Happy Wednesday! Recently when chatting about my books on Snapchat, I got quite a few questions on writing, publishing, and my books in general. I decided to do an open call for questions and answer a handful of them here! I hope this little Q&A gives you some ideas, inspiration, or just helps you learn a little more about me! I did ask for names and locations and some people sent that information in as well and some didn’t. At the end I’ll go through the questions without names or the repeat questions. If you want to see another Q&A with me in the future please let me know, and if you don’t have me on Snapchat yet, check the right hand side of this page for my little ghost or add me at Samantha.March
Sara – Columbia
Q: How does it feel to be a published author? Is there more judgement involved?
A: It feels fantastic! Being an author was a dream I had since I was nine, so to know I never gave up on that and made it happen with a ton of hard work is very rewarding. There is definitely a lot of judgement that comes with it though. Some people can be absolutely brutal in their feedback and reviews, and even attack an author personally, which is incredibly sad. I know my books will not be loved by everybody because that’s simply impossible, but it’s taken some time to build up my thick skin so those hurtful comments don’t sting so much anymore!
Danial – Wisconsin
Q: What or who motivates or inspires you to come up with things to write about?
A: Honestly, a lot of my inspiration comes from my own life. There are things that I’ve gone through– such as sexual abuse that is featured in my first novel, work abuse that is featured in my second– and I’ve thought, of course other people have to be going through this as well or dealing with something similar. Why not write that into a story and have a happy ending, a silver lining, or a life lesson? Writing is also very therapeutic to me. It can help give me clarity or even just closure on situations from my past.
Elizabeth – Missouri
Q: I see you doing so much: yoga, makeup, Youtube videos, blog posts PLUS you write books. How do you do it all? Do you have a day job?
A: I have always been someone who wants to be doing 5 things at once. I feel uneasy and bored and restless when I don’t have multiple projects happening. I don’t know why, but it’s just the way I work! But everything that I do, I do it because I have a passion for it. I’ve been lucky to be able to figure out a way to turn my passions into jobs and careers. But it takes a lot of dedication. I don’t watch TV. I rarely go out. You won’t find me playing games on my phone. I work constantly, and one of the hardest things I’ve had to overcome is being a true workaholic. It’s been challenging to find a good work/life balance, especially since leaving my “real” job two years ago. I worked in administration at a hospital and left the summer of 2014 to go full-time with my dreams. It was a bigger struggle than I thought, because I feel guilty taking time off. I think if I’m not working I’m not making money because I don’t have that steady paycheck coming every two weeks. I had to check myself within the first months of being full-time because I was running myself into the ground. It’s taken awhile, but I feel like I’ve finally figured out a good system that works for me.
Sara – Texas
Q: How do you determine how much time to spend on what?
A: I never really know, honestly. Each day varies. When I’m working on book for myself, I need to mostly put my focus into that. When I’m writing, especially a first draft, I want it written within six months. I’m constantly reading, and sometimes I can find what I read affects my own voice, and I need that voice to stay consistent the whole way out, or else my story is a mess and it will take me a long time to get through re-writes. When Marching Ink is putting out a new book, I put my heart and soul (and the majority of hours of my day) into that project. Another author is putting their dreams into my hands, and I take that very seriously. I tend to do writing work more during the day, and at night that’s when I get to work on editing Youtube videos, writing my blog posts, etc. I answer emails and keep up on social media throughout the day, but that’s the typically the balance that I have found works best for me.
A few more questions…
Q: What advice can you give to aspiring writers?
A: Just write. So many people worry about the end product – the editing, the publishing, the marketing – but don’t focus on getting the book written first. To do all that other stuff requires a book, and no one is going to write it for you!
Q: Where are your books sold out?
A: My books are all on Amazon in eBook and paperback form. A few are also available on other retailers such as Barnes & Noble and Kobo.
Q: What was a big surprise to you when publishing?
A: How easy it was. I don’t mean the writing, the editing, even the marketing, but the actual act of publishing a book. I thought there would be a ton of hoops to jump through, but after you have the final product and obtain an ISBN, actually putting it for sale on Amazon and other retailers was a fairly simple process.
Q: When is your next book coming out?
A: Hopefully by the end of this year!
Connect with me!
My Books: https://www.amazon.com/Samantha-March/e/B005ZWOGJY
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDnb5YAcjk7pnu25YckVL6g
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marchbeautyword/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BySamanthaMarch
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samanthamarchauthor
Snapchat: Samantha.March
