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Please welcome author Chris Eboch to our Q & A discussion. Chris writes a variety of genres for all ages. Her children’s books include the Haunted series for ages 8-12, which follows a brother and sister who travel with their parents� ghost hunter TV show. Other books by Chris Eboch include The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery set in ancient Egypt, In The Well of Sacrifice, set in the Mayan empire, and Advanced Plotting, a writers guide.
Plus, she has written (under the name M.M. Eboch) the inspirational biographies, Jesse Owens: Young Record Breaker and Milton Hershey: Young Chocolatier for Simon & Schuster’s Childhood of Famous Americans series, written.
Website:

Ms. Eboch also writes novels for adults under the name Kris Bock. Her new romantic suspense series features treasure hunting adventures in the Southwest. Learn more at

Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ Profile: Chris Eboch

Hi Chris!! I'm first! YAY!!!

Ok, so, are your ghosthunter books based on personal experiences with the supernatural?

Hi Chris, So many genres. Which is your favourite?

Where do you get your storylines from? I know that sounds naive but can you recall any specific example of what caused a particular plot to germinate?

Hi Mhairi, thanks for your enthusiasm!

I haven't had any personal experiences with the supernatural. The closest is when I was in England during college. I visited an old church and wandered through the graveyard -- lots of ancient tombstones falling down, which I found very peaceful. Then I came around the corner to a new area with recent graves, all clean and modern. I felt this wave of grief, like people wailing. But I don't think I was sensing ghosts. If anything, I think I was picking up on emotion left behind by grieving mourners who had been there for a funeral or who visited the graves.

My ghost books are based on "real" ghost stories, though, to a certain extent. For example, I read about a woman steamboat pilot who is supposed to still haunt the steamboat she ran. She was a teetotaler, and after her death the steamboat started serving alcohol. On its first run, it crashed, and they blamed her ghost.

In the second book in the Haunted series, The Riverboat Phantom, the ghost is a (male) steamboat pilot. But I made him responsible for a crash that killed passengers, so he would have a reason to stay behind needing to make up for his mistake.

In the interest of getting a few more questions going, let me tell you a few things about myself. I have 12 traditionally published children's books, including work for hire nonfiction and biographies, historical fiction (ninth-century Mayan times), and my paranormal series. I also recently self published a mystery set in ancient Egypt, for ages 8 to 12.

Last year, I started writing romantic suspense for adults, using the name Kris Bock so young readers wouldn't accidentally stumble across something inappropriate. (I don't have a lot of explicit sex, but things do get kind of steamy.) With my agent's support, I decided to go indie with these. The first, Rattled, is a treasure hunting adventure set in New Mexico. I'm hoping to get my second up next week. Whispers in the Dark... well, let me just give you the blurb, since I went to the trouble to come up with one:

A young archaeologist seeking peace after an assault stumbles into danger as mysteries unfold among ancient Southwest ruins. Can she overcome the fears from her past, learn to fight back, and open herself to a new romance?

I'm working on finalizing the cover art. We are down to choices on font style and color. If you'd like to take a look at some options and give me your opinion, please check them out at:

Chris, do you find it difficult to switch between writing for children and writing for adults?

A.F. wrote: "Chris, do you find it difficult to switch between writing for children and writing for adults?"

Not really. I don't suppose it's much different than writing in two genres, such as if you wrote contemporary and historical, or realistic and fantasy. You just sort of get into the right mindset when you start. I haven't tried to work on two different books simultaneously, though.

I also don't think my writing style is all that different. I like fast-paced, plot oriented books, whether for kids or adults. When writing for adults, I consciously try to put in more of the main character's thoughts, both to go deeper emotionally and to make the character more relatable. I think middle grade kids are happy to read books with lots of action and dialogue, and not much introspection or description.

The main challenge in writing my first adult novel was the length. I'd never written anything over 35,000 words before. I did a lot of planning and outlining ahead of time, to make sure I would have enough story. But still, when I got to about the 35,000 word mark, I got tired. I felt like I should be done! I had to take a few days off before digging back into it.

I also need to keep working on my villains. They tend to be nasty jerks, which is fine for a kid's novel, but in adult suspense novels I need to make sure the enemy seems serious and challenging enough.

One reason I started writing for grown-ups is that I was feeling a bit burned out with children's writing. I needed a change, and something new to stretch my mind and creativity. It turned out to be great fun, and I'm also more excited about writing for young people again after taking a break!

Hi Chris,
you are so prolific! Wow! Well done you! I think I may be echoing Bob's question, but what attracted you to writing about the supernatural? And what prompted you to start with children's fiction?
Had a quick peek at your cover designs. They look cool. My preference is for the cover with either the blue or the white writing. Although for the spine I would try to chose a colour which stands out when placed sideways on a shelf - white on red, or blue on white etc but not blue on black, if that makes sense!

