Ask the Author: Assaph Mehr
Answered Questions (11)
Assaph Mehr
I'll give you the worst and best advice I've been given, and what I've found to work.
The WORST possible advice, is that "proven formula" which you must adhere to to reach "best seller". One, each author's journey is different. Two, no-one knows which book will become a best-seller ahead of time (publishing is gambling).
So take ALL advice with a grain of salt, and see what works for you.
This leads neatly to the BEST advice:
* If you want to write, write.
Nothing else gets words on a page, and without that you're never actually progressing in writing.
* If you want to write well, read.
Read voraciously, in and out of your genre. Read critically. Read some more. Then write.
I'm not the only one saying those things. You can find similar advice from JK Rowling, Neil Gaiman, and plenty of other authors. The above is just the most concise way to put it.
The WORST possible advice, is that "proven formula" which you must adhere to to reach "best seller". One, each author's journey is different. Two, no-one knows which book will become a best-seller ahead of time (publishing is gambling).
So take ALL advice with a grain of salt, and see what works for you.
This leads neatly to the BEST advice:
* If you want to write, write.
Nothing else gets words on a page, and without that you're never actually progressing in writing.
* If you want to write well, read.
Read voraciously, in and out of your genre. Read critically. Read some more. Then write.
I'm not the only one saying those things. You can find similar advice from JK Rowling, Neil Gaiman, and plenty of other authors. The above is just the most concise way to put it.
Assaph Mehr
That depends on my mood and subject :-D
There are what I enjoy reading now (e.g. Ruth Downie, Boris Akunin, Jim Butcher), then there are my all time favourites (Zealzny, Le Guin, Hesse).
I read a rather varied range. I try to mark the books I've read (recent ones, plus those that stayed with me over the years) on the shelves here in Goodreads.
There are what I enjoy reading now (e.g. Ruth Downie, Boris Akunin, Jim Butcher), then there are my all time favourites (Zealzny, Le Guin, Hesse).
I read a rather varied range. I try to mark the books I've read (recent ones, plus those that stayed with me over the years) on the shelves here in Goodreads.
Assaph Mehr
I was spending too much time on social media in general, which was taking me away from more important things in my life. I've decided to step away from it (and make it hard to fall back in), and instead spend more time with my family and concentrate on writing in my spare time.
Assaph Mehr
Ah, my favourite stinky scene :-)
I have come across this before, as it's a fairly common condiment and appears often in writings about Roman cuisine and life. For that scene, I read a few more articles about what we know of its production, and watched some videos on the recreation of garum. Just to make sure I get all the nuances correct.
I have come across this before, as it's a fairly common condiment and appears often in writings about Roman cuisine and life. For that scene, I read a few more articles about what we know of its production, and watched some videos on the recreation of garum. Just to make sure I get all the nuances correct.
Assaph Mehr
Both are hard, but for different reasons.
Being an author is the ultimate introverted activity. You sit for hours struggling to keep putting works on paper, often afflicted by self-doubt about their worth.
Marketing is a very extroverted activity - putting yourself out there, reaching out to people. No wonder then that a lot of authors struggle with the required marketing after publishing.
Each author, each person, have their own unique composition, strengths and weaknesses. So play to your strengths, and excel at what you do best. Then learn just enough to get by with other aspects, and use (pay) other people to do the bulk of work in areas where you struggle. (You need to learn the basics, to be able to recognise what works and what doesn't, even if you aren't capable of coming up with it or executing it yourself).
Being an author is the ultimate introverted activity. You sit for hours struggling to keep putting works on paper, often afflicted by self-doubt about their worth.
Marketing is a very extroverted activity - putting yourself out there, reaching out to people. No wonder then that a lot of authors struggle with the required marketing after publishing.
Each author, each person, have their own unique composition, strengths and weaknesses. So play to your strengths, and excel at what you do best. Then learn just enough to get by with other aspects, and use (pay) other people to do the bulk of work in areas where you struggle. (You need to learn the basics, to be able to recognise what works and what doesn't, even if you aren't capable of coming up with it or executing it yourself).
