Ask the Author: Holly Brown
Answered Questions (14)
Holly Brown
Yes, a mix of those two approaches works well for me, too. I plan the overall arc, and then as I go, I'm making notes for about 3 - 4 chapters ahead. Then within individual scenes, I'm allowing for surprises (which might mean changing the notes for those next 3 - 4 chapters.)
Holly Brown
Ellie Monago, through Lake Union Publishing. Thanks for asking!
Holly Brown
Hi, Donna! Glad to meet you again, virtually!
As a fellow therapist, you might especially get a kick out of my next Lake Union book, called CONFIDENTIAL. It starts with the murder of a therapist, and then goes into the viewpoint of three women (clients, or former clients) who are the most likely suspects.
You know, in terms of my direction, I have a bunch of ideas, and am researching different topics furiously. What I pursue will, to some extent, depend on what information I get from the marketplace (i.e. how my sales are as I try new things.) In the tech world, they talk about how every startup has times where they have to pivot and change their original idea, and as a writer, pivoting is part of what keeps me engaged. I don't want to write the same book ten times. That said, I'm always hoping the books hang onto readers who've enjoyed what's come before, that there's some essence of me as a writer that carries through.
Sorry if I'm going on too long! I appreciate your question, and wanted to give a thorough answer.
Thanks for asking!
As a fellow therapist, you might especially get a kick out of my next Lake Union book, called CONFIDENTIAL. It starts with the murder of a therapist, and then goes into the viewpoint of three women (clients, or former clients) who are the most likely suspects.
You know, in terms of my direction, I have a bunch of ideas, and am researching different topics furiously. What I pursue will, to some extent, depend on what information I get from the marketplace (i.e. how my sales are as I try new things.) In the tech world, they talk about how every startup has times where they have to pivot and change their original idea, and as a writer, pivoting is part of what keeps me engaged. I don't want to write the same book ten times. That said, I'm always hoping the books hang onto readers who've enjoyed what's come before, that there's some essence of me as a writer that carries through.
Sorry if I'm going on too long! I appreciate your question, and wanted to give a thorough answer.
Thanks for asking!
Holly Brown
Hi, Donna! I'm very prolific, and the traditional publishers like HarperCollins tend to only put out a book a year. So in order to keep up with my output but also to diversify the kinds of books I write, a pen name makes strategic and creative sense. For example, HOW FAR SHE'S COME is my next book from Harper, which comes out in May, and it represents a new direction for me that I hope to continue. Meanwhile, under my pen name, I'm able to write other types of books. So far, it's going well but it's a relatively new arrangement for me. Feel free to check back in a year! :)
Thanks for noticing, and for asking!
Thanks for noticing, and for asking!
Holly Brown
Hi, Lisa! I'm so sorry I didn't answer this. I somehow missed the notification. Anyway, I'm glad to answer now, and thank you so much for writing! I would say that there's wide variety in how different social media and review sites operate. The functionality of the sites themselves actually can foster a better or a worse climate--i.e. they can encourage people to be honest without being cruel. While I've had my share of negative reviews on Goodreads, I haven't found the tenor to be brutal. Overall, the discourse is respectful of other readers; there's respect for writing itself. Now, on other sites (Twitter, Facebook, Reddit), I think sometimes free speech trumps all else, and it shows in the way people talk about not only books but other people. There's actually a great book I just read about this (and now I'll go post a review of it) called "Technically Wrong" and it's all about this subject. So maybe it's good that I just saw your question now. My answer would have been different six months ago. Anyway, thank you so much for asking, and for voicing your appreciation of THIS IS NOT OVER. It means a lot!
Holly Brown
This reminds me I need to update my queue! I'm about to start "Imagine Me Gone" by Adam Haslett. I'm excited about Claire Mackintosh's new one, "I See You," and there's a new book out from the storytelling geniuses at the Moth podcast folks, "The Moth Present All These Wonders." I'm also hoping to tackle "The Miniaturist" by Jessie Burton.
Holly Brown
I love this question. The funny thing is, usually I get my ideas from listening to NPR (at least, that was true for both DON'T TRY TO FIND ME and A NECESSARY END.) But THIS IS NOT OVER, my most recent, was sorta kinda not exactly inspired by a real life event. That is, I stayed in a vacation rental and after checkout, was accused of having left a "child-sized gray stain" on the sheets so the host would need to keep my security deposit. I fired off an angry response--"My child is not Pig Pen, this is b.s.!"--and she fired one back. We were both righteously indignant and sure we were right, and I thought, What kind of women would just keep going? What would they need to be avoiding in their own lives, and what would their backstories have to be, in order to just keep escalating? I loved creating the psychological kindling and then lighting the match for Miranda and Dawn.
