About Abigail Ford:
Hi there! I am a 17 year old published author. Kinda rare, right? I write many different kinds of Christian/Inspirational fiction. I write the kind of fiction that has all the love and morals that Christianity entails, without any of the condemnation that Christianity is portrayed to have. I live in the beautiful state of North Carolina, where I enjoy life, spend time with my amazing family, and of course WRITE! Writing is such an emotionally freeing process for me. Creating meaningful characters and then pouring emotion and feelings into them is such a fun and deeply heartfelt thing for me. My goal with every book is not only creating a wonderful book that is entertaining and exciting, but also thought-provoking and meaningful. I want it to touch your heart and make you feel, and think about different situations and things in life. The very first book I wrote was on fairies when I was 7 years old… Reading that story makes me smile and cringe all at the same time! I am quite creative, enjoying painting, photography, all sorts of music, and horse-back riding. I enjoy snuggling with my “ginger” Labrador, Simba. His Mother was a yellow Lab and his Father was chocolate, and he popped out as a mixture of the two – ginger!
What inspires you to write?
My family, my imagination, but mostly for me, it’s God. Now, I know what you are thinking, cliche and cheesy! But seriously, it’s true. God and his loving and compassionate ways truly inspires me to see the world and people around me in full beauty, seeing the best in people instead of the worst, which, of course, makes me want to write about it!
Tell us about your writing process.
I am an outline lover! That’s how I started my first published book, actually! It was required to write an outline for my Creative Writing class, which believe it or not, I thought was silly! But after trying it, I fell in love and decided to go for actually writing this book. I first outline the chapters, then the sketch the characters out (I may add more characters as I go on, to which I just do another character sketch!)
One thing I have learned: Do not take your outline as law! Let your outline be flexible, it is only a guide. Your outline must be able to move with your story, allowing it to breath, take shape and come to life!
What do I use to outline? Good ole’ fashioned pen and paper, of course!
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
Sometimes in an emotional part of the book I kinda feel like it is a group therapy session. Seriously! I take my characters situations, and I take my own personal situation, and pour my emotions into them. How can a character seem fake or unrealistic when they have genuine emotions and feelings? They can’t! There is a little part of me and my emotions with every character I write.
What advice would you give other writers?
Never lose hope. Never give up. Research lots. Edit lots. Get others to edit for you. Dream some more. You ARE TALENTED, don’t doubt that or forget it. You are not limited, you are not a label, don’t believe the lies. I was told time and time again that I was only a teenager, I couldn’t start a writing career! (Which was also impossible to start, by the way. Don’t go down the writing route! They said I couldn’t make any money, but I already have!) Be teachable and open to learning all the time. I never stop learning and never want to! I learn something everyday about writing, editing, or publishing constantly. And just because you know something now, doesn’t mean you were an idiot before. You were just ignorant of the information you know now! You learn better from your mistakes than your successes.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I just knew I was supposed to. I searched and searched for the best way to publish my book. I was a teenager, I didn’t have thousands of dollars to spend! A publisher was unrealistic, would they actually accept me? Probably not. Plus so many publishers now won’t even accept unsolicited manuscripts. It is hard to get into this business! That’s why I went with Createspace publishing, an Amazon company. It’s free to publish, it’s print on demand, so you don’t really have to pay a dime unless you want to order some books for friends and family or to sell at an event. Explore your options, yes, but I highly suggest self-publishing as a great way to go to start off. It really shows publishing companies that you are willing to work hard and think your book is worth it. For example, I can now say to a publishing company that I have been self-published for years with great sales and have even been on the radio, without being formally published!
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I would hope it to be easier to get into, with publishing companies not so tightly closed and open to all different types of people, not just the ones they have already and are expecting. I want the future of publishing to be so you don’t have to know someone to get published. Will it be this way? I don’t know. But all I know is, I always love to support indie and small-time publishers out a lot. Got to love the underdogs!
What do you use?: Professional Editor, Beta Readers
What genres do you write?: Christian, Fiction, Christian Romance, Adventure, Thriller, Suspense, Women’s Fiction, Young Adult, Inspirational
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Link To Abigail Ford Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
Goodreads
Facebook
Twitter
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.
