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Writing Religion And Gender Bias in Thrillers: 8 Questions for Joanna Penn

January 31, 2012 By 5 Comments

Joanna Penn is the author of action-adventure thriller novels Pentecost and Prophecy, in the ARKANE series. Her blog, The Creative Penn, was voted one of the Top 10 blogs for writers and helps people write, publish and promote their books. Joanna lives in London, England and is on twitter @thecreativepenn

1. Your books use aspects of religion as the basis for their stories. How have readers reacted to that? 

I am personally fascinated by religion and actually have a Masters degree in Theology so I have studied in depth. It’s been a continued interest of mine and I’ve read and travelled widely to learn more. I find that religious story and myth are already deeply rooted in our society and that resonates with people even if they don’t believe in a specific faith.

From a commercial perspective I think Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code was so popular because it connected with something people already knew about. So I wanted to tap a similar theme, taking religious ideas and using them as the basis for action-adventure thrillers.

Generally, people have taken the religious aspects as entertainment and also some education as I try to use real places and existing objects. Prophecy features the Devil’s Bible which is actually a real medieval book, and Pentecost involves a search for the bones of the Apostles, again based on truth.

I have the greatest respect for believers but at heart, I am writing fiction. Some people think the books aren’t Christian enough but I want to entertain and make you think. No preaching, more action!

 

2. Some of your reviews have said you write like a man because you focus on action/ adventure and have some violent scenes. What do you think of this gender bias for thriller/ action-adventure books? 

Amusingly, these comments have come from people who ‘know me’ from my blog. I am a happy, positive, upbeat person, passionate about creating and writing and I’m always smiling on my videos and podcasts. It seems a long way from burning a nun alive on the banks of the Ganges at Varanasi (Pentecost) or sacrificial murder in the bone church of Sedlec in the Czech Republic (Prophecy). But I don’t think the two are incompatible and my books are still definitely thriller, rather than horror.

It’s the writer’s responsibility (and joy) to investigate the things at the edge of what’s acceptable in society. It’s also important to deliver on the promise to the reader and thrillers are always high stakes, fast paced romps. Body count is mandatory. I write what I love to read and so there needs to be plenty of bodies.

In saying all that, I’m actually reinventing myself as J.F. Penn in order to take advantage of being gender neutral to avoid these types of comments! There is also some evidence that male readers prefer male writers so going with initials instead of the full name is often something female thriller writers do in order to level the field. Think CJ Lyons, MJ Rose, JT Ellison and more.

 

3. Your books race through amazing global locations including famous churches and creepy ossuaries. Have you been to all these places and what’s your obsession with scene setting?

Travel is one of my obsessions and I have been to a lot of the places I write about over the last 20 years. Jerusalem in particular is a muse for me and I’ve been there 11 times. It’s woven into both thrillers and will return again. Certainly I’ll be needing another research trip there soon!

In writing my books, I actually start with the idea and then look at places that resonate with the theme. When I was gathering ideas for Prophecy, I went to the Paris catacombs and I knew that bones and ossuaries would be a great atmospheric thread. It turned out that the Devil’s Bible had been kept at the bone church of Sedlec in the middle ages and then I found the mummy crypt of Palermo in Sicily, both awesome locations.

As a reader, I love to learn about new places and descriptions of setting make a difference to the atmosphere of the book. In the writing process, I often plot the book by location rather than by plot on the first pass. One of the important elements for action-adventure is the movement and pacing so fantastic scene locations are critical, and amazingly fun to write!

 

4. You also use a lot of art history in the books. How do you bring these layers into what is a fast paced story? 

My muse is European and I love to bring the layers of religion, architecture, history and art into the books. Again, it’s about learning as well as experiencing as you read. In Prophecy, art history became more of a dominant theme. Morgan Sierra, the protagonist, has to research how the apocalyptic imagery of the Four Horsemen might have been passed down. I could therefore indulge my passion for William Blake (also widely used by Thomas Harris in Red Dragon and the Hannibal Lecter books).

I also like to set expectations for my readers and have little surprises for those people interested in art history as I am. The Director of ARKANE always has a painting in his office. In Prophecy, it’s Salvador Dali’s Christ of St John of the Cross which is one of my favorites. Using art is all about resonance and deepening the experience of the book.

5. Joe Konrath recently came out with an article questioning the value of publicity. What have you found works for book marketing? 

I do agree that marketing fiction is different to non-fiction. My first novel, Pentecost, has sold over 16,000 copies which is much more than could be accounted for by my personal platform. Those sales came from Amazon marketing it which in turn was based on rankings over time, the right category and reviews, all of which Konrath cite as more important that blogging or PR.

