In my ongoing “Author Spotlight” Series I’m pleased to present Lucinda Moebius.
Author Spotlight: Lucinda Moebius
Today I’m fortunate to present Lucinda Moebius author of a number of books published through Haven Novels Publishing.
Hi Lucinda. Thanks for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Hi back and thank you for giving me the chance to talk about my journey as an author. I grew up in Idaho as part of a large family. I am the third out of eight children, putting me smack dab in the middle. As a middle child I was always torn between wanting to be included with the “big kids” and being responsible for the “little ones”. I never quite fit in with any of them and as a result ended up needing to find ways to entertain myself. When I was eight we lost a sister to SIDS and this loss sent our family into quite a tailspin. We found joy in the birth of another sister, but some wounds can never heal. I struggled and as a result found escapism in fictional worlds. There were never enough books out there for me to read so I started writing my own.
My family was poor. We always said we were lower middle class, but looking back on our situation I realize we could only be described as poor. At one point we actually lived in a cabin in the Idaho mountains. It was a tiny, two-roomed structure heated by a wood stove and lit using gas lanterns. Our running water consisted of running down to the creek and filling up the water buckets. My parents didn’t let us know we were living in the cabin because we were poor. For us it was a grand adventure. A year and a half long camping trip in which we learned to live off the land and entertain ourselves without the benefits of television (the home computer was only just becoming accessible to the general public not that it would have mattered much because the cabin didn’t have electricity). We moved from the mountains to a trailer park. Yes, I lived in a trailer park. In fact, the majority of the town was a trailer park. Even the church was a trailer. My class was held in the bathroom. Our chapel was built a few months after we moved into the town.
My parents gave us the best gift they could: the gift of the desire to gain knowledge. They pushed each of us to get an education. It worked. Five of their surviving children have bachelor’s degrees and a sixth will graduate with hers soon. Two have Master’s and one (me) has a Doctorate.
How long have you been writing?
I have been a storyteller for as long as I can remember. I started writing them down about the time we moved into the cabin. We moved the summer I turned eleven. My mom would always hit the back to school sales and stock up on spiral notebooks. It’s a habit I keep to this day. I always had a notebook handy for writing stories. Although I do most of my writing on a computer now, I still have a collection of notebooks full of story ideas and outlines.
Tell us a little bit about your current project. Is it a novel, short story, or something else? Is it part of a series?
I have so many stories bouncing around in my head at one time it’s difficult to tell you about one current project. I am writing two novels right now: Hunter: Book Two of Chronicles of the Soul Eaters and Lakota’s Strength: Book Three in the Haven Novels series.
My goal is to finish both books this year and send them off to editors and proofreaders. If I can stay on track with my writing Hunter should be out about mid-summer and Lakota’s Strength should be available in early 2018.
What genre do you prefer to write in, if any?
I write every genre. The Haven Novels series is Science Fiction and the Chronicles of the Soul Eaters is Paranormal. I have published books in the following genres: Science Fiction, Paranormal, Literary Fiction, Romance, Non-fiction, and Children’s books. I have a few Fantasy novels planned out. Once I have finished the two series I am currently working on I will get started on the Fantasy series.
What authors influenced you?
There are too many to name. I am a huge fan of the bard! William Shakespeare understands the true spectrum of the human experience. He wrote every genre even Fantasy and Paranormal (Witches, Spirits, Magic, Histories, Insanity, Love) He wrote it all.
My favorite book as a teenager was Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I was supposed to read it as an assigned book in High School. I found it under my bed one hot summer day between my Junior and Senior year. I think I read it in one night. I don’t know how many times I read it that summer and I don’t know how many times I read it since, but it is still one of my favorite books.
I think I read through every Science Fiction and Fantasy book in our school library as well as the ones I found in my brother’s bedroom (I might have also read a few of the letters I found from his girlfriend, too). He had quite a collection of comic books and I might have “borrowed” a few X-Men and ElfQuest comics from his collection. He used to steal my babysitting money to fund his collection so I don’t feel too guilty about it.
Do you write every day? A few days per week?
I try to write every day. I may not be able to write on my current WIP, but I at least try to get some kind of writing done.
Do you listen to music when you write? Does it influence how you write?
No, I watch TV. There are a few shows I binge watch: Star Trek, Grey’s Anatomy, Law and Order, CSI, Criminal Minds and although I don’t really pay attention to the shows the background noise allows me to concentrate. I like music, but my auditory perception of the world is different than the average persons. I had my hearing tested once and it was discovered my hearing is 10% above the average human beings so I don’t hear music the same way as most people. I can’t zone out and just let the sound wash over me and I become overstimulated easily.
