Author Bio:
I’m a busy wife and mum of three and have always loved books and writing in all forms. I read a wide range of books, articles and magazines and love history, music, art, theatre and film. I often read books recommended by friends and family, so can move through lots of genres!
What inspires you to write?
I love the escapism of a great story, whatever form that comes in. I also love words and using these to paint pictures. The world of books is magical as, unlike film and theatre, the pictures are created by the reader and so the possibilities are endless. The thought of being the person who writes a book that captures a mind is hard to describe; to think that someone may be lost in your words is amazing.
Tell us about your writing process.
I would describe my writing style as organic! For my first book I had an idea and I knew how the book would end; so I wrote the beginning and the end and then had to create the twists and turns in between. In so many places, I read about constructing a plan and analysing story traits and so on. I decided that maybe I should do this for the next book, be more methodical in my approach. But what happened? I sat down and wrote the start and the end! It appears that my approach is right for me. I make notes and jot down ideas and names, but I don’t have a plan of what’s happening next or where things are going. These things come as I write; I watch the story in my head and write it down as it happens before me.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I see my characters and know what they’re feeling and how they would react to each situation; sometimes I might write some dialogue which I then change as I know they wouldn’t have said it that way. While I’m writing it almost feels as though I’m spying on my characters, as I’m watching their lives play out and just writing a commentary.
What advice would you give other writers?
My advice to other writers is to do what’s best for them. Everyone has their own way of doing things and, as a general rule when it comes to things creative, that often works best. Writing must come naturally and flow; if it doesn’t maybe it’s time for a break (even five minutes can work wonders!) or an opportunity to move to a different part of the story for a while. Regardless of whether I’m delighted with a piece of dialogue or struggling with a story twist, I always enjoy sitting down to write.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I hesitated at self publishing at first, knowing very little about it and wondering if it still felt the same to ‘do it yourself’. As putting together submissions to agents and publishers was so time consuming and drawn out, I was doing this instead of writing. So I looked into self publishing and found that a multitude of respected authors had done this, and were indeed still doing so, and it was also quite straightforward. In summary, I enjoyed the process and would recommend it. When my first book was ‘out there’ I was approached by independent publisher Creativia and I’m delighted to say that we now work together.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think self publishing will grow even bigger in the future; it’s a fantastic way for authors to publish and for readers to get to know authors who otherwise might never be read.
Despite the amazing versatility of eBooks and the internet, I don’t think we will ever lose our paperbacks (a horrible thought) as so many people still love to feel the ‘proper’ book in their hand. I love my kindle, the access it gives me and the quantity of books I can carry around, but I still love the feel of a book; nothing quite matches it.
What do you use?
Professional Editor, Professional Cover Designer
What genres do you write?
Romance, mystery, history
What formats are your books in?
Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Link To Barbara Willis Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on other site
Your Social Media Links
http://twitter.com/barbaracwillis
