Virtual Author Visit with Ms. S.L. Pierce!

[Bobbie Crawford-McCoy]

A warm welcome to author, S.L. Pierce.

 

Author Bio: S.L. Pierce spent ten years earning a Ph.D. in engineering, only to discover she wanted to write. She currently lives in Colorado with her husband and four children. She is always at work on her next novel.

 

Does Writing Style Matter? by S.L. Pierce

My co-writer, Maren Kaye, and I have had this discussion several times, both of us wishing we could write like the other.  My style is to pound out around a thousand words at a time, as fast as I can.  Of course, I have the plot and characters in my head so it's not just nonsense.  But, I turn off my internal filter.  The one that says 'this is stupid', 'don't write that', 'your dialogue is unrealistic'.  I even push punctuation out of my mind.  I don't want anything to interfere with the 'flow'.  I'm sure you know what I mean if you've ever written anything.  The result is that I can write fast but it requires a lot of rewriting/editing later.  Maren, on the other hands, worries over every word.  She thinks hard about every sentence, every plot point, and every bit of dialogue.  She goes over it and over it in her head, then she types and erases a sentence many times before moving on to the next.  It may take her 4 or 5 hours to reach 1000 words.  But, in her case, the result is a perfect section.  Her stuff requires almost no editing.  

Though we say we wish we could write like the other, our styles really work well together.  My speed pushes her along, and her perfection makes me slow down.  In the end, we put out a really good product.  So, what do you think?  Is one style better than the other?  How do you write?  Fast with lots of editing, or slow and careful?   

 

 

Secrets by S.L. Pierce

Secrets...we all have them

A former government assassin...

Two men who weren't supposed to be seen together...

A cop who won't let go...

High tech industrial espionage....

Deception...

Betrayal...

Secrets is a fast paced thriller that will keep you guessing to the very end.

Gwen Michaels moved to California two years ago to start fresh, hoping her past could stay secret forever. But when a hired killer shows up, she assumes her cover is blown. When it turns out the man knows nothing of her past, the search is on for who wants her dead, and why.

 

Complete list of works by S.L. Pierce:

The Hate, 2011, 978-1-4580-4598-0
Secrets, 2011, 978-1-4580-7953-4
The Devil's Game, 2011, 978-1-4661-9097-9

 

You can pick up S.L. Pierce's books at:

Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords

 

Links to visit:

• S.L.'s Website: http://piercebooks.com/
• S.L.'s Blog: http://slpiercebooks.blogspot.com/
• S.L. on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/piercebooks
• S.L. on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Sl-Pierce/100002109829126
• S.L.'s Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Secrets/212014242151735
• S.L. on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4677161.S_L_Pierce

 

 

Thanks for visiting with us, S.L.!

 

 

[S.L. Pierce]

S.L. Pierce here and ready to start at 10! I hope this is the right place!

[Bobbie Crawford-McCoy]

Hi S.L.

Yes, you're in the right place. :-)

Thanks so much for visiting with us today!

All My Best,
Bobbie

[S.L. Pierce]

Thee questions are from cgbarbeau (twitter) Caroline Gerardo via twitter:
How do you balance it all? Been pirated yet?

Great questions. I'll take the easy one first. I don't think I've been pirated yet. I set up a few google alerts to check but beyond that I don't know where to begin searching. So hopefully I haven't. And if I have, can I do anything about it? Is ignorance bliss? Knowing me, I would want to know:)
How do I balance it all? For those that don't know, I have four kids age 7,6,4,and 3. Or, within the next six weeks they will be 8,7,5, and 3. Yes, I have my hands full and yes, it is really hard to find a balance. Part of the balancing is easy - I can't write when the kids are home/awake. I have to concentrate and they never leave me alone for more than a couple of minutes. So it's a matter of saying 'I have two hours right now and will use them to write' and then doing it, of course. Once I quit fighting that fact, I was much less stressed. Discipline is a big part also. That one I am still working on. I'm sure I would have another book done by now if I were more disciplined.

[George Anthony Kulz]

Do you have a day job in addition to all that? Do you have any suggestions for those who have a day job, AND kids, etc? (I have 4 kids too).

