One of my favourite parts of being an author is meeting and chatting with other authors, and I have the greatest pleasure in introducing my next guest Amanda Donnelly all the way from Ireland. One day I plan to visit and I hope Amanda we will get the chance to meet. 
Thanks for having me here
Jen. First off, I’ll introduce myself. My name is Amanda Donnelly, but I
publish under my maiden name of Amanda J Evans. I turned 40 in July and writing
has been my dream forever. I am a wife and mom and I live in a small village in
Co. Meath, Ireland.
1.
What
made you decide to start writing?
There was no decision made really.
I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I wrote my first book, The Little Elf Fairy when I was nine,
and even sent it off to Penguin J My first
rejection letter too. My life took a dramatic twist in 1990 when I lost my
father to suicide and with him went all my dreams and aspirations. Life just didn’t
seem to have meaning anymore and I rambled my way through my teenage years
writing poetry as a means of coping. I didn’t pursue my dream of being an
author and went to work in the local hospital as part of the administration
staff where I remained for ten years. During that time, I scribbled down
stories and poems at times but this was solely for myself and a means of
expressing emotions that would otherwise have remained trapped inside. Things
changed after the birth of my daughter and getting internet connection. I
discovered that you could write and get paid for it. I didn’t have the
confidence to write for myself so I began ghostwriting articles, eBooks,
website content for others. It paid and there was no fear of rejection. By the
time 2006 came around and my son was born, I was able to quit my day job and
become a stay at home mom. I continued to write website content for several
companies and still do today. In March 2016, I joined a local writers group and
that was the start of major changes for me. Picking up my pen and writing
fiction felt like going home and I realized how much I had missed this part of
me. I wrote for our weekly prompts and this was my commitment to myself. Fast
forward a year later and I had published my first fiction book, Finding
Forever, and I was in the finishing stages of my second novel Save Her Soul.
They say life begins at forty and for me I think my writing life is just
starting too.
2.
Do
you belong to any writer groups of organizations?
I belong to several writing groups on
Facebook. I was a member of the local writers group where I live, but after
securing a publishing deal I found I no longer had the time to commit to this.
3.
Do
you have a routine you stick to every day or do you wait for inspiration to strike?
In July 2016, I began the page a day
challenge. This is where I committed to writing a page every day for the month.
Although I didn’t get to write every day, I did manage to get 31 pages
completed during the month. The goal was to complete a number of short stories
and I choose one that I had started. It was 1,500 words when I started the
challenge and as the days went by and I started writing, it developed and
became Finding Forever my first book. In August 2016, I kept to the page a day
challenge. Every morning for 10 minutes I picked up my pen and notebook and
wrote. Some days I wrote four or five pages, some days just the one, but I
stuck with it and still do it to this day. It has been the best thing ever and
I no longer end my day chastising myself for not writing.
4.
How
do you plot your story?
To be completely honest, I don’t
plot. I just pick up my pen and write whatever comes to mind and then continue
each day until the story is told. I tried plotting once when I was going to do
NaNoWriMo. I spent two weeks plotting out the novel I was going to write and I
was thrilled with my progress. When the day to start writing arrived, I picked
up my pen and something completely different happened. My MC who I plotted as a
female, turned out to be male. I decided to just let the writing flow. I wrote
22,000 words during that month and although the novel has never been finished,
I did learn that plotting just doesn’t work for me. I write as if I am watching
a movie in my head and I allow the characters to tell me their story. So far it
seems to have worked out really well.
5.
Are
character names important to you in your novel?
Yes. I like to try and match the
names to the character, but I must admit, sometimes coming up with names can be
difficult.
6.
Which
POV do you prefer to write?
I tend to write in first person POV
as it seems to be what is natural for me. I do write in third person POV at
times too. In both of my books, Finding Forever and Save Her Soul, I have
written in first person POV with alternating chapters for my two main
characters and readers have enjoyed this. For the book of children’s spooky
short stories that I have been contracted to write, the stories are a mix of
first and third person POV’s.
7.
What
is the genre you write?
My genre is romance but it tends to
cross over into a number of subgenres. Finding Forever is romantic
suspense/women’s fiction and Save Her Soul is paranormal/urban fantasy romance.
Romance is the main theme that runs through my books along with the premise
that good always defeats evil. My books have a happy ever after.
8.
What
are the pro’s and con’s of being published traditionally versus being an
indie-author?
This one is a little difficult for me
to answer as I don’t have the experience of both yet. Being an Indie author
gives you complete control over everything, but it is hard, especially
marketing. I do have a two-book publishing deal with a children’s publisher in
America and they have been fantastic to work with so far. I love that fact that
they do the editing and I have been involved in all decisions including the
cover design. The first of these books is due for publication later this year
and is aimed at 9 – 16 year olds.
9.
How
do you balance writing, promoting and attending events to get your books before
readers?
