Author Interview: Jack W. Regan

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a new author of Young Adult fiction, Jack W. Regan. Previously on my blog I also read and reviewed his book T'Aragam, which is the first of a planned series. To read my review follow the link at the end of the interview.


Jack's Virtual Book Tour started on July 17th and will run through August 10th. Doing a virtual book tour myself in March of this year I know how much time and effort goes into this type of campaign. I am happy to be a part of it and wish him the best in his tour.

Please welcome Jack W. Regan...

KC: How long did T'Aragam take to write?

JW: From original idea to finished manuscript...about nine months, mostly because I couldn’t decide how I wanted to write it. It was originally going to be in first person and I wrote about 15,000 words that way, when I realized it just wasn’t working. At one point I just shelved the whole thing, figuring it was a lost cause. Then I saw an advertisement for a novel-writing contest. When I saw the ad, the deadline was a mere six weeks away. I pulled out “T’Aragam” and began working like a mad person. I changed the viewpoint and altered a few other plot points and some how managed to write and rewrite the entire manuscript, finishing a mere two days prior to the deadline. So, from first glimmer to completion, almost a year, although the vast majority of the work was done in the six weeks prior to the contest deadline.

KC: How did you find your publisher and how long did it take?

JW: I published “T’Aragam” myself. I didn’t even try to track down a traditional publisher, not because I didn’t have faith in my book, but because I’m a little anti-establishment when it comes to publishing. I kinda resent the bigger publishers picking and choosing what the public should read. I’m a total sell-out, of course, because if a publisher came and offered me a nice sum to publish this series, I’d be an idiot to refuse, but at the same time I think the industry is changing. There are a myriad of opportunities for authors to make themselves heard. I know there are benefits to being traditionally published, I’m not denying that. Nor do I think less of authors who choose that route. If it works for them,that’s great. For me, I love having complete control of the product, everything from writing to cover and interior design. It’s a heckuva lotta fun and the response has been great.

KC: Where did the idea for T'Aragam come from?

JW: I’ve always been fascinated with time travel and parallel universes and wondered if it will ever be possible to travel between them, whether or not they affect one another, or what it would be like to go back in history with modern day knowledge. That’s how "T’Aragam" started. Obviously, the actual book is far from that and it’s better off for it, but that’s how it began. Shows what a massive rewrite actually took place!:0)

KC: What draws you to write YA Fantasy? Do you want to try other genres?

JW: I’ve tried other genres, most of them aimed for a more adult audience. But I think writing for younger readers suits my writing style more. I don’t like to take things too seriously and I think that hampered my earlier works, which were supposed to be serious and gritty, but always had an undercurrent of goofiness. Yeah. Didn’t work so well. As far as fantasy goes, I think it’s just the escape from reality that beckons me. You aren’t bound so much by the restraints of what people know and are comfortable with. “Hey, I just wrote about a giant horse with wings and the head of a dragon!” “Those don’t exist,” someone scoffs.“They do in my world!” I say smugly.

KC: This question was born out of a Twitter conversation. Do you think the author chooses the story/genre or the story/genre chooses the author?

JW: Simply speaking for myself, I had to play around with genres before I found YA fantasy. As I said, I formerly was writing stuff for a more mature audience: mysteries, etc. I just wasn’t that good at it. Why I thought I had to write those, I’m not sure. I think the story itself often chooses a writer, though. As a writer, I’ve had ideas leap out of nowhere and take my brain hostage, refusing to let it go until I write something about it. I think it works both ways. Even when an idea does “choose” a writer, that writer must still flesh it out.

KC: I read and enjoyed T'Aragam. You left the possibility and the hint of a sequel. How's that coming along?

JW: The title of book two is "Kingdom Heir." It’s underway and is scheduled to be released on Dec. 1, 2009!

To find out more about the book and all sorts of other fun stuff, please visit: www.taragam.comAmazon.com purchase link:http://www.amazon.com/TAragam-Jack-W-Regan/dp/1442114592/


Thank you Jack for your honest and insightful answers. I can relate to the challenge of rewriting. I am facing similar issues with my current book. It is hard to make such drastic changes but sometimes it has to be done. In your case it was a complete success. I love the final outcome of T'Aragam and look forward to reading the next book, Kingdom Heir. Good luck on the rest of your virtual tour.

Also, thanks to all you readers who have stopped by to learn more about Jack W. Regan and his new book. If you would like to read my review of T'Aragam click on the following link.

http://kcsbooks.blogspot.com/2009/06/childrens-book-review-series-taragam-by.html

As always, I welcome your comments and thoughts on this. This is my first author interview and hope that the questions and answers will help other writers find some inspiration and confidence in their own work.

