Q&A with Catherine McKenzie discussion

Ask away!

Being a new author, I feel the book world moves at a slower pace, than that of the music industry, for instance. Do you feel the same way about the book industry, Catherine?

What/how do you write (laptop, notepad, etc..)?
What software do you use?
Is there a particular time/place that you write?

Daren wrote: "Being a new author, I feel the book world moves at a slower pace, than that of the music industry, for instance. Do you feel the same way about the book industry, Catherine?"

Daren, the book world definitely does move at a slow pace - don't know about the music industry, but a typical delay between a book deal and publication is 12-18 months. My first book had a 6 month delay and that was crazy compressed.

Darin wrote: "What/how do you write (laptop, notepad, etc..)?
What software do you use?
Is there a particular time/place that you write?"

Darin - I write on a laptop, but I keep notes in notebooks, scraps of paper, whatever. Lately I've been using Scrivener, which I found really helps for visualizing your whole book in one place, things like chronology etc. I tend to write at night and on the weekends, often in front of the TV or listening to music. I also write well on airplanes.

Who is your inspiration? Do you have any words of wisdom for anyone who is looking to break it in the novelling world?

What is the magic word or phrase that will get Lit/agents to actually read your queries? Before deciding to self publish, I sent out 5 to 10 a day for about a year. I got very few polite declinations but mostly crickets.

Ashley wrote: "Who is your inspiration? Do you have any words of wisdom for anyone who is looking to break it in the novelling world?"

That's a tough one, Ashley. This sounds cheesy but I think inspiration has to come from yourself - the voices in your head, the stories you want to tell - if you have that, then sit down and start telling it and see where it takes you.

Eric wrote: "What is the magic word or phrase that will get Lit/agents to actually read your queries? Before deciding to self publish, I sent out 5 to 10 a day for about a year. I got very few polite declinatio..."

Eric, I don't think there is a magic word or phrase, but there is a formula. Check out this post by Shawn Klomparens (and check out his books too, they're great) for advice on how to write a query letter that will get agents to ask to see your work. Of course, once they do, that work has to be the best you can make it so make sure it is before you send out queries. In my experience, if you were not getting any bites on your queries it's because of your query letter. http://www.shawnklomparens.com/blog/2...

Catherine, I notice that you are an attorney. Do you currently practice law? If so, how do you fit writing time into your schedule? Do you have a set number of hours or set times to write?

If you had to name your two favorite (most helpful) books on writing, what would they be, and why?

Louis wrote: "Catherine, I notice that you are an attorney. Do you currently practice law? If so, how do you fit writing time into your schedule? Do you have a set number of hours or set times to write?"

I am still a practising attorney. When I'm in writing mode, I try to write a bit everyday, usually at night, and then more on weekends. I use vacation as a time to make big pushes on a manuscript.

Karolyn wrote: "If you had to name your two favorite (most helpful) books on writing, what would they be, and why?"

Karolyn,

I"ve found Donald Mass' books on writing helpful. I hear Stephen King's book is great too, but haven't read it yet. Also Bird by Bird.

In your opinion, what is the best way to boost sales of your book ? Paid advertising in newspapers and magazines, promote it on your website or blog, book signing in libraries, other ...?

How many ideas did you have floating in your head that you either decided to use for a book or rejected as soon as you saw them on paper? I'm asking because I always have story ideas going around in my mind but I'm afraid to so much as write them down. Thanks!

What books influenced you to write? At what age?

Melissa, I know you want the professional author's feedback here but I would tell you to never be scared to put your ideas down on paper. I'm trying to write myself and I can tell you that I don't like a lot of my ideas either. I think a lot of writers feel that way. Trust that something good will come out of anything you write. If nothing else, you can get the bad ideas out and work on better ones.

Jacques wrote: "In your opinion, what is the best way to boost sales of your book ? Paid advertising in newspapers and magazines, promote it on your website or blog, book signing in libraries, other ...?"

Jacques - that is a tough one. I think that lots of factors play into boosting sales but they all come down to visibility and word of mouth - whether that's in the store, or through advertising - different people have different successes and different theories. For me, store placement has been the most important.

