SP: Hi AJ! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! Tell us all a little bit about you and your writing journey.
AJ: Hi! Thank you so much for having me! I think I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was a little girl. I’ve always dabbled in writing stories, and I tend to be a voracious reader as time allows. As I got older, I majored in English and became a high school teacher and didn’t have a lot of time or energy to write, but still wrote in my spare time.
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SP: Hi Tanvi! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! Tell us all a little bit about you and your writing journey.
TB: Hi, thank you for having me! I’m Tanvi Berwah and I write books that will send you into some kind of existential dread at least once. I used to run fansites during the peak Twilight/The Hunger Games fandom time and an alarmingly huge part of my personality comes from being terminally online during those years lol. I have been writing since I was a kid. Many awful and some not-so-awful manuscripts later, I got into Pitch Wars in 2019 and that really got me to where I am now: happily writing books about angry girls and monsters, figuratively and literally.
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SP: Hi Tamara! So glad to have you here on the Spinning Pen! You have an incredibly exciting four book deal with a unique release model. People are saying it’s like Netflix but with books! We’d love to hear more about how this exciting model works!
TG: I love that comparison! And hello to you 🙂 Thanks for having me. I love Wise Wolf Books’ rapid release model! They are releasing all four books in the sports series this year! Release dates are scheduled for early March, June, September, and December. It’s been a flurry getting all of the manuscripts in shape, but I appreciate this model so much as an author and a reader. As an author, I’m connecting with readers frequently with new material. As a reader, waiting is not my strong suit. When I read a good book, I want to binge with the sequel immediately. I love that this model allows readers of the series to do that this year! I’ve also signed with Wise Wolf for a two-book series in 2023, so stay tuned for more on that!
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SP: Hi Kristin! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! Tell us all a little bit about you and your writing journey.
KD: Hi I’m Kristin Dwyer! I write kissing books. I love all things romance and big feels. I’m addicted to travel, coffee, compulsively buying books I never read, and I also sometimes enjoy kpop and kdrama, but like… normal, reasonable amounts. I’ve been writing like a job for about ten years, and only in 2020 got an agent and editor. I could wallpaper Buckingham Palace in my unsold manuscripts and rejections. But long after my friends had made their dreams come true, mine finalllllly did. And dear reader, it was worth it.
SP: Ok now for the part we’ve been waiting for…tell us about your first book deal for Some Mistakes Were Made! How did you land this sweet deal and a chance to write a second book too? **FYI to our readers, this book’s steam level is upper young adult and has cursing.**
Continue readingWhy I Really Do What I Do (and Why It Matters to You)
Let’s try a little experiment. What comes to mind when I say, “It’s time to edit your story”?
For many writers, the notion of editing conjures an unwelcome memory of brutal critique or derision—a time you offered your story to a peer or mentor only to be shot down.
Maybe for you, it was a stern English teacher in grade school who filled your papers with inky red hieroglyphics. Or perhaps that college critique group who ripped your idea to shreds and laughed about it—right in front of you. Maybe you’re visualizing the relative who scorned your dream of becoming a writer and told you to find “real” aspirations instead.
Or perhaps—if you’re lucky—you don’t have any specific negative memories of critique; there’s just a general tightening in your midsection at the thought of sending your story child off to a total stranger who probably collects red pens and blogs about comma abuse.
Whatever the source of your apprehension, I get it. Writing stories—even fictional ones—is a deeply personal endeavor, and there’s something terrifying about revealing your creation to another human being, especially when that human’s job (and possibly joy in life) seems to be identifying all of your flaws and weaknesses.
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Pen Friends ~ Please welcome YA Author Candice Yamnitz talking about her debut novel, UNBETHROTHED, publishing journey, writing dreams, and so much more! It’s always a joy to interview new authors, and I’m excited to have Candice here with us today.
SP: UNBETROTHED will come out in February 2022 by Illuminate YA. Please add on Goodreads while waiting! Here’s the blurb:
Around Agatha Sea, princesses are poised, magically gifted, and betrothed.
So, when seventeen-year-old Princess Beatriz still fails to secure a betrothal, her parents hold a ball. Forming an alliance could mean the difference between peace and war, but Beatriz doesn’t want just any suitor. She’s in love with her best friend, Prince Lux. Marrying Prince Lux will always be a silly dream as long as she has no magical gift.
Princess Beatriz will do whatever it takes to obtain a touch of magic, including making a deadly oath to go on a quest to Valle de Los Fantasmas. A valley where no one comes out alive.
If she can manage to succeed, Princess Beatriz could have everything she desires and secure peace for her kingdom. If she fails, she’ll lose not only her greatest dream but also her kingdom, and maybe even her own life.
SP: Hi Ronie! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! We’ve heard in the YA sphere everyone loves your Droseran saga. Word on the street is you’re an incredible writer and your books have mind-blowing twists! Tell us all a little bit about your series.
RK: I’ve spent the last dozen years writing to my brand—Rapid-Fire Fiction—but I finally found a publishing home for my much-beloved series, The Droseran Saga. I’ve always dubbed it Firefly meets Dune … and warned people that while this series falls solidly into the Science Fiction genre, it’s a Space opera, light on science (Ronie doesn’t “science” and liberal with the melodrama and romance for an epic adventure across Quadrants.
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SP: Hi Christen! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! Word on the street is you just got a book deal! CONGRATS! We want to hear more! What’s your book about? And most importantly, WHEN can we order it??
CK: I’m so excited to be here! Thanks for having me!
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SP: Hi Emilie! We’re so excited to have you here on the Spinning Pen! You are such a diverse writer! You write YA, adult, thriller romance, and you’re a successful bookstagramer, create & sell bookish items, you’re a graphic designer, and cover designer. Is there anything you don’t do?? How did you get into all of this to start with?
EH: Ha! Well, I don’t do math 😉 I started freelance writing and photography about ten years ago alongside my main job and loved it so much I vowed that someday I would just do that as my career. Little did I realize I would get into graphic design as well!
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The Spinning Pen 