Q&A with Lori J. Schiele discussion

Hi. I am the author of "Wiccan Shadows: Book One of the Wiccan Sisterhood". I am 41 years old, live in Philadelphia with my boyfriend and 9 cats. Wiccan Shadows is my first published novel, released May 2011.

Congrats Lori, you're off to a great start. I am early days as a writer too, I'm so lucky to be able to start doing it full time starting this June :) I'll check out your books, they sound great!

Hi Lori

I'm a writer based in South Africa, 44 years old, divide my time between my homes in Johannesburg and Phokeng ( the latter is a village in the North West province of South Africa). I recently self-published two children's books, the Doll That Grew and Waking Up Grandma. I plan to self-publish more.... though I will also send some of my work to traditional publishers.

David, thanks. Yes, I was very excited to get my first book published. I started writing stories when I was 8 years old.
I'm glad you are interested in "Wiccan Shadows" and hope you enjoy it. The second book of the series: "Wiccan Moonlight" will hopefully be out by the end of the year.
Would love to know what you think!

Damaria, congrats on your self-publishing. I was never really interested in being self-published. I decided early on that I wanted a "traditional" publisher to like my work enough to offer me a contract. I expected numerous rejections, and was thrilled when the second company I submitted to offered me a three-book contract!
Good luck to you in your writing endeavors.

Hi everyone!

Hey there Boo!

Hi!

Greetings, Boo! Tell us a bit about yourself, if you don't mind. Are you a reader, a writer, or both? What genre interests you most?

Hi to all!! Rick here and so very happy to be part of this Group

Hi Rick!!

Hola!

Lori wrote: "Greetings, Boo!hey Tell us a bit about yourself, if you don't mind.I love ferrets Are you a reader, a writer, or both?BOTH! What genre interests you most?"all of them

Hi Rick. Very happy to have you as part of this group as well. Would you like to tell us a little bit about yourself?

Lori wrote: "Damaria, congrats on your self-publishing. I was never really interested in being self-published. I decided early on that I wanted a "traditional" publisher to like my work enough to offer me a con..."

K..I know this is probably in the wrong section of this forum, but since you mentioned the publishing thing...any trade secrets or wisdom you can offer. You had super luck so, ya know...I have to ask. Ask from those who have gone ahead of you to learn. Thanks and peace

Thanks Lori. I know what you mean about wanting a traditional publishing contract. It is very strong validation for an author's work when a publisher offers a contract, and maybe even a decent advance. I also want to continue publishing with mainstream publishers (I've published my works with Macmillan SA and Heinemann). They offer authors resources that I certainly don't have as an indie author/publisher. But I see the two options working for me in tandem. We'll see how that goes in the future.

Hi everybody ;-) It is sooo fun 2 see so many of my friends here...all talented readers, writers and dreamers. Luv & PeAcE to all my bookies

Damaria, you are quite lucky to have been able to self-publish and work with a publishing company as well. Many companies, especially the big ones, won't even look at someone who has self-published previously. Not sure why that is, but I'm very glad for you! Congrats!

Great to have you here, Paige! You've got it right - reader, writer and dreamer - that's me!! (Helps that I'm a Pisces. We're *born* dreamers.) Growls and grins, my friend.

I'm a Sagittarius...I like to think that's why I'm such a freebird!! Loved the excerpt BTW! Excellent work, can't wait to read the rest!

Hi, I'm Kori. I'm 22 and I live with my two roommates, plus two vicious guard cats ;) I'm not a writer, but I like reading a lot, especially fiction with strong female leads.

I love the cover of your book Lori. The guy looks really cute lol

Kori, welcome and "hi" to your guard cats!! (I have quite a few of my own)
I'm glad you enjoy reading, and strong female leads are most definitely a plus in many instances, I quite agree!
So glad you like the book cover. The *real* thanks goes to Trish Lazarus, the artist who created the front and back cover of "Wiccan Shadows". She did an incredible job working with the ideas, suggestions and descriptions I gave her and was more than willing to work with me when it came to adjusting certain details until everything was perfect (in my mind, anyway.)
The "guy" on the cover is nearly identical to how I envisioned him (those who have read the book know who he is!!) and Trish went *beyond* expectation! I am truly thrilled with her work and hope she will be doing my future covers as well.
Thanks for the comment, Kori, and welcome!

Paige - a Sag!! Never would've guessed (LOL!!) So glad you liked the "Wiccan Shadows" excerpt (found as part of this Q & A) and hope you truly enjoy the rest of the book!

Yeah...we're a breed all our own!! And I will enjoy it. I already know from all the juicy bits I've sampled....can't wait for the rest