Publishing101: Going Indie

As you can tell from my previous posts I am very sporadic at updating this blog, it is something I am trying to work on but I tend to blog when I feel the need to say something and a couple of things happened in the past couple of weeks which inspired me to write this post.

The first thing was a thread on the Kindleboards entitled “Getting rid of the indie stigma”, I found some of the posts were very interesting and the second thing was that I got an email from musician called Jason Manns, which was very unexpected and I might as well give him a quick plug and say that his second album “Soul” has just been released, so I hope that you check it out.

Anyway, these two events got me thinking about my decision to publish and the road I have decided to go down. Now, I think going Indie is the best thing for me and this choice might not be for everyone but you have to define your goals and choose the right path for your book. I have a motto which is: Anything is possible and that you should never give up on your dreams!

As I said in a previous post I know that going Indie will be hard not just because of all the work involved but also because for some strange reason if you want to go Indie and you’re a writer then you may have to deal with the stigma which really isn’t the case if you’re a musician or a film-maker but if you’re a writer then you are normally unfairly labelled an amateur or that your work is bad because you didn’t go the commercial route. Now, with all things there are good & bad, but I do think that is it wrong just to label something bad because of the way it was published. I have read some outstanding indie novels and I am proud to have them in my book collection, I am glad that these authors made their work available and I am hoping that I will have the pleasure of interviewing a new indie author, Michelle H, some time in the future and I have already interviewed Stefanie Ellis, author of the Gray Area Series, her interview can be found here.

So, I suppose the question I want to ask is: Why the stigma if you’re an indie author? If you do your homework & produce the best book you can then should it really matter if your book is a Lulu instead of a Random House or a Createspace instead of a Simon & Schuster. I know that others will disagree but at the end of the day you should do what you feel comfortable with and if you write an amazing book then that should be want counts.

Author Interview: Stefanie Ellis

Title: Ashes
Author: Stefanie Ellis
Publisher: Various
Hardcover: 220 pages
ISBN-10: 1440452474
ISBN-13: 978-1440452475

Books And Bites: Congratulations on the publication of “Ashes”! Tell me a little about it-what’s your pitch?

Stefanie Ellis: Where to begin? Ashes is full of action, adventure, and romance. Here’s the teaser:
Sidney Fox was your average seventeen-year old girl. She looked like everyone else, dressed like everyone else, harbored hopes and dreams…you guessed it, just like everyone else.

After a long and uneventful winter break, Sidney returned to the stale hallways and cranky teachers to find a new addition: a mysterious new student named Cael, he seemed to immediately fall into the role of the most popular person to ever step foot on campus. At first, Sidney was repulsed by the gaggle of girls that hung on his every word, that is, until he explained that he has no control over the attraction others have for him, it’s just one thing out of many that he is just as confused about as she is. Cael knows what he is, but he has no idea how or why. Their search for answers sends them across the world and forces them to go to extreme measures in order to get those answers.

And of course, the first chapter is always available on my website: www.StefanieEllis.net

BAB: No two authors seem to take the same route to publication, but almost every author has an interesting story about their journey. Care to share yours?

SE: Truer words have never been spoken. Getting your book out there is one of the most difficult, yet most fulfilling feelings I could imagine, there aren’t words to describe the coursing emotions I get when I know someone is reading my work.

In the beginning I tried the traditional route. I submitted my first book City of Dreams to countless agents. After months of getting the basic runaround, I chose to forgo an agent altogether and go the self-publishing route. It was probably the best decision I could have made for the sake of my books. Even though self-publishing is a tough road, it’s completely worth it. My work belongs to me, the choices are mine, and each book I sell means the world to me because I know that no one had a hand in it but me. There aren’t many things in life that rewarding.

BAB: How did you get the idea for your novel?

SE: I’ve always had a passion for vampires (among other mythical beings), and after the completion of my first book, it was time to put all those well thought out plans on paper and see how they played out.

BAB: Do you have another book in the works?

SE: The Gray Area series is comprised of three books (Ashes, Illusions and Ruins) I’m currently working on Illusions. With any luck, it will be released sometime in March, although nothing is set in stone yet.

BAB: Your current novel, Ashes, is marketed as a young adult novel. Did you originally set out to write a YA novel?

SE: Yes. I may be twenty-five, but I’ll always be a teenager at heart. YA books are my chosen genre.

BAB: How did you get the inspiration for Sidney/Cael/Liam?

SE: Admittedly, Sidney is a little chunk of me, at least that’s what I hear from friends and family. She just fell into the role perfectly. The fact that she never planned to experience love—or much else for that matter—and when Cael came around he completely changed her way of thinking.

Cael is the vampire I always wanted to see written about. He’s a positive, upbeat kind of guy, and I love that about him!

Liam is a little harder to explain, at first I was just trying to create a villain, but he became a lot more than that.

BAB: Who is your favorite character? Why?

SE: That’s a tough one. While I love Sid to death, I think I’ll have to go with Cael. He can lighten any mood in an instant with nothing but charm and wit.

BAB: When did you know you wanted to become a writer?

SE: Funny story. I actually didn’t know until I started writing my first novel. I’d written things before, but never with such passion. When it was done and I had a full novel in front of me, it hit me: This is what I want to do, more than anything.

BAB: In writing, Ashes, what was your most surprising discovery?

SE: My attachment to the characters. The first time around Ashes had a different outcome, but I couldn’t find it in my heart to destroy a character when I knew there had to be hope for him somewhere. It’s strange how they start to make their own decisions during the process.

BAB: What’s your writing routine? Do you write in the mornings, nights, daily, or when the mood strikes you?

SE: Mainly, my writing happens late, late at night when everyone is asleep (including the curled up cat in my lap and the snoring dog at my feet). Although there are times when inspiration hits and I have to hunt down a pen and something to write on, which can be anything from a napkin to a coloring book. (Note to self: Buy more notepads).

BAB: What experience did you have with your publisher? Good? Bad?

SE: Since I am my publisher, we have a fantastic relationship! We never argue, and when we have minor disagreements, my say is the final one.

BAB: If you had to pick one author as your favorite, who would it be?

SE: I’m going with Christopher Moore, that man can find humor in the most obscure things, and make me laugh until it hurts.

BAB: Finally, thank you for taking part in this interview. Before you go, what message would you like to send to your fans?

SE: I would like to tell them how much they mean to me, and how honored I am that they’ve read, and hopefully, enjoyed my books.

Thank you!

*Editor’s note: Stefanie has written another story entitled “City of Dreams” and to check out that along with her other books, just go here or check on her link in the author links.

Available from Amazon (paperback) or go for an ebook go here.

Author Spotlight: Stefanie Ellis

I am pleased to present, Stefanie Ellis.

Who is Ms Stefanie Ellis, I hear you cry. Well, Stefanie Ellis is a talented author of “Ashes”; an thrilling novel of love, vampires, and a search for the truth.

Stefanie Ellis has lived in the same, small, California town for most of her life, and never knew she wanted to be a writer until one day she had an epiphany that she could write a novel. Her first novel was published in September 2008 with “Ashes” following soon after.

Read her exclusive interview with me about “Ashes” and what she has next in the pipeline, on Friday 13th February 2009.