Genevieve Crownson graduated from the College of Charleston with a Bachelors of
Science degree. A love of writing led her to pen her debut novel, The
Soul of the Sun. This is book one in her highly anticipated
trilogy, The Argos Dynasty. She currently lives in beautiful Charleston, SC with her family and
beloved four-legged friends.
You can find her at www.genevievecrownson.com.
Connect & Socialize!
Thanks for letting us interrogate you! Can you give us a go-for-the-gut answer as to
why you wanted to be an author?
I love writing. For me writing is like reading a good book that transports you to another world. Only as the writer you can decide what happens in that universe. It is quite a rush. Whatever is going on in my life writing has always been my constant. It is my go to when I need to figure things out, feel better or just have fun. It’s a part of me. Writing novels was just a natural progression from that.
Tell us (we won’t tell promise!) is it all
it’s cracked up to be? I mean what are
the perks and what are the demands?
You have to follow your passions. As with any job there are some things I dislike doing. But if you enjoy your work, whatever that thing is it’s worth it for the final product. Writing for me is fun, I find the editing afterwards challenging. But I push through it every time because I want my story to be the best it can be.
Which route did you take – traditional or
self-published – and can you give us the nitty gritty low down on what’s that
like?
I took the self-published route. If you decide to take this road you’ll realize you have to wear many hats. In essence you are an entrepreneur. You are the design team, the marketing team, the author and everything else. It takes time to learn each aspect of the business. For me it was a good choice. I wanted my novel published as soon as possible. With self-publishing I was in charge of that.
What’s the snarkiest thing you can say about
the publishing industry (e.g. rejections, the long wait, etc.)
Many amazing books that are now bestsellers were initially rejected. I wish there was a better way to get books out of the slush pile and into the hands of agents and publishers who would actually take a chance on some wonderful books. I am so grateful for self-publishing because it gave me a chance to build a readership and writer’s platform. I didn’t have to wait for somebody to take a gamble on my work which was lovely. J
Tell us for real what your family feels
about you spending so much time getting your book written, polished, edited,
formatted, published, what have you?
My family doesn’t mind how much time I spend writing. They are used to me being buried in my work. They know this is my dream. I am very lucky how supportive they have been.
What was the craziest or insane thing that
happened to you in the book publishing process?
I hired someone to do the cover for my novel The Soul of the Sun and there is a picture of a blonde woman on it. Everyone is constantly asking if it is me. To this day I am still trying to convince my Grandma it’s not me on the cover. It’s hilarious. The cover artist hadn’t even seen me! I personally don’t see the resemblance but everyone else certainly does. Pretty zany if you ask me!
How about the social networks? Which ones do you believe help and which ones
do you wish you could avoid?
I am on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest right now. I think that they are all great ways for readers to get to know and interact with you. I have heard that Facebook has cut back on what percentage of followers see your posts so I find that a little disappointing. I can’t really offer up any advice about the other networks as I haven’t tried them.
Book sales.
Don’t you just love them (or lack of?)?
How are you making the sales happen for you?
I offered a free giveaway on Amazon which was great; I had thousands of people download the book. This is a good way to get your name out there and gain new readership. I was able to get to number one in the paranormal category on Amazon’s free 100 list and number four on young adult. I have created bookmarks that I leave everywhere. I have all my information on them and they are great way to sell your book. Word of mouth is terrific marketing. If people read your book and love it they will tell their friends. So make sure you tell everyone you can that your book is out there! I am also on this virtual book tour. It’s my first one and I am very excited about it!
What is one thing you’d like to jump on the
rooftop and scream about?
I think it is insane that I am a published author. After years of perfecting my craft and working so hard I finally have a book that I can hold in my hands! It still blows my mind. Whenever I see someone with my book I want to jump up and down and scream!
Okay, too much sugar for you today! Here’s a nice cup of Chamomile tea and come
on over and sit under the cabana and watch the waves roll in. Now…can you tell us what you love about being
a published author and how all those things above don’t matter because it’s all
part of the whole scheme of things and you wouldn’t have it any other way?
Writing to me is like breathing. I wouldn’t know what to do if someone came up to me and told me I couldn’t write again. All my stories are dream based and just come to me while I sleep. I have journals full of dreams that are just waiting to be told. And I am so excited about every single idea. I love that I am able to publish these stories and share them with the world. Themes like love, bravery, and the suggestion anything is possible run throughout my stories. I want people to believe in themselves again, and see that we all have something special to give. I am so privileged I can share my dreams and ideas through my books. It does takes a lot of effort to publish a book but none of that matters, the fact that I am able to do what I love and share it with the world is amazing. It’s a gift I will never take for granted. If your dream is to be a writer go for it. Don’t let anyone stop you.
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