Holly Brown
Thanks so much for the compliment, and for this question. It's a topic I'm really interested in, so much so that I actually wrote a guest blog about it over at Jungle Red Writers:
http://www.jungleredwriters.com/2016/...
It includes a list of my favorite psychologically credible page turners.
Good to hear from you!
Holly
http://www.jungleredwriters.com/2016/...
It includes a list of my favorite psychologically credible page turners.
Good to hear from you!
Holly
Holly Brown
It's more of a mystery than a thriller, so that's a fun departure for me. But it's a mystery that involves a lot of family dynamics--not a classic whodunit or a police procedural.
Holly Brown
I'm about a quarter of the way through a first draft, and my agent feels optimistic, but since I haven't sold it yet, I'm going to keep the particulars to myself. I will say, though, that NPR is a treasure trove of ideas for me. Since I write contemporary fiction, I need to stay immersed in what's going on right now. With "Don't Try to Find Me", I happened to catch an episode on NPR that featured Tony Loftis, whose daughter had run away and he'd successfully launched a social media campaign to find her. I took that germ of an idea and fictionalized the bejesus out of it.
My next book will be published in July 2015 (currently titled "More Than Anything" but that's likely to be changed) and was also fertilized by an idea: Potential adoptive parents are using websites to find birth mothers, almost like online dating, and the process is ripe for manipulation (which, as a writer, I can turn into suspense.) And my current book was also vaguely suggested by an NPR story. So I owe them a debt of gratitude, and a monthly pledge.
My next book will be published in July 2015 (currently titled "More Than Anything" but that's likely to be changed) and was also fertilized by an idea: Potential adoptive parents are using websites to find birth mothers, almost like online dating, and the process is ripe for manipulation (which, as a writer, I can turn into suspense.) And my current book was also vaguely suggested by an NPR story. So I owe them a debt of gratitude, and a monthly pledge.
Holly Brown
I aim to prevent it as best I can. Prevention, for me, means that I'm never looking at a blank page. I always have the next scene planned out, at a minimum (usually, I have 3-4 chapters planned, with notes at the top of the page to tell me what scenes need to be written.) This method has been pretty effective.
But on the rare days when I have writer's block, I don't force myself to continue. Because that would create a negative association and generally, I have a positive one with my writing. So I give myself the day off, without any self-flagellation. Remember, beating yourself up is the most reliable way to extend your writer's block! Be supportive of yourself, and you'll do much better work.
But on the rare days when I have writer's block, I don't force myself to continue. Because that would create a negative association and generally, I have a positive one with my writing. So I give myself the day off, without any self-flagellation. Remember, beating yourself up is the most reliable way to extend your writer's block! Be supportive of yourself, and you'll do much better work.
Holly Brown
I'm really lucky in that I split my professional time between practicing therapy and writing books. Therapy is for the extrovert in me; writing is for the introvert. What I love about writing is that it taps into my fascination with people and relationships, while giving me a breather from actual interaction. Win-win!
Holly Brown
Start by deciding what the purpose of your writing is. If it's primarily for pleasure, then do all you can to maximize your enjoyment; don't worry about agents or markets or anything like that. Turn off all censors, and just go.
If you're writing with the goal of being published, then you have to do more research. Consider what's currently selling; consider how you can add to whatever market you want to enter. Before you start writing your book, you'll need to think about who your target audience is and why they'd buy your book, because in order to get an agent who'll want to sell it, they need you to sell yourself and your idea to them.
I know, I'm not making it sound like much fun. But doing your research at the start can save you a lot of pain and rejection later. You want to make sure your energy goes into the most marketable project. But also make sure that's the book you will actually like writing. When those two things intersect, you've got your best chance of success.
If you're writing with the goal of being published, then you have to do more research. Consider what's currently selling; consider how you can add to whatever market you want to enter. Before you start writing your book, you'll need to think about who your target audience is and why they'd buy your book, because in order to get an agent who'll want to sell it, they need you to sell yourself and your idea to them.
I know, I'm not making it sound like much fun. But doing your research at the start can save you a lot of pain and rejection later. You want to make sure your energy goes into the most marketable project. But also make sure that's the book you will actually like writing. When those two things intersect, you've got your best chance of success.
Holly Brown
Sometimes I wake up teeming with ideas and motivation. Mostly, though, I set aside time and the inspiration finds me on the way (or it doesn't, but at least I've created the space for it.) I might have to force myself to get on the bike and start pedaling in order to feel the wind through my hair, at which point I'll want to keep going.
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