The year-long first Monday of the month romance author interviews is coming to an end. I’m going to finish up with a really good romance author, Juli
a Ward. I met her on a writing site, and she is fun, quirky and a hella good writer. I love her work on an interactive, choose your own romance novel. It’s shaping up to be great fun and she has a romance coming out in a couple of months with an audio version to follow soon after.
Please allow me to introduce, Julia Ward.
Hey, Julia. Let’s jump right into the interview with this question. What are your ambitions for your writing career?
JW: Good question. I don’t know the answer. I write down what falls out of my head and hope someone will enjoy/be inspired by/be moved by it.
Wishes is another thing. I’d be good making millions. Hahaha But seriously, money is handy but it really is about the right person finding one of my books and how it speaks to them in an inspiring way. Maybe they’ll decide if I can do it, they can do it. Whatever their “it” is.
Have you written works in collaboration with other writers, and if so: why did you decide to collaborate and did it affect your sales?
JW: Back in high school, a friend and I were just writing random notes on a paper during a meeting and it blossomed into this fantastic smash up of various sci-fi and superhero characters and worlds. Someday, maybe I’ll type it up and we’ll sell it.
I think challenging yourself to do something outside of your normal is a good thing. It helps you grow as a writer. Do you write full-time or part-time?
JW: Part-time, totally. I’d go nuts if I had to sit at a desk for hours on end. But just because I’m not sitting doesn’t mean I’m not thinking. Hmm. So really, all writers are thinking about our stories, or listening to conversations getting ideas, walking around and thinking things like “this would be the perfect setting for that scene.” I now think we’re all full-time writers, we’re just not full time in the seat.
Yeah, you’re right about that. As a part-time/full-time writer, how long on average does it take you to write a book?
JW: The writing part I can do in about twenty days. And it comes out pretty well. Then I take a month or two or more and read through to find the errors. That’s the time-consuming part of the job; revisions and rewrites.
Revisions are the bane of my existence and the number one reason I only have one book published. You write romance, would you let your grandmother read your work?
JW: Oh, now that’s a stellar question. I’m not sure what kinds of books my grandmothers read. I know what my mom read. I’d have let her read them. Heck, these are pretty mild given some of what she’s read. Most of my romances are very tame. Some barely kiss while others fade to black. I think my grandmothers would have been okay reading them. I’m smiling now at the idea of that. That would have been cool.
Thank you so much for stopping by and giving us a peeking into your life.
Julia: Thank you for having me, Aerial. This was fun.
Bio
Julia Ward is a Pacific Northwest native. During childhood, she delighted in running with the family’s pack of dogs through the neighboring forest, pretending so many adventures. More stories filled her head over the years with only a few making it to paper. Now, with kids grown with kids of their own, she looks forward to sharing her stories with others and hopes they’ll bring a little fun or love into someone’s life.
A variety of desparate jobs during her years has given her some interesting experiences and knowledge leading to the formation of some quirky characters.
Currently, her primary genre leans toward the romantic side but she also has works in progress that wander into the sci-fi as well as the paranormal realms.
Julia looks forward to getting to know her readers and hopes they enjoy her work. You can find a little more about Julia at About.Me/JuliaWardAuthor. Some of her rambles (and perhaps a snippet or two) are at halffastwriter.wordpress.com
Very Sherry Terry 