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| Oklahoma's Kyra Dune |
Tell us a bit about yourself, Kyra.
I was born in Oklahoma, but spent most of my life travelling with my family. I have written
a dozen books including Flight Of Dragons, Elfblood, and Shadow Born. As a little girl,
my favorite books were those that told of ordinary children who traveled to magical worlds. I've yet to find my own magic wardrobe or rabbit hole, but I haven’t given up the search. You never know what might be waiting over the next rainbow.
Whereabouts in the US do you live now?
Oklahoma.
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| Oklahoma's favourite son, Will Rogers |
I hear that you are the daughter of parents who travelled a lot. What’s that like? Has it influenced your writing?
Travelling was great. I got to see so many beautiful things and meet all kinds of people. It definitely influenced my writing. You might be surprised how many real world places make great settings for fantasy stories. For instance, the place Charlie dreams about the Elfblood Trilogy is an actual place I've been to. It's not exactly as described in the book, but it's close.
Oklahoma Map
Tell us about that writing. What is your latest release?
My latest release is Web of Light, which came out on October 14. It's a YA fantasy about a group of young people who come across an ancient magic that's been hidden away for three hundred years.
You are incredibly prolific. Is there a skill involved in writing as many books as this.
You have to be very dedicated to writing and have plenty of time on your hands.
"I write seven to ten hours a day, six days a week. I'm lucky to be able to do something I love, but there are times the work can be tedious and even tiring, especially during rewrites."
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| Kyra after a marathon session |
It also helps that I can work on multiple projects at a time. In fact I need to do so because otherwise I get writer's block.
How do you construct trilogies?
That's kind of hard to answer. I don't work with outlines or anything like that. I have a notebook with important information about characters and settings, but that's it. I didn't know Elfblood was going to be a trilogy when I wrote the first book. Or even the second one. That's just what it ended up being, and that's how it works for me.
I like some of your covers, particularly the Shadow one. Do you think a good cover is important in selling books?
Absolutely. Your cover is the first thing people see and it's the first thing which attracts them to your book. Your cover has a job to do, and that job is to convey the kind of story the book contains in a way so that when someone sees it they can say, yeah that looks like a book I would read.
How do you get on with Goodreads? Have you had any issues with bullying there? If so, how did you deal with it.
So far, I haven't had any trouble on Goodreads.
What’s your favourite method of marketing books?
Word of mouth is still the best way to market anything. You know, somebody likes your book and they tell a friend about it and that friend tells a friend, etc. Since I can't control that, I would say my favourite method of marketing is Goodreads. I think more people actually see my book there than anywhere else.
Three books, two CDs and one DVD for your desert island stay, please Kyra.
Books:
Firestarter by Stephen King
Battlefield Earth by L. Ron Hubbard
Dune by Frank Herbert
CDs: Phobia - Breaking Benjamin
One X - Three Days Grace
DVD: Labyrinth
What did you eat last night for your evening meal?
Meatloaf, green beans, and potatoes.
And finally, what do fans of Kyra Dune have to look forward to in 2014?
Dark Light, sequel to Web of Light, is being released in December.
Kyra, thank you for coming round the Cauldron. We wish you the best of luck in 2104
Thank you.
Contact Kyra here.
Website: http://kyradune.wix.com/kyra-dune
Twitter: kyradune
Facebook: Facebook profile
Blog: http://theshadowportal.blogspot.com/
Good choice on the meatloaf. Good luck with sales, Kyra. Keep up the good work with the interviews, great Wizard.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview.
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