Interview with author Noelle Clark on speaking at writer events, part 1
Greetings everyone!
Sharing exciting news is always fun and I've got exciting news to share. In a few weeks I will be the guest speaker at a local writer event. You know in the movie Groundhog Day where Bill Murray's character says, "I'm not a god, I'm the god." I feel a bit like that. I'm not a guest speaker. I'm the guest speaker. It's an awesome feeling. Anyway, let me tell you a little about the event and what I've got planned.
The Eurobodalla Fellowship of Australian Writers is celebrating 20 years of writing with a literary lunch, a writing activity, and myself as guest speaker. My topic of choice is on the cycle of writing/publishing which I've now done four times, and because the writers at this event will be at different stages of their careers, I thought I'd offer some tips on mental preparedness.
Welcome Noelle,
And first up let me say a huge thanks for sharing this information. I know I've found it invaluable and I hope other writers do too. And readers, of course, might be interested in learning more about their favourite author.
D L: Every writer sits on one side of the pre-published stage until they finally get to sit behind the desk as a published author. What, for you was the biggest difference between the two sides?
DL: Do you prefer being a member of
the audience or the one on the stage/behind the desk?
D L: Have you done an event alone or
have they been joint events?
D L: There were probably questions you
always wanted to ask as a pre-published author, and then when you became a
published author and got to speak to the next wave of pre-published authors,
did you find they asked similar questions?
Noelle: Yes, very much so. I’m always asked
how I came to be published. There are always questions about self-pubbing vs
traditional; about word lengths; about how much you earn (try not to
grimace...); about your writing process – how many hours a day, where you write
– I’ve even had questions about whether it’s okay to submit a handwritten
manuscript. I’m often asked about beta readers, editors, manuscript assessors,
and whether I can recommend any. Probably best to be prepared and point them in
the direction of your State writing association or the FAW. You often get
questions about writing sex scenes too. This can be a lot of fun to answer. Be
creative. J
Noelle: So far I’ve had great experiences at all my events, but I did attend a private book club held in a home. The women had read my books as their monthly read, and I spent a lovely evening with them as they sipped champagne, and asked me all about myself and my books. It was very informal and relaxed, but most enjoyable.
That's it for now. Part II of this interview will continue tomorrow. In the meantime if you want to check out more of Noelle's work you can do so via her website www.noelleclark.net
Catchya!
Sharing exciting news is always fun and I've got exciting news to share. In a few weeks I will be the guest speaker at a local writer event. You know in the movie Groundhog Day where Bill Murray's character says, "I'm not a god, I'm the god." I feel a bit like that. I'm not a guest speaker. I'm the guest speaker. It's an awesome feeling. Anyway, let me tell you a little about the event and what I've got planned.
The Eurobodalla Fellowship of Australian Writers is celebrating 20 years of writing with a literary lunch, a writing activity, and myself as guest speaker. My topic of choice is on the cycle of writing/publishing which I've now done four times, and because the writers at this event will be at different stages of their careers, I thought I'd offer some tips on mental preparedness.
This event also sparked a great idea for some posts. I'm going to interview a few published authors (more if everyone/anyone is interested) who have already been down this road to gain some insight and tips.
The most important thing to learn about a writer's journey is that it is never over. We are always learning.
Today's interview is with romance author Noelle Clark. She lives in Brisbane, Australia and you can check out her work at www.noelleclark.net. It's a wonderfully lengthy interview, and I say wonderfully because it's so full of great advice and tips, that I've decided to post it in two parts.
Out and About with Noelle Clark Part I
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Noelle Clark |
And first up let me say a huge thanks for sharing this information. I know I've found it invaluable and I hope other writers do too. And readers, of course, might be interested in learning more about their favourite author.
D L: Every writer sits on one side of the pre-published stage until they finally get to sit behind the desk as a published author. What, for you was the biggest difference between the two sides?
"Once you’re published, it gives you the confidence to keep going."
Noelle: The biggest difference for me was
the quantum leap in my confidence levels. An author—especially an unpublished
author—is very vulnerable. It takes courage to send your manuscript out there
for someone else to judge. It’s akin to entering your baby in a baby show,
watching on as someone critiques your baby, judges it, and then decides that
perhaps it’s not as good as the next person’s. Once you’re published, it gives
you the confidence to keep going. But I’d advise any author to grow a thick
skin.
Noelle: I attend as many writers’
conferences, conventions, festivals, and library talks by other authors, as I
can. I never fail to learn from others, and I respect how each author goes
about their writing journey. So, in one way, I prefer listening to others, but
because I can put myself in the shoes of aspiring or unpublished authors, I’m
very keen to pass on any tips from my own experiences. I love talking to
writers groups, book clubs, and readers, about how my books came to be. What
triggered the story, the theme, characters, and my choice of location.
Noelle: Thus far, I’ve only done solo
sessions. Recently, I delivered a series of one-hour writing craft talks for
Logan Libraries (Queensland), attending several branches with a session called
‘Person, Place and Passion’. The topics covered three major elements of romance
writing: development of the characters, the importance of location and setting
for the story; and the character arc that the heroine and hero travel to arrive
at a Happily Ever After.
"You often get questions about writing sex scenes too."
D L: What is the most unusual event
you’ve attended both as an attendee and as a guest speaker/author?
Noelle: So far I’ve had great experiences at all my events, but I did attend a private book club held in a home. The women had read my books as their monthly read, and I spent a lovely evening with them as they sipped champagne, and asked me all about myself and my books. It was very informal and relaxed, but most enjoyable.
That's it for now. Part II of this interview will continue tomorrow. In the meantime if you want to check out more of Noelle's work you can do so via her website www.noelleclark.net
Catchya!
Great interview. Thanks for the tips.
ReplyDeleteThanks for popping in!
DeleteThanks so much for reading - and commenting. Hope you gained a couple of ideas from it. Cheers, Noelle.
DeleteThank you for allowing me to visit Deb. You ask great questions!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's my curious mind. And I loved hearing about your experiences.
DeleteNice interview. I need to attend your talks!
ReplyDeleteHi Isabella. Thanks for visiting! I'd love you to come along. :-)
DeleteThanks for stopping by Isabella. I haven't attended a talk for a while myself and I'm itching to just soak up the atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteNice to catch up with you Noelle. I won't ask any awkward questions x
ReplyDeleteShehanne, lovely to see you here. Thanks for stopping by. x
DeleteLovely of you to stop by Shehanne. You can check our part 2 of the interview on my blog if you like. Might be enough info that you don't need to ask any questions.
DeleteThis is a part of the journey I haven't yet explored, Noelle. It's strange how reluctant I feel about the whole talking to an audience aspect, given I've been a teacher for more years than I care to think about! Different audiences!
ReplyDeleteCheers, Susanne
Thanks for the comment Susanne. I also think it's harder to talk about writing because its so close to our hearts.
DeleteI'm sure you would be great. When you're passionate about something, it's easy to share what you've learned along the way with others. Thanks for visiting.
DeleteGreat topic Noelle! It is something I'd love to do but man, it would be a whole lot easier if there were more than 24 hours in the day. I think an article on time management for authors would be a great subject!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Elizabeth. You can also check out part 2 of the interview on a separate post. I agree that we need more than 24 hours.
DeleteElizabeth, thanks so much for visiting Deb's great blog. I'm now in the fortunate position of having the time. I cherish it, and one day you'll be able to devote more time to your passion.
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