Ask ishy

[ishy]

Mistborn. Also my favorite book series. I haven't convinced anybody to play it with me yet, though.

[Deepfreeze32]

That is the story of my life...all my Pen and Paper-playing friends only like DnD. I'd really like to try Shadowrun or Call of Cthulhu, but I guess you can't win them all...

Windows, Mac, or Linux/Unix?

[ishy]

We do play Shadowrun sometimes, and I like it. Not a big horror fan, so not sure I'd like CoC. I loathe dungeon fantasy unless it's in a computer game, and even then, I'm getting tired of those.

I've always used PCs, so I'm used to Windows, but I am considering buying a Mac laptop right now for work. I am not much of a flag waver in general. I go with what seems the most logical for the situation.

[Deepfreeze32]

We do play Shadowrun sometimes, and I like it. Not a big horror fan, so not sure I'd like CoC. I loathe dungeon fantasy unless it's in a computer game, and even then, I'm getting tired of those.

Dungeon fantasy is kind of wearing on me...so I feel ya. I've been trying to get a Vampire or Werewolf group going here, but the guys just can't get their schedules worked out...

I've always used PCs, so I'm used to Windows, but I am considering buying a Mac laptop right now for work. I am not much of a flag waver in general. I go with what seems the most logical for the situation.

Wise words. More people could stand to think like that. I'm an odd duck: I use Windows for gaming, Mac for personal programming and school, and Linux for work (web and servlet development).

Speaking of...what do you do as your work, and why would a Mac be a good choice for it?

[ishy]

I've always been a gamer, and was a college student for a long time, so Windows was the most logical choice until now.

I'm a self-published novelist. Most of the software is for Mac, like InDesign, and many of the conversion processes work a little better on a Mac. I do use Photoshop for covers, but it's a really old version. They now have a Windows version of Scrivener, but I've heard the Mac version is still better. I love Scrivener.

[Deepfreeze32]

I cannot claim to be a good writer, but I do have the Mac copy of Scrivener. While I've never tried the Windows version, it's a very, very slick piece of software.

What kind of novels do you write?

[ishy]

The honest answer to that question is "Whatever I feel like at the moment." I am never at a loss for ideas, only time to do them.

I have a secular, but family friendly, spy novel called Surfer Girl published at most major retailers, and the second of that trilogy, Rebel, is about to come out. When I finish this one, I'm going back to work on the first of a Christian family drama novella series, which will be under a different pseudonym. They will be short, fun, and easy to write, sort of Gilmore Girls meets Glee from a Christian perspective. After I do one or two of those, I'm going to finish the third spy novel.

I have three novels on the backburner. One is a Christian young adult novel that has themes of female geekdom as Christians. I'm really not sure if I'm going to get back to that one. I also have a secular YA middle grades about a boy whose mother disappears in space and he goes after her. I have some interest from an editor in a big house for that one, but my heart really isn't in it. I keep hoping maybe I'll get a revelation or something about it and want to go back to it. The last is a secular YA sci fi about a planet based on an established colony of Savannah, Georgia. They try to recreate Old South culture (missing the mark quite a bit, along with hiding a lot of sordid history). The planet comes under attack by a bunch of different groups for a resource only that planet has. I will go back to that one, but I wasn't ready as a writer to really meet that challenge. I'm getting there now, but I really want to finish the spy trilogy and get a few of the novella series out.

[brandon1984]

Fascinating, great to see another creative mind join ccgr forums! Have you ever considering adapting your stories to movie scripts?

[ishy]

I've never even read a movie script, so I wouldn't want to insult screenwriters by anything I attempted.

[Sstavix]

Congrats on publishing your works! I hope I can be in the same category sometime. Can your novels be found on Amazon?

[Chozon1]

Answer me this: What happened to the boy upon the slaying of the Jabberwock?

[ishy]

Congrats on publishing your works! I hope I can be in the same category sometime. Can your novels be found on Amazon?

Thank you! Surfer Girl is on pretty much all retailers, but here's the link on Amazon and iTunes. Rebel will be out in a few weeks, hopefully. It's in beta readings right now. It's from a male character's point of view who plays a large part in Surfer Girl.

Answer me this: What happened to the boy upon the slaying of the Jabberwock?

He left it dead, and with its head,
he went galumphing back.

[brandon1984]

What are some of your approaches to initiating a writing project? Do ideas just pop into your head, or is it a gradual accumulation of ideas?

[EchoDelta]

How does one become a self-published writer? I've been writing a memoir about a specific event in my life but I've often wondered about how to get it published whenever I finish it plus it needs a great deal of editing.

[ishy]

What are some of your approaches to initiating a writing project? Do ideas just pop into your head, or is it a gradual accumulation of ideas?

I dreamed the spy series. Whole first section of Surfer Girl was nearly straight from my dream. Seriously. Otherwise, I get ideas from all sorts of things, from other media, to "If I were going to do this genre so I would like it, what would I do?", to seeing something somewhere (a tiny door in a hotel inspired one), to coming up with a character first and then putting them in a story. I keep a file on Scrivener (my writing program) that is all story ideas. It has about 60 or so now. I do tend toward more action-based stories, though I'm trying to branch out a bit.

How does one become a self-published writer? I've been writing a memoir about a specific event in my life but I've often wondered about how to get it published whenever I finish it plus it needs a great deal of editing.

Editing is the worst part of the process to me. I started editing the day after instead of waiting to the end, and that really helped me, but everybody kinda has to try things and see if they work for them. It also helps me, after I do major structural changes, to get the draft printed triple-spaced and go through it line by line. I have to admit I don't know much about memoir, that may have some special tips that just searching for online guides might help.

I learned a lot just by reading articles about self publishing. A few places to start are Dean Wesley Smith and The Passive Voice.