5Qi-2

@JoshTownley - 5Qi-2

1. How much time do you devote to promoting your books, where and why?

A. At the moment, Wattpad is pretty much my sole platform and, if truth be told, I barely promote my books at all. However, that doesn't mean I just sit back and wait for the reads to roll in. Instead, I promote myself by being an active reader, giving shout-outs to authors whose works I enjoy, and helping with competitions and events run by my writing group, the Wattpadders, and somehow, readers find me.

That's the beautiful thing about Wattpad - it rewards community spirit!

Of course, for writers who are trying to sell their own published books, it's a whole different story, and promoting can become as demanding as a full time job. A bridge I'll cross when / if I get to it.

2. What is the easiest thing about writing?

A. Gosh, is there anything easy about writing? For me, at least, it's all a struggle. Finding the right words, the right characters, the pacing, the plot twists, the pay-off for the reader, it's all tough. My thoughts are: if you think writing is easy, you're writing a predictable story.

It's the challenge that makes writing so rewarding, so the only easy part for me is finding the joy that comes with it. That's never hard to find.

3. Why do you write?

A. To explore the greatest question ever posed by humankind: "What if?"

I'm a hopeless daydreamer, and my mind is always off following strange tangents. Writing gives me the power and the freedom to follow them as far as I like.

4. What inspires you?

A. My children are my greatest inspiration. I took up the pen for the first time around the time my eldest daughter came into the world, almost 5 years ago, and haven't looked back since. I decided then to pursue my dream, no matter how impossible it seemed, so that one day I might inspire them to do the same.

5. How important are names to you in your books?

A. Fairly unimportant, I'd say. It's not something I labour over greatly. Often, a name will just pop into my mind once the character starts speaking, and I'll think, "Yeah, that has a good ring to it."

Sometimes, if I'm stuck on a name, I'll just turn to the nearest person, usually my wife, give them a few dot points about the character, and let them pick a name for me. It's worked out pretty well so far.

Readers know me best as the author of the horror story with a 3-year-old protagonist: ZOEY. I'm currently finishing off my final edits, and hoping to submit to publishers early next month.I'm also writing a dark sci-fi novel called THE TWELVE STARS, where a homeless brother and sister fight for survival in a depression-gripped city, while the threat of global extinction looms overhead.

Books, Author recommendations & Hi5s all combined:

1. HERO, by BelindaCrawford

2. DESERT WAKE, by amberkbryant

3. ALTAICA, and its sequel ASENA BLESSED, by TracyMJoyce

4. BLINK, by joyCronje and Cashjo

5. MAGIC AND OTHER WAYS TO INCITE REBELLION, by oahehmghee

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#5Qi-2 November 3rd, 2015