Isis Sousa's Blog: Tragic Books' news - Posts Tagged "independent"

Hi folks :) Here is a spotlight I am doing with indie author Anthony Avina , who I came across through Booklover Catlady Publicity(make sure you check her out, she is awesome!), when we did a small campaign to find reviewers for The Night of Elisa.

I have been interviewed by Anthony as well, you can read it HERE.

Anthony writes mostly horror/speculative Fiction, and recently he wrote VOID, a drama, which shows the struggles of a group of friends.

I reviewed both VOID and Bedtime, being the latest also my favourite, it gave me chills at a certain point! Click on the respective links to check it out.

And below, you read a cool interview with him. But before you read that, make sure you also peek on his AMAZON PAGE

1 - When did you start writing? What triggered your writing will?
A - I started writing when I was fourteen years old, but didn't start publishing until 2010, when I was 20 years old. It was in my creative writing class that I realized I wanted to be a writer. I was reading Stephen King and Peter Straub's The Talisman, and at the time we were asked to write a short story. The way The Talisman was written, the idea of this epic adventure where the fate of the world hangs in the balance, helped inspire a short story in which a man is given the power to alter reality with his writing, but invites an evil presence into the world in doing so, and must set things right before the world is destroyed. That story eventually became my published story, Death for Sale.

2 - Which are the most important aspects of your work as author?
A - My main goal is to entertain my audience. If I can integrate a message or change the preconceived notions of soceity, then that is an added
bonus. I just want to have my readers get lost in the story, and to feel enthralled with the plot and the characters.

3 - About “Bedtime”, how did you get inspired to write story? Were you afraid of the monster in the closet as well when you were a kid?
A - I actually came up with the idea after I thought about the various different fears and phobias people have, especially the fears we have as children. I wasn't afraid of the monster in the closet necessarily, but I was afraid of shadow people as a child, (another story I plan to write), and when I was thinking about that fear I had, I began to think about the other things children tend to be afraid of, and how there aren't many
stories out in mainstream entertainment right now that explore these fears thoroughly, so I came up with this story of a creature feeding off of the fear and drama in a family's household. That's how Bedtime was born.

4 - Which are your favourite fiction genres, to both write and read?
A - My all time favorite genre to both write and read in is definitely the horror genre. I do enjoy science fiction, fantasy and thrillers as well, but I've always been drawn to the horror genre. I like seeing a person's true, base nature emerge in the face of a truly scary situation.
Whenever you read a book and a group of people are pitted against a killer or monster of some sort, reading how these people react is such a fascinating and thrilling part of the book, and I've enjoyed exploring that as well in my own books. Stephen King's novels have always been the biggest reason I got as heavily into the horror genre as I did.

5 - What’s the most challenging part of being an indie author?
A - Finding a way to get your book in front of readers in an age when self-publishing has become such a popular thing for authors. Any time I find a reader has downloaded or purchased my book, it's the greatest feeling in the world to realize someone is reading the book you've poured so much time and effort and love into. Learning how to utilize social media and connect with both readers and authors on a more personal level has been something I've been working on a lot over the past year, and I'm happy to have met so many great people along the way. Finding a way to navigate
the self-publishing market and reach a wider audience is definitely the biggest challenge, especially when you're on your own and have a low budget.

6 - About "Void", where did you get the inspiration for the problems the group of friends go through? What made you decide to write about that?
A - I got the inspiration for the problems the characters of VOID face from the world around me. Living in the US, there are so many politically charged subjects that divide and fuel hatred on many fronts, from both gender and sexual equality to religion and marriage. I've always been a big believer in equality and appreciating the differences between people. A person should be allowed to love whoever they want, and everyone should have an equal chance at enjoying all that life has to offer. I also got inspiration for the character of Javier especially from my own
experiences. Over the last six years or so, I've lost both an uncle and a grandfather to various illnesses, and I understand what it's like to lose someone you love. Not in the same romantic love kind of way that Javier does, but loss is never an easy thing to go through, and I've known people who don't seem to understand what kind of depression can settle over someone after a big loss like that, so I wanted to highlight the
struggle of overcoming loss, and finding a way to enjoy life after loss.

7 - How was the writing experience of putting together a drama, after focusing on horror genre for many works? How did it impact your writing?
A - You know there's a quote by Mark Twain that summons this up for me perfectly. He said, "Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." I think this is a perfect summary for my experience writing drama over horror. In the horror genre, there are endless possible paths to choose from because utilizing the supernatural or serial killer elements are often not based in reality, while a drama has to follow the rules of real life. You want there to be perfect, happy endings, but while this can happen for some,
not everyone is going to come out on the other side of the story unscathed. Whether it's physical or emotional pain, life is hard, and I think writing this drama had to be a reflection of life itself. Having to ground yourself in a real-world setting is a lot more difficult for me than
it is to explore the fantastic realms of the horror genre. It was a challenge, but it was a challenge I enjoyed conquering, and I couldn't be more thrilled by the end result.
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And that’s it, hope you have enjoyed it! :)