Bob wrote: "Where do you get your storylines from? I know that sounds naive but can you recall any specific example of what caused a particular plot to germinate?"

Often I have trouble remembering where I got ideas. When something catches my attention, I make a note and keep it in my idea file (really a recipe card file). By the time I get around to writing it, I may not remember where it came from!

However, I can tell you about a couple of them. I read something about a 1950s bank robbery in Washington state. It mentioned that a boy had met the bank robbers hiding in the woods, but didn't tell anyone. I started to ponder why. One of the robbers was a woman. I got the idea that this 12-year-old boy might have had a crush on this young woman, and wrote an adventure novel (not yet published) about a boy who meets mysterious strangers in the woods and agrees to keep their presence a secret, even when he suspects they are up to something.

For my Mayan middle grade novel, The Well of Sacrifice, I got the inspiration when I was traveling through Mexico and Central America. At Chichen Itza in the Yucatán, I stood at the edge of a cenote, a natural limestone pit they used as a sacrificial well. I imagined being thrown off the cliff into the water. I also got interested in the question of why the Mayan people abandoned their cities. These two elements developed into my book about a girl who fights back when the high priest tries to take over in the last days of a great Mayan city.

My adult romantic suspense novel Rattled involves a real legend of a long-lost treasure, the Victorio Peak treasure. All the modern-day details are made up, but I like the idea of exploring the wilderness, hunting for historic treasures.

My upcoming romantic suspense, Whispers in the Dark, was inspired by a visit to Hovenweep National Monument in the four corners area. It just seemed like such a picturesque and isolated place to set mysterious happenings!

So I often get ideas from places, or from little stories or historic events.

Jeanette wrote: "Hi Chris, So many genres. Which is your favourite?"

I somehow missed some of these questions earlier, so I'm trying to catch up now!

I really love historical fiction, and I enjoy the research. However, it's hard to sell historical fiction for young people these days, especially the ancient eras and foreign cultures I prefer. And all that research is a lot of work! The paranormal kids books are just plain fun, especially since I already did the hard work of developing the characters and world, so now I can just focus on specific adventures.

For some reason I've had no desire to write historical or paranormal books for adults... yet. But I do like to keep taking on new challenges.

A couple of years ago I realized I had largely stopped reading children's books, and was mainly reading romance, especially romantic suspense. I'd been thinking about writing an adult novel for a while, so took that as my cue that it was time to do so. I feel like I have two work harder on my "grownup" books, which is intimidating, but it's also exciting to stretch myself and try new things.

That's my long way of saying I don't really have a preference! One thing I love about writing is the variety. I've had friends who are PhD students and I always think, I could never spend 5+ years studying one narrow focus of one area. With writing I get to explore all kinds of things. I met a falconer last year, and I'm writing a couple of nonfiction articles about falconry and also using it in my next novel. And when something else interests me, I can move on to that!

Marianne wrote: "What attracted you to writing about the supernatural? And what prompted you to start with children's..."

I don't really believe in ghosts, but I love ghost stories. It's that part of me that wants to believe there is something more, mysteries yet to solve. I've always enjoyed children's books with ghosts, and I like a good romantic suspense with ghosts as well (Barbara Michels has done a lot), though I don't particularly like other paranormal elements like vampires, werewolves and fairies.

As for starting with children's books, it was kind of an accident... after studying photography at the Rhode Island School of Design, I realized I didn't want to be a photographer, but I'd gotten interested in writing through the school paper. I studied professional writing and publishing at Emerson College, hoping to go into magazine journalism. I moved to New York City and started looking for jobs.

I needed something to do between writing resumes and working temp jobs, so I started a novel. A 200-page middle grade novel seemed less intimidating than a longer adult novel, and I've always enjoyed middle grade adventure stories. Plus, I had that idea about a Mayan girl thrown into a well of sacrifice....

I was really lucky to sell the first novel I wrote. (I've failed to sell a lot of them since then.) If I hadn't sold The Well of Sacrifice, I might not have stuck with children's novels for so long. But it's a good fit for me, because my journalism training and own preference for fast pacing work well for that age group.

What made you decide to go from traditionally publishing your books to self publishing? With the poor economy I know a lot of agents and traditional publishing companies are taking on less new authors and so many are turning to self publishing but what specifically influenced your decision? Also, what have been the benefits that you've experienced from self publishing?

Hi Chris, I have a question that's more about your publishing experiences than your book. I liked the idea of your Egypt mystery and have a young friend who likes mysteries, so I clicked through to Barnes and Noble to check price etc. How do you go about getting B & N to carry your self-published book on their shelves? That's great!

Judith wrote: "How do you go about getting B & N to carry your self-published book on their shelves?"