However, I believe the initial impetus for my sales came from my launch process, review gathering and continual marketing which have kept the ball rolling over almost a year now. My site, The Creative Penn, is for writers, not readers, but I also have a business associated with that and I’m more of an author-entrepreneur. I speak and sell online courses as well as consult with people so my income is not just from fiction, as Joe’s is. As I write more books, the focus will shift but for now, I need multiple income streams.

People who are starting out in indie publishing should definitely focus on the basics first. Write a good book, then pay for a great cover and professional editing. But getting reviews can often be easier if you have already started building a platform. I do now have JoannaPenn.com which is aimed more at my fiction readers and I’ll be building that over time. But we rarely find out how people hear about our books so I guess we all just have to keep trying!

 

6. Your blog, The Creative Penn was recently voted one of the Top 10 blogs for Writers on Write To Done. What’s the best thing about blogging for you? 

Blogging changed my life! Seriously. I spent many years being blocked creatively and not writing. Blogging for the last 3 years has enabled me to

  1. Write regularly on different subjects and become faster and more confident at creation
  2. Connect with amazing, like-minded people who have given me confidence to write. I do a weekly podcast which is an interview with a writer/ publisher/ book marketer. I did one with Sean last year on writing serialized fiction.
  3. Create a business that enabled me to leave IT consulting to become an author-entrepreneur.
  4. Help other people by sharing lessons learned along the way
  5. Create a foundation for my fiction platform as at least some of my blog readers enjoy my fiction as well

It’s best to go into blogging with a goal other than making money though. Sharing what you learn along your personal journey is a popular way to start. It takes a lot of time and effort to build but it’s definitely worth it!

 

7. Why did you self-publish your books and what are your goals for your career?

Four years ago I wrote a career change book, How To Enjoy Your Job…Or Find A New One. It was the book I needed to write to unblock a lot of things in my own life and it started me down the road I’m now on. I did query that book and received one rejection. I didn’t like the negativity that surrounded the process so I was determined to do it myself. That’s when I started to learn about self-publishing and everything indie.

So when I decided to write fiction, I didn’t even consider traditional publishing. I know what I can do on my own and I believe that it’s better to attract attention through great sales, than to go ‘cap in hand’ and beg for it.  I like the Hocking, Locke and Konrath models where they were offered deals after creating success themselves. Konrath is publishing with Amazon directly now which would definitely be the best outcome in terms of what sales they can achieve with the global platform. So my goals are to continue to write great fiction and indie publish for now and see what happens. I’m not chasing a book deal and I love the empowerment and freedom to create indie gives us!

 

8. Your book Prophecy has just come out. Tell us more about it. 

Here’s the blurb:

The prophecy in Revelation declares that a quarter of the world must die and now a shadowy organization has the ability to fulfill these words. Can one woman stop the abomination before it’s too late?

From the catacombs of Paris to the skeletal ossuaries of Sicily and the Czech Republic, Morgan Sierra and Jake Timber must find the Devil’s Bible and stop the curse being released into the world before one in four are destroyed in the coming holocaust. Because in just seven days, the final curse will be spoken and the prophecy will be fulfilled.

My novels have been described as Dan Brown meets Lara Croft with a splash of Indiana Jones. Prophecy is the 2nd in the ARKANE series. If you like an impending apocalypse with a race against time to stop a curse reaching mankind, you’ll enjoy the book. It has 16 reviews averaging 4.5 stars on Amazon right now and is $2.99. It can be read as a stand-alone novel but the prequel Pentecost is only 99c on the Kindle if you fancy trying it out as well.

Thanks for having me guys!

Have a question for Joanna? Leave a comment below.

Joanna Penn writes about writing and publishing at  The Creative Penn. You can follow Joanna on twitter @thecreativepenn   

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Self Publishing Roundup: January 27, 2012

January 27, 2012 By 2 Comments

This week’s self publishing roundup features some (maybe) big news in the digital distribution world, a hilarious post about how some reviewers are taking things a bit too literal, some great advice from J.A. Konrath, must-read posts on editing, and a whole lot more.

At Ghostwriter Dad, editor Matt Garland challenged readers to boil their product, business, or story down to just three words. We also interviewed author Jeff Goins, about his writing habits, his recent book deal, and his most important piece of advice for new writers.