-George

[S.L. Pierce]

I do not have a day job and I really admire anyone who can balance kids and work and anything, like writing, on the side. I have given this subject some thought as my kids get older and I think about returning to the outside world:) What I pictured was having a tight schedule in the morning; unload then load the dishwasher, start a load of laundry, etc as fast as possible then doing the same as soon as I returned home. Two big things occurred to me though. One, some things would just have to be let go. If you are a neat freak, that will be hard, but otherwise just accept it. The second thing is my family would have to support me like I've been supporting them. I'm lucky in that my kids are independent. I let them do a lot on their own and that has caused a lot of messes over the years, but it is paying off now in that they can get themselves ready. Family time is important but so is showing kids that parents are people too, who have needs and desires. So telling them 'we just spent an hour doing 'fill in the blank' and now I need a little time to do 'again fill in the blank'. Then you can share your success with them also.
Just my thoughts:)

[Bobbie Crawford-McCoy]

Setting up Google Alerts is a great idea...but I wonder what an author can do if they find their work being pirated? The Internet seems to make it easier for some nasties to operate.

[S.L. Pierce]

I've heard terrible stories of pirating. It's probably a good question for a bestselling indie author. They surely have been pirated. I think if you discover it on Amazon you can contact them and have the copy removed. But for other sites I'm just not sure. I guess we have to take the bad with the good when it comes to the internet.

[Scott Bury]

I just saw your tweet about this. It looks like a great forum.

I'm now reading Secrets, and I have specific question and a general one.

Specific: did you think about the modulations between first person and third within Secrets? Did you set out to experiment with this form? Or is it just an organic development? I guess the question is, really, why not just write the whole thing in third person?

General: what marketing techniques do you use? Are you happy with sales?

ScottTheWriter

[S.L. Pierce]

Great question. I have received some criticism for this but...here's the story. I started with third person but it just didn't feel right for whatever reason so I switched to first person. But I also wanted something to break up the chapters and I wanted to make everyone a little suspicious and I just couldn't figure out how to do it. Then I remembered some of James Patterson's books switch POV, especially his Alex Cross characters, and I thought, if he can do it, so can I. So I went ahead. I know it's not proper - you should stick to one POV but, that's an advantage to going indie, right? You can do what you like.

Marketing, that's a tough one. I do a lot of tweeting. I try to make the tweets interesting with lines form my books or quotes from reviews as opposed to just 'buy my book', I also try to do as much flash fiction on my blog as I can, hoping that if someone likes those stories they will check out my books. Also, when I first release a book I send out about thirty requests for reviews. I really need to continue to request reviews but I get so busy with writing, tweeting, etc. I forget. That's about all I have time for right now.
I'm happy with sales and not happy. I'm happy because they are so much better than when I started and I'm grateful for that. But, do I wish I could sell more? Of course. It gets discouraging sometimes, to put in so much effort promoting for just a few sales a day but I am working on patience and just getting that next book out there. Each one is better than the last so eventually I'll hit it big, right:) The good thing about writing is books sell forever. It's not like a product you make where you have a limited time people will be interested. Pateince, patience, patience...

[Sylvia Stein]

Hello S. L. Pierce,
First of all you are an awesome writer. Secondly my name is Sylvia Stein
I am and aspiring writer finishing my first book, what advice can you give me?


Sylvia Stein

[S.L. Pierce]

Hi Sylvia! Thank you for the compliment and congrats on finishing your first book. You should be proud.
I'm going to assume you want to self publish so here is my advice. First join some writers groups on FB. When I started they provided the most amazing advice and help. Everyone is very giving of their time and experience. Second, make sure your manuscript is as perfect as you can get it then look for beta readers. FB is a great place for that as well. This is a process but you will be glad you took the time. Once you get feedback (and just one comment on getting feedback, you don't have to do everything suggested. Do what feels right for your characters and story), and have a cover, get it on Amazon. Don't be intimidated by the process. The first time is time consuming but not too difficult. Smashwords is harder only because their formatting process is a little more rigorous (meat grinder anyone:). A very important step is to gather a big list of reviewers and get your pitch ready to send to them. Some will take the pre-published manuscript and you can contact them early. As soon as the book goes live, contact as many as you can. I think that is the biggest help to a new author. Also get active on twitter.
It is going to feel overwhelming at first but just take it one step at a time. Don't think about the next step until the current one is done. A few months from now it will all seem old hat:) Feel free to contact me on twitter also for more specific questions or help.
Another nice thing about writing is there is room for all of us!

[Sylvia Stein]

Dear S, L . Pierce,

Thanks so so much for the advice and I appreciate that and will do, thanks so so much!

and yes I agree that there is room for all of us!

Sylvia Stein