marketing than I am. That helps.
It is a good idea to research the publishers in your chosen genre and examine their requirements. Also look at other books they have published to see if they are doing well, if they are being well publicised by the publisher etc.
Send off your book and expect to be rejected - then when you aren't it's a great surprise and delight.
Getting your book published is only the first step. Get out there on the web. join every social media you can manage. Think carefully about who you are and who you want to be, that is who you want the world to see. Once you know who you are market yourself and your work, even before it's accepted. The more you are known, the more pull you have especially if the prospective publisher has heard of you.
Put free stories on your blog. If people can see how good your writing is for free, they are more likely to buy your books.
Help other authors, for example by advertising their work on your blog and social media. What goes around comes around. Never diss another writer. Get a reputation for being respectful.
Most of all...have fun. If you don't love what you do, no one else will.
Oh, and be a lot better at promo and marketing than I am. That helps.
Nephylim
Doing something I love to do. I pour everything I have into my writing; good and bad. I laugh with my characters, and cry with them too. I feel what they do and they live constantly in my head. Someone once said that I share my life with a head full of beautiful, broken boys, and I guess that's the best thing.
Nephylim
I've never had writer's block. Writing is like breathing to me, something I have to do and that comes completely naturally. I get very stressed and even depressed if I can't write, so I always have pen and paper, if not my laptop.
My advice to anyone with writer's block is just to write. Doesn't matter what. Write nonsense, write poetry, write a letter, write a journal. Anything. No expectations, no deadlines, no pressure. Just write for the sake of writing.
My advice to anyone with writer's block is just to write. Doesn't matter what. Write nonsense, write poetry, write a letter, write a journal. Anything. No expectations, no deadlines, no pressure. Just write for the sake of writing.
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