Hello hello, lovely readers & writers both! This week I’d like to introduce you to the fantastic C.L. Schneider, writer of mystery and mayhem in worlds of fire and adventure. Born in a small Kansas town on the Missouri river, she penned her first novel at age sixteen on a typewriter in her parent’s living room. She currently resides in New York’s scenic Hudson Valley with her husband and two sons.

Today on Jean Lee’s World, she’s got two thrilling series and lots of awesome input to share on writing. I also picked her brain on balancing parenthood and the author life, because I need all the help I can get!

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Let’s talk first about your kickin’ Nite Fire series. You do a lovely job blending mystery and fantasy in the urban environment. What did you find to be the most challenging about blending the genres?

Actually, I didn’t think about trying to blend the two. The mystery aspect developed organically as the characters and plot came together. What I really found challenging was (after spending years in the world I created for The Crown of Stones), I was suddenly working with modern, real-life elements, locations, and situations. The series is set in a fictional city, so I knew I had a tiny bit of leeway. But I was specifically concerned about police procedures, as well as the forensic and arson portions of Dahlia’s investigations. I did a fair amount of research, but I’m lucky to have someone on my beta reading team who’s in law enforcement. He’s only a text away, and I’m very grateful for his input.

Oh how cool! I wouldn’t mind having an herbalist in my pocket for my Fallen Princeborn series, not to mention a baker…or, well, I could try and actually bake better.

Ahem. Where was I? Oh! Dahlia Nite is quite the spitfire of a heroine (pun intended, hee hee!). I love her drive to fight and protect the weaker races like we poor humans. Now I see you write the Nite Fire books from her perspective. Can you describe the logic of your choice to write in first person for this series as opposed to third person omniscient?

I never considered writing Nite Fire in third person. While I do write in third, first person has always been my preferred way to write (and read). it’s the most natural to me. It allows me to step into my character’s mind and connect more deeply with them.  My hope is that it will do the same thing for my readers, giving them a personal, intense connection to the character and the story.

I won’t ask you to share any spoilers from Smoke and Mirrors, the third volume in the Nite Fire series, but I will ask if we’re to have as much murder and mayhem as we have in the previous books!

Oh, definitely! The “murder” portion is a bit of a different flavor this time, though. Instead of individual human victims, as in the past two books, someone is dumping dismembered body parts around Sentinel City. To make matters worse, most of the dissected parts aren’t human, and they’re too mismatched to put together a complete body. As Dahlia and Creed search for the killer (and the missing pieces), the mayhem unfolds 😊  

I can’t wait for Smoke and Mirrors’ release! At least we can read Crown of Stones in the meantime. Now in THAT series, your primary character is a male. As a female writer, how did you put yourself into a male character’s mind?

It’s funny. I’ve had men ask me how (being a woman) I wrote the character of Ian Troy so well. And I always tell them the same thing; I have no idea! Lol.  There was no prep. I didn’t think about Troy being male (or female). The story evolved entirely from the creation of his character, so I knew him very well before I even started writing. That’s the key: knowing your character inside and out. It’s crucial for writing any character, regardless of gender. I lived and breathed Ian for a while before I even started writing the first book. It was a level of familiarity that made it easier to put myself into his mind. I saw myself as him, experienced the story through his eyes, words, and actions. His gender didn’t matter to me. Just how best to tell his story.

In fact, I’d written Ian for so long, when I started Nite Fire, I was worried about writing from a woman’s perspective. But by creating her first (and letting the story develop from her), I had Dahlia as clear in my head as Ian was. And the rest fell into place.   

I have such trouble with working on names in fantasy: when to use a name that sounds familiar vs. creating a name vs. utilizing another culture’s names. How on earth do you choose what kinds of names to use, especially in the universe you built for Crown of Stones?

