author talks – Kris Wampler

J.A. Newman began writing later in life and is cultivating her marketing strategy. She discusses how her former career influenced her first novel, which came out in September.

1. Tell me briefly about your latest book – what is it about and what motivated you to write it?

Where There’s A Will is my début novel. Jess wants to find her perfect partner. Struggling to pay the bills and unsure of her future, Jess thinks all her dreams have come true when wealthy lawyer Giles Morgan stumbles in front of her motionless car one Monday morning. Eddie, Jess’s former boyfriend, has never stopped loving her or given up hope of them getting back together but he can’t hope to give her the lifestyle she craves. Will Jess choose a life of luxury or listen to her heart?

When I joined a creative writing course in 2008 little did I know that one evening I would create the protagonist and write the first page of my first novel.

2. How have your sales been?

The sales of my first book, No One Comes Close, a memoir, have been better than those of the novel. I have some wonderful reviews on Amazon for No One Comes Close which tells the story of young love, lost, then found again twenty years later. I published it in September 2017. I published Where There’s A Will in September 2018

3. You’ve gone the self-publishing route. Have you sought an agent or any work with traditional publishers? If not, why not? If so, what has been your experience with traditional publishing?

I have tried approaching agents and publishers but they seem to take so long in getting back to you. I am nearly 70 and time is running out!

T.L. Chasse has used author talks as a means of promoting her books. She discusses the pros and cons of self-publishing and how writing fan fiction has shaped her craft.

1. Tell me briefly about your latest book – what is it about and what motivated you to write it?

My latest book is called Oh, Henry, A Vintage, Maine Novel, about a young man named Henry Titan who discovers that he was adopted. He spends the summer in a small town called Vintage, Maine, trying to track down his birth mother. Henry also happens to have a condition called achondroplasia. During his adventurous summer, Henry gets tangled up in small-town gossip, lies and treachery – there may even be romance in the air.

I was motivated to write this book after watching Peter Dinklage (“Game of Thrones”) talk in an interview. He stated that it was always hard for a dwarf to find roles of real people – rather than playing an elf or a leprechaun. I decided then to feature a young man with dwarfism in a novel.

It has been a wonderful experience. I contacted the New England Chapter of Little People of America. One of their admin set me up with a sensitivity reader, whose feedback was tremendously helpful. I’m so excited to launch Oh, Henry and am looking at a spring release.

2. How have sales for your books been?

My sales have been relatively low; however, that is my own fault. I have not been very proactive with marketing and PR. But the feedback that I have received on my first two novels, as well as the few beta readers for Oh, Henry have all been very encouraging.

3. You’ve gone the self-publishing route. Tell me more about that and how you got into it.

When I first decided to write, it was mostly for myself, as a hobby. After having several close friends who I had shared my stories with request copies, I decided to look into a print-on-demand venue. I went through Createspace and have been very happy with it.