Ask the Author: Michael Alan Nelson
Answered Questions (7)
Michael Alan Nelson
In the comic series Hexed, Lucifer mentions a previous run-in with the Sisters of Witchdown. I used it as a quick way to flesh out a bit of the Hexed universe and hint at some of the things in Lucifer's past. However, I never really had the space in the comic series to tell much of that initial encounter. So Hexed: The Sisters of Witchdown was a great opportunity to see that first interaction along with Lucifer in her earlier years.
Michael Alan Nelson
Hi Mark,
That is difficult to answer at the moment. Though I would love to tell more stories about Lucifer "the early years," it's going to depend on whether or not Pyr and BOOM! feel it would be worthwhile to do more. Neither has approached me about another YA novel in the Hexed universe yet. Does that mean there won't be any more? I honestly can't say. I hope to have a better idea later this fall.
But the good news is that, if you enjoy Lucifer as a character and the world she inhabits, her story does continue in the comic series. If you're not already reading that, I highly recommend it. The graphic series certainly isn't YA (it's 15 and up due to violence), but it tells the complete story. The series will be collected into three trade paperbacks, the first being available later this summer.
Sorry I couldn't give you a better answer. But thanks so much for your question!
That is difficult to answer at the moment. Though I would love to tell more stories about Lucifer "the early years," it's going to depend on whether or not Pyr and BOOM! feel it would be worthwhile to do more. Neither has approached me about another YA novel in the Hexed universe yet. Does that mean there won't be any more? I honestly can't say. I hope to have a better idea later this fall.
But the good news is that, if you enjoy Lucifer as a character and the world she inhabits, her story does continue in the comic series. If you're not already reading that, I highly recommend it. The graphic series certainly isn't YA (it's 15 and up due to violence), but it tells the complete story. The series will be collected into three trade paperbacks, the first being available later this summer.
Sorry I couldn't give you a better answer. But thanks so much for your question!
Michael Alan Nelson
I have a couple of tricks for dealing with writer's block. I'll either go for a walk, play guitar, or, when I'm desperate, call on fellow writers for help. I find the walk works best accept for when I'm really stuck. Thankfully, I have very talented friends who are willing to give me a push in the right direction.
Michael Alan Nelson
Discovering people who enjoyed reading my books as much as I enjoyed writing them. It really is, hands down, the coolest thing in the world.
Michael Alan Nelson
It really all depends on the person wanting advice. Each writer has their own goals and aspirations. Some writers just want to see a book with their name on its spine, sitting on their bookshelf. Others want to be bestsellers with volumes and volumes of books in print. Many fall somewhere in between, wanting to make a living by doing what they're passionate about but not necessarily needing the mansions and the cars and the exotic vacations. So I usually answer this question with a question of my own, but it requires the aspiring writer to be completely honest with herself. I ask, "If you knew, for a fact, that you would never make a dime from writing for the rest of your life, would you still write?" If the answer is no, you should probably find something else to spend your time on. Writing is the ugly thing you do when you sit down in front of a blank screen and bruise it with your words. It's hard, numbing, gloriously satisfying work. But it's work. The great screenwriter John Rogers put it perfectly when he said that being a professional writer is like always having homework due. So if you're in it for anything other than the love of storytelling, you're going to have a long and painful journey ahead of you. I think most successful writers would agree that they write because they HAVE to write. They love it. Writing is in their DNA. And I mean the act of writing. Doing research, tweeting about writing your novel, even searching for agents or which publishing house to query is all well and good, but that isn't writing. Those are the things we do when we want to tell ourselves we're writing without actually having to do the work of writing. However, if you write because you can't imagine NOT writing, then stick with it. It will take time, but that success will come. And your life will be richer for it.
Michael Alan Nelson
I am currently working on the Hexed comic series along with the comics series Day Men that I'm co-writing with Matt Gagnon. I'm also putting the finishing touches on my first prose novel, Hexed: The Sisters of Witchdown.
Michael Alan Nelson
If I find myself in need of inspiration, I listen to music that I think would make a fitting soundtrack to the story or scene I'm working on. That often helps me take that step from wanting to write to *needing* to write.
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