Again, this is quite difficult as a
new Indie author and I am learning that marketing and promoting is essential. I
haven’t attended any events yet. I write in the morning and try to devote an
hour to promoting on social media before I begin work each day. It’s a steep
learning curve, but I am enjoying the process so far.
10. How important do you think covers are
and how involved in the process are you?
I think covers a super important.
They are the first things readers see and if they don’t like it, they won’t
pick your book up. In today’s digital market, covers are even more important
and they are the first thing potential readers will see. You cover has to stand
out whilst still reflecting your genre. I’ve been completely involved in the
design of mine and have been lucky to find amazing cover designers who got my
stories and created the perfect covers.
11. Best tips aspiring authors?
If I’ve learned anything over the
past year, it’s to have confidence in yourself and learn as much as you can.
Get advice from the experts, test all the different marketing possibilities and
find what works for you. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t hit the NY Times
best sellers list, this isn’t going to happen with your first book. Don’t feel
disappointed in lack of sales either, just keep writing the next book. Spend
time and money on editing and cover design and don’t publish anything until you
are 100% happy with it. Join writing groups and get to know other writers. The
Indie community can be amazingly supportive so don’t be afraid to ask for help
and advice.
12. Aside from writing what do you enjoy
doing in your spare time?
Spare time is usually family time for
me. I have a 14-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son, as well as my
husband, so we like to relax, watch movies, and take our dog for long walks.
For me, I love to read and take very long hot baths. This is my down time, and
I love reading new books and finding new authors to follow. I also love to eat
out and spend some quality time with my husband when we can.
13. How do you cope with stress, bad
reviews or days when nothing seems to work and your question if you should be
writing at all?
When this happens, I know I need a
time out and that is usually when I call on good friends or family for a
catchup and a day out. This helps me get everything back into perspective. If I
can’t do that I journal and that helps to clear my mind. I haven’t received a
bad review, touch wood I don’t, but I did have an editor who totally tore my
books to shreds and hated my main character. She was the only person, the
editor that I chose to go with loved the book as did all my beta readers. They
wanted more and that is how this book has ended up being a series. I think with
negative reviews, you have to remember that your writing won’t be for everyone.
There are books from famous authors that I haven’t enjoyed and ones that I have
loved. If the review is relevant and honest, I feel everyone is entitled to
their opinion. I just try to remind myself, that I am doing what I love and I
can’t please everyone.
14. What is the BEST part about being an
author?
Getting to be me. I love nothing more
than to pick up my pen and let the words flow onto paper. It makes me feel
whole and can instantly transform a bad mood. I love creating characters and
stories and sharing them with the world. The best part for me so far has been
holding the paperback in my hands and seeing my name on the cover. There have
been a few others too, being nominated for a 2017 Summer Indie Book Award and
making the list of 98 Best Books of 2017 according to Goodreads users. Finding
Forever was voted #93.
15. How important do you feel reviews are
and how to you encourage readers to leave one?
Reviews for Indie authors are so
important. The more reviews you have the more sales that follow and the more
Amazon will actually promote your book too. It’s hard to get them, but I do add
a little note at the end of my books asking readers to consider leaving a
review if they have time.
16.
Tell us about your books, where they can
be found and ways readers can stay in touch?
I have two books available at the
moment. Finding Forever was published on the 31st January 2017, and
is a romantic suspense novella. Save Her Soul is my latest novel and this is a
paranormal/urban fantasy romance. My books are available on Amazon in eBook and
paperback formats.
Finding Forever tells the story of
Liz and Charles. The story begins with Liz waking up on the beach in her
tattered wedding dress believing that Charles has died in her arms. There are a
lot of twists and turns in this book as Liz races to rescue Charles and
confront demons from her past. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MY9IPZG
Save Her Soul is my latest book
releasing on the 1st of August 2017. This is the story of Kate and
Drake. I loved writing this book. Kate is strong, feisty, and very stubborn.
Reeling from the murder of her sister, she is determined to have her revenge.
Little does she realise, that her revenge could end the world. Kate’s soul was
cursed almost five hundred years ago and evil resides inside of her. Drake’s
mission is to save her soul and bring her back to the light, but he himself has
other ideas and wants to let her rage loose. The official description for this
book is:
Can
Love Survive When Evil Exists?
Almost a year after the brutal murder
of her sister, Kate’s world is anything but ordinary. Consumed by the rage in
her soul there's nothing she won't do to get her revenge.
Drake’s no ordinary guy. Dead for
nearly 500 years, he’s been tasked with saving Kate’s soul but he has a mission
of his own: to ensure she gets what she wants so that he can take her soul to
hell. He’ll stop at nothing to see her succeed, but their fates are tied and
love may stand in his way.
As secrets are revealed, can one cursed soul end it all? Is love strong enough to overcome evil and break the curse that binds them both?
Find out in this new paranormal
romance by Amanda J Evans.
💕) LIVE✶
