Hello
Caitlin Ricci and thank you, for stopping by on my blog today for my
Behind the Scenes: Author Process Interview series. I hope you found
my questions thought provoking and I hope my readers will find a
glimpse into the author's mind thought-provoking and educational.
Writing
Routines/Mechanics
1.
What type of software do you use to write? On what type of device do
you do your writing? (example: laptop, tablet, phone, paper/pen,
etc.)
Whether
on my desktop or laptop I’m always using Google Docs and Write or
Die.
2.
Do you have a writing routine? How often do you write?
I
write full time so after my fiance leaves for work in the morning I
get started writing and barely stop until he comes back home. I don’t
write on the weekends or evenings but I’m usually plotting during
those times.
3.
When you sit down to write about how many words do you write in one
sitting? In a day? In a week?
Write
or Die is set for 1,000 words every half an hour for me. I usually
sit down for about four hours in the morning before I take a break
and then I do a few more hours of writing in the afternoon. So in a
day I typically do around 5-8k or more depending on how much research
and plotting I have to do. When a story is flowing well I can get a
novel done in a week. Sometimes it takes me longer though if
something isn’t working or if I get edits tossed back to me.
5.
Do you use outlines? Are you a pantser or outliner? Can you do both?
I
do both but usually outlines are reserved for longer pieces or
co-authored works. Outlines are more of just general guidelines
though so I can always go away from them. They’re more just notes
of what I want to see happen in a book and the most logical order of
those events.
6.
What atmosphere do you need to write in? Music? Silence? Any
particular snack or drink?
Water
or iced green tea and Pandora set to my classical station are what
works for me the most.
7.
How many works-in-progress do you have stored on your computer right
now?
Somewhere
in the 40s or higher I believe. But I try not to have more than five
current project focuses going at a time.
Writing
Inspirations/Process
12.
How do you feel about the "write what you know" saying?
True?
While
I agree that people shouldn’t write things that they aren’t
familiar with or haven’t researched well, I think that stretching
myself as an author is fun and rewarding. While each character has
some part of me, I’m certainly not all of them and that’s part of
the fun of being a writer.
16.
How many re-writes do you do prior to submitting a story?
It
depends on the story. If something doesn’t feel right then I do a
few minor changes until I like it. But other than that I don’t
re-write before I submit. I do edit but I don’t pour over the
piece. By the time I finish with a piece I’m ready to move on and
so I do. The edits and re-writes I do are as I’m going. I’m one
of those writers that when a story isn’t working for me during the
process I have to go back and really work with it until I like it
again and can work on it.
18.
Are you ever worried about offending anyone with a character or plot
choice? How does that effect your writing?
No.
If people are offended that’s fine. I write for me. That I make a
living off of something that I love is a huge bonus and I’m
grateful for the readers that make that happen. But I learned early
on that I can’t please everyone and there are always going to be
people that don’t like one of my stories for some reason or
another. That’s fine and I appreciate their opinions and the
criticisms I’ve learned from since first getting published last
year. Those reviews help authors grow.
Marketing/Publishers/Reviews
24.
How do you deal with rejection letters?
Read
them, take what you can from them and move on. Always have backup
publishers ready to go and keep the synopsis you had to write to
begin with.
25.
How do you feel about reviews? Do you read your reviews? How do you
move on from a horrible review?
Some
reviews are helpful and those usually come from reviewer blogs. I
don’t go on goodreads unless I’m reviewing someone else’s work
for my own blog. Everyone has an opinion and that’s what a review
is. Don’t look at them. Your publisher will get the ones from blogs
and then notify you. I ignore the hateful, personal attack type of
reviews which blogs rarely do so that’s another plus for them. If
there’s something helpful to get from a critical review find that
one spec of information, save it and then move on. Nothing will hurt
your writing mojo than a horrible review and the stress and lack of
motivation is not worth it in the least.
26.
Do you have a blog and/or website? How do you think having a blog
and/or website helps you? (Feel free to include links.)
I
do. www.CaitlinRicci.com
and my blog can be found on there too. I like being able to have
everything in one place and connect with readers and my site helps me
do that.
27.
How many publishers are you published with?
Five.
They’re all different and offer me specific things that I’m
looking for with each story. Because of their diversity I know who
I’m going with for a story before I’m done with it and if my
first choice doesn’t accept it I’ve got others that might and
that are familiar with me and my work.
28.
Do you think more publishers is better, or is it better to stay with
one? If you are published with more than one publisher, did you start
with one and then move to another? How did that work? Or do you plan
on being published with multiple publishers?
You
should always have more than one because each publisher has their own
fan base and going through different publishers allows you to broaden
your reader base.
29.
Are you self-published or published through a publisher? Which
experience do you prefer? Why?
Both.
I prefer a publisher because there’s less risk but self-publishing
offers ultimate control and it can come with some very large rewards.
31.
Are their any characteristics of an editor that make them more
likeable to you?
I
like an editor that is professional while still having fun. A bit of
snark and some wit make the process a lot easier. I don’t need to
be loved but I absolutely must be respected. Sometimes new authors
are afraid to stand up for themselves with a bully editor. They don’t
need to put up with that.
34.
Any tips on writing a synopsis?
Keep
it short and interesting. No one needs to know about all the side
plots at first glance unless they directly impact your characters. Go
through your manuscript and pick out the points that are most
critical to understanding your story. If you have those points and
can flesh them out so that they don’t look like bullet points
anymore then you’re good. It doesn’t have to be complicated.
Writing
Genres/Heat Levels
38.
What genres do you write now? What genres would you like to
write/branch out to in the future?
I
write every pairing and every genre but historical and I have an idea
for one of those coming up so by the end of the year hopefully
that’ll be changed.