I did POD with Amazon (CreateSpace) and the paperback books automatically showed up on Barnes and Noble. I assume they are ordering them from Amazon. For e-books, you can publish on Smashwords and they'll distribute it to other outlets, but I set up separate accounts for Kindle and B&N so the payments come to me directly.

Laekan wrote: "What made you decide to go from traditionally publishing your books to self publishing? "

After publishing the first three of my Haunted books, the publisher dropped the series, seemingly due to internal politics. I already had a fourth manuscript nearly printed, so I started exploring self-publishing. Ironically, I haven't done that one yet, but as I explored, I thought of other projects that could work.

I've had the Egypt manuscript for years and gotten very good feedback on the story, but questions about the marketability, or the comment "We already have an Egypt book." Yet several teachers told me they wished they could get it for the classroom. Since I had some connection to teachers through The Well of Sacrifice, I decided to give The Eyes of Pharaoh a try through self-publishing.

In the meantime, I finished my first romantic suspense, Rattled. My agent liked it and thought he could sell it, but he didn't have a lot of connections in the romance genre. And I knew it would take a couple of years to get into print, and I probably wouldn't get much of an advance.

Everything I was reading about self-publishing made it sound like a better option -- *if* you could hang around for the long haul, publish multiple books, publicize them, and get lucky. But most of those requirements are true for traditional publishing as well. At least with self-publishing, I have more control, and the potential for more money in the long run.

It's a gamble, and too early to say whether or not it will pay off -- but even working in traditional publishing as a full-time author, with a dozen traditionally published books, I've only had one year that I made close to $25,000 (the year I sold the three books Haunted series). Most years I have made $12-18,000, and a large part of that is from writing articles, teaching, and doing private paid critiques. It wasn't too hard to try and other path.

The benefits so far have been learning new skills, having more control, and seeing a book in print that I don't think would have made it otherwise. And avoiding the waiting game of submissions and not hearing back for months or years!

So far, I haven't made a lot of money, but the income is "trending upward" and I expected it to take time. I think it will help to release my second romantic suspense, and hopefully get a couple more out in the next year. I've also been doing pretty well with my writing craft book, Advanced Plotting. I have some reputation as a writing teacher and workshop leader, so that has helped sales.

Advanced Plotting

Chris you've written about ancient Egypt and the Mayans. Is there another historic era or culture that you would like to explore in future books?

Chris wrote: "Judith wrote: "How do you go about getting B & N to carry your self-published book on their shelves?"

I did POD with Amazon (CreateSpace) and the paperback books automatically showed up on Barnes ..."

I've been having a similar experience with my first manuscript. I'll be graduating from Texas Tech in a couple of weeks and last semester I took an individual studies class in which I had to complete the first draft of a manuscrcipt. It's Latin Historical Fiction and crosses over between Adult and Young Adult. I've sent out numerous queries and many of the responses have been that the story sounds interesting but that it doesn't quite fit with what their particular agency typically represents.

With your book The Eyes of Pharaoh, what sort of tactics are you using to market it? And who are you focusing on marketing it to?

Self publishing seems to be a good choice for writers of niche fiction but how and where do you find readers for your work?

Since the manuscript I've completed is heavily influenced by Latin American culture I've been searching online for hispanic book groups, other hispanic writers, and hispanic groups on good reads but it has been very difficult and I haven't found avenues for marketing in the future. What's your advice for marketing toward niche groups?

Also, you've mentioned your agent several times in your discussion, and I was wondering how essential your agent has been in your self publishing process and if you think it's important for self-published authors to find an agent.

And one more question (sorry I'm asking so many), I noticed in your last comment, that you said you self published through Create Space. Can you talk a little more about what that experience was like and how difficult or simple it has been for you to self publish? There are so many options out there for writers to self publish and it's hard to know which one is the best choice.

Thanks for answering our questions!

A.F. wrote: "Chris you've written about ancient Egypt and the Mayans. Is there another historic era or culture that you would like to explore in future books?"

The Inca are fascinating as well. I'm not so sure about the Aztec, as they were pretty violent. Ancient Greece is also cool. I love The Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner, set in a fantasy world similar to the Mediterranean in the Grecian era. It might be fun to try something like that, an alternative reality inspired by history.

Obviously my interests are more ancient, foreign cultures. I haven't been as interested in American history. I think this is partly because of the teachers I've had -- those teaching world history were more interesting. And it's also a lot because my family lived in Saudi Arabia when I was in grade school, and we traveled a lot. Apparently when we were in Greece when I was six, I trailed after the elderly British lady who was our tour guide and hung on her every word. That early exposure to cultures in Europe and the Middle East stayed with me.

Laekan wrote: "With your book The Eyes of Pharaoh, what sort of tactics are you using to market it? And who are you focusing on marketing it to?

