We have a wonderful treat today... Katrina Byrd (The Boa Flouncer) author
of Byrds of a Feather has stopped by!
Tell
me, were you a reader before you were a writer? What do you enjoy reading?
I love to read!!
Some of my favorite authors are Barbara Kingsolver, Stephen King John
Floyd, Dean Koontz, Ann Patchett and the list goes on. I like to read a variety of genres. I really love a great story.
I developed a love for wonderful storytelling in the
first grade. It was a special treat for
me to curl up with a good book and get lost in the action of the
characters. As a child I loved Laura
Ingalls Wilder. Her stories inspired me
to tell my own stories. I started
journaling at seven. I wrote my first
story when I was nine.
Is
Byrds of a Feather the first book you’ve written?
No. I have two
other books as well. One HOT Minute is a
collection of flash fiction short stories all dealing with something hot. Justice is Blind is a collection of two short
stories and a monologue.
Where
their some particular inspirations for the character’s development or character
traits for Byrds of a Feather?
Byrds of a Feather is a humorous motivational book
about celebrating life and being you.
Byrds of a Feather was inspired by funny and inspirational quotes I make
on facebook. People always tell me how
they love my facebook posts so I decided to make a book in that same
format.
Byrds of a Feather’s title is a play on my last name
(Byrd) and the fact that I like to wear feather boas.
There
are many roads that lead to becoming a published author, each one littered with
its own potholes. What was the most challenging aspect of writing (latest
release)? (dialogue, character development, creating names, etc)
With Byrds of a Feather the biggest challenges was
making the humor resonate from the page.
There are things that are hilarious when you say them but when you writ
it on paper it loses the humor. So I had
to spend a lot of time making the humor sound good on paper. I also wanted to get messages across without
sounding like I was preaching to the reader.
How
did you tackle this challenge?
I tackled this challenge by writing and
rewriting. One of the main things I did
was to try to write the humorous anecdotes like I talk. So instead of saying,
“I am strutting towards my dreams” I would write “I’m struttin’ toward my
dreams.” At first this felt weird but
the more I wrote it the better.
Being
an author is so much more than just writing a good story. Besides the “pen and
ink,” what is one of the most difficult things you’ve encountered on your
journey as a published author? What helped you get a handle on it?
I think my biggest challenge was marketing my
book. It felt so awkward to me to talk
about myself and my writing but it was much easier to do this with social
media. I started an author page on
facebook and I became affiliated with writing groups like the Indie Exchange
and Book Junkies. I also put my books on
Kindle. I have learned that marketing is
a continuous process. There’s always
wonderful articles about marketing and I’ve connected with other authors and
discussed marketing tips.
It
sounds like you've come quite a distance. Thank you, (Katrina Byrd), for coming
today and sharing a little of your experience with us, for helping us avoid a
few potholes on the journey to becoming a published author.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/boaflouncer
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