Indie Interview with @KatieLCarroll, author of Elixir Bound
Meet Katie L. Carroll
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy
Best Known for: Elixir Bound
Katie L. Carroll began writing at a
very sad time in her life after her 16-year-old sister, Kylene,
unexpectedly passed away. Since then writing has taken her to many
wonderful places, real and imagined. She wrote ELIXIR BOUND
and the forthcoming ELIXIR SAVED so Kylene could live on in the
pages of a book. Katie is also an editor for MuseItUp Publishing. She
lives not too far from the beach in a small Connecticut city with her
husband and son.
Thank
you for joining us today!
How
did you get started writing, and why did you want to write?
When I
was 19 and a sophomore in college, my 16-year-old sister unexpectedly
passed away. I went through a whole period of reevaluating what I
wanted to do with my life and came out the other end wanting to write
novels. Writing ELIXIR BOUND was a sort of mourning process for me,
and also a way for me to memorialize my sister in a book.
What made you decide to go the "indie" route?
I
think the “indie” route chose me. It was a long process to get my
first book published, and the publishing landscaped changed
drastically from when I sent out my first submission to when I
finally landed with the small, digital-first press MuseItUp. I’ve
enjoyed how going with a small press has allowed me to have lots of
input on the process (like the cover) that many authors with big
houses don’t have. Yet, I still have a team behind me and don’t
have to rely solely on myself for the whole process.
In my
YA fantasy ELIXIR BOUND, Katora
Kase must decide if she will become guardian of a secret healing
Elixir and bind herself to its magic. It’s available in paperback
and as an ebook. I’m working on a companion novel called ELIXIR
SAVED, in which three
who have been saved by the Elixir must decide how much they are
willing to sacrifice with their second chance at life.
I hope to have it ready to send to my publisher later this year.
I
also have a picture book app called THE BEDTIME KNIGHT out with a
company called MeeGenius. In this story, a
young mouse’s imagination runs wild and Daddy Knight charges in to
turn the scary sights of the night into fun imaginings.
Of
the stories you have out now, which is your favorite? Do you have a
favorite scene or character that stands out?
ELIXIR
BOUND was such a labor of love and I wasn’t sure if it would ever
get published, so I would have to go with it as my favorite. I love
all my characters, even the unsavory one. But, of course, Kylene, my
sister’s namesake and the character most inspired by her, would be
a stand out for me.
What would you like to tell your readers? What would you like to say
to potential readers?
To my
readers, thank you so much for choosing my book. It’s a leap of
faith when a reader picks up a book because you really don’t know
whether or not it will fulfill your hopes for it. I can only hope
that my books do that.
To
potential readers, buy my book! No, seriously, every author just
wants their words to be shared. We have stories inside of us that are
dying to get out. There is no better feeling than to have a new
reader.
There are many, many indie books and authors out there right now. How
do you work to stand out?
I just
plug away at this whole writing/author thing every day. I do the
whole social media thing and my best at marketing, like most authors.
I think the most important thing I can do is continue to work at
becoming a better writer, so my next book is always offering
something my previous book didn’t. I think growing as a writer is
the best way I can represent myself.
What's your favorite part about being an author (both as writer and
publishing books), and what's your least favorite part?
I love
when a new idea hits. The promise, the excitement of that moment.
Whether it’s an idea for a new story or a flash of inspiration that
makes a story I’m working on better, there’s really nothing quite
as thrilling for me as a writer.
Any
parting words?
Flibbertigibbet,
gobbledygook, and somnambulist. (Strange but real words.)
Thank you, Katie!
Bella