Big news of the week: The comic provider Graphicly is making news this week with what could be competition to Apple’s recently announced iBooks Author, which is drawing criticism for restricting content made with its software to Apple’s store. Graphicly is offering a service to create comic books, graphic novels, children’s books, photo books, cook books, and pretty much anything graphic-heavy, which you can upload to the major services or sell directly on your website or Facebook via widgets. IGN Comics interviewed the company’s CEO and founder Micah Baldwin about the new service, which seems to have some spiffy sharing and analytics features that give authors and publishers more information and interaction with readers.

One “AMEN HALLALUJAH” quote from the interview we love is this one:

“There is something fundamentally wrong when a publisher or author is spending their time and money marketing a middleman versus their own brand. It should be “come to MY website. MY Facebook Page. Come see MY books. Not go to Graphicly or some other app. Authors and publishers should be spending their time marketing and promoting their own brands, not providing free marketing to middlemen” – Micah Baldwin

We should have posted this last week, but it’s still relevant. You’d think that author and indie writing hero J.A. Konrath gets a lot of sales because of his popular blog on self-publishing, A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing, right? Think again. Check out his great post on the value of publicity versus the value of writing. Guess which wins. This is a must-read.

Publishers Weekly has a rundown of some of the discussions that went on during the last day of Digital Book World this year, including how publishers’ attempts to stay relevant and seek new revenue streams. Publishers Weekly also talked about the battle between librarians and publishers over eBook lending.

Chuck Wendig posted 25 Things Writers Should Know About Agents at Terrible Minds.

Why did Breakout indie writing star Amanda Hocking turn Amazon’s book deal down? She discussed that, and the $2 million dollar deal she did sign, in an interview with Futurebook.

Catherine Ryan Howard has a hilarious post about how some reviewers take things a bit too literal. I feel bad that she’s putting up with such dumb comments and reviews, but it makes for such a funny post (and story to tell) that it had to be worth it. (update: I sent Catherine some new “literal” covers, which she posted on her blog today. Check them out — after you read her first post)

At Write To Done, David Masters of Inkably did a guest post on the secret to writing secrets of prolific authors (surprisingly, it’s not an IV drip of caffeine), in which he quoted our own Sean Platt.

David Gaughran had two great posts on editing this week at his blog. Self-Editing: Back to Basics, Part I – Guest Post by Karin Cox and Edit Like A Pro: Guest Post by Harry Bingham

Speaking of David Gaughran, he was interviewed on the subject of indie empowerment by Joanna Penn (who is also the upcoming Eight Questions subject this week) for her podcast, which you can check out here.

What stories are you talking about this week?

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Eight Questions: Interview With Jeff Goins

January 25, 2012 By 7 Comments

Photo by Ashley Goins, courtesy of Jeff Goins

Jeff Goins is the man behind the popular writing blog, Goins, Writer. Jeff is a writer who believes that “words matter and communication can change the world.” Born and raised in Illinois. Several years ago, he moved to Tennessee to “see about a girl.” He now lives with his wife in Nashville with their dog, Lyric, and are expecting their first child.

We interviewed Jeff about his writing habits, his recent book deal, and the role of social media in writing.

1 – You had a great 2011 – growing a popular writing blog, guest posting regularly in high profile places, and you recently signed a book deal. What are your goals for 2012?

I don’t do goals. At least, not this year. I spent five years setting goals, making resolutions, and demonstrating other forms of insanity without ever seeing any fruit. I was deceiving myself. I was dreaming. 2011 was so great for me, because I didn’t set any expectations and didn’t talk about what I was going to do. I just started writing. Every day. No matter what. Without excuse. And in the process, I created some habits that are staying to pay off — in terms of a book contract and other cool stuff happening. My hope for 2012 is to continue the habits I started last year and start a few others — namely, focusing more on long-term writing and not getting so distracted by the Internet. Eventually, I’d like my writing and speaking to pay the bills. I don’t know how far off that is and am not completely in control of that. So I’m just doing what I can with today, enjoying the process, and trusting the outcome.

 

2 – You say you struggled with thinking of yourself as a writer. What are some of the ways you’ve gotten past your insecurities? What steps have you taken over the years to make yourself a better writer?

It was actually pretty sudden. Steve Pressfield calls this “turning pro” and can vividly remember when it happened for him. I can relate. A year ago, a friend asked me what my dream was. My reply was this: “I’d like to be a writer some day.” He laughed at me (because he had read my writing) and said, “You don’t have to dream of being a writer. You are a writer. You just have to write.” So I started writing. I’ve been calling myself a writer ever since.

