Hello everyone, it’s time to take an author interview and today we have Author Nick Jones with us. We are interviewing him for the book - "Sarah’s Shadow".
1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? I can’t remember exactly, but I’ve loved the idea of writing children’s books for many
years, on and off. The desire intensified when my son was old enough to be read to.
I’d read him a picture book and find myself thinking ‘I could write something like this
if only I had an original idea for a story.’ Fortunately, I eventually thought of one!
2. How long does it take you to write a book?
I’ve written three children’s books so far (only one has been published at this stage),
and each one took months to complete. In each instance I felt I had to get the story all
figured out in my head before I started writing it. This is the hardest part for me. Once
I’m happy with the plot, I start writing and it all tends to pour out of me pretty
quickly. The editing process takes time as well, of course. As a proofreader and editor
myself, I have a great network of editors so I run the stories past a few of them, too.
3. What is your work schedule like when you are writing?
So far I’ve only written picture books, each one around 1,000 words. As a result, my
writing schedule is probably different to that of most authors. I try to get all the words
down in some form first, which takes a few hours, and then I spend weeks reading
over it and refining it.
4. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
The only quirky thing about me is that I also write jokes. Before writing Sarah’s
Shadow I wrote a trilogy of joke books. Writing jokes is unlike other forms of writing
as the ideas just come to you out of the blue, so you have to jot them down quickly
before you forget them. I keep a spreadsheet of my jokes and use Evernote to keep a
record of any that come to me when I’m out and about.
5. Where do you get your information or ideas for this book?
So far I’ve only written picture books, each one around 1,000 words. As a result, my
writing schedule is probably different to that of most authors. I try to get all the words
down in some form first, which takes a few hours, and then I spend weeks reading
over it and refining it.
4. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
The only quirky thing about me is that I also write jokes. Before writing Sarah’s
Shadow I wrote a trilogy of joke books. Writing jokes is unlike other forms of writing
as the ideas just come to you out of the blue, so you have to jot them down quickly
before you forget them. I keep a spreadsheet of my jokes and use Evernote to keep a
record of any that come to me when I’m out and about.
5. Where do you get your information or ideas for this book?
The idea for Sarah’s Shadow came to me when my son asked me to make up a
bedtime story for him one night. I think I subconsciously stole the idea of a shadow
operating independently from its owner from a Peter Pan book that I’d read to my son
a few weeks before.
6. What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Watching football, playing football with my kids in the back garden, taking my son to
football training twice a week. Are you spotting a pattern here? ��
7. What does your family think of your writing?
My son and daughter are very proud that their daddy is a children’s author! One of the
best things about publishing Sarah’s Shadow was getting to dedicate the book to
them. Nobody can ever take that away from them!
8. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
The most surprising thing to me was how much effort authors have to put into
marketing their book to make it a success. You have to be relentless as there is so
much competition out there now that self-publishing has been made so accessible.
9. How many books have you written? Which is your favourite?
I’ve written three joke books and three kids’ picture books, but only one of the picture
books, Sarah’s Shadow, has been published so far. I’d say that Sarah’s Shadow is my
favourite, but that may change once the other books have been illustrated!
10. Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
I’ve received tweets, photos and even a few videos from parents and their kids saying
that they love Sarah’s Shadow. It’s the best thing about being an author and I would
encourage anyone reading this to please be vocal in your support for your favourite
authors as it makes it all worthwhile!
11. What do you think makes a good story?
Interesting characters and an original story are big factors for me. I think a lot of
children’s picture books are pretty generic, probably because publishers like to play
safe. I also love a big plot twist!
12. As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I was pretty good at drawing when I was a kid, so for a long time I wanted to be an
artist. However, I lost interest in art at secondary school because I was no longer the
best at drawing! So, I then wanted to be a writer for a while. Now I wish I’d pursued a
degree in art, as I could save a small fortune in illustration costs for my books now!
Nick Jones
Managing Director
