I wish ideas flooded my brain daily like I assume they do for some fortunate authors. But the sad truth is I got very lucky with my first novel, Until Alex. I dreamt a huge part of Alex and Hayden's story and somehow remembered it long enough to write it down when I woke up. My next two novels took a lot longer to come to me. I'm not someone who can write a story I don't feel. I need to see the characters and feel their emotions, thoughts, and words. In a weird way, I'm like a medium, waiting for the voices to come to me. LOL!
If you've never read my books, I write angsty new adult romances with feisty heroines and swoon worthy heroes, but creating angst isn't necessarily what I set out to do. I just know the MC's need to be ripped apart by something terrible (usually some big secret in my stories). I guess that's where the angst comes from. As a reader, I know that angst is what makes the happy ending that much sweeter. So as a writer, I just try to deliver that HEA the best way I know how. Personally, I enjoy tortured heroes when I read(which is not nearly as often as I'd like to these days). I'm a total sucker for bad boys who get tamed, or at least fall hard for the heroine. Ironically, I find those heroes extremely difficult to write. So I'll just leave those stories to talented authors like Kristen Ashley who know how to write panty-melting alphas like no other!
My road to self publishing wasn't necessarily planned. When I finished writing Until Alex, I figured having someone edit it might be a good start. When I found my amazing editor, author Stephanie Elliot, the first thing she asked me is what I planned to do with it. I wasn't sure. I knew I didn't want to send hundreds of query letters to agents just to be rejected, so I went for it and self published. It was the best decision I've ever made! I have all the control, from content to cover design to price. And being a total control freak, I love that! Being a self-published author has not only been a learning experience, but it's been exciting, inspiring, and beyond fun. It's introduced me to amazing authors, readers, bloggers, and cover designers I never would've known. And what makes it even better is they're all passionate booklovers just like me. It's so strange when people tell me they don't read because for me there's nothing more wonderful than living in a fictional word--okay, maybe my six year old son, but you get the point:) But seriously, these non-readers have no idea what and who they're missing out on in this phenomenal and ever-growing book world.
Meet J. Nathan: J. Nathan is a New Adult, independently published author who resides on the east coast of the United States with her husband and son. She's an avid reader of romance, especially if there's an alpha male involved.
Books: Until Alex, Since Drew, Before Hadley
This is amazing! I wanted to write a book for ages and when I was working abroad I had a LOT of time to read and write so I decided to start. Self-publishing is something I never would have considered but it seems like it's opened some doors, and I literally write for fun so to gain something out of it is a massive bonus.
ReplyDeleteY x | www.thesweetsevenfive.com
Great post! I wish I could be motivated enough to write a book!
ReplyDeleteJade x
This is so interesting! My mum's currently writing a book, I'll be sure to show this to her! x
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