I don’t enjoy stories where every other name is impossible to pronounce. I’ve picked up a book and put it back on the shelf simply for that reason. If I can’t get through the blurb on the back because I can’t pronounce the places or names, I’m not reading it. I want to enjoy my reading experience, not stress over it! At the same time, I like unique names. So I try to have a balance, based entirely on what I’m naming. To me, certain characters or places scream to have a different sound or a hard sound versus soft. Sometimes, I look at names from other cultures. Sometimes, I take a name and mash it with another or switch up the spelling. Mostly, though, I think about the qualities of the characters I’m naming.

Are they vicious, kind, brave, intelligent?  What traits or abilities stand out about them? Are they a pompous king, a “what you see is what you get” type of person, a wise woman, or a hardened warrior? Where do they come from? What are their people like? If I’m trying to name a place, what are the conditions and terrain like? To put it simply, I look at specific qualities and try to create a name or a sound that best represents those qualities.

You’re an extremely active indie author who attends conventions and books signings, which can terrify the new author such as myself.  What benefits do you see from attending conventions and signings? How can an author brace himself/herself for the in-person appearance?

I love in-person events! Conventions and signings are great ways to form a connection with potential readers. You can convey so much about your work with a casual in-person chat that goes beyond a tweet or trading messages online.  If the interaction is memorable, hopefully it will encourage them to tell someone else about your work. And there’s nothing better than a repeat customer seeking you out at a convention to tell you how much they loved your book!  

As far as preparing goes, the best way to is to know your material. Since it’s your book, that’s the easy part! Be sure to have a few short hooks to reel people in when they stop and ask what the story is about.  Anticipate questions and practice ahead of time. If you’re nervous, say so. The people coming to your table want to meet you—the real you. Most importantly, smile and have fun. If you’re sitting there looking miserable, people will walk on by. Be friendly. Offer a giveaway and have a nice, eye-catching presentation to draw them to your table.

Awesome tips, thanks! Now I gotta ask you about family stuff, because your bio mentions two sons, and *I* have two sons who pull me every which way aaaaaaaall day. How do you balance writing and parenting? I’m always looking for new strategies!

Well, it’s a little bit easier now that they’re older (16 and 12). Though they do stay up and watch TV with me now, so I’ve lost that time at night to write. But it was definitely harder when they were little. I had to sneak my writing in whenever I could. I brought a notebook with me to soccer games and swim lessons. I stayed up ridiculously late or wrote when they were napping.  I used to bring the laptop into the kitchen, so I could stir dinner, type a few minutes, then stir again. Okay, I still do that. Lol. But I spent a lot of years “stealing” minutes at a time.  

Looking back now, though it would have been much easier, I’m glad I didn’t put my writing aside until they were older. Instead, I fought every day to fit in a few sentences or paragraphs, or (if I was lucky) a couple of pages. There was no prep, no process for getting in the zone. I took what time I could get, when I could get it. It was frustrating then, but it forced me to learn how to fall in and out of a story at a moment’s notice, which has proven to be an invaluable tool.  

Any other closing words of encouragement to help your fellow writers through the rough days?

I think a lot of new writers feel they have to write linear, but that’s not true. If you’re having trouble visualizing a scene, don’t stress. Leave it and move onto one that’s clear in your head. When I’m drafting, I rarely write linear. I jump around, writing the chapters or scenes that are most vivid in my mind. Then I go back, write what goes in between, and “marry” them together. I can always fix any changes or inconsistencies in rewrites.

In short: getting down what I’m visualizing best—emptying my head of what’s rattling around in there—frees up my imagination to concentrate on the scene(s) I’m less sure about. Many times, it will spark a new subplot or characters idea that I hadn’t thought of before. Writing out of order might not work for everyone, but it keeps me writing versus staring at the screen.

Thank you so much for your time, my friend!  You truly rock the indie house.

C.L. Schneider can be found in all sorts of places!

Website  www.clschneiderauthor.com
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Next week we’ll return to our discussion of that old chestnut of a writer’s problem known as character death. duhn duhn DUUUUHN! Don’t miss it!

Read on, share on, and write on, my friends!