Melissa wrote: "How many ideas did you have floating in your head that you either decided to use for a book or rejected as soon as you saw them on paper? I'm asking because I always have story ideas going around i..."

Melissa,

I often have lots of ideas as well, but the important thing for me is to see if it goes anywhere. If I can't see the ending of a story, and the big story arc in the middle, then I put it away. Sometimes a solution comes back to me eventually, sometimes it never does.

Cyndee wrote: "What books influenced you to write? At what age?"

I've always loved books and I've always written. There have been times that I've read a book I loved then immediately started trying to write the same book. This doesn't work, of course! I was able to actually write a book when I put aside influences and just wrote something that inspired me from within.

Hi Catherine
I am about to publish my first novel CONTRIVED. It is a 300 page long crime thriller. What is the best way to advertise? Google ad or ad in goodreads or something else? (I have a budget of few hundred $$)

Louis wrote: "Melissa, I know you want the professional author's feedback here but I would tell you to never be scared to put your ideas down on paper. I'm trying to write myself and I can tell you that I don't..."

Thanks for the support! :)

Jay wrote: "Hi Catherine
I am about to publish my first novel CONTRIVED. It is a 300 page long crime thriller. What is the best way to advertise? Google ad or ad in goodreads or something else? (I have a budge..."

I've found Facebook ads effective. Goodreads seems to have a good affordable option too.

Jay wrote: "Hi Catherine
I am about to publish my first novel CONTRIVED. It is a 300 page long crime thriller. What is the best way to advertise? Google ad or ad in goodreads or something else? (I have a budge..."

Jay, Twitter is a great way of meeting other authors and give everyone a taste of your writing material, and it won't cost you anything.

Cyndee wrote: "What books influenced you to write? At what age?"

Jules Verne's "Dick Sands" when I was 10. I felt like everything around me disappeared while the story came to life. From that day on, I wanted to know what it'd feel like to create something like that.

Catherine, once what do you think of giving away ebook copies. Some authors claim it helps sales, but I'm having a tough time giving away something I've worked so hard to make. Will patience eventually pay off?

Javier wrote: "Catherine, once what do you think of giving away ebook copies. Some authors claim it helps sales, but I'm having a tough time giving away something I've worked so hard to make. Will patience eventu..."

Javier - dropping the price on an e-book can sometimes get people to try it & then help create word of mouth. But there's no guarantee. If you do one, do it for a brief period, a day or two and let people know about it - see how it works - do people keep buying the book afterwards?

Hi Catherine. I love your books. Where do your ideas for them come from? Do they start off as something small and become bigger, or do you know going in that the whole thing is going to center around the premise you've chosen? What is your process like?

Shannon wrote: "Hi Catherine. I love your books. Where do your ideas for them come from? Do they start off as something small and become bigger, or do you know going in that the whole thing is going to center arou..."

Hi Shannon,

Thanks! Phew - a lot of questions. I get my idea from different places - usually I have lots of little ideas floating around & then the coalesce into one. I know what the beginning, middle and end is going to look like before I start, but till recently, not much more. Trying to get better at outlining before I start as this makes things a lot easier as I go along.

Hello Catherine! Being a fellow Canadian I have begun to notice lately novels that are considered chick lit and are in fact written by Canadian authors. They do not seem to be very abundant in this genre. Have you experienced difficulty perhaps before or even after being published with breaking in the market in and outside Canada?

Margaret wrote: "Hello Catherine! Being a fellow Canadian I have begun to notice lately novels that are considered chick lit and are in fact written by Canadian authors. They do not seem to be very abundant in thi..."

Hi Margaret,

It's true that chick lit (whatever that means :)) is not a big genre in Canada in the sense that there are not that many novels in the genre written by Canadians that I know of. Two exceptions - Isabelle Lafleche (J'Adore New York) and Kim Izzo's Jane Austen Marriage Manual. In all honestly, I wasn't trying to write in any particular genre, I was just trying to write the best book I could with the ideas that I had. I got my Canadian book deal more than two years before my US one - it was hard to break into the US market and I still haven't succeeded in England, so who knows.

What made you write your own books?