We love brand new authors here at The Book Pushers! Fresh new voices in our favorite genres gives us another person to cyber-stalk and glom onto! We figured since there are always new authors getting published through both the big New York publishers, as well as the smaller digital first publishers, we should take the time and hunt them down and introduce them to you!
Today we’ve got Dawn Kirby to talk about what it’s like being a brand new author!
Explain to us your journey to publication:
My journey started about four years ago. I’d already written Secrets and had the second book already percolating in my head when I started submitting to agents and small presses. All in total, I got about 13 rejections and quite a few no responses by the time I found my editor, Jessica Swift of Swift Ink Editorial. After working with her I seriously considered self-publishing. In fact I was well on my way to doing so when a very good friend told me about Dark Dragon Publishing Company. Thinking one more rejection would kill me, I submitted. The last thing I expected was to get that long awaited email.
What’s your first published book about (start of a series, a stand alone, we want details!):
Secrets is the first book in the Serenity Series. It’s about a young woman who has no idea how unique she is. As a dhampir, her gifts are also her curse. Once she her secret is revealed, her once normal life is turned upside down. With the tragic death of the one person she knew she could always count on, she’s thrown into a world full of more danger than she could possibly imagine. The only way to keep herself and those who have come to her aid is to face the evil hunting her head on.
Do you have anything in the works? (contracted or not?)
At the moment I have several things in the works. The first is re-vamping the fourth book in the series. Once that’s done, I plan to continue with the series.
The next are two shorts I’m writing for Ring of Fire Publishing. Both are part of their 7DS brand. The first is a motivational anthology called the Seven Dress Sizes. The second is a short with a plot revolving around death and shoes called the Seven Deadly Soles.
The final project is a Paranormal Romance called Apex I’m writing with fellow author, A.T. Russell. It’s a shifter tale with a hell of a lot of spunk. And of course there’s sure to be passion galore.
What are your overall dreams, goals and expectations for your future as an author? (want to stick with specific genre, try multiples, different pen names, etc.)
My dream is to be able to make a decent enough living off my books to be able to stay at home and write more. I don’t see myself as the next great anybody. I just want to be able to share my stories and offer my readers an escape from their everyday lives for a little while.
What’s your writing process like? Has it changed from when you first started writing?
My writing process has pretty much stayed the same. I never know what will end up on the screen until I sit down to write it. I may have an idea of where I want a story to go, but it nearly always goes in the opposite direction. That usually leads to even more little twists and turns.
When did you start writing? What was your very first story about?
Roughly four years ago. Secrets was my first story.
Who were some of your inspirations for becoming an author?
The thing that made me realize I really wanted to be an author was hearing what my beta readers had to say about the book. They gave me more confidence in my writing than I ever thought possible. They made me want to push myself to write more.
Give us the story about when you got “The Call”
I was at work when I got the email from the publisher at Dark Dragon. She had asked for a full the Friday before, but I never thought I’d hear from her quite as soon as I did. When I opened my email, I was actually sitting in my co-workers (sister’s) office at work waiting to ask a question. While she was on the phone helping a customer, I was re-reading the email over and over again. I was sure the wording would change. When it didn’t it took everything I had not to scare everybody in the building with would have been the loudest shriek they’ve ever heard. Trying to remain calm, cool, and collected when your dream has just come true is the hardest thing in the world to do.
If you would like to know more about Ms Kirby you can find her at the following links: Blog | Goodreads | Smashwords | Facebook | Twitter
Thank you Ms Kirby and Illuminated Tours for asking us to participate in the Secrets blog tour. We would also like to thank Dark Dragon Publishing for sponsoring the giveaway. One lucky entrant will receive an electronic copy of Secrets. Choosing the winner will be a little different then our usual giveaway. In order to enter you MUST follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below (per the tour organizer’s request). The contest closes at 0001 on the 15th of Aug and the winner will be announced on the 16th.
It is said that the truth will set you free, but for Leah it kills.
Leah always knew she was different. From her extreme light sensitivity, to her ability to read people by their auric scent, she kept these differences secret.
Not even Mia, Leah’s mother, knew the fullness of her daughter’s differences, but she held even greater secrets to Leah’s past – the truth about her father and Leah’s conception.
With the escape of an old foe, Mia is too late to reveal to her daughter
the truth before Judith can exact her revenge in a wash of blood and death.
Thrown into a world unheard of, Leah discovers that she is not alone in keeping her secrets. That there are people from her parent’s past who would die to protect her. If she only knew why.
Raine, placed as her protector, hides deadly secrets of his own. Drawn to each other, Leah and Raine must uncover the truth before one of both are killed.
Links to purchase:
Smashwords | Amazon
Thanks for the nice interview, I enjoyed reading it. Good luck with the new release!