Ask the Author: Stephanie E. Kusiak
Answered Questions (9)
Stephanie E. Kusiak
3 things you NEED to know to be a good writer:
1) Write from the soul.
I read a quote once by Ernest Hemmingway that I took quite literally, "There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed." Though it's tongue and cheek about the difficulty of composition, truly, the art of writing is pulling things out of yourself you never thought you could. Or, for me personally, talking about things I never thought I would. The best writing I've ever done is when I'm cut soul deep, my feelings bone bare, and tears in my eyes. That kind of emotion transfers through in your writing and gives the reader an experience they hopefully never forget.
2) Always be gracious.
Don't ever become a bitch. I don't care if you have 1 fan, or 1 million...always remember you're made by your readers, other authors, publishers, FB groups, Goodreads clubs, etc. Because without people actively speaking about your work, your stories become paperweights and bookends. You should treat everyone with respect and the instant you think you're too good for something is the day you shouldn't be a writer any more. Every person is important, every reader and fan a blessing. If you're following my advice in #1, then you've both (writer and reader) invested a piece of yourselves in each other. And that single person deserves your undivided attention if they've committed to falling in lvoe with your books.
3) Accept people will hurt you, but don't let it stop you.
So, in reference to my above comment, here is the other side. When you commit so much of yourself into writing a story, people are gonna flay your heart open when they either don't get, or don't like your writing. It spans from as benign as, "I didn't like the book," to the ever-caustic, "Her book sucked and I hate her."
So, real talk time. It's gonna hurt. You're gonna cry. You're gonna be crushed and wounded and question why you are doing it at all. I promise...cause I've been there. I've certainly gone to bed early cause I'm depressed, cried in the shower, decided to stop writing, and been generally miserable. We're all human beings, and it's natural to be wounded by it.
Best thing you can do is the following. Reread all the good stuff people say from #2, avoid Googling yourself, have someone who you can turn to when you're disheartened. But above all...and this is key. Never ever, EVER, let them see you cry. Never advertise your misery or draw attention to negativity. Never be that author that gets on a soap box and has fans flame other people for writing something negative. Always be professional, always be private with that. The less bad that people know about, the better.
And always remember, you can't please everyone. Focus instead on the people you do please, and continue to be a #1 and #2 writer.
1) Write from the soul.
I read a quote once by Ernest Hemmingway that I took quite literally, "There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed." Though it's tongue and cheek about the difficulty of composition, truly, the art of writing is pulling things out of yourself you never thought you could. Or, for me personally, talking about things I never thought I would. The best writing I've ever done is when I'm cut soul deep, my feelings bone bare, and tears in my eyes. That kind of emotion transfers through in your writing and gives the reader an experience they hopefully never forget.
2) Always be gracious.
Don't ever become a bitch. I don't care if you have 1 fan, or 1 million...always remember you're made by your readers, other authors, publishers, FB groups, Goodreads clubs, etc. Because without people actively speaking about your work, your stories become paperweights and bookends. You should treat everyone with respect and the instant you think you're too good for something is the day you shouldn't be a writer any more. Every person is important, every reader and fan a blessing. If you're following my advice in #1, then you've both (writer and reader) invested a piece of yourselves in each other. And that single person deserves your undivided attention if they've committed to falling in lvoe with your books.
3) Accept people will hurt you, but don't let it stop you.
So, in reference to my above comment, here is the other side. When you commit so much of yourself into writing a story, people are gonna flay your heart open when they either don't get, or don't like your writing. It spans from as benign as, "I didn't like the book," to the ever-caustic, "Her book sucked and I hate her."
So, real talk time. It's gonna hurt. You're gonna cry. You're gonna be crushed and wounded and question why you are doing it at all. I promise...cause I've been there. I've certainly gone to bed early cause I'm depressed, cried in the shower, decided to stop writing, and been generally miserable. We're all human beings, and it's natural to be wounded by it.
Best thing you can do is the following. Reread all the good stuff people say from #2, avoid Googling yourself, have someone who you can turn to when you're disheartened. But above all...and this is key. Never ever, EVER, let them see you cry. Never advertise your misery or draw attention to negativity. Never be that author that gets on a soap box and has fans flame other people for writing something negative. Always be professional, always be private with that. The less bad that people know about, the better.
And always remember, you can't please everyone. Focus instead on the people you do please, and continue to be a #1 and #2 writer.
Stephanie E. Kusiak
The best thing...far and away above any other, is having people tell you what you wrote affected them. Honestly, that is what makes it all worth it to me.
Stephanie E. Kusiak
Hi Tristan,
Yes, you guessed right! :) I do quite a bit of research, but before writing I did work in the medical field which gave me a nice foundation for Blake's work life and personal life. Specifically, I worked as an EMT on an ambulance and did rotations in an ER. For a hot minute I thought about going back to get an advanced degree and becoming a paramedic, but that would have lead me down the path to becoming a firefighter, and though I could have done it...I didn't have the will to run miles upon miles a day or up and down flights of stairs. (I'll save that for the zombie apocapypse. lol)
In a similar vein, I've had experiences where I became very emotionally attached to my patients and I've often toyed with the idea of a romance evolving out of a hospital stay. I'm sure it happens in reality...so why not in fiction. My background in ER work as well as knowing many firefighters lends to something along those lines.
