About Bruno Martins Soares:
I don’t really know how old I was when I started to write stories. I wrote them for school, I’m certain, but the first time I wrote without any academic goal I was 12. I kept writing different stuff. When I was 22, a friend of mine incited me to enter one of the largest and most prestigious Young Writers’ contests. I did and won an Honorable Mention. I tried again two years later and won it. I went to Torino and then Rome and Sarajevo, representing my country as a Young Writer. One of the best times of my life. Then, one day, I decided to write a Scifi novel I had been chewing on for some time: The Alex 9 Saga. I showed it to a publisher who’d just included a short story of mine in an anthology, and he loved it. I was a published novelist one year later, and soon was featured in a series alongside names like George R.R. Martin or Bernard Cornwell, and hailed as an author to recon with in Portuguese Scifi. How about that? I now make my living as a writer and scriptwriter in Lisbon, Portugal.
What inspires you to write?
There's only really one thing worth writing about: the Human Drama, the Human Endeavour. I'm inspired by people and most of all people in difficult situations and with fleeting control of their inner monsters.
What authors do you read when you aren’t writing?
George R.R. Martin, Ernest Hemingway, Douglas Reeman, Virginia Woolf, Bernard Cornwell, Frank Miller, Frank Herbert. As you can see, a very messy mix.
Tell us about your writing process.
My process goes like this: Gimmick, Concept, Story, Structure, First Draft, Final Draft. The Gimmick is the one thing that will get people interested in the story. The Concept is the idea that frames the story. The Story already implies Character Development and 3 to 4 acts. The Structures defines each beat in each act. The First Draft will be passed on to Beta Readers and Editors. The Final Draft is what you arrive after re-writes. I use simple MS Word and notebooks for my mind-maps and other notes. I usually have a separate Word doc for notes and scenes written out of order. I hope this is what you were looking for.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
My characters have their own paths and their own ways of doing things. They often don't do what I want them to do, but I try to put myself in their shoes and understand them and get them to where they want to go or the story takes them. We don't talk to each other, but we interact.
What advice would you give other writers?
Always write. Things will come together, unless you stop writing. I don't necessarily write every day, even though I try to, but sometimes I get stuck or I need a few days to find my way through the story – but you can't let yourself 'lose the hand'; meaning 'get out of practice'. In one way or another, I practice every day, even if I'm writing marketing stuff, non-fiction, reports, interviews, posts, whatever. So write. You can always re-write what you don't like, but you can't re-write what you haven't written.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I submitted to a publisher in Portugal and got published, but internationally I went with self-publishing. It just gives you much more control and it assures you are always being published and getting feedback from readers. I'm not particularly keen to suffer the whims of agents and publishers in the anglo-saxon publishing world. I rather take the risks myself.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think it's going through incredible changes and will become more and more interesting. It's probable that the next few years will see a decrease in hours of work per week for everyone, giving us more time to invest in culture and read. Readership has been increasing, especially during the pandemic. At the same time, self-publishing, ebooks, audiobooks, Print-on-demand, etc, have been changing the rules for authors and publishers. Authors are gaining more control over their work and publishers losing control. It's probable the next generation Nobel Prize winners will be primarily self-publishers. Eventually, most authors will be hybrid, self-publishing what makes sense and trad-publishing what is more commercial or acceptable. As for publishers, they only have one real advantage over self-published authors and that's Marketing. They are better at promoting authors and they must learn that's their only advantage and adapt. Also, they will have to diversify – some works should go straight to ebook, some deserve POD publishing, some will require traditional publishing and audiobooks are also an option. If publishers want to thrive they will need to learn and adapt.
What genres do you write?: Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Realistic Lit
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Bruno Martins Soares Home Page Link
Link To Bruno Martins Soares Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on Smashwords
Your Social Media Links
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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.
