About A.L. Meinhold:
A.L. Meinhold lives with her wife and their two children at home in Indiana. When not hard at work on the next installment of The Sapphire Star Saga, she is busy building her photography business and earning a degree.
What inspires you to write?
The honest answer…EVERYTHING! Little things that might seem insignificant, spark my creativity in a major way. It happens most often when I am in public. I have an extensive list of notes on my phone to prove it haha. The thought process is a long one though. For example, I might see someone with dentures. That would make me think of them trying to eat something, but having a hard time. Which would in turn make me imagine them eating without the dentures, and so on until I end up with the idea of writing a short story for my kid, about an aging vampire that has no teeth!
Tell us about your writing process.
I am VERY disorganized. I have pages and pages of story and character development strewn about my house. I do like to create an outline, even if just to reference my original thoughts and flow of the story. Sometimes, though, the story or character surprises me and takes a twist even I didn’t see coming.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I tend to read dialog out loud and in my characters voice. It helps me to really get their attitude or intention right.
What advice would you give other writers?
Oh gosh, I think the first thing I would advise…Be Patient. It takes time for readers to discover and enjoy your book. This work is not for the restlessly eager. It can take months or years to see success, so don’t expect it overnight. If you are self-published, I would also suggest that you prepare yourself for a lot of work if you want to get your book noticed. It takes a lot of dedication to promote yourself and your book. Lastly, believe in it. Writing a book and putting all that time and energy into something, you have to believe in it! Be excited when you talk to people about it. ALWAYS speak positively about it. I think that readers can sense when you don’t believe in what you have put there for them, and if you don’t why should they?
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I submitted my manuscript to a traditional publishing house and waited. And waited. And waited. When I finally received a response it had been rejected. Due to the fact that hardly any publishers take unsolicited manuscripts, I tried to find a literary agent. I would send out queries and wait. And wait. And wait. I realized that the field is flooded with submissions and queries. I know that many successful authors were rejected several times, but I knew that I couldn’t spend years doing that to myself. So after a ton of research, I decided that Smashwords was the right place for me to self-publish. There is some risk with self publishing, but I felt like I had a better chance at getting my novel out there and into the hands of readers by taking that risk. I am happy with my decision!
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I definitely think that self publishing is going to continue to grow. Indie authors have a real shot at reaching potential readers, in a way that traditional publishers can’t. They can get more personal and really appeal to their target audience. When before publishers would decide what deemed worthy to print, now readers can search and find something tailored to their interests. As the next generation is raised with technology, in their homes and classrooms, I think ebooks will continue to replace print.
What do you use?: Professional Cover Designer, Beta Readers
What genres do you write?: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult
What formats are your books in?: eBook
Website(s)
A.L. Meinhold Home Page Link
Link to Author Page on other site
Your Social Media Links
Goodreads
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All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit, to allow you, the reader, to hear the author in their own voice.
