Author Interview – Vicky Savage

Do you find it hard to share your work? I never share my first draft with anyone. I mean NEVER. My first drafts are total crap. Once I’ve done my rewrites and polished the MS a bit, I share it with my alpha readers, so I still have time for adjustments. Then my sister reads it again. I trust her the most. After it’s been edited and deemed ready for publication, I share with everyone. I’m always passing out books to anyone who even feigns an interest in my work.

How do you work through self-doubts and fear? I love this quote from Robert Hughes: “The greater the artist, the greater the doubt. Perfect confidence is granted to the less talented as a consolation prize.” I wrote a whole blog post on how self-doubt is like a common cold—you can’t cure it, but there are ways to soothe it, and eventually it goes away by itself. When I’m ready to throw my whole manuscript on the trash heap and light it on fire, the first thing I do is call my fantastic sister. She always talks me down off the ledge. The second thing I do is take a break from work and read some really good writing for inspiration. If that doesn’t work, I do some editing on what I’ve already written so I feel better about it. The thing is, the doubt always passes, and when I go back and re-read my writing with fresh eyes, it’s never as bad as I thought it was.

Do you have any advice for writers? My advice for new writers is: Just get it down on paper, from start to finish, whether poem, story, novel, whatever. Don’t worry about how ugly it is. You can always fix it later. My advice for indie authors, in particular: Don’t publish your book until it’s been professionally edited. Good editing is critical to your success.

Do you have time to read? Stephen King once said: “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time to write.” I didn’t really understand that quote until I started writing. I believe it’s vital to read often, first to keep up with the latest in your genre, second to be reminded what good writing vs. bad writing really is, and third because it’s relaxing!

How did you come up with the idea for this trilogy? I’ve always loved stories that take place in medieval times, with swords and horses and knights in shining armor. I had two problems, though. The first was that I didn’t want my protagonist to be a helpless damsel in distress. Rather, I wanted to her be strong, athletic, courageous, and a completely modern girl. The second was that I didn’t want all the messiness that goes along with having no electricity or indoor plumbing. So I created an alternate world that combined all the fun medieval stuff with nice bathrooms and great clothes. Then I ruthlessly plucked my unsuspecting protagonist from her quiet Connecticut life and dropped her right in the middle of it.

 

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Genre - Science Fiction/Fantasy/Paranormal/YA

Rating – PG13

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Website http://www.vickysavage.com