Ask the Author: Hollie Overton
Answered Questions (4)
Hollie Overton
One of the perks of being a novelist is that, I don't have to leave my house. I can work in my living room with my dog Stevie curled up in my lap (and I can take naps!) But I'd say the most satisfying part of publishing my first novel is hearing from readers who loved Baby Doll. I've gotten so many messages that they loved the book and the characters and it really is just the best feeling in the world to know that you wrote something that so many people responded to.
Hollie Overton
I'm in the very early stages of brainstorming my third novel, a thriller set in Los Angeles.
Hollie Overton
My grandmother was an elementary school teacher and my mother loved reading so I fell in love with great stories at an early age. I was around seven or eight when my mother took my twin sister and I shopping. Money was tight so we were allowed to buy one item. I picked out a floral covered journal and promised I'd write in it every day. I kept that promise, filling it with musings about my day, terrible poetry and ideas for stories. In less than a year, I had filled the whole journal and Mom bought me a new journal, year after year. She was my greatest supporter and cheerleader. As much as I loved writing, for many years it was something I did as a hobby while I pursued an acting career. But my mom always said that writing was my destiny and she was right.
Hollie Overton
Write what you love. If you love dystopian YA, write dystopian YA. If you love romance novels, write that. Don't listen to what people think will sell or what is trendy in publishing. Writing is impossibly hard so if it's not something you're passionate, it's not worth it. Also, if you're a writer, you must write. Don't get hung up on one story. If you can't get it published or can't get an agent, maybe that story isn't the one. Start over and write something new. With every thing you write, you will get better.
Hollie Overton
I'm fortunate that I rarely get writer's block. I always have a lot of ideas brewing. In fact, I get super anxious if I don't know what the next two or three things I might want to work on are. But I do experience massive bouts of procrastination where I'd rather do anything but write. Instead, I read, go shopping, go do yoga or hike or play with my dog Stevie. But in the back of my mind, I always know the deadlines are looming and that at some point, I have to sit down and get to work.
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