About Zane Cray:
Hey everybody! I hope your favorite flavor is vanilla, because that pretty much sums up the flavor of my backstory. After working for the post office for almost twenty years, I quit my job (it was either that or snap and go postal; I think I made the right decision) and moved from Arizona to Florida. Currently I reside in Kissimmee with my wife, daughter, and cat and am happier than I have ever been in my life. Being retired gives me more time to read, write, nap, and obliterate my foes via online gaming. Having a Taco Bell a couple of miles from our condo doesn't hurt either, although I am a bit butthurt that I gave them a shout-out in my book yet they still haven't named a burrito after me.
What inspires you to write?
My daughter Emilee inspired me to write El Cartero: Noob For Life! She loves bedtime stories, so I wrote this book and doled it out in small pieces to her as I was writing it. Publishing was never on my mind until my wife laid hands and eyes on my manuscript and insisted that the world needed more books about a delivery guy kicking demon babies in the nuts. You can all blame her for this trainwreck!
What authors do you read when you aren’t writing?
Who are my favorite authors? I love P.C. Wren, Robert E. Howard, Fritz Leiber, H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen Pressfield, Larry Correia, David Drake, and far too many others to list here.
Tell us about your writing process.
My writing technique utilizes both outlining and seat of the pants flying. Generally I have the plot and ending figured out in my head and in the copious notes I scribble and type. While delivering mail I would have scenes from the plot running through my head like clips from a movie, complete with music in the background. Not only did that help me work through the different scenes, but most likely accounted for a crap-ton of misdelivered mail to boot.
Sometimes the story takes on a life of its own while putting it on paper, so the story I started with in my head often morphs into something different by the end.
I am an avid user of white boards, and I honestly cannot say if it is because they help me organize and visualize better, or if I like playing with the colored markers more.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
While I don't specifically listen or talk to my characters, I do run through all of the dialogue in my writing both in my head and out loud, to make sure it sounds natural and makes sense.
What advice would you give other writers?
Write it and publish it! Don't compare yourself to other authors, and do not concern yourself with what anybody says about your book. Everybody has different tastes, some will like it while others won't, but that's true with everything in life. Do not take it personally. Write your story, tell it to the world and know that you have accomplished something that many others have not.
I was mortified at the thought of publishing my book because although it was a great bedtime story, I didn't think it was good enough to put out there with other accomplished authors. Being judged by friends, family, and coworkers on the basis of my book petrified me, but in the end, I didn't write it for them, I wrote it for my daughter, so her opinion is the only one that truly matters. Don't get me wrong, I still suffer from Imposter Syndrome, but I keep telling myself that I'm writing the next two books in the trilogy because the story isn't finished yet. Plus, Taco Bell might decide to name a burrito after me if I mention them again…
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Self-publishing was a better option for me because:
A) I could be dead by the time a traditional
publisher gave me the time of day.
B) Self-doubt–would a publisher think this was
good enough to take on, even though I could
see El Cartero as a cheesy B-grade movie that
could one day attain Cult Classic status or a
graphic novel?
C) Total control of the process from start to finish.
No one will tell you what or how you should craft
your story.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
The future of book publishing looks great, and I'm not just saying this because El Cartero: Noobpocalypse! and El Cartero: Virtually Indestructible! will someday grace Amazon.com and the shelves of bookstores everywhere. Total world domination will be mine! Muahahahahahaha!!!!!!
What genres do you write?: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Link To Zane Cray Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
Goodreads
Facebook
LinkedIn
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.
