In today's Authors in the Spotlight, we have author Connie B. Dowell!!
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How long have you been published? I published my first book in May 2014 and haven’t looked back.
What's the worst part about being published? What's the best part about being published? The answer to both these questions is reviews. An awesome review can make your day. It’s fantastic to know that somebody else hopped into a world that sprang out of my head and had a great time. A negative review that teaches you something might sting, but is still ultimately a good. The worst, though, are negative reviews that don’t teach me anything about how to be a better writer. They’re just a bummer.
Are you self published or did you go through a publishing company? I happily self published my young adult fiction and nonfiction, but I’ve recently gotten serious about picture books. Because of different marketing concerns (and, frankly, wanting to see what’s on the other side of the fence) I’m in the throes of querying for once with those books.
*What are the highs, if any? One big high of being self pubbed is getting my hands in every part of the process, even if I’m not the one actually doing it. It’s excellent training for a broader publishing career one day down the road.
*What are the lows, if any? One big low is that there is still a bit of stigma about self publishing, because anybody with enough time and stubbornness can do it. It’s always a loaded question when a layperson asks your publishing method. Are they going to assume you self pubbed because you couldn’t crack it the traditional way? For the record, self publishing was a first choice for all the books I’ve chosen to put out in that method. I was attracted to the entrepreneurial aspect.
What is the name of your book(s)? My two works of fiction are The Poison in All of Us (a YA mystery set in 1918) and The Orchid Caper (a YA heist comedy that’s high on silliness). Both of these are series starters. My first book was a nonfiction aimed at entering college students, called You Can Love Writing: A Guide to Get through Your College Papers and Like It.
Was it/were they an easy write for you? A bit of both, honestly. There were easy parts (getting into character for Ian and Darlene in The Orchid Caper and hitting my nonfiction voice for YCLW) and tougher stuff (research for The Poison in All of Us was a blast, but took forever and involved multiple trips to different special collections libraries and deciding the exact scope and outline of YCLW took probably as long as the actual writing).
What's the hardest part about writing a book? Butt in chair writing time (or standing at standing desk if I’m feeling like being healthy). This has only gotten tougher after having kids. It’s so easy to overlook the little bits of time when I’m “destressing” but really just goofing off and it’s also easy to let worries about my work prevent me from moving forward.
What's the easiest part about writing a book? The shiny new idea stage. Especially if I have a chance to explore that semi-out loud with a glass of wine and my husband nodding along, sometimes just letting me wander, sometimes suggesting things or asking questions.
Where can interested readers purchase their copy of your book(s)? You can find all my books at
Amazon, Barnes and Noble, (some of them) at iBooks, and (some of them) at Kobo.
Do you have any future projects in the works? *Is there a tentative release date? Oh my gosh, tons! I’m researching and plotting book 2 of the historical mystery series, plus a tie-in short story. I’m working on a tie-in short story for The Orchid Caper, and plenty of picture book manuscripts, as well as two podcasts. Oh, and my fingers have been itching to do a few comics, so you never know. I’m hoping to have both shorts and book 2 of the historical series out by the end of the year.
Do you have any social media sites that you would like to share with my readers? You can find all the stuff I do at http://conniebdowell.com and you can find me on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks, LaKata, for having me on the blog!
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