About Author Pavane Ravel:
Pavane Ravel is the passionate writer and emerging author of her introductory novel series, "The Other Shoes of Larry Martin," with book one released titled "Revelation of Lies" which is now available for purchase on her official website, Amazon Books, Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble, and many fine online book stores.
Ravel has always wanted to be a full-time writer and finally has reached the point in life where that dream is a reality. She traveled extensively over the years and has seen nearly the entire United States, much of Canada and Europe, along with some of Central America. Pavane also studied both political science and journalism in universities both stateside and in Europe.
Pavane is happily married with children, she enjoys discussing economics after working as a commodities broker. She and her family reside in the New York City area and she spends her time concentrating on both family and her writing.
For Pavane, this book was an important story to tell, as Larry Martin is such a complex and fascinating character. Pavane enjoys humor and loves to engage and connect with readers.
What inspires you to write?
I was born wanting to write. As a child, once I learned how to read, all I did was read. Then, at age 13, I decided to try to write my first book, The Leader of Yore. It took me 5 years, writing in the dark and in secret from my parents.
Finally, I ended up with 322 single-spaced hand-written pages. This book was for me. I had wanted to find out what it took to write a novel and I did. After I was done, I put the manuscript in a drawer and never looked back.
As life went on, between college, marriage, working full time, raising children, maintaining a household, and paying attention to my lovely husband, I had no time to write during normal hours. But, when my kids were in middle school, I was bitten hard by another inspiration for a book called Hepplewhite.
I loved Hepplewhite and I often wrote at night when everyone was asleep. I lived and breathed this book. It took me years to finish, writing a little at a time. But I did finish. And by now, I knew that all I wanted to do was become a full-time novelist.
What inspires me to write? The love of writing itself. And the complex process of turning imagination into a living thing on paper that can be shared.
I am finally able to fulfill my dream of writing full-time. It's a good thing. Because when I was struck with the idea for a series titled, 'The Other Shoes of Larry Martin,' I realized that by the time I was done, this series would come in between 4,000 to 5,000 pages, spread over at least 7 books. And that is exactly what is happening. Larry Martin, is for me, just monumental.
What authors do you read when you aren’t writing?
Ken Follett, John Grisham, Diana Gabaldon, Ernest Hemingway, Truman Capote, Charles Dickens, J.R.R. Tolkien, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Nora Roberts, Jack London, and Robert Reich … oh, just to name a few.
Tell us about your writing process.
Ah well, this is not easy. Writers who argue over "plotters" vs. "pants" writers have me perplexed. Plotters insist a book must be outlined from start to finish. Pantsers tend to write by the seat of their pants. In my view, there is no single correct way to write a book.
I may fall somewhere in between. I am blessed with a vivid Technicolor imagination. My writing process is to watch a movie of my story in my mind and transcribe what I am seeing. As I watch, I am careful not to get in my character's way. They often surprise me and show me things I'd not think of.
These movies could be just a scene or an entire chapter. But to keep the plot and details straight, I take exhaustive notes in a notebook and then, often refer back to this notebook.
My mental movies are not linear. Sometimes, they jump into the future. I have learned to be patient with this and go ahead and write it as a future scene. There is always an appropriate time to fit it (or them) back into the book.
In short, my process is: to watch, transcribe, check my notebook for scenes I need to write and write them, inject any future scenes where they belong, and make any adjustments to tie up all the details of my storyline. Then, I return back to page one and begin a complete-hard-book-edit. Only when this has all been accomplished do I hand my book over to my editor.
As a fiction novel writer, I try to keep all my books under 600 pages. Working full time, a book will take me approximately four months to six months to accomplish.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
Yes. To me, my characters are real people. They are my friends. I live with them, eat with them, and dream with them. I have lived and breathed Larry Martin for 6 books written now.
Sometimes, they sit in the room with me as I write. If I don't get in their way, they will tell me what they want. Listening is key. So is asking questions. There have been many times I've asked, "Why the heck do you want to do this?" This typically has something to do with an action or a response that I didn't see coming. I might not have gone there, but I remain open to changing tracks if necessary.
And many times, I am delightfully surprised because their way is better than what I had intended.
What advice would you give other writers?
First, read as much as possible. Second, the only way to be a writer is to write. Writing is like anything else that takes practice. The more you write, the more proficient you become.
It is also good to figure out what type of writer you want to be. Do you want to write articles, blogs or books? Do you want to pursue fiction or non-fiction?
Don't make writing a solitary experience. Working with an editor (if possible) will teach you a lot fairly quickly. If you don't have an editor, enlist a trusted friend to read your work and then, tell you the truth. If you have neither a friend nor an editor, read your work out loud. Reading out loud will show you the rough spots. If you trip over your words rewrite them and try again.
Writing requires a lot of patience. Don't be afraid of revisions or editing. Both are necessary and a MAJOR part of the process. To be successful, there is no avoiding this.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Hmm … for me, it took a tremendous amount of research. I researched agents and traditional publishing. However, I was fairly certain I did not want to go this route. Not for a series anyway. I once read a horror story from an author who had gone traditional with her series.
Her publisher loved her first book and hated her second. They argued and broke up. But her publisher owned the rights to her first book, thus essentially ending her series. Whether this is true or not, it rang a warning bell to me as a potential pitfall.
I wanted to own and control all my own work. I wanted to write the way I wanted to write. I did not want a publisher to tell me that I should do a rewrite their way … and certainly not if their concept did not align with my own direction. Early on, in Book One of Larry Martin, I had an editor who wanted to change my story. She was headed in the opposite direction of my intent. Thus, I saw how someone could badly influence a book … another pitfall.
In researching indie and self-publishing, I realized that the contracts or service agreements must be reviewed by an entertainment attorney. In one instance, the 'publisher' reserved for themselves the right to character off-shoots and movie contracts of my work.
What? NO. While they claimed they would never "do such a thing," neither would they amend their contract. It was ONLY because I had a lawyer that this pitfall was avoided.
I chose my current publisher not only because my attorney approved of their terms, but they also have their own publishing presses (impressive) and are a fine book distributor. This means I am distributed to Barnes & Noble, Walmart, and many other retail outlets as well as having online sales.
My advice to any new writer is to first write a number of books. Then, get an editor and go through the long, tedious, necessary process of straightening them out. Do your research about how you want to publish. I swear, it will give you a headache and indigestion, but do it anyway. Be patient and keep learning. If you go indie or self-publish with a company (as opposed to putting your book on KDP Amazon), DO be aware that there are many scams out there. In this case, don't stint on an attorney. It's just not worth it.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
No crystal balls at all!
This is a tough one.
Today, there are many outlets for a writer to publish. Certainly, traditional publishers see this. I don't know if it scares them.
One thing that harms all self-publishing writers are those who put out 'crap' as opposed to being the finest writer they can be. However, the truth is, there are no restrictions.
Is this a good or bad thing? I suppose it's good in the sense that writers have finally shaken free of the jurisdictions that traditional publishers have exerted upon them by controlling their lives and owning their work.
Despite this, I continue to have great respect for traditional publishing. I also know that, in the future, I will be pursuing traditional publishing to a greater extent.
But for now, being an independent small writer, I am content, if not glad, to be published in a way that works for me. Ask me ten years from now if I feel the same. I may give you a different answer. But for now, I am relieved that writers are able to publish in the best way for them.
And, frankly, I wouldn't want it any other way even if I do ultimately end up going in the opposite direction.
What genres do you write?: Political Fiction, Literary Fiction, Drama, Social and Political Issues,
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Author Pavane Ravel Home Page Link
Link To Author Pavane Ravel Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on Book Life
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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.