Thanks and keep reading!

Kristin : )

I Got "The Call"

Hello. Hope everyone is doing well and you're still plugging away at your own goals in writing and life. If you are struggling and need a little inspiration I have just the story for you. As I posted shortly after my Virtual Book Tour, I was contacted by a producer. She asked me about my film rights and requested a copy of The Truth Lies in the Dark. Then last Friday she emailed me asking for my home phone number. Well, she called yesterday.

She wants to make my story into a movie!

This is great news and such an honor, but still in the early stages. She still has to pitch the idea to Lifetime and needs to compile a proposal package for the executives to consider. To help with this, I am digging up all of my reviews and my original synopsis to send to her. She has also directed me toward a larger publisher, who has published some of the books she has already made into movies. I will let everyone know how that is going when I know more. It's all a little overwhelming to think of it all at once.

I think the best part of this all, and the part I am so excited to share with everyone, is how this incredible opportunity could happen to anyone. I'm not going to say that writing, editing, publishing, marketing, and promoting are easy, or that everyone will get a film deal. I am still in shock and amazement that my book was even considered. I am saying it's possible; stay positive, try everything, and always, always believe in yourself and your work.


Your writing is the most important thing. If you are happy and can honestly stand behind it you are already doing better than someone who writes to please someone else, like an agent or an editor. Not to say you can't take criticism and make changes, just as long as you believe in the changes you have made. This belief is your backbone that will keep you steady when reviews and opinions start coming, and they are all not going to be as supportive and great as those from family and friends. Some are going to feel like personal attacks on you, like when someone wrote that my main character Amanda was too needy and annoying. At first it bothered me, then I realized that characters, for me anyway, should come alive in a story. For someone to become annoyed with Amanda, they are seeing her as a real life person also. So, that's not such a bad thing. It would be worse to have them say the book and characters did nothing for me at all. I am getting off point now, but you get the idea. Believe in yourself and your writing.

The next important thing is getting your work out there; the more you do the more opportunities you create to be seen. I recommend doing live book tours/signings if you feel comfortable with them and definitely do a Virtual Book Tour. If you're not sure how look in my past posts. I detailed how I did mine, and do I need to remind you of the outcome? :) My sales did not explode, but yours could. You never know who might notice your book. The fact that the producer found my book at all was a fluke.

I did interviews, was a guest, or was reviewed by 18 different book related blogs. Some had many followers and others just a few, but the one the producer noticed my book was all but missed by everyone. The host of the blog had an emergency and did not post my book on the day we had planned. Once she realized, she posted it late, and the producer just happened upon it. If that's not dumb luck or some kind of fate I don't know what it is. But nothing happens out of thin air, luck or fate can't find you if you're not out there. So do whatever you can (within limits of law and self respect of course) to get your writing out there, you never know when or where your big break could come from.

I am excited (and a little nervous) to have this opportunity, but I have to remind myself that whether or not my book actually becomes a movie I am thankful and honored that it is being considered. I hope that sharing this inspires you to keep writing and go after your goals and dreams. Life is too short to think you can't do something. What's the worse they can say?

As always, you're welcome to share your successes or frustrations about writing or life. We all have them. I think the only reason I haven't really freaked out over the movie news is the continued real life drama I live every day. My 11 year old crashed his bike and might have a hairline fracture on his wrist, but is now quickly learning that ouch means his teacher lets him get out of everything he doesn't want to do. Then he miraculously finds the strength to come home and play video games with both hands and try to play dodge ball with his sister. Next, my oldest came home telling us how he had to wrestle a cow to give it medicine (yeah I think that's funny too; he's no farmer). He also came home with a tick burrowed into his back. So we spent the night in surgery, well in the bathroom... three of us, hovering over my son with needles, tweezers, peroxide, etc. I swear, we could go a year without talking to the doctor and then in less than one week they know me by voice on the phone.

I would love to hear from you. Take care and keep in touch.

Kristin : )

How To: Do your own virtual book tour

I have had fun with this blog so far, but now it's time to get serious. I have been getting some emails from other writers asking about my recent virtual book tour. Most want to know how I planned it and where to start. So, I decided to post the steps I followed here in hopes that it helps others interested in doing their own tour.

There are 3 important things to remember when starting this; be professional, be prompt, and be thankful. I will talk more about these as I explain.