There is a second part to this, though — the insecurity of the writer’s life, of creating and sharing your work and always wondering if people will discover you for the fake that you are. That fear haunts me regularly. So I try to overcome it by treating the craft with respect. I read a lot (books, not just blogs), practice regularly, and look for feedback. Plus, I have a really affirming wife, which helps.

 

3 – What is your writing and production schedule like?

I laugh when people ask me how I’m productive. If I see a shiny light, you’ve lost me. The bottom line for me is this: Productivity methods only work if I trick myself into them. No amount of discipline or diligence can make me do what I don’t want to do. So I have to find ways that to do what I must that feel immediately gratifying. An example of that is writing my first book. Pushing out a 500-word blog post every day is easy for me. I can procrastinate and rush to finish at the last minute. But not with a 40,000-word manuscript. If I don’t write for months, I’m screwed when the deadline arrives. So I started setting daily and weekly goals and blocking out an hour per day to meet them. Naturally, I’d still wait until the last minute, but I always met the goal. I would sometimes have to make myself coffee or listen to a certain type of music, but the one promise I made to myself was that I couldn’t leave the desk without having written (even if I wasted the first forty-five minutes and rushed to meet my goal in the last fifteen minutes).

My methods are kind of ridiculous and probably wouldn’t help anyone else, but they work for me. I also don’t have a “production schedule.” I just try to write every day. I am always capturing ideas, so I never feel like I’m starting from scratch — I’m always tweaking something. I think for me the thing is I just love the act of writing. It’s not about production or productivity (although I respect a good deadline); it’s the fact that I love creating things with words. I’m always finding an excuse to write and share what I’ve written.

 

4 – How much of a role does social media play in writing success these days?

Gosh, I’m not sure. Certainly, you can look at authors who are succeeding without it, but I think it provides a resource that wasn’t here even ten years ago. For me, it’s been invaluable. My blog (amplified by networks like Twitter and Facebook) has been invaluable for me finding a group of people who resonate with my voice and want to hear what I have to say.

For people who want to write books, you’ll need some kind of a platform (if you actually want to sell something) and social media can help you do that — essentially, for free. I wouldn’t have a book or an audience without it.

 

5 – You recently announced that you signed a book deal. Can you tell us a bit about the book and how the deal came about?

Sure. The book’s called Wrecked: When a Broken World Slams into Your Comfortable Life. It came about in a kind of odd way. The book was inspired by the work that I do with missionaries — how they go into the developing, gain a new paradigm, and have trouble fitting into how life used to be.

However, as I began to share these stories and this process of “getting wrecked,” I hear other people having similar experiences — not just overseas but in our own backyards. So I thought I’d write a book to describe the process and why I think everyone needs to get wrecked by a need bigger than themselves. With all the self-help garbage out there, I figured this would be the opposite: how to find your life’s purpose in the broken, ugly, dirty places of the world.

I wrote a short manifesto about this for ChangeThis.com a few years ago, but it wasn’t very popular. When my blog started to grow this past year, I went ahead and posted the link to that manifesto on my resources page (http://goinswriter.com/resources/). A month or so later, a publisher found it, read it, and contacted me. We’re now turning it into a book.

The process itself went really quickly. They made me an offer, I decided to get an agent, we signed the contract, and I got a deadline. It’s been a lot of fun, as I don’t know much about traditional publishing, so I’m chalking the whole experience up as education.

 

6 – A lot of writers, us included, blog about writing. It’s what we’re interested in and it appeals to other writers. Yet many authors don’t want to write about writing. And some simply want to write more to their fiction audiences. How does a writer find the right niche that fits their readership?

That’s a good question and one I have myself. My friends who are fiction writers are all struggling to reach their audiences online. Those who are struggling less are writing about writing.

I agree that you don’t want to just write for other writers, but I do think there is merit to reaching people who can help you reach other people. Bloggers are an excellent example of this.

My thought is this: Find a niche, and reach it. But don’t feel like you have to be stuck there. On occasion, I’ve veered off topic on my blog, and my audience has really enjoyed the content I’ve shared. I’m learning that for them, it’s not so much about the subject; it’s about the voice, the worldview. That’s why they read my writing (I think). And it’s certainly why I read other writers.

The trick is finding what initially resonates with people (because just writing about everything doesn’t) and gradually honing your voice through that process. That’s what I’m trying to do, anyway.

 

7 – If you collaborate with any writer, living or dead, who would you choose and why.

Ernest Hemingway. I aspire to be like him. I want to learn how to be punchier. He would help me. (And then it rained.)

 

8 – What’s the most important piece of advice you’d give to someone just starting out in self-publishing?

