Ask the Author: Lisa Shea
Answered Questions (14)
Lisa Shea
Review exchanges are explicitly against the rules of pretty much every book system that is out there. A review exchange innately provides incentive for each reviewer to artificially improve what they say because they are expecting something beneficial in return.
No author should ever participate in a review exchange.
Amazon and other systems have software which actively seek out people who do review exchanges and those people can have their entire accounts removed.
No author should ever participate in a review exchange.
Amazon and other systems have software which actively seek out people who do review exchanges and those people can have their entire accounts removed.
Lisa Shea
I adore writing - it is what I do for fun. Where some people might plunk down in front of a TV for a few hours, I sit down to write. Where some people might go out to dinner, I curl up with a sandwich and write. So this is what I really love to do. It's never that I have to force myself to go and write. It's more that I have to drag myself away from writing when it's time to go do something on my calendar.
Some people talk about being distracted by chores. That would never happen to me! The house stays a mess and I blissfully write :).
Some people talk about being distracted by chores. That would never happen to me! The house stays a mess and I blissfully write :).
Lisa Shea
I'm so glad you enjoy that series! I have not yet written book 2 in that yet. I will be working on that soon!
Lisa Shea
There are so many interesting options out there. I think it's fair to say that no one couple embodies, for me, the various shades that exist with a real couple. But if I had to pick one I would probably lean toward Aragorn and Arwen, and more the version in the movie version where the relationship was fleshed out, compared with the book where she's almost an afterthought.
They are both mature and wise. They both have equal standing. They dedicate themselves to helping others and risk their lives for the greater good.
Arwen isn't looking to Aragorn to "rescue her" or "take care of her" or to manage her life. They want to stand side by side and guide their people to a better life.
They are both mature and wise. They both have equal standing. They dedicate themselves to helping others and risk their lives for the greater good.
Arwen isn't looking to Aragorn to "rescue her" or "take care of her" or to manage her life. They want to stand side by side and guide their people to a better life.
Lisa Shea
The key is to read, read, and read some more. The more you read the more you see what works in your chosen genre. The characters. The plots. The environments. You then make your own versions and can even go completely off the rails. But it's good to have a thorough understanding of the world first.
Then write! Write, write write. Don't worry about editing as you write. Simply write. Editing comes much later. Write your view of the world, whatever it is. There will definitely be readers who are interested.
Then write! Write, write write. Don't worry about editing as you write. Simply write. Editing comes much later. Write your view of the world, whatever it is. There will definitely be readers who are interested.
Lisa Shea
I always strongly believe that you should write what you want to write. Life is too short to miss out on amazing opportunities! I wouldn't create different pen names for every single genre - that creates an enormous overhead of maintaining multiple Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, GoodReads pages, WattPad pages, and so on. It can become a nightmare. It's hard enough to maintain the one set of everything properly. And, besides, someone who adores your romances might also adore your mysteries because it's your writing style that really has them hooked. And if someone just doesn't like dystopian, well, they don't read those. They just read the rest.
Plus it means you can update your pages regularly with your progress which is important in maintaining fan interest.
The only place I suggest splitting efforts in two is if you write adult content and then non-adult content. That way people who are OK with sex have their things they read and then the teens and clean-seeking readers have a separate area. It ensures the teens don't accidentally buy one of your super-racy stories and get upset.
Plus it means you can update your pages regularly with your progress which is important in maintaining fan interest.
The only place I suggest splitting efforts in two is if you write adult content and then non-adult content. That way people who are OK with sex have their things they read and then the teens and clean-seeking readers have a separate area. It ensures the teens don't accidentally buy one of your super-racy stories and get upset.
Lisa Shea
I love to write books that are set in a particular place. So for example with my cozy zoo mystery series I go to a local zoo. I walk around taking lots of photos, exploring the nooks and crannies, and watching the people. I look at the animals which are fairly unique to that zoo. I then develop a mystery based on what I see.
Another mystery I write involves art museums. So I go to the museum and explore what it has to offer. I think about what kind of art is at that museum which is unusual. I then think about a storyline based on that.
I write a mystery series set in diners - the traditional "train car" looking building that's long and rectangular. I'm fortunate to live near Worcester, MA where the Worcester Lunch Car company operated, so we have a number of these historic diners in the area. I love bringing them to life.
I highly recommend living and breathing the world as much as you can. Don't just read a Wikipedia page and then write based on someone else's dry words. If at all humanly possible, to go the place and breathe it in. You'd be amazed at the things you discover.
If you simply can't for some reason, do the best research you can. Go to as many places as you can which are similar. But the real deal is always best.
Also, consider writing books that are set close to home! Thousands of authors can write about "Vegas" who live in Minnesota and have never been there. Those books can seem cookie-cutter. But if that Minnesota author wrote a fabulous mystery or romance or whatever set IN Minnesota, the way they bring the story to life can make the result head and shoulders above anything else on the market.