Be Professional: The first thing I will say is it takes a lot of research and work on your part to pull together a book tour, but on the bright side it can all be done from your computer. I first heard about virtual book tours while researching real book tours. I had my 1st one coming up and was asking other authors for tips and advice. The idea of an online book tour peeked my interest. It is an inexpensive way to get your book out there, and you never know it could get more attention than you ever imagined.

Here is how I started.

I simply googled Virtual Book Tours and familiarized myself with what they were exactly. Then moved on to google book related blogs. With a pad of paper I wrote down the url of every blog that covered books similar to mine. This is a long process because you're going to want to go to each blog to make sure it is one that fits your book, or you're wasting every one's time. Have an idea in mind of how many stops you want to have on your tour and an approximate start date. The end date can be determined after you finish booking. I had 20 stops as a goal for my tour, and ended up with 18. Looking back I realize that I could have done less. It really isn't about the number of stops; it is more about the quality you put into each.

Once you have a good list of possible blogs go back and write all of the contact info; the host, email, and something that shows you have personally researched that blog. Now you compose an email to begin asking the hosts to be a part of your tour. This is where being professional is very important. Compose a draft of an email that you will send out. The same one can be used, just make sure you change the host and blog name each time.

This is an example of the email that I used. You can plug in your info and use this or make your own. Don't forget to put Virtual Book Tour or something that clearly states your intention for the email in the subject line.

Dear (insert name of host),

I am a new author and I am planning a Blog Book Tour to promote my book, The Truth Lies in the Dark. It is a mystery/romance about a woman who lost her memory as a child and then, as an adult finds out that she was raised with the identity of a dead child. Who is she and more importantly, who is there to help her and who is there to make sure that the truth remains...in the dark?

I would love to add (name of blog) to my tour. Contact me to schedule an interview or if you would like me to submit a guest post. I will be posting an announcement of the entire blog tour with links on my website as soon as I have finished scheduling. The Truth Lies in the Dark is available at www.amazon.com/Truth-Lies-Dark-Kristin-Callender/dp/1604520140. It is currently the 'Featured Book of the Month' on www.bluewaterpress.com.

Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,
Kristin Callender

(add your full contact info here)


Leaving the option for an interview or a guest post allows the host to choose which they have time or blog space available for. If you have copies of your book on hand you could offer some for review or for contests on a few blogs. But remember, the idea is to keep this cost efficient. Pick a few that are really suited to your type of book and request a review and let the hosts ask you if they are interested in giving away a book on their blog.

Once you start getting responses from blogs you can start planning the dates. Try not to have them all on the same days if possible. Sometimes that is unavoidable. What I did was offer each host a few days and then would not offer those to any other blog host until we had agreed on a set date.

The hosts will then either send you some questions that they would like answered or have you submit a guest post. What you write for a guest post is usually up to you. Of course you want it to include something about your book, but you also want it to include a personal connection to the specific blog you are a guest of. After all, each blog has followers that like what the blog has to offer them and many will not know who the new author is visiting. For example, for a writing blog I talked about my own writing process and for a blog that was written by a librarian I included how the main character used libraries to research her past. Be careful not to repeat the same exact information on each blog. You may gain a following on your tour, but will also loose it quickly if they are not getting anything new out of you.

Be Prompt: Send back the interview questions as quickly as you can. Don't rush through them. This is your chance to introduce yourself and your book to new readers so treat it like you were sending your responses to an editor at a big publishing house. Once you are completely satisfied with it send it out. Trust me, the hosts will appreciate not having to hunt it down later.

After the date was set and I sent out my writing, I would add that blog to my website. I still have the schedule posted on my website if you want to see how I set it up.

http://sites.google.com/site/kristincallenderbooks


Be Thankful: Make sure that you thank the hosts at every chance. I started each guest post with a special thanks to the hosts and readers. After each tour stop was finished I sent another email out to thank the host again for being part of the tour. It may not seem like a big deal, but many of the hosts have other jobs and responsibilities outside of the blog. They will appreciate the effort and respect you show by being professional, prompt and thankful.

Do not get frustrated if you don't become an overnight success from a virtual book tour. There are no guarantees that it will sell thousands of copies, but if you remember these 3 important things it will help you build a supportive network for your future writing. And like I said before, you never know, you may get more attention than you ever imagined. I shared an example of that in yesterday's post.

I hope this helps with your tour. If you find that it has let me know. Even if you find that it did not work for you tell me about that too. If you have any questions or comments about any part of teh writing process feel free to leave them here or email me.

Thanks for taking the time read this and I look forward to hearing from you :)

Sincerely,
Kristin Callender