What's up?
Welcome to my very FIRST blog post.
This is the place where I will be featuring authors from all across the indie author space. I am very excited to feature my first author next month, but since this is the beginning of a saga, I figured for numero uno I will feature ME. So, here is your chance to get to know me and my writing journey.
Okay, here we go.
HI. My name is D. Allyson Howlett, millennial wordsmith, mother of monsters (aka boys), nerd wifey, media editor, retