AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Lynn Voedisch, Author of EXCITED LIGHT

We have a special guest today! Lynn Voedisch, author of Excited Light, joins us today in a candid interview to tell us what the writer's life is all about from her standpoint!

TWL: Welcome to The Writer's Life, Lynn! Can you tell us when the passion for writing began for you?

Lynn: I was a writer right from the start and knew I was going to be a professional writer in fifth grade. My teacher had told my parents that my fiction projects were outstanding and that they should encourage me to be a writer. They did, and I have followed my dream ever since. I also had a secret desire to be Carolyn Keene, the writer of the Nancy Drew dectective series. I didn't know at the time that Keene was actually a made-up name and that several different writers did the Nancy Drew books.

TWL: Can you tell us what your typical 'writing' day is like?

Lynn: I don't have one. Unlike many writers, I don't write every day. After so many years of deadline training at newspapers, I don't have any problem churning out many words when the occasion calls for it. I just don't believe in writer's block. I often think for a few days and then will do a whole chapter in a few hours. A lot of my "writing" time is spent thinking out the plot and characters. It doesn't look like I'm doing anything, but I'm working like crazy.

TWL: Do you write full time?

Lynn: Yes, although I need to start doing more journalism again. Marketing has taken up way too much time.

TWL: Can you tell us a little bit about your book?

Lynn: My book could be called magical realism, but it's definitely not typical fantasy. It's a modern story of a young boy with a single, alcoholic mother, who finds help in the spiritual world. It's a novel of magic and second chances and appeals to anyone who believes in hope.

TWL: Who published your book and how has your experience with them been?

Lynn: My book is published by ASJA Press, an imprint of iUniverse. ASJA (the American Society of Journalists and Authors) is a pretty difficult organization to get into. So, you know that only the best writers are allowed to use the ASJA logo. But essentially, it's self-published via iUniverse. I've had no problems at all with iUniverse, but do wish their business partner, Barnes & Noble, was more cooperative with them and would stock books in their store.

TWL: Can you tell us the inspiration behind your book?

Lynn: My book was inspired by an angel experience that I had when I was desperately ill. I'm not going to say there were fluttery wings and glowing halos, but I did hear words of inspiration that helped me heal and keep me well to this day.My main character, Alex, hears angels also, although readers may want to take that as a metaphor for hope.

TWL: Can you tell us ways you are promoting your book? Have they been successful?

Lynn: I did an e-mail blitz to everyone I knew in the world (almost) in January that propelled the book to no. 515 on the Amazon.com list. This is unheard of for a debut novel by an unknown writer. I am going to do a book signing at an angel museum. And I will be at the Printers Row Book Fair in Chicago in early June. Later in June there will be other book signings. And I'm doing this blog tour.

TWL: Do you have a mentor?

Lynn: I have a publishing guru in New York, who I'll keep anonymous. He used to be with Avon books and now works solo. He has helped me shape my work to better fit the needs of New York publishers.He has read and helped me with all his books. And I did some ghostwriting for him.What future projects do you have in the works? I'm working on a novel about a woman living two lives at one time (more magic!). Much of it in includes the story of women of Egypt who were second only in power to the Pharaoh. It has been fascinating to research these largely unknown women of power.

TWL: Can you give aspiring authors words of advice towards getting published?

Lynn: Don't quit. If you love writing, it's going to be hard to keep going. Don't let the jerks make you stop! Those rejection slips will pile up and can make you break down and cry. I have sobbed on several occasions when agents or editors decided to be downright nasty. But I just dug my fingernails in and kept going. There is no way I'm going to stop, because writing is what I do.

TWL: What’s one thing about your life that you think is important, but nobody asks?

Lynn: My spirituality. No one knows that I am a highly spiritual person and that I meditate, do Reiki, do affirmations, and pray. I may not be a typical religious person, but I also am very full of gratitude and never fail to express that to God.

TWL: Thank you for coming, Lynn! If you'd like to visit Lynn at her home on the web, visit http://www.lynnvoedisch.com/ and if you'd like to watch the book trailer for her book, Excited Light, click here!

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