Ask the Author: Lindsey Renee Backen
Answered Questions (4)
Lindsey Renee Backen
Write! Don't let fear stop you. I wasn't good at spelling, had bad handwriting, and still occasionally flip my letters backwards or write them out of order. If you keep writing, keep challenging yourself to try a new style, rewrite your work, even write with others in an ongoing story, you will get better. Reading helps you learn pacing and expands your ability to draw on different ideas. And never judge yourself by your first draft. Writing is like being a detective. You start with only an idea of what might have happened, but you have to get to know the characters, their history, and their motivation before you get to the truth of what's going on. Most of my stories go through three revisions before I feel like I have the entire picture. www.750words.com is a good way to develop the habit of writing a little every day.
Lindsey Renee Backen
I am so excited about my current project. I published my first book when I was twenty-three, "The Secret of Sentarra." I already had the second written and a bit of the third. I decided to rewrite the second book and did work on it. But life happened. I got scared about releasing the second. I didn't know how. I couldn't afford help. I was too busy just trying to make enough money for bills and groceries. I wasn't sure the first book was strong enough to hold the series.
So this year, I revamped that too. It's currently being finished by my developing editor and off to the proofers. (And yes, thanks to my years of stalling I have the third rewrite of the second book almost ready to go.) I don't have a release date yet for "The Secret of Sentarra" but it will be within the next few months. And the second will go into the publishing process shortly after this time. I promise. For a short time, I've put the story on Wattpad so the readers who bought the first book could read the new version without having to purchase it again. Check it out if you'd like, but do it soon. It's coming down upon publication.
https://www.wattpad.com/story/6640350...
So this year, I revamped that too. It's currently being finished by my developing editor and off to the proofers. (And yes, thanks to my years of stalling I have the third rewrite of the second book almost ready to go.) I don't have a release date yet for "The Secret of Sentarra" but it will be within the next few months. And the second will go into the publishing process shortly after this time. I promise. For a short time, I've put the story on Wattpad so the readers who bought the first book could read the new version without having to purchase it again. Check it out if you'd like, but do it soon. It's coming down upon publication.
https://www.wattpad.com/story/6640350...
Lindsey Renee Backen
I write almost every work day. I created my own publishing imprint in 2015 with the goal of making each book better than the last as I found resources and people to help me. I dream of releasing beautiful books, bringing back the artistry that books were originally created with. This dream is what gets me up, even on the days I'm less motivated, to work on the next piece. Usually, if I can get past the first 1,000 words, the rest comes easily. I aim for 3,000 a day. Tea and coffee helps too. ;)
Lindsey Renee Backen
I brainstormed "Across the Distance" when I was in early college with a friend who was still in high school. We wanted to make a movie together at an old Victorian house my grandparents owned. We decided to blend modern and historical, creating a time-travel story. She created the basic premise for Scarlet, a spunky, independent young woman, and I decided to go with contrast for Clara, who is sheltered yet very imaginative. I wrote the draft for a Nanonowrimo novel, then let it sit for a few years while I decided if I wanted to release the time-travel story or rewrite Clara and Andrew's story as a historical novel. So many people who had read the time-travel insisted that was the version they wanted, that I decided to revamp and release it in 2015.
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