We had the pleasure to interview Fantasy author Victoria Strauss.
Q: How does one grow up to be a fantasy writer?
V: If you’re me, you grow up reading myths and fairy tales. Even as a very small child, this was my favorite kind of reading. Although I read widely (besides fantasy and science fiction, mystery is my favorite genre), I always come back to mythic or fairy-tale literature. When I began writing, at the age of 17, it just seemed natural to write fantasy–I honestly can’t remember ever wanting to write anything else.
Q: Which authors would you say have been your greatest inspiration sources?
V: Some of my all-time favorites are Ursula LeGuin (especially THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS), John Crowley (especially LITTLE, BIG) Mervyn Peake (the GORMENGHAST trilogy), Guy Gavriel Kay (especially THE FIONAVARTAPESTRY), Jane Gaskell (THE CITY), Anne McCaffrey’s first Pern books, and anything by Patricia McKillip. I’ve read many books over the years, but these are the ones that stay with me.
Q: Any regrets in becoming a full-time writer?
V: None at all! I love to be able set my own schedule and be my own boss. I’m very disciplined, and don’t have any trouble sitting down to work (though I do sometimes have trouble making myself stop). My production has really increased since I went full-time—I have more time available for writing, plus I don’t have the constant upheavals of a hectic job schedule, which sometimes forced me to take a month or more away from whatever book I was working on. Quitting work was a risky decision financially, but so far it has definitely been worth it.
Q: What has been the major challenges in becoming a writer?
V: Obviously, getting published and staying published are thet wo basic challenges a writer faces. So far, I’ve been pretty lucky. Another challenge is the discipline you need to research, plan and write a book–it can be daunting to commit yourself to a task you know it’s going to take a year or two to complete, especially if there isn’t a guaranteed publication contract waiting at the end of it. Perseverance is also a challenge–keeping on writing and submitting even in the face of rejections.
More recently, I’ve been faced with a new challenge: the necessity of taking some of the responsibility for promoting my books. It used to be that a writer could count on his or her publisher to take care of this…but nowadays publishers’ publicity budgets don’t stretch very far, and if you’re new or not very well-known, it can be an uphill battle getting your work noticed. Luckily the Internet can be a tremendous help in this regard. I’ve taken full advantage of that over the past couple of years, including creating my own website.
I think that the basic rule of the writing life is that for every challenge you face and overcome, there’s always another one waiting that you didn’t expect!
Q: Do you have any advice for the young and promising that haven’t quite made it yet?
V: Writing is a craft, and like any craft it takes time to become proficient. Don’t expect to be successful right away. On the other hand, just because one story or novel doesn’t get accepted today doesn’t mean another won’t get accepted 2, or 3, or 10 years from now. So don’t get discouraged–or rather, accept your discouragement and keep going anyway.
Don’t believe the people who say that publishing is in deep trouble, or that there’s no good or innovative writing anymore, or that publishers are only interested in finding the next Tom Clancy, or that there’s no room for the new writer in today’s tight publishing market. Getting published *is* tough–but it always has been. And it’s harder to stay in print these days than it used to be, even once you’ve published several books. But publishers *are* still looking for new voices. They’re still interested in good writing, and they’re still willing to take a chance on something different. There is very definitely room for new writers with ability, and there always will be.
New writers often dream of making a living through their writing, or even of becoming rich. I honestly don’t think that financial self-sufficiency is a good goal for a writer to have. It’s too unlikely to happen. I read somewhere that the average professional writer in this country makes about $5,000 a year. Of the writers I know, many of them multi-published and critically successful, there are only a handful who actually support themselves through their writing. The rest all have day jobs (or, like me, have made a conscious decision to sacrifice financial security for writing time). If you make money your goal, you run the risk of being bitterly disappointed, and giving up your dream.
Last but not least: watch out for scams. There’s a huge number of these waiting for new writers: literary agents who charge you reading or other fees and then never try to sell your work, publishers that want you to pay the costs of publishing your book, freelance book doctors who charge exorbitant prices for a rudimentary edit. Be cautious when looking for an agent or a publisher, and educate yourself about standard industry practice so you won’t fall prey to scammers.
Q: Without giving away any major plot, what can you tell us about your upcoming novel The Garden of the Stone?
V: THE GARDEN OF THE STONE begins about 30 years after THE ARMOF THE STONE ends. Several of the major characters from ARM return, but the rest are new. The main story involves Cariad, the daughter of ARM’s hero. She’s a skilled assassin and empath, who is sent on a dangerous search-and-rescue mission. But Cariad has her own agenda, which her superiors don’t know about, and it puts her in more danger than she realizes. There’s also a prophecy, a quest, and several plot twists–and a happy ending, though the book as a whole is quite dark.
Q: What are your plans for the future, are you going to continue on the “Arm of the Stone” series or do you have something completely different in mind?
V: I hope to be able to do a third book in the series (I’m working on the proposal now), and I’m thinking about setting some short stories in that world. But I’m also eager to move on to new projects and new worlds. I think I’d like to do a standalone or two before getting back into series fiction.
Q: What has the Internet meant for you as an author?
V: The Internet has been a huge boon for me as an author. It’s a terrific research tool–you can find out something about almost anything on the Web. My website is a great way of publicizing my books, and it connects me with readers in a way that was never possible for me before. I’ve been able to become a book reviewer (a childhood dream) for SF Site, a big online SF/fantasy website. The Internet has also allowed me to make a lot of professional contacts, because so many writers are online. And it’s the greatest excuse for procrastination that I’ve ever found…though maybe that’s not such a good thing!
I also do volunteer work via the Internet. I maintain a set of webpages at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America website called Writer Beware, which provides information about literary scams.
–
Interview by Dag R.
