Indie Interview with author @KatinaFrench #SciFi + #GIVEAWAY!
Conversations with authors and writers from the self-publishing world.
Meet Katina French
Genre: Sci-Fi/Steampunk
Best Known for: The Clockwork Republics Series
I believe in real things. But my definition of "real" is quite expansive.
Dear Katina thank you very much for agreeing to
participate in the Indie Author Spotlight.
Thanks for inviting
me! I'm really excited. I'm a huge Firefly fan, so when I saw
an email from someone named Saffron my first reaction was “how
awesome is that?!”
How long have you been writing and how did you
get started?
I've loved writing
since I was very young. I remember asking my mom to help me write an
alphabet book when I was maybe five. I took every creative writing
class offered by my high school, and majored in English/Creative
Writing in college. However, I also married my high school sweetheart
at 18. He joined the military about two years into college, so we
spent some time moving around the world. We had two kids, and life
just sort of interrupted my writing for a really long time.
Then about two years
ago, I felt the call of the pen again. I joined a writer's group at
my local library. I got encouragement and tips from other published
authors in my small hometown. So I started writing again. This year,
I've been attempting to write and publish an eBook every month, just
to cement the writing habit really firmly. I've missed two months,
but I've also published 6 books! One as part of a small press
anthology, and Mirrors and Magic, which is my first full
length novel.
Your book Mirrors
and Magic, sounds like an interesting take on an old tale,
was this your first book? If not, what was your first published book
and did it do well?
It was my first full
length novel. It made it to #4 in the Kindle Store Top 100 Free
eBooks for Steampunk.
My first published
eBook was Big Teeth, set in the same alternate North America
as Mirrors and Magic, which I
call The Clockwork Republics. Big Teeth was a
retelling of “Red Riding Hood.” It's gotten some nice five star
reviews, and sells more consistently than my other books.
A year earlier, my
novella “Bitter Cold” was accepted as part of Echelon Press' Once
Upon a Clockwork Tale anthology. It was written a year before Big
Teeth, and came out in paperback and eBook in June. It debuted in
the Kindle Store Top 100 Bestsellers for steampunk.
“First book” is
kind of complicated for me, since the first one I wrote wasn't the
first one published, and the first one published wasn't a novel.
Tell us a little bit about Mirrors and Magic…
Mirrors and Magic
is a steampunk retelling of “Snow White.” It's set in 1908 in
a travelling circus. Neve is the daughter of the former star
performer, a magician. In The Clockwork Republics, alchemy is very
advanced, so stage magicians can sometimes pull off real magic. The
circus has fallen into decline after her father's death. Everyone is
intimidated by the new star, Bella Venezia, an acrobat, and the
strongman who is basically her henchman. There's also a charming and
dangerous knife thrower, Brendan the Prince of Blades, who has taken
an interest in Neve, and a mysterious fortune teller who calls
herself the Mirror of Destiny.
The main story is about whether Neve
can rescue the circus, uncover the mystery of her father's death, and
defeat the bad guys. But of course, since it's Snow White, there's
also a romantic subplot. Brendan's keeping secrets, and Neve doesn't
know if she can trust him. Also, there's a homicidal monkey who shows
up sporadically to cause mayhem. It's quite exciting.
How does this book differ from other Sci-Fi
novels?
As a Steampunk book,
it straddles the line between Sci-Fi and fantasy. It's really more
mad science than science fiction. At least one reviewer
has pointed out that my version of alchemy is advanced to the point
of being indistinguishable from magic. Which is sort of necessary
when you're retelling fairy tales. The clockwork and steam-powered
technology is really a background element. With so much going on in
the main plot and subplot, it would have been really hard to make the
technology more prominent, as it is in most Sci-Fi.
You’ve written and published a novel,
congratulations! How do you define ‘success’ in terms of being an
Indie author?
