Book Blitz -An Interview with Author Amy Beth Inverness

An Interview with Author Amy Beth Inverness

1.)What drew you to writing?

Early in elementary school I wrote stories, stringing together my spelling words into a series of connected sentences. It has always been an outlet for me, and now I have no choice but to write. The stories knock around inside my brain until I let them out.

2.)Do you have a degree in writing? Do you believe that matters? Why/Why not?

A writer does not have to have a degree at all, but they must be able to use proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Non-writing degrees and non-writing life experiences can give an author the necessary background to draw on that someone who only studied how to write doesn’t have. Conversely, an author who studies a broad range of great works has a plethora of intellectual experiences to draw from. They are simply different flavors of experience.

3.) How long did it take you to create your first book?

This is not a simple question. I can turn out the rough draft of a novel of over fifty thousand words in a month. But then it must sit, then go through initial revisions, then it goes to beta readers…and I don’t have a novel published yet. The first book that is completely my own work is The Cities of Luna, coming out in fall 2014 from Distinguished Press. I began writing the stories in 2013, and I’m writing more to add to the book now.

4.)What are you currently learning to further develop your craft?

Although I don’t read horror, I learned a lot from Stephen King’s On Writing. I also spent a year proofreading for a small press, which gained me a lot of experience and some great connections. I participate regularly in several flash fiction exercises, which are a lot of fun and a great way to shake up the writing muscles. In particular, I love 5 Minute Fiction at WriteOnWendy.com because writing a complete and VERY short story in just a few minutes forces my brain to let go of all its hang-ups. I was fortunate to be able to attend the Pikes Peak Writers Conference in Colorado Springs in 2013, where I networked and attended many sessions on improving myself as a writer. Conferences are one of the best ways for an author to work on their craft, as well as networking and finding encouragement amidst others in the profession. I plan to do many more in the future.

5.)Do you prefer creating short stories, or novels?

Short stories are like candy. If I have a random idea I want to put into a story, I can do it easily in the short format. If I end up not liking it, it’s not a big deal to set it on the shelf or the proverbial back-of-the-drawer, never to be seen again. Novels, of course, are more work, but it is rewarding to allow my OCD brain to immerse itself in one complete, multifaceted story.

6.)What Genre do you write and why?

I grew up with a father who read science fiction and fantasy and a mother who read romance. I followed in my father’s footsteps, enjoying the ‘what if?’ intellectual plausibility of science fiction and the wondrous magic of fantasy. I scorned my mother’s romance novels until I was an adult, taking fertility drugs in hopes of conceiving. My hormones were out of control, and I found that romance novels were exactly what I craved! One of my first published stories was SciFi Erotica.

7.)Can you pick a favorite line from your latest work (or the work being highlighted) and tell us why this is your favorite?

“Flags ahead at Blasted Wall. Hitch a ride or get some exercise!”

I love this because although there are no weird sciency terms in it, it still has a scifi feel. It makes the reader wonder… what’s at Blasted Wall” Why the flags? And why is it capitalized?

8.) What about your life influenced your drive to create?

The unconditional support of my husband. He was the one who said “This time, DO something with it!” He takes the kids away as often as he can so I can have uninterrupted writing time. If I didn’t have this unconditional support, my drive to create would disintegrate in the face of life’s demands.

9.)Tell us something personal you've enjoyed due to being an author.

Being able to say “I’m a published author” is pretty darn cool. Networking with other writers who understand what it’s like to carry around a bunch of fictional people in our heads is a huge relief! Most of all, having an outlet for my creativity that actually sends my work out into the world is personally fulfilling.

10.)What is next on your current writing agenda?

I am currently lengthening some stories and writing new ones to be included in my collection The Cities of Luna. More stories will also be released individually to coincide with every full moon.

11.) What kind of books to you enjoy reading?

I read romance like candy. I can’t get enough. I’m picky about my science fiction… hubby wants to have his full of explosions, but I’m more interested in something that poses a “what if?” I’d never thought of.

i.)What are you reading now?

I just finished Tiffany Reisz’s The Saint. Every book in her Original Sinners series leaves me with a hangover that doesn’t completely go away until the next one is out. I also just finished Ashlyn MacNamara’s A Most Scandalous Proposal, which I thoroughly enjoyed and I’m ready to dive into the next one A Most Devilish Rogue. I am overwhelmed with science fiction on my TBR list and I’ve no idea what to pick up next.

12.)What might make you pick up a book outside your own comfort choices?

This is an excellent exercise for an author! I still want to be entertained, and there are some genres like horror that I do not enjoy. Good cover art is key…I might want to claim I’m above looking for something shiny that catches my eye, but it’s true. Finding something outside my comfort zone, where I wouldn’t usually look, isn’t easy. But if I have something specific I want to expand on, asking the collective consciousness via social media always garners a thorough response.

13.)Do you have a favorite author(s)?

ACK! At the risk of leaving oh so many great authors out, I will name just three. Robert Heinlein’s classic science fiction inspires all my writing, even the romance and erotica. John DeChancie’s fantasy and science fiction, with its innate humor and wish-I-could-live-there setting fulfill my escapist desires. (I’m friends with Mr. DeChancie on facebook and he’s just finished writing a new Castle Perilous book! I’m so excited!) An erotica writer whose works I devour is Tiffany Reisz. Although I have to read some scenes with my hands over my eyes (she writes BDSM and it sometimes gets way too intense for my delicate sensibilities) the way she makes me fall in love with her characters, as dramatically different from me as they are, is pure magic. Tiffany was one of my first interviewees on my blog, and she gave me my first ever acceptance for my erotica short In the Closetwhich appears in her 2012 anthology Felt Tips – The World’s Greatest Charity Anthology of Office-Supply-Related Erotica.

14.)Can you share a little about your family?

I’m a mom. I could go on for pages and pages about how adorable my children are!

To be more concise, hubby and I met and married in Wyoming in the nineties, and shortly thereafter moved to Vermont where IBM had moved my parents. We thought it would just be a few years, then we’d return to the west, but it’s been almost twenty.

We struggled with infertility, and adopted a wild little redhead. She moved in with us at age six, and we endured the ups and downs of the system until we finalized her adoption at age eight. Due to her difficult early life, she has special needs. She’s a very active child and always wants to be moving. At age fifteen now, she’s already taller than I am!

A week after we found out we finally had a court date to finalize her adoption, we found out that I was finally pregnant. I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl who is now six and a half. Our girls are very close, in spite of their age difference.

We are all computer geeks. Although my teenager prefers to surf YouTube for cute animal videos, our little one designs elaborate worlds in Minecraft. Hubby’s an IT guy, and I’m a social media maven.

Where can we find you?

You can reach the Amy Beth Inverness  on Twitter: https://twitter.com/USNessie

                         on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/AmyBeth-Inverness/256738264337415

          Series Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCitiesofLuna

Thank you for your answers we look forward to reading your book

by AmyBeth Inverness

http://www.amazon.com/Cities-Luna-Collection-AmyBeth-Inverness-ebook/dp/B00P6ITCS2

In the cities of Luna, humankind will build the society from which we will reach out to the stars and beyond.

The men and women who have come to colonize the moon are Loonies. Meet them in this enjoyable collection of short stories that take you through life in the many moon colonies hovering above Earth.

The Collection features 12 short stories
The first solo short story release is Moon Dragons