About Sandra Madera:
Sandra Madera currently resides in New York and is a recent college grad, obtaining her bachelor’s degree in science. However, her true passion has always been reading and writing. She has been writing short stories since she was a child. She recently published her first full-length YA novel entitled Restraint and, its sequel, Lament. She also wrote the follow up novel to a fan favorite Weeping Willow entitled Wicked Magic: A Weeping Willow Novel. She is currently working on her next novel. For free YA short story downloads and for information on upcoming novels visit www.sandramadera.com.
What inspires you to write?
As a child, my family watched a lot of movies, and in my teen years, I developed a passion for books. I read Richie Tankersley Cusick’s books and just knew… that is what I wanted to do. I wanted to write. Life took me in a different direction, but I never lost that dream of becoming a writer. Self publishing just made the dream more attainable for me.
Tell us about your writing process.
I have a notebook that I write ideas in. In that notebook, I write these plot ideas like a checklist, completely out of order. So, this list becomes a loose outline of the plot, but when I write, I decide in the moment which idea I should run with. My writing process in spontaneous although I have this loose outline, because I feel that spontaneously writing helps my creativity flow. Whereas a structured outline would stifle me, because I would be trying to stick to the outline.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
No, although I do speak as if I was them when I am testing out responses. It looks like I am talking to my computer, but I am really testing out various dialog.
What advice would you give other writers?
Have fun! If you want to make a career of this, than you must write often. But one of the things that encourages me to write often is having fun. I love writing. I love the process. Being able to be spontaneous for me keeps this all so exciting. I may know the end, but I don’t know all the details of the journey which makes it fun to dream up what my next chapter is going to be about.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I had just finished college, and my degree was not in creative writing. I decided that my only option to fulfill my dream was to self publish and cultivate my audience.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think e-books are still on the cusp. Self publishing is the future. I find self published books are new and inventive. So many times, published authors complain about being prohibited creatively by agents and editors who aren’t in sync with their vision. Self published authors do not have those impediments, and their writing shows how fearless they are. I think that more publishers will be looking to self published authors, making deals to expand distribution, and possibly agents will look to us for books that can transition to movies. The sky is the limit.
What genres do you write?: fantasy, paranormal, mystery, suspense, horror
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Sandra Madera Home Page Link
Link To Sandra Madera Page On Amazon
Link to Author Page on Smashwords
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