I could see someone falling in love with a beautiful heroic firefighter who is injured...and the firefighter falling in love back after being taken care of. ;) ((I might have thought about it a little and might have an outline and characters drafted already...maybe...))
Yes, you guessed right! :) I do quite a bit of research, but before writing I did work in the medical field which gave me a nice foundation for Blake's work life and personal life. Specifically, I worked as an EMT on an ambulance and did rotations in an ER. For a hot minute I thought about going back to get an advanced degree and becoming a paramedic, but that would have lead me down the path to becoming a firefighter, and though I could have done it...I didn't have the will to run miles upon miles a day or up and down flights of stairs. (I'll save that for the zombie apocapypse. lol)
In a similar vein, I've had experiences where I became very emotionally attached to my patients and I've often toyed with the idea of a romance evolving out of a hospital stay. I'm sure it happens in reality...so why not in fiction. My background in ER work as well as knowing many firefighters lends to something along those lines.
I could see someone falling in love with a beautiful heroic firefighter who is injured...and the firefighter falling in love back after being taken care of. ;) ((I might have thought about it a little and might have an outline and characters drafted already...maybe...))
Stephanie E. Kusiak
I have a sequel planned for Loved and Lost. The current working title is 'Parity'. I'm not sure when it will be out, but it isn't the next book...I think we all (myself included) need to breathe a little and have some fun before diving back into something heavy. Not everything I write is drama, so I think the next book will be a warm and fuzzy...and I think my readers need that. I know I do. :)
My publishing schedule is very much dependent upon when I'm happy with the work. My goal is to get out a book every 6 months, but that's only if the quality is there. I refuse to put out sholck for the sake of a timeline. That cheats you, me and the genre of lesfic.
There is a good chance I will rewrite previous works...what was available for public consumption was all rough draft material, which will sit aside for a while before I pick it back up. In the meantime, I'll be working on other new stories.
My publishing schedule is very much dependent upon when I'm happy with the work. My goal is to get out a book every 6 months, but that's only if the quality is there. I refuse to put out sholck for the sake of a timeline. That cheats you, me and the genre of lesfic.
There is a good chance I will rewrite previous works...what was available for public consumption was all rough draft material, which will sit aside for a while before I pick it back up. In the meantime, I'll be working on other new stories.
Stephanie E. Kusiak
There is quite a bit of symbolism in the book and it certainly starts with the cover. The front cover is representative of the trees Rachel's references as the paths in life. It's also fate, and meant to feel like a cemetery tree. I chose a bare tree to foreshadow Blake's experience as well, the sun coming through as a ray of hope.
Parity (the working title for the sequel) will most likely carry the foreshadowing and theme of a tree over, but this time be alive in all it's leafy glory.
Parity (the working title for the sequel) will most likely carry the foreshadowing and theme of a tree over, but this time be alive in all it's leafy glory.
Stephanie E. Kusiak
It's really random. I'll see something, hear something, feel something that will spark an image or a clip of a scene in my mind. I see things really vividly, which is why I write the way I do...
I also used to get them from dreams when I was a child, but now that I work so hard during the day, I literally just faceplant in bed and sleep like the dead. :)
I also used to get them from dreams when I was a child, but now that I work so hard during the day, I literally just faceplant in bed and sleep like the dead. :)
Stephanie E. Kusiak
Hi Becky. Thank you for asking!
It was actually a little of both. I wrote the rough draft for Loved and Lost in 23 days and then set it aside for 2 years. I worked on other things during that period, growing as a writer.
Then, I went back to it and rewrote the published version over a 52 day period.
So, yeah, both...cause I produce in a small timeframe, but have to set it aside to allow my mind to sort it all out.
It was actually a little of both. I wrote the rough draft for Loved and Lost in 23 days and then set it aside for 2 years. I worked on other things during that period, growing as a writer.
Then, I went back to it and rewrote the published version over a 52 day period.
So, yeah, both...cause I produce in a small timeframe, but have to set it aside to allow my mind to sort it all out.
Stephanie E. Kusiak
Writer's Block for me is my subconscious saying something is wrong with what I'm writing. I'll get to a point in a WIP (Work In Progress) and suddenly I can't write anymore...even though it was flowing a moment before.
The best trick I've found is to go back and reread what you've already done and find where the story starts deviating from the images you had in your mind and fix it from there. Sometimes that's all it takes to get you back on the road to writing again. :)
The best trick I've found is to go back and reread what you've already done and find where the story starts deviating from the images you had in your mind and fix it from there. Sometimes that's all it takes to get you back on the road to writing again. :)
Stephanie E. Kusiak
I'm currently working on a fairytale set in modern day. So, good news, right now, we're looking at a Happily Ever After moment.
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