About Tammy Eckert:
Tammy Eckert is the author of the novel Charlotte’s Wed, and has been a wedding planner for fourteen years. She lives in Manitoba, Canada where she continues to plan dream weddings and is working on her next novel, the follow-up to Charlotte’s Wed – Alice in Weddingland.
What inspires you to write?
Real life situations inspire me – how many times do you think to yourself “You can’t write this stuff!”. People like a novel that they can relate to – so I like to allow the readers to get into the minds of my characters. See how they are really thinking and feeling. And the idea of bringing an entire story together, and the creative process involved is really gratifying.
Tell us about your writing process.
My writing process is pretty basic. I’ll have an idea for a story with a general beginning, middle and end. I keep a lot of notes – outlining my characters first, then work on the timeline so that everything is cohesive and has continuity. I’ll have a few ideas on events for the novel that I will write when ideas come to me – sometimes free hand as I feel I do my most descriptive writing that way – and then file them to use throughout the novel. Then I’ll go into spurts of writing to piece everything together.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I put myself in the mind of my characters – like an actor would. I find for me it’s the best way to build a character when you are thinking like they would.
What advice would you give other writers?
I’m a first time author – so my advice would be for anyone thinking of writing a novel. Just do it – really. Just sit down and take the time to write the damn thing. You just have to decide that you are going to take the time to do it, and just write. Oh, and editing sucks. If you can afford to pay someone to do it, then pay someone to professional edit for you. If not, share it with family and friends – my biggest mistake was not letting anyone read it to help with typos and grammar. Let people you trust read it to give you some feedback. It will save you a lot of wasted time.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Ha ha – that’s easy. I’ve got enough rejection emails from literary agents to fill an entire novel. I want people to read my work, otherwise what’s the point right? Se self publishing it is.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think we’ll definitely see a lot more indie authors. And now that I’ve gone the self publishing route and read the success stories, I don’t think it’s a bad idea. I think there are probably a lot of good novels out there that are over looked by agents that people would really enjoy reading. Authors and readers will all benefit.
What genres do you write?: Women’s Literature
What formats are your books in?: eBook
Website(s)
Link To Tammy Eckert Page On Amazon