I'm not doing an enormous amount of marketing for that one, as I think my marketing energy is better spent focusing on the adult romantic suspense. But I have posted information about it on Facebook, where a lot of my friends are children's book writers, parents, and/or teachers.

I e-mailed all the teachers who have previously contacted me because they are using my Mayan novel, The Well of Sacrifice, in the classroom, to let them know about The Eyes of Pharaoh. One teacher told me she'd ordered six copies for her lit circles. I'm hoping word may spread if those teachers find the book works well in the classroom.

I got the book posted on a site that lists historical fiction novels for kids, and mentioned in a newsletter for cheap Kindle books for kids.

I've been doing a lot of guest blog posts, and also offering free articles to local writing newsletters. I'll mention whichever of my books are appropriate in the context of what I'm discussing. I'll mention them in rating workshops I do as well. People don't seem to mind this, because I use my books to illustrate specific techniques, so it doesn't come across as just pushing for sales.

In my writing craft book, Advanced Plotting, I use excerpts from several of my books to illustrate specific points, such as proper pacing for cliffhanger chapter endings, or developing your theme. Again, it's just a way to make people more aware. Lots of kids -- and teachers and other adults -- are fascinated by ancient Egypt, so just hearing about the book means some of them are going to want to check it out.

Laekan wrote: "What's your advice for marketing toward niche groups?

Marketing is always hard. At least with niche groups you have some kind of focus. You need to figure out where they hang out, where they get their news, how they buy their books and so forth. If there are magazines or newsletters that target them, see if you can get your book reviewed, or if you can offer an article or other useful content in a way that will help you mention your book. If they use discussion boards or specific social networking sites, try to be active there.

I'm afraid that Latinos seem to be a hard group to reach, according to a lot of what I've heard. A few years ago there was a big push to publish more Latino books, because of the growing market segment, but a lot of publishers have pulled back on that because the books weren't selling well enough. Latinos don't tend to buy a lot of books, because they'll lend one copy to a lot of people.

It sounds like you're doing many things right. But maybe you shouldn't focus too much on Hispanic groups. Think about looking for people who are interested in historical fiction in general, or who may be interested in Latin America but aren't themselves Hispanic. Don't limit yourself to just one niche!

I'll get to your remaining questions in a little while -- must go eat dinner!

Laekan wrote: I was wondering how essential your agent has been in your self publishing process and if you think it's important for self-published authors to find an agent.

My agent didn't really help with self-publishing. He supported me in my decision to go in that direction, but we've only worked together on traditional projects. I don't think it's important for a self-published author to find an agent -- and would probably be difficult to do so. Once you've had some success, an agent can help you sell foreign rights, movie rights, or whatever, but I doubt many agents are going to want to take on clients who are focused on self-publishing and don't yet have big sales.

you self published through Create Space. Can you talk a little more about what that experience was like and how difficult or simple it has been for you to self publish?

Using CreateSpace was pretty easy. You don't have to pay, unless you use their services (editorial, proofreading, design, etc.) and the process is straightforward. I have some advantages when it comes to self-publishing, because I have a lot of contacts in the industry. I was able to trade a manuscript critique for proofreading, saving me a lot of money. I know people who do illustration and design, and I worked out inexpensive deals there.

The big challenge for self publishers is putting together a professional looking book, if you don't have a lot of money to spend. But I would highly recommend getting a professional critique, or professional content editing (not just copy editing or proofreading) before you try to go that route, unless you've had a lot of feedback from professionals that your book is ready to go.

Authors are often poor judges of their own work, especially writers who haven't already been working in the industry for a long time. I've worked with hundreds of students and only about one percent of manuscripts were worthy of publication when I first saw them. Maybe 20 percent would have been worth publishing after major revisions.

It takes a long time to learn how to write well! Too often writers try to rush the process, and that's why the market is flooded with mediocre self-published books, and why traditional publishing houses find so few worthy manuscripts in the slush pile.

Self-publishing has opened up wonderful new avenues for writers to reach readers, but it's not nearly so easy as some proponents make it sound. It's important to do lots of research and have realistic expectations. And to have patience with the process! I'm hoping that within two years of the time I started self-publishing, I'll have six books published and be making enough money to help pay a substantial portion of my bills. That's going to take hard work and some luck. I don't expect to get rich quick, and I don't see self-publishing as an easy way to get around the hurdles of traditional publishing.

We should write first because we love it, because success is not guaranteed, no matter which path you take. But if you love the writing, you know you'll get that enjoyment from the process.

(Sorry if this sounds a bit discouraging about publication, but I see a lot of optimism turn into disappointment when people don't understand what they're getting into.)

Thanks to everyone who asked questions, or just read.

Thank for doing it, Chris! I had a couple questions but they were asked already.

Splitter

Thanks for stopping by, Splitter. I have it set to e-mail me if anybody else posts in this thread, so if anyone does still have a question, feel free to ask.