Finally! Another author interview!! It's been just over a month since the last one, and it's high time I have another author on! So, without further ado, let me hand the mic over to Miss Abigail Kay Harris!!
(Oh, and stay tuned for my review of her latest release, Oh, The Fallen, at noon today!)
GJ: What first inspired you to write?
AH: The love I had for writing. It grew into wanting to give others a story and the joy of a story that grabs the readers’ attention as I got from so many others. And, I loved some of the books by an indie author who was homeschooled and in her teens like I was.
GJ: What are some of the driving forces behind you and your writing now?
AH: Passion from God, I guess? I used to write for fun and because it was an easy hobby when I already loved writing. I now write about things I’m passionate about such as military, PTSD, abortion, finding truth in God’s word, lots of things that are sometimes not talked about enough.
GJ: What are some of your most favorite books/genres-to read and to write?
AH: I read many genres as well as write many genres. I love to read and write WWII, military romances, military fiction, spy-thrillers, contemporary romances.
I also like to read but not write non-magical fantasy.
And I like to write but not read light hearted mysteries, I find I am picky in my mystery choices as I guess what happens too soon and am bored by the story often.
GJ: Looking back, what has changed for you as a writer - be it how you write or what you write about?
AH: Confidence! Really, the biggest thing to change was my view of my writing and going from a “maybe one day” to “I did it and should do it again” kinda thing. It's crazy that I lost a lot of self doubt as I was working on this book and I found I was excited to share this little story.
GJ: Tell me a little about your newest release, Oh, The Fallen. What inspired the story?
AH: Many things inspired my story! I’m the daughter of an Air Force veteran, I love supporting veterans, and am passionate about subjects that aren’t often spoken about. PTSD being one of them and that is what led me to write Oh, The Fallen as did the fact that many don’t know what families are going through on Memorial Day or why Memorial Day is a holiday.
GJ: What did your writing process for Oh, The Fallen look like? Did you pants it? Plot it? How long did it take for you to write?
AH: I wrote a flash fiction that I lost until one day in January. I wanted to write a story after a friend went to bootcamp and we couldn’t keep in touch. I searched for the place I had saved the flash fiction and I finally found it. The rest of the month I slowly wrote a short draft followed by one or two more, I had the third draft done the next month. I’ve been a slow writer in the past and it was amazing I kept writing in the story since I often lose interest in writing a story after the first 5,000 words. I am a pantster who leans toward full discovery writing, I didn’t know what the end result would be until I finished my last draft.
It took roughly 150 days to go from a flash fiction to a published novella with plans for three novels, another flash fiction, novelettes, and novellas in a total of 8 or 9 stories.
Fun fact about my drafts is I write about double the word count as last time so each draft of Oh, The Fallen until the editing stage added 2,000 words in all ending with over 14,000 words.
GJ: What do you want your readers to take away from this story?
AH: A new understanding of what the men and women who fight for our country go though. Even what I write doesn’t begin to show the truth of what our military goes through. I come from more of an Air Force kid’s view which is limited as well since my dad got out when I was a little kid but it still impacted my family.
GJ: Have you ever experienced any discouragement as an author? If so, what inspired you to persevere?
AH: Yes, I actually nearly gave up on writing after I was given some advice and critique that wasn’t right for me. I also had a hard time writing a few years ago when one story of mine just didn’t work out and I had writer's block for nearly a year. Friends encouraged me to keep writing and about that time I met my best writing friend who has pulled me out of lots of downs as I’m writing and she’s also my editor along with a lovely writer!
GJ: What are your greatest aspirations for your future, be it as a person or as a writer?
AH: Hmm! At this time, my greatest aspiration is to publish my series while planning another book at the same time.
GJ: What has being a writer taught you?
AH: That everyone has a different story themselves and we can’t have another person’s story, good or bad.
About the Author
Abigail Kay Harris is a daughter of the King with a personal degree in book-nerdiness. A sister to seven, her passionate love of the written word and deeper meanings hidden in normal things leads her to spend her time reading, writing, using sarcasm, and defining obscure words. When she’s not chasing words, she enjoys watching shows, classic romance movies, tea, sunrises, and the outdoors, especially mountains, beaches, and forests.