Assaph Mehr
Just write. Trust that my protagonist will know what he's doing, even if he's not telling me. Just write, write anything, and keep on writing. Eventually things clear up (and could be fixed later in editing, if needed). But always keep writing.
Here's a blog post I wrote about it one day:
Dealing with Writer's Block
Here's a blog post I wrote about it one day:
Dealing with Writer's Block
Assaph Mehr
My name? Where I grew up it was so common, I've always had another one or two kids in my class named the same. Moving out to the English-speaking world, I've now grown accustomed to the inevitable "huh?"...
To answer your question, I grew up in Israel. The name appears in the book of Psalms (73-83) - although I am usually the only one to spell it that way! The bible has it as Asaph, but a single s in English would make a z sound. Most of my namesakes spell it Assaf.
Side note: it is unclear who Asaph was. Some have theorised that the psalms should be attributed to King David and some to King Solomon. Since my grandfather was named Solomon, and his father named David - I'm kinda named after both...
To answer your question, I grew up in Israel. The name appears in the book of Psalms (73-83) - although I am usually the only one to spell it that way! The bible has it as Asaph, but a single s in English would make a z sound. Most of my namesakes spell it Assaf.
Side note: it is unclear who Asaph was. Some have theorised that the psalms should be attributed to King David and some to King Solomon. Since my grandfather was named Solomon, and his father named David - I'm kinda named after both...
Assaph Mehr
Writing the books I want to read.
Writing is a hard, sometimes frustrating, process. But every time I had to read my own book during editing - I had fun!
Writing is a hard, sometimes frustrating, process. But every time I had to read my own book during editing - I had fun!
Assaph Mehr
Second (and third, and forth) books for Felix the Fox.
I wrote Murder In Absentia from start to finish, knowing the end but not sure how to get there (over-plotting kills the fun for me). As I was writing I constantly had more ideas for future novels. So I wrote them down, and now it's time to write the novels.
I have some pretty exciting directions to exploring the various aspects of the fantasy-Roman culture at Egretia. I've since published In Numina, and am working of the next books in order.
After that... I have more ideas for other worlds.
I wrote Murder In Absentia from start to finish, knowing the end but not sure how to get there (over-plotting kills the fun for me). As I was writing I constantly had more ideas for future novels. So I wrote them down, and now it's time to write the novels.
I have some pretty exciting directions to exploring the various aspects of the fantasy-Roman culture at Egretia. I've since published In Numina, and am working of the next books in order.
After that... I have more ideas for other worlds.
Assaph Mehr
My wife.
One day last summer, she complained she finished the last book she wanted to read and can't find anything else decent. Since I found it too hot to sleep, I started writing a book for her.
And I didn't stop until I had a novel to give her to read.
She swears to me that the book is good :-)
One day last summer, she complained she finished the last book she wanted to read and can't find anything else decent. Since I found it too hot to sleep, I started writing a book for her.
And I didn't stop until I had a novel to give her to read.
She swears to me that the book is good :-)
Assaph Mehr
I've had the idea for a fantasy detective for a long while. I was playing around with various world-settings in my head, but when I came down to write it, a world based on ancient Rome felt the most interesting to me. I had ideas for some of the secondary characters already, but I had a lot of fun researching deep into Roman culture. I made it a fantasy setting so that I could pick and choose elements - a more cinematic version of Ancient Rome if you please.
When it came to plot, I knew the twist at the end. So I sat down with a world, a character and a final twist, and started to write. I chucked my character into an impossible situation, and watched him move along. I had fun discovering the plot twists and turns for myself - essentially I wrote the book I wanted to read. I just had to make sure that everything progresses towards the surprise at the end.
When it came to plot, I knew the twist at the end. So I sat down with a world, a character and a final twist, and started to write. I chucked my character into an impossible situation, and watched him move along. I had fun discovering the plot twists and turns for myself - essentially I wrote the book I wanted to read. I just had to make sure that everything progresses towards the surprise at the end.
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