Write what you know!
Another mystery I write involves art museums. So I go to the museum and explore what it has to offer. I think about what kind of art is at that museum which is unusual. I then think about a storyline based on that.
I write a mystery series set in diners - the traditional "train car" looking building that's long and rectangular. I'm fortunate to live near Worcester, MA where the Worcester Lunch Car company operated, so we have a number of these historic diners in the area. I love bringing them to life.
I highly recommend living and breathing the world as much as you can. Don't just read a Wikipedia page and then write based on someone else's dry words. If at all humanly possible, to go the place and breathe it in. You'd be amazed at the things you discover.
If you simply can't for some reason, do the best research you can. Go to as many places as you can which are similar. But the real deal is always best.
Also, consider writing books that are set close to home! Thousands of authors can write about "Vegas" who live in Minnesota and have never been there. Those books can seem cookie-cutter. But if that Minnesota author wrote a fabulous mystery or romance or whatever set IN Minnesota, the way they bring the story to life can make the result head and shoulders above anything else on the market.
Write what you know!
Lisa Shea
The absolute best way to get book reviews is to get high quality sales. That by far is the best way to get book reviews that will shine. Market, market, market to your target audience. Have a superb cover that makes them click. If your cover doesn't draw them in they'll never see the blurb or anything else. Once the reader gets to the blurb make sure it's powerful, action-word filled, and makes them WANT to read your story. Show, don't tell. Then, of course, make sure the story fits the impression you've made. If you're writing a clean story, make sure the cover is clear about that. If you're writing a thriller, ditto. You need to bring in the perfect reader. If you have a clean romance but your cover has a bare-chested guy you'll get complaints from readers who expected spicy heat. Make sure your entire message from cover to blurb to story is all perfectly united.
Sure, you can try to strong-arm people into writing reviews for you. But those reviews are rarely good ones. And review swaps and so on are fairly unethical and are banned by many systems. So by far the best route to take is to make sure your book content, blurb, and cover are all the very best they can be and in tune with one common message. Then market hard, daily, to drive your target audience to learn about your book.
Good luck!
Sure, you can try to strong-arm people into writing reviews for you. But those reviews are rarely good ones. And review swaps and so on are fairly unethical and are banned by many systems. So by far the best route to take is to make sure your book content, blurb, and cover are all the very best they can be and in tune with one common message. Then market hard, daily, to drive your target audience to learn about your book.
Good luck!
Lisa Shea
I write what I adore. These are my own private fantasy worlds that I'm sharing with others. So the most rewarding aspect of all of this is to hear that someone else relates to my world. That they love what I love. That the hero I adore is the type of hero they'd adore, too.
Since I donate much of my proceeds to battered women's shelters, it's also quite rewarding to think that something solely sprung out of my own brain is helping them to help others.
Since I donate much of my proceeds to battered women's shelters, it's also quite rewarding to think that something solely sprung out of my own brain is helping them to help others.
Lisa Shea
Because I adore so many different genres it's nearly impossible for me to get writer's block in an overall sense. I might not be in the mood to write a romantic scene - but I'm all for writing an angst-filled scene in my sci-fi story. If I'm feeling gentle and quiet I might write the next release in my cozy zoo short story series. So there's always something to work on!
But it's definitely good to keep the mind lubricated. I love creative outlets like photography, cyanotypes, Gelli prints, and more. It keeps all the aspects of inspiration active.
But it's definitely good to keep the mind lubricated. I love creative outlets like photography, cyanotypes, Gelli prints, and more. It keeps all the aspects of inspiration active.
Lisa Shea
As you can probably tell by the library of books I've written, I like all types of styles. I write medieval romance, cozy mystery, dystopian, science fiction, and more. So the authors I enjoy are equally diverse. Each has their own unique way of bringing their universe to life. It's not that those three authors are similar as much as that each one is wonderful at what they do. They each influence me in wholly different ways. What I adore about Austen's books is quite different from what I adore about Tolkein's worlds :).
Lisa Shea
I'm so sorry to hear that! I will ship out a fresh one right away. In fact I'll send you books 1 and 2 to apologize. Our mail seems to be a bit screwy. My Dad sent a box of family photos to my aunt and it vanished. I suppose in comparison at least I can send out a fresh book more easily! I'll do that first thing Monday.
Lisa Shea
I tend to work on multiple books at a time, so that there's always something matching my mood. If I'm joyful I can work on the joyful scene, if I'm contemplative I can switch to the other book, and so on. Right now I'm working on book 3 in my Sutton Massachusetts mysteries, book 3 in my 1800s Lumbee Indian series, and book 2 in my Blackstone Valley mysteries.
Lisa Shea
I was driving home from a science-fiction convention and looking at the rumble strip as I drove. I thought about the noise it made and wondered what would happen if someone used that noise to send a message. Many of my stories are like that - creative ideas that spring into my head while I'm meditating on life in general :).
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