Author Bio:
Ikish Mullens was born in Newark, New Jersey and raised in the Vailsburg area of the city, in the Westward. He graduated from the University of Phoenix and independently published his first novel Mind Games: A Brick City Story in 2004. Additionally, in 2009 he founded and created MYCA Publishing.
Furthermore, Ikish’s other notable accomplishments include a cameo appearance in the independently released film produced by Shii-Fyne Productions title The Git Em Gyrlz.
In addition, he has also worked behind the scenes and as an on air radio personality for New 105.5i The Heat and Elite Radio in New Jersey.
What inspires you to write?
Life inspires me to write. Because as a creative individual, with a creative personality, I can get inspired to write a new story just by watching movies and television, participating in conversations, or just by sitting quietly focusing on my current mood as new story plots and idea begin to fill my mind.
Tell us about your writing process.
I begin my writing process by first starting with a potential title for my work. From there, I write down a few character names, with a brief description of their backgrounds. I also create an excel file for my characters and list information such as the characters first and last names, short name, profession, and a brief character description that I update as I progress through the story.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I don’t listen or talk to my characters I don’t think, but I do channel my characters when writing their dialog. This is how I am able to separate their different personalities from each other within the story. Because as human beings, we may have a few similarities, but at the end of the day, we all possess something new, different, or unique that separates use from our neighbor. And this is what I try to convey within the story each time I am writing about a particular character, or presenting a new character to the story.
What advice would you give other writers?
I would tell them never give up and to keep pushing forward. Because the easiest part of being an author is creating a compelling story. However, the real work begins once your manuscript is complete. This is where the real work of an author begins, because now you have to take off your author’s hat and put on your business hat, in order to find the best way to publish and promote your book. Which can become over whelming at times, but if you stick with it, and never give up, you’ll be one-step closer to achieving your dreams.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Self-publishing wasn’t my first option, but after researching the publishing industry, it become my only option. Originally, I wanted to sign with a traditional publishing company, but as I explored this option, I learned that before I could approach a traditional publisher, I would need a literary agent. Then as I researched different literary agencies, I began to get frustrated because I could find one who represented the genre of books that I wrote for.
Moreover, if I found a literary agent who represented fiction authors, I would get disappointed when I learned that they didn’t represent urban fiction authors. Which is a popular literary category, but it doesn’t gets the proper respect that it deserves from the publishing industry. In a way, urban fiction is the dirty little secret or redhead stepchild of the literary world, that’s attached to a lot of negative perceptions and misconceptions.
Therefore, as a result, self-publishing and going in it alone was the only option left for me to do if I really wanted to see my work published.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I believe that as technology continues to change, so will the publishing industry. Because in years past, book publishing was about getting signed to traditional publishing companies, and printing hundreds or thousands of soft or hard cover books to be shipped to bookstores.
However, since the book publishing formula has changed due to the advancement of technology, anyone can publish an ebook and have them distributed around the world cheaper than it would cost them to print and ship a physical book.
In addition, ebooks are also becoming more popular as the years pass, because it allows consumers to quickly, and conveniently purchase multiple titles at an affordable price.
What do you use?
Professional Editor, Professional Cover Designer
What genres do you write?
Fiction, Urban Fiction, Street Lit, Action & Adventure, Romance
What formats are your books in?
eBook
Website(s)
Ikish Mullens Home Page Link
Link To Ikish Mullens Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on other site
Your Social Media Links
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3021624.Ikish_Mullens
https://www.facebook.com/authorikishmullens
https://twitter.com/AhkLord
