Welcome to C.J. Pinard, this week’s Blog Ring of Power guest. C.J. is a west coast native who has lived on both coasts and now lives near the middle, in Colorado! Coming from a family of writers and editors, she feels writing is in her blood and hopes people will lose themselves for a little while in the fantasy and fun of her stories. She also loves sweet red wine, the SF 49ers, and unlike most authors, doesn’t have any cats. When she’s not writing, she can be found chasing around her kids or working at her day job, which she totally feels interferes with life, but it also sometimes gives her inspiration for her books, since reality usually is way more interesting than fiction.
PART 5 — WORDS OF WISDOM
Tell us about your route to success –did you use an agent? How did you land your agent and/or publisher? No. I don’t have an agent (I don’t need one). I am 100% self-published and plan to stay that way unless one of the Big 6 offers me a big book deal with a huge advance *snort*. Seriously though, I can do everything myself. Writing, publishing, formatting, etc.
What are the most important elements of good writing? I think this is different for everyone, but as a general statement, I think good word building and story plots have to go hand in hand. I’ve read books with wonderful stories that gripped me, but the writing lacked variety. On the flip side, I’ve read books with beautiful perfect writing and prose, but they were kinda boring. It’s so hard to find that balance.
Do you have any advice for other writers? I get asked this a lot by potential writers. What I always say is, just open up a Word document and start typing. Get your story done. Then worry about the technical aspects later. It’s that first step that’s the hardest.
What do you feel is the key to your success? Not sure I consider myself that successful, but I think the only way to make any money doing this is to just keep writing. I know it sounds so simpleton but it’s truly the best advice someone once gave me. Series’ are where it’s at, too. But please don’t mistake this for me saying quantity over quality, though. You should take your time and make sure your book is ready for reading (formatting and editing issues are the most distracting).
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers? Thank you so much for downloading my books. I hope you love my stories and they help you escape for a little while. I love emails and messages, so don’t be shy!
What are your current / future project(s)? My next book is a new adult romance called Beneath Broken about a veteran turned cop in Tampa, FL. He falls for a very broken woman who wants nothing to do with him at all.
Is your book in print, ebook or both? Both
Please let us know where your readers can stalk you:
- Blog: http://cjpinard.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CJPinardAuthor?ref=hl
- Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6565787.C_J_Pinard
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CJPinard
- Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/C.J.-Pinard/e/B009YI276Y/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
- Smashwords Author Page: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/cjpinard
SOUL REBEL: When 21-year-old Nolan Bishop meets a seductive woman named Eva at a dark club in downtown Shreveport, Louisiana, little does he know his soul will be gone as soon as she is. Realizing she’s taken something from him, he finds out he has a very limited time to destroy her before he turns into something sinister and inhuman. In a race against all that is holy, Nolan has to find Eva and get his soul back while trying not to fall in love with Charity, the twin sister of the succubus who took his soul – all in seven days.