How do you think your writing has changed from when you first started?
Every book I write allows me to improve. The most important skill I’ve developed is the art of Showing vs. Telling. Most importantly, I have learned I still have a lot to learn. I am not afraid to take critique and improve my writing.
How do you create the covers for your books?
I have some very talented friends who create covers for my novels. Amazon has a cover making template I use for my 30 Days Stream of Consciousness novels. I use my own photography for the images on these novels. I am going to continue exploring my cover options in the future.
Do you have an excerpt from your current work you’d like to share?
Excerpt from Hunter: Chronicles of the Soul Eaters book 2
I could feel the creature’s energy pushing at my back as I followed the Warrior out into the street. Her energy pulsed and grabbed deep in my core. Every ounce of my soul reached out to draw her in to my existence. I wanted her to be a part of me, to become intertwined with my being. The raw power in her soul called to me, pulling like the moon pulled on water. Since the first day I saw the creature in the graveyard so many months ago she consumed my thoughts and invaded my dreams. I couldn’t explain my desire to possess her, I just knew she belonged to me like nothing else in my past ever did.
The monster had a name, Maria Christine, but I couldn’t bring myself to call her by the name I had spent my entire life regarding the name as the most holy of holies. Even now, when I know I would never complete the path to the priesthood I still couldn’t see calling this creature the name I regarded most holy from my earliest memories.
We were moving fast. Buildings flashed by in streams of light. There were people on the sidewalk but we breezed past them as if they weren’t even there. We melted through the crowds, passing through their energy like a hot knife cuts through butter. I could see the bodies all around me. They were crowded in front of me and on all sides, pressing in as I made my way down the sidewalk. None of them moved out my way, but somehow I passed by all of them, keeping pace with the fast moving slayer ahead of me.
Where can we purchase your current book? What about previous books?
All of my books are available on Amazon.
Echoes of Savanna: Book One: The Parent Generation
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006RM66QM
Raven’s Song: Book One: T1 Generation
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006YJ92GO
Write Well Publish Right
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product
Feeder: Chronicles of the Soul Eaters Book 1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0615968325
30 Days Stream of Consciousness V. 1
http://www.amazon.com/30-Days-Streams-Consciousness-1-ebook/dp/B01BW8JXBU
30 Days Streams of Consciousness Vol 2: A Haunting
http://www.amazon.com/30-Days-Stream-Consciousness-Haunting-ebook/dp/B01D7T9CFY
30 Days Streams of Consciousness Vol 3: Abduction
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01F1DMOBI
30 Days Stream of Consciousness: Fire and Ice A Love Story
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GGL8QUM
Raising Grandpa
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OPP1FCI
I Know I am Awesome
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QYAQBZI
Oh Brother!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A1PC5YM
How can we follow you online?
Lucinda Moebius Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/Lucinda-Moebius-Fan-Page-136358979707547/
SFF Promo Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1132459036786385/
Twitter Handle https://twitter.com/?lang=en
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4176363.Lucinda_Moebius
Blogs:
Your Next Favorite Author: http://mynextfavoriteauthor.blogspot.com/
30 days Stream of Consciousness: http://30daysofconsciousness.blogspot.com/
If you’re an indie author, what made you choose that route?
I was originally published through a small independent press. The owner made a lot of big promises and when it came time for follow through he quickly faded. I lost creative control and my work suffered for it. I paid for editing and proofreading and the quality or the work was sadly lacking. When I gained creative control back I decided to self-publish. I love the control self-publishing gave me. It’s a lot of work to promote and try to get my name out there, but I doubt I ever go the traditional publishing route again.
Any parting words for writers?
Write. Every day. Just write. People tell me all the time they want to write a book but they don’t know how. If you want to write a book you should just write the book. Then join writing groups and hire editors and proofreaders to fix the issues you have with story structure and grammar. Stop telling people you want to write a book and just do it. That is all.
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I had the idea in late May to do a month long series exposing my followers to other writers who I admire and read. When I started this project, I told no one. I wanted it to be a surprise for all the authors involved. No one knew who I was going to share or when. It was pretty cool to see the surprise coming in from those whom I featured. For those writers, I do hope it was a well-received surprise. For you readers, I hope you found a new author or two to check out and sample their work.
Today’s author you should know is Lucinda Moebius.
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