Q&A with indie author RS McCoy — plus a giveaway!

When RS McCoy’s thyroid cancer returned last spring, writing became her mental break from treatment. In the past year, she’s published three novels, two novellas and several short stories. She describes her works as falling into the genres of fantasy, science fiction, romance, paranormal, and supernatural.

After the interview, leave a comment for the chance to win a copy of Sparks!

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According to your blog, writing was initially your way to mentally escape cancer treatment. Can you talk a bit about this and how it helped?

OOoo girl, you’re brave! All you have to do is mention the C word and people go running. I appreciate you asking! I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in August of 2012. For the next few months, I dealt with surgeries and radiation, and I can honestly say, it was easily the worst experience of my life. By spring, I was in a better place. I was a cancer survivor, it was in my past, I had lived. The following April, I received that horrible phone call that my cancer was back with a vengeance, and I would have to start over with treatment. For several weeks afterward, I struggled to wrap my mind around my daily life. Dealing with my cancer’s return didn’t seem to fit in with sitting in traffic and going to work. My head was spinning and I needed something to ground me in a positive way. Writing ended up being that outlet for me. In the past year, I’ve written three novels, two novellas and a handful of short stories as well as guest blog posts and other articles. The crazier my life gets, the more I write!

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Your first novel, Sparks, is part of a paranormal fantasy series. What can you tell us about it?

Sparks isn’t the traditional PNR, and my readers (as well as myself) have struggled to truly define it within a genre. I really enjoy reading paranormal fantasy, and I enjoyed Twilight and other popular books in the category. When I was developing a new idea for a book, I knew I didn’t want to use vampires, werewolves, zombies or any other creature that seems to be overused in the last few years. Instead, I chose to write about a series of young people who have gifts that allow them to manipulate the environment, read minds and affect time. It was really a lot of fun to write!

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What do think people will love most about this book? What do you love about it??

I started writing for myself, and I will always keep it that way. My books end up being the type of books I like to read. Personally, I enjoy stories with layers of complexity, subplots within side stories that come out after multiple reads. Romance is a must but it doesn’t need to be the whole show. Action and suspense are also important. Sparks has all of my favorite elements, and so far, my readers seem to agree, thankfully!

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In the spirit of Desperately Ever After, I must ask: If you had to choose, which fairy tale character (doesn’t have to be a princess and doesn’t have to be Disney), would you be and why?

Oh, without a doubt, I’d be the Little Mermaid. As if I needed any more motivation to love the feisty Ariel, my principal in kindergarten was the understudy for the voice, and given enough screaming five year old girls, she was prone to belt out songs at assemblies. I turned my major love of the sea into a BS in Marine Biology and worked in the industry for a few years. Plus, I always enjoy a woman who can handle herself.

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Spreading the word is one of the most daunting aspects of being an indie author. How do you get your titles out there? 

Begging. No, really. Marketing is a delicate balance of being in peoples’ faces without them realizing you’re in their faces. I utilize my blog, author website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, writing forums, critiquing sites, other authors, newsletters, articles, guest posts, and signing events to get my books in the hands of readers. It sometimes feels like a Sisyphean task, but when I get in the right mood, I really enjoy it!

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A writer’s life is certainly not an easy one—from rejections to dwindling sales, to tough reviews, and so on. How did you get through the bad days?

Beer. Lots and lots of beer. Sometimes I dabble into strawberry martinis, but on the whole, it’s best just to take a step back from the whole thing. Keeping things in perspective is sort of part of the job.

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What is the best piece of advice you’ve received that you can share with aspiring writers?

Just do it! Very few people start out as experts. The rest of us have to keep working at it for our entire lives. You may not be a bestseller this year or the next, but if you trudge on, you’re bound to get there.

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What can fans expect from you next?

A lot! At the end of this month, Spirits (Sparks Saga Book Two) will be released, and I have several other smaller projects in the works. This fall, I’ll start work on Schism (Sparks Saga Book Three) and continue to publish short stories and novellas along the way. It’s getting kind of exciting!

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In addition to her website, rsmccoyauthor.com, and blog, Big Fish, RS is active on Twitter (@RSMcCoy1), Facebook, Pinterest, and Goodreads Her book is available at both Amazon.com (US) and Amazon.co.uk (UK).

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ENTER TO WIN!

Comment below to win an e-book copy of Sparks. The giveaway will remain open until 11:59 p.m. (PST) Tuesday, July 8, at which point a winner will be chosen at random.

Best of luck to you all!

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FEED YOUR BEACH BAG!

Desperately Ever After imagines what happened to our favorite fairy tale princesses in a Desperate Housewives/Sex and the City sort of way. Deep down, it’s about a bunch of friends helping each other through life’s trials; they just happen to live in castles. Get it in either print or e-book format at Amazon.

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Click here for Amazon US or here for Amazon UK   

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COMING UP!

Next Wednesday, July 9, author CeCe Osgood will stop by to talk about her debut novel, The Divorced Not Dead Workshop. She’ll also give away a copy of the book!

Mark your calendars 😉

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