40.
Heat Levels. What heat levels do you write? Can you write multiple
heat levels? Are their any heat levels that you feel uncomfortable
with?
I
write every level from YA to sweet romance to BDSM. If there is a
heat level that I don’t write it would be one with extreme BDSM
including pain to the point of torture and blood play but many
publishers don’t accept those stories anyway.
41.
If you write romance, do you write M/F, F/F, M/M? What about group
scenes or threesomes?
I
write every pairing including trans*. I have written and will
continue to write menage stories but they aren’t what most of my
characters tell me that they prefer.
Writing:
Types of Stories
44.
What length of stories do you write? Do you find certain lengths of
stories sell better than others? Do you prefer to write a certain
length over others?
I’ve
written everything from a 3,500 word short for an anthology up to a
100,000 word super novel. Books in the 30-60k range sell the best and
readers seem to feel more satisfied with them. I let the story take
me where it wants to go. Some stories I know won’t be longer than
10k, others I already know are novels before I ever start typing.
45.
Free reads. Do you think they bring in more readers? (Feel free to
include a link.)
47.
How do you feel about series? Do you think they sell better? Are
easier or harder to write?
Series
will always sell better and I enjoy writing them because I get to
have longer story arcs and explore the other characters that come in
contact with my original pair. It becomes like getting coffee with an
old friend and I enjoy the time I get to spend in their world while
writing stories in that series.
Writing
Background
49.
What type of formal training have you had with writing? Do you think
it has helped or hindered you?
None.
Writing isn’t a formula and the people I’ve talked to that got
their degrees in writing don’t seem to have nearly as much fun with
it as I do. There seems to be this preconceived notion that to be a
full time author you need to have a degree in writing. That’s not
true. If you want to take a class, go for it. But its not required
and in the end take what you learned and put it to your own voice.
Those people are miserable because they’re trying too hard to stay
inside the lines.
Writing
Support Groups/Forums/Nanowrimo/Networking
53.
Have you done nanowrimo or any variation of nanowrimo? Do you think
it helped or hindered you? Do you plan on doing it in the future?
I
do nanowrimo each year because I like competition. I write more than
the requirement though in far less than a month so while it isn’t a
challenge, it is fun.
57.
Do you have local writers in your area that you network with?
I
do. I’m part of a Colorado gay romance author group and we do
events together throughout the year. This month we’ll actually have
a booth at the Denver Pride Fest.
59.
Conferences. Have you gone to any? Plan on going to any? What
conferences would you recommend to go to, or to avoid?
I
have. They offer different things to different people so I won’t
say that any are good or bad. It’s all up to what you’re looking
for. The one I’m most looking forward to coming up is RainbowCon
2014 http://rainbowconference.org.
Thank
you everyone for hanging out with me today and I hope you had fun and
learned a little bit about what it’s like being me.
This
collection brings six talented authors from the Centennial State
together under one title, all offering their take on what it means to
be Out in Colorado. These stories explore the cultures and mores of
the state as only native authors can, each bringing a unique
perspective on the diverse peoples and changing attitudes that are
quickly coming to define this state in transition.
First,
in Something
Old, Something Blue,
Justin Pauldino, the adopted son of Denver's Italian mob boss, is a
one night stand kind of guy and likes it that way, until his latest
bed partner, Michael Blu, upsets his applecart world enough to make
him consider settling down. When Justin decides to put his best foot
forward with Michael—a third generation attorney, whose father and
grandfather have an unpleasant history with Justin's adoptive
father—Justin's world is turned upside down when his good
intentions set in motion a series of events that will change his life
forever. Then, Joey Graham has demonstrated his Casual
Brilliance
and landed the job of his dreams out of school; the only catch is
that he has to move to Colorado to do it. Fortunately, Joey's got a
new coworker who's more than happy to introduce him to everything his
new home has to offer. Next, in a yearly tradition, five friends had
gotten together in a cabin in the winter mountains of Colorado, but
one of them has been lost for years. This year, all five friends will
be back together and discover secrets that will change their lives
forever, in Spirit's
Fire.
In
Take
a Bow,
Brandon's daughter's wedding is approaching quickly, and the nervous
father realizes that if he is to keep from embarrassing his little
girl during the father-daughter dance, he needs some lessons pronto.
But the gorgeous and charismatic dance instructor, Crispin, has
Brandon too distracted to learn when all he can think of is dragging
the man down for some dancing of a more horizontal sort. Next, stuck
in an abusive relationship with the cultured and sophisticated (and
closeted) Ethan, a relationship that is quickly spiraling downward,
Trevor feels Frozen,
lost and left behind as everything spins on around him. When a sudden
turn of violence forces Trevor to face the tragedy that his life has
become and make a hard choice, it could be the awakening he needs, or
it could be the last decision he ever makes. Finally, being an otter
shifter, though fun, comes with its own set of problems for Lon, not
the least of which is the need to be in his shifted form for at least
a few hours every week. This biological imperative threatens his
budding romance with University of Colorado adjunct professor Corey
when an accident in the back country leaves Lon unable to make his
shift without revealing his furry secret, in Slip/Slide/Snow.
Caitlin
was fortunate growing up to be surrounded by family and teachers that
encouraged her love of reading. She has always been a voracious
reader and that love of the written word easily morphed into a
passion for writing. If she isn't writing, she can usually be found
studying as she works toward her counseling degree. She comes from a
military family and the men and women of the armed forces are close
to her heart. She also enjoys gardening and horseback riding in the
Colorado Rockies where she calls home with her wonderful fiance,
their dog and Blue Tongue Skink. Her belief that there is no one true
path to happily ever after runs deeply through all of her stories.
