Meet Author Adrienne Thompson

Bio:

Married at sixteen, a mother twice by seventeen, and thrice a mother and divorced by twenty-four, Adrienne Thompson is no stranger to adversity. Not your typical teenage mother, she went on to complete her college degree and to earn her nursing license. She attributes God’s faithfulness as the catalyst for her success in life. Now, having raised two children as a divorced mother, with a third fast approaching adulthood, she is chasing her dream of becoming a published author. Using the lessons that life has so expertly taught her as a guideline (betrayal, abusive relationships, self-esteem issues, witnessing the deteriorating effects of drug abuse), she has created stories that will both entertain and inspire the reader.  Learn more about Adrienne at: http://adriennethompsonwrites.webs.com/bio.htm

 

How long have you been writing?

I’ve written poetry for most of my life. I did not begin writing novels until 2009. 

How did you get started writing?

I always had a desire to write novels, but for years I convinced myself that I couldn’t do it. One day I found myself dissatisfied with where I was in life and believing that there was something more for me. After much thought and prayer, I found my true calling in writing. Five novels and 10,000 eBooks sold later, I’m much more satisfied with the direction of my life.

What's the best writing advice you've ever received?

I was once told not to be so concerned about word counts and to write as the story dictated—to write until the story is finished.  A good, complete story is more important than meeting a certain word-count quota.

What inspired you to write this book?

See Me is the story of Olivia Moy, the widow of a beloved and very celebrated author. When we first meet her, she is slowly losing the battle as she struggles to cope her husband’s untimely death. Concerned about her condition, her son insists on taking her to his home where she soon befriends his neighbor. It is not long before Olivia begins to divulge the secrets of her marriage, secrets that can destroy her husband’s legacy and her world. I was inspired to write See Me because of my experience with a brilliant, yet mentally ill relative.

Are you working on a new book?

I’m always working on the next book, lol. I’m currently working on two books: Little Sister (a companion novel to Been So Long—my second book) and Been So Long 2 (Body and Soul). 

 What does writing mean in your life?

Writing means everything to me. Even on those dark days when I feel like giving up or that I’m spinning my wheels and I’ll never reach my goals, I am still compelled to write. It has become second nature to me—a compulsion. I know I was put on Earth to do this.

Where can people purchase your book?

See Me is available on Kindle, Nook, and Kobo. Paperback coming soon.

Kindle: http://ow.ly/ePcsF

Nook:  http://ow.ly/ePcxS 

Kobo: http://ow.ly/eQd0T 

To Self Publish or Not

Whether to self publish or vie for traditional publishing is a question brought to the forefront because of the direction publishing is moving.

With fewer traditional publishers, more books written, and fewer readers, many traditional houses aren’t willing to work with unknown authors.

Authors need a platform with followers, a book marketing plan, and more laid upon the shoulders of authors, many authors feel that self-publishing is the way to get their book into the hands of readers.

If you self publish your book, how traditional will look upon your book if you decide to vie for a traditional publishing house in the future is a question only the publishing house can answer. Experience from some writers is that self-published books are akin to what we used to call vanity press books, pay money and they will publish anything as Amazon found out with blatant plagiarism of many titles that Amazon published, and then had had to remove when they finally knew it. Amazon’s reputation was hurt, and rightly so.

Why have reviewers been complaining about the quality of self-published books?

The complaints range from editing to grammar. Publishing houses once employed editors to clean up these problems for authors; this is no longer the case. Self-published book editing is now the purview of the author, and authors need professional editing. Don’t rely on software like spellcheckers and grammar checkers to find the errors.

A literary agent may cost writers thousands to have their book shopped to publishers. Many authors can’t afford these costs, and opt for self-publishing.

Ultimately, it is up to the individual author how to publish their baby. First, is to hire an editor that has no interest in the book other than making sure that they edit for typos, grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, redundancies,  over use of words like “and”, “or”, and “but”. Editors will notice these because they have no stake in the book other than making it the best book for the reader.

If an author such as James Paterson, David Baldacci, or Orson Scott Card wants a book published, most traditional publishers will take a chance, but are probably not willing to take on self-published authors or unpublished writers. Authors need to find creative ways to convince publishing houses to take a chance. One creative way is to create a well-written, well-edited book. Don’t forget a well-crafted proposal.

Robert Medak

Freelance Writer, Blogger, Editor, Proofreader, Reviewer, Marketer

http://rjmedak.wordpress.com

http://xeeme.com/RobertMedak