Hello! Today with us we have Susan Wesolowski (reader) and Sarah Lee (author)! *Applause*
Susan Wesolowski: How old were you when you realized you wanted to become an author?
Sarah Lee: I never knew I wanted to be an author. I never liked reading books. Wasn’t good at writing. I wasn’t a fan of any of it. Then I signed up to adopt a soldier program and started writing letters to them. I began enjoying writing letters. I never liked reading books until I found what genre I enjoyed. Wasn’t until Twilight by Stephany and Thirst by Christopher Pike that got me into reading. Back then I started to write for fun cuz ideas came to me. But I never allowed anyone to read anything I wrote. I was too shy. Wasn’t until I hit my mid 20s when I decided I wanted to publish a book to see if I could do it. Didn’t really become a thing until my late 20s when I buckled down to think more on being an author.
Susan Wesolowski: Who or what gave you the inspiration to become an author?
Sarah Lee: If I’m being completely honest about the question, I don’t know where the inspiration to be an author came from. No one gave me the idea, no one said you should be an author if anything the opposite. No one wanted to help me reach my goal to be an author. So maybe it was all about me proving myself I can do it. Do something for myself for once.
Susan Wesolowski: The series I am reading is Fantasy/Paranormal. Is that the only genre you write? Your favorite or your first?
Sarah Lee: No, fantasy/ paranormal is not the only genre I write. It’s my favorite and my comfort place to write but it’s not my only one. It’s the first I wrote though.
Susan Wesolowski: In the book Secrets Unfold you give the reader a glimpse into what motivated you to write it. What about the second book?
Sarah Lee: The second book I did not have a motivation. I felt super alone on that book. When it came to building the book I had my amazing team help me build it but when it came to writing it, I had no one.
Susan Wesolowski: Are any of your characters based on your own experiences or people you know?
Sarah Lee: In a way, yes. Having my own experience in the book makes it more personal but I flip it to match the storyline or the character in the book. Almost every author has a muse so yes my muse is in the book as well.
Susan Wesolowski: Do you use an outline for your stories or just sit down and write whatever is in your head and your heart ❤️?
Sarah Lee: Soooo first book I just wrote whatever the characters told me to write. Second book I plotted it out. Sadly I went off the outline and had to figure out how to try to plot it again. For me it’s easier to write where my heart takes me.
Susan Wesolowski: How do you come up with your visual concepts that you convey to your readers?
Sarah Lee: If I can’t see it I close my eyes and imagine what I would see. Then I’ll write what I see. What I feel. What I smell. What I’m doing.
Susan Wesolowski: What genres do you enjoy reading the most? Favorite authors?
Sarah Lee: Fantasy, paranormal, a little romance. Noelle Adams, Amy Bartol, PC Cast, Kristian Cook, Taylor Dawn, Jenny Fox, Leigh James, Irtania Adrien, Eva Zahan, Heather Renee, Christopher Pike, Alyson Noel, Jessica Hall are just a few.
Susan Wesolowski: How do you choose the titles for your books? Do you choose the covers first?
Sarah Lee: Titles are a pain. I’ll write words that represent the book. Look up words and meaning and put words together. I’ll play around with them and flip and come up with a list of titles I somewhat like. I then send it to a few people and get a vote on it. Get it down to the top three and let it sit there until I have the that’s it feel and choose it. The third book however I was just having a conversation with someone and she said words and I’m like that’s my book title for book three! So I was shocked I didn’t have to do all those steps I just knew.
No it doesn’t matter if the cover is done or if I have the title or not. Sometimes I have the title and have no clue what I want on the cover and other times I have the cover done and the designer is waiting on me to come up with a title. I will say having a cover done makes it real. So I like having the cover done before the book is even written or finished.
Susan Wesolowski: What do you do for fun or to unwind when you hit a brick wall while writing?
Sarah Lee: Write a different story when I’m blocked on the one I’m writing. Sometimes I have other characters screaming at me to write and if I don’t write it down I can’t get back to the story I need to work on.
Susan Wesolowski: What is the biggest misconception for you about becoming an author?
Sarah Lee: Reading my book and knowing me in real life people are conflicted on who I truly am. They think I’m depressed cuz in their eyes all I do is stay locked away when really I’m in the zone and I’m writing. They read my book thinks it’s dark and then spread rumors about me.
Susan Wesolowski: What do you enjoy most about being an author? Least?
Sarah Lee: I love escaping. But what I’m truly grateful is there are other authors out there that know exactly how to be there for another author. We found our home with one another. That’s a beauty in itself. Least favorite about being an author? Hmm, the format puts me in tears.
Susan Wesolowski: In the Secrets Unfold series, who are your favorite characters? Heroes and Villains?
Sarah Lee: Colby is my favorite hero. Felixia is my favorite villain.
Susan Wesolowski: What do you hope readers will take away from your books?
Sarah Lee: One thing I want the readers to take away is don’t allow any type of fear to stop you. There are different paths to take and we don’t know what’s inside any of them. Take a leap of faith and push yourself forward even though fear is trying to stop you.
Susan Wesolowski: While writing a series do you already have the next series in mind and the characters in your head?
Sarah Lee: Yes, I do already have a series in mind. Bought the covers for the entire series have the characters all picked out and the main idea for each storyline. It’s going to be the Standing Against Fate Series. I also have standalone books coming out this year too! That I’m looking forward to releasing.
Thank you for both for participating in Support An Author event!!!
kernerangelina.live 