Amylea Lyn
~When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I don’t know if there was ever an exact moment… being a writer is just something I’ve always wanted to do. I remember being a little girl and writing stories to amuse my friends at school.
I don’t think I’d be happy doing anything else. LOL
~How do you come up with a title?
Funny you should ask… LOL. I recently changed the title to a story because I didn’t like the way it sounded in relation to some of my other works. I generally try to some up with a “just for now” title while I’m writing, so I can keep things straight on my schedule and in my mind. After my story is done I decide whether or not I want to change it. For some reason the titles just come to me.
But I admit, I have also been known to use my grandma Joyce as a sounding board. She’s awesome and reads everything I write. LOL. I’ve come up with a lot of titles thanks to her.
~ How long does it take you to write an eBook/full story?
Hmm… about three months or so. Sometimes a bit longer. I try to keep to a schedule, especially now that my books are becoming better known and I have series’ out. The readers demand more books out in a timely fashion and I try to deliver them.
Speaking of, I’ve only got a month to finish my current WIP. *head desk*
~Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
My ideas come from everywhere. I can be inspired by TV, a song on the radio, or even a conversation with a friend. I never know when an idea will hit me, and always carry a little notebook around with me to jot ideas down in. Just recently I was inspired for a scene in a book while out eating sushi!
As for information, I do a lot of research, especially if I’m writing about an area I’m not all that familiar with. The internet is my friend… *pets computer lovingly*
~Which character caused you most difficulty to write?
Honestly, the more normal a character is, the harder they are for me to write. I excel at the off the wall types. If I had to pick one, it would have to be Aiden from Dream a Little Dream.
~When do you do your best writing… morning, afternoon, evening, night?
It used to be night, but right now it seems to be afternoon. As long as I’m alone and my cat is occupied elsewhere, I’m good to go. :)
~Out of all the stories you’ve written which one are you most proud of?
Nature of the Beast. Definitely. It was the first book in my Outside the City series and completely out of my comfort zone.
I’m even more proud not to say that book 2 of the series, The Beast’s Promise, comes out on March 24th and I’m about halfway don’t with book 3!
~Which story caused you the most difficulty to write?
I have a hard time writing anything that has to do with child abuse, and there is a scene in my book The Beast’s Promise that literally made me walk away from the book for almost two weeks.
As for the hardest story to write as a whole, I’d have to say Dream a Little Dream since it was my first novel and took me over 6 months to finish.
~Which character is most like yourself?
Is it cheating if I say all of them? LOL. I put a bit of myself into each of my characters, but out of all of them I’d have to say Raine from Nature of the Beast. We share the same attitude and a deep love of nature.
~Do you plan your stories and, if so, to what extent?
I have a general outline for each story before I start writing, just so I know where I’m headed in the end and what major factors I have to touch on at some point. After that, it’s all up the characters and where ever my Muse decides to take me.
~Do you plan your characters?
The main ones. The supporting characters just seem to pop out of nowhere… I think there might be a waiting room of some kind in my mind where they hang out until they feel they’re needed. *chuckles*
~Out of all the characters you’ve written which one has affected you most? Not necessarily which one you like most, but which one ‘got to you’?
Cael. From Dream a Little Dream. He went through so much at such a young age and I always felt so bad for putting him through what I did. I rooted for him the whole time I was writing his story and cheered along with my readers when he finally got his happily ever after.
And Tom, from Let’s Get Familiar. And Mi’Kel from Love’s Crash Landing… I have a thing for the sweet, needy types.
~Do you think there are any hidden messages in any of your stories?
Just to love each other without worry of what others say and think. It’s something all my characters seem to learn in the end. Everyone deserves a love story, even the not so nice guys in my books.
~How many times have you started a story and abandoned it?
Never. LOL. Well, okay that’s not exactly true. I do have a file labeled the “Elephant Graveyard” in my computer, but I have no problem pulling stuff out if needed. I always know that eventually I’ll go back to something, so I save everything.
~How many stories do you work on at any one time?
One main one, possibly two, but I dabble with a blog story once a week and may work on some outlines if I get writers block. But never more then two main stories at a time. I always feel like I didn’t do the characters and story justice if I try to stretch myself thin by working on too much at one time.
~Has there even been something that you have had a SERIOUS disagreement with your editor or beta reader about?
Not that I know of. I always try to listen to my editors and betas objectively. The only time I remember disagreeing with something big was when it completely changed the context of the story from that point on, basically rendering everything else I’d written useless.
Needless to say, we didn’t make that change and the story was published like I wanted it to be. *winks*
~What is your deepest fear?
You know, when I was younger I always said my fear was heights. Now I realize my fear isn’t actually heights, but falling and hitting the ground from so far up. I can go as high as the moon and fall with no problem, as long in the end I won’t hit the ground with a splat!
~What do you like to do when you’re not writing??
I really enjoy gardening, and currently getting ready for this planting season. I also like canning and preserving foods (jams, pickled peppers, and home-made applesauce, oh my!) and spend a lot of time doing that. I also enjoy reading books by other authors and I used to like taking long drives in my car…. Until gas prices got to be so high! LOL.
~Is there anything you’d like to tell? Maybe something in the works you would like to promotion? Feel free!
Well, as I stated above I have a book coming out on March 24th. The Beast’s Promise (Outside the City 2) will be available from Silver Publishing! This is Owen and Maltok’s story, so for everyone who read book 1, I hope this book 2 measures up to your expectations! LOL
After that I have another book coming out with Silver Publishing, called Solid as Stone. (Tentatively scheduled for July 21st.) This is book 1 of my new series titles The Brotherhood and I can’t wait for everyone to read it!
I have one more book out towards the end of the year, which is the blog story I just finished writing, Whispered Secrets, Hidden Eyes. It’s due out around late September I believe.
Those are the things scheduled, and I’m trying to get book 3 of Outside the City finished by the end of April. After that I’ll be working on the sequel to Love’s Crash Landing and book 2 of The Brotherhood.
Needless to say I’ll be a busy girl for the next few months. LOL.
