About L. Woodswalker:
Laura Woodswalker is a “renaissance woman” who has worn many hats, including nurse, mother, desktop publisher, graphic and video artist, electronic musician, DIY crafter and science fiction writer. She loves anything colorful and bright, and taught herself to wire simple LED circuits. This led her to learn about electricity, which is which is how she became interested the life of Nikola Tesla, the nearly forgotten inventor of the Alternating Current electrical system that shaped our world. Laura is fascinated by the wonders of science, nature and the cosmos. If she is not creating something, she is usually outside hiking, planting trees or watching thunderstorms.
What inspires you to write?
I am inspired by the beauty of Nature and the awesomeness of the universe. Our everyday life is only a tiny part of all that there is! I like to express this feeling in different ways…sometimes by making art or music, and sometimes by writing. In the case of my most recent novel, Tesla’s Signal, I was inspired by the biography of Nikola Tesla…a genius who until recently was almost forgotten. I felt an empathy for such a gifted person who gave so much to the world and yet was banished to obscurity. The whole story had an epic quality…it was “a science fiction story that practically wrote itself!”
Tell us about your writing process.
Concepts often come to me while I’m out walking. I’ll scribble them in a notebook, and if they are strong enough, a story starts clamoring to be let out. When the pressure gets too great, I’m forced to start writing. I have to have an outline and know where I’m going…but intuition is a vital part of the process. I’ll turn things over in my head, and sometimes I feel a little “ping” that tells me “that’s perfect!” As I write, the story and characters keep evolving and new ideas spring forth…right up till the day I hit “publish”. And sometimes even beyond that…
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
One time I was procrastinating on my novel and Niko asked me “why aren’t you writing my story?” So I asked him “okay, what are you going to do next?”
Right now I’m brainstorming my next novel, and there’s one character who is giving me problems. “How can I possibly make her story work?” I asked myself. “Do I really need her in this novel? Maybe I should dump her.” But she just won’t go away, so I’m stuck with her. And she just might steal this whole novel.
What advice would you give other writers?
Go to lots of workshops and take your hard knocks. It takes years of painful critique to activate that inner editor. Also, it will help you develop a thick skin, which you will need.
Also…polish your first few paragraphs until they’re the best writing you’ve ever done. If I’m interested in a book on Amazon, I’ll read the “look inside”. If the first page is full of over-description and bloated prose, I won’t read any farther.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I have 6 unpublished novels in my closet, going back to 1980. I swore off writing in 2004 after one too many bad experiences with agents. But in 2013 I realized a novel was creeping up on me. I fought pretty hard to avoid this project, until I learned it was now possible to take control of the whole publishing process.
New authors: the odds of getting published with a traditional publisher are about like winning the lottery. Self-publishing looks better and better, but I still advise you to spend years perfecting your craft first.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
The traditional publishers are dinosaurs, but the field of self-publishing is looking like the Wild West. Self-proclaimed editors, promo sites and marketers are springing up like weeds after a storm. I have no idea where it is all going.
What do you use?: Beta Readers
What genres do you write?: science fiction, steampunk, fantasy, historical fantasy, historical science fiction
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
L. Woodswalker Home Page Link
Link To L. Woodswalker Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
Goodreads
Facebook
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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.
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