Be generous. Don’t underestimate the importance of giving away your work for free. It will surprise and delight people, and you may instantly find an audience. Then, you can build on that and release other work (not for free). I’ve tried to build my entire platform on generosity — giving away all kinds of ideas, opportunities, and services for free. Sure, it’s been costly, but it’s also paid off tremendously well. Every time I ask something from my audience (which doesn’t happen very often), they are always so receptive.

Helping people — whether you write fiction or nonfiction — is the best way to build a reputation and draw an audience that will stick with you.

Check out Jeff Goins’ eBooks, Every Writer’s Dream and Before Your First Book now at:  http://goinswriter.com/get-published If you use the promo code “stopstalling” this week, you can save $2 off the already great price!

Check out Jeff’s blog at  Goins, Writer. Or follow him on Twitter @jeffgoins

Got a question or comment for Jeff? 

Leave it in the comments below.

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How to Think With Surgical Precision

January 23, 2012 By 23 Comments

Can you effectively describe your product, business or story in three words?

Can you clearly state your opinion on a specific subject in three words?

Such brevity is extremely difficult. It requires surgical precision, and a sharpness of grit, brains and persistence. Most importantly, it demands an authentic and deep understanding of whatever it is you’re attempting to explain.

I’m fascinated by this “three words” exercise of over-exaggerating the need to simplify our thinking, and thereby our expressions. Like scientific curiosity; if we can understand the building block elements (e.g. atoms) of a creation, we can understand its many parts and advanced forms.

The riches of thought-leadership and persuasion go to those who can achieve this acute level of thinking and expression.

Which brings us to you.

You want your writing to penetrate deeper into the hearts and minds of your readers. Whether you’re pitching a product, selling a service or entertaining imaginations, your writing must be born from core elements and clear meaning.

Do you know what those are for you?

That’s the challenge: Describe your writing’s purpose in three words. There are no “rules” other than a word-count of three, no more and no less.

For my editing business, its purpose is: winning reader loyalty.

I’ve shared mine. Now share your three words in the comments.

Also, for bonus points, I’m curious to know what you think lies ahead for the future of books. Share your vision in three words.

My vision for the future of books? Reader commissioned stories.

What’s yours?

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Weekly Roundup: January 20, 2012

January 20, 2012 By 1 Comment

This week’s roundup includes some great news for Mac owners as Apple makes a serious bid for self-publishers, a discussion on improving your book sales, an interview with fantasy author Michael Sullivan, and much more!

At Ghostwriter Dad, we had a guest post from Betsy Talbot in which she delivered 3 Strategies to Better Market Your eBook, we interviewed author David Gaughran: Eight Questions: Interview With David Gaughran, and Sean made the case for really bad music with his post, LMFAO: Context is EVERYTHING.

Elsewhere on the web:

Apple is making a huge splash in the self-publishing world with its new iBook Author program, designed to help you create feature-rich eBooks on your mac. (We’re excited here at Ghostwriter Dad!) Check out Mashable’s hands-on review. Also check out this story at the Los Angeles Times. Macworld also has an in-depth look at iBook Author, and a podcast regarding Apple’s Education event where iBook Author was unveiled.

One small problem with the iBook Author program . . . it doesn’t let you sell your creations anywhere other than iBooks. Check out this post calling out Apple for its audacity. (In other words, don’t give up your other eBook authoring tools. We love Scrivener!)

Jonathan Fields posed a question about the future of publishing at Tribal Authors, Publishing Chicken: Who’s Gonna Blink First?

The Creative Penn has a great interview with fantasy author Michael Sullivan chock full of great advice from the author who had given up on writing after 10 years of rejection, only to find success when he applied what he’d learned in those 10 years! Check out the interview in audio or video here. Writing Epic Fantasy And Being A Pro Author With Michael Sullivan

Bubble Cow has a free tutorial showing you How to Write a Fiction Book Proposal.

David Gaughran has a confession – his latest book wasn’t selling too well. What did he do? Find out here and apply some of these tips to your book: Why Is My Book Not Selling?

Andrew Sullivan dishes on the publishing industry, what’s wrong with it, and what some people are doing right in this video. He followed up with a letter from Tim Anderson, who wrote Tune In Tokyo: The Gaijin Diaries. Tim talks about the hell he went through trying to sell his book, how he eventually self-published, then attracted a great review in Publisher’s Weekly, which then got him a book deal with Amazon (even though his self-published book was NOT a bestseller.) Check Tim’s story out here.

Got any thoughts on this week’s news or news that we missed? Leave a comment below.

See you next week with more writing and self-publishing news, tips, and interviews.

 

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