For me, success this
year is all about starting and finishing stories, and overcoming my
fear of putting my work out there. At this point, I've either sold or
given away over 2000 copies of my books (over 1000 of just Mirrors
and Magic!) And each new review from someone who says they
enjoyed my work is a success. I'm confident that sales will come with
time and effort. But for this year, success is about telling the
stories I want to tell, getting more experienced in my craft, and
becoming more confident in sharing those stories with others. I spent
nearly 20 years avoiding writing. Right now, just being able to do
this thing I love again is a success.
Do you have any special tips that you’d like
to share with other authors, regarding writing, marketing or
publishing?
Writing is about
coming prepared, but being open to the unexpected. Mostly, it's about
consistently showing up at the page, ready to work. Marketing is my
day job, and mostly that's about being friendly, honest and winsome.
Especially in social media, it's about being the best version of
yourself, and trusting that you'll attract people who like the way
you think, and thus like the stories you tell.
Publishing is a moving
target, and trying to keep up with it can become a gossipy time sink.
Or just lead to Kermit-flailing in panic with every shift in the wind
for the industry or Amazon. So pick a few level-headed and
trustworthy news sources, follow those, and focus on the work of
writing.
Why did you choose to write in the sci-fi
genre?
Because I love
imagining a different world, and that's the essence of sci-fi. Some
of my favorite comic books back when I collected were Marvel's “What
If” and DC's “Elseworlds” books. Even in the made-up world of
superheroes, I still love imagining different realities for
characters and settings I already know and love. I can “what if”
forever in sci-fi. “What if the American states never united?”
“What if slavery ended during the Revolutionary War, and the former
slaves were war heroes?” “What if there was no Civil War?”
Those are all questions I've explored in the Clockwork Republics
series, and probably my favorite element of writing it.
Do you also read? What sort of books?
I
read a lot! Mostly speculative fiction, but I'll read the occasional
literary fiction, romance or chick lit if it has a good hook. Right
now I'm reading The Lies
of Locke Lamora and I
love the humor, although it's not really a book I can share with my
kids. John Scalzi can pretty much just take my money whenever,
because Old Man's War and
Redshirts were
wonderful. Love some of the newer independent fantasy that is a
return to the more optimistic, light-hearted style of earlier years.
Things like Michael J. Sullivan's Ryria
books, and Marian
Allen's SAGE trilogy.
The one constant is that I look for humor. It can be gallows humor,
but I rarely enjoy a book if I don't laugh at least a few times
reading it.
How did you learn to write?
I was a grammar nerd
in school, and grew up on Schoolhouse
Rock, so I had good basic tools to start
with. Loved reading and collecting new words, so that gave me a nice
vocabulary. Beyond that, I just read a lot. You pick up things about
style and technique, and sort of file it away to try later. Or to
avoid later, in the case of something that doesn't work.
What are your thoughts on self-publishing vs.
traditional publishing?
I am not a very
patient person, and I believe in hard work and craftsmanship over
luck and knowing the right people. So traditional publishing, in the
“get an agent and pitch big publishers” sense, doesn't really
appeal to me. It's slow, and way too much depends on things that are
completely out of your hands. I like the simplicity and speed of
self-publishing.
That said, I'm increasingly intrigued with the
spectrum of options available to writers right now. Small presses and
digital-first imprints of traditional publishers are really stepping
into the gap between having to do absolutely everything, and having
to deal with all the baggage of agents and commercial print
publishing. Starting next year, I'm moving to a hybrid model, and
trying to make smart partnerships with digital and small presses to
handle the heavy lifting of editing, cover design and promotion so I
can focus on writing more.
Do you have any more books being released soon?
Hopefully!
I'm working on the second episode of my space adventure serial, Belle
Starr. There should be
three episodes total. I'm usually outlining one story, drafting one,
and editing one all at the same time. Belle
Starr 2 is in editing
right now.
Is there anything you’d like to say to your readers?
THANK YOU!!! I've always loved telling stories, but knowing there are people who love reading them just as much is a double gift. And get in touch! I'm professionally easy to find on the internet. I love getting comments and emails from readers.
Is there anything else you’d like to tell us
about yourself or your books?
I think I've said an
awful lot already! Thanks so much for hosting me!
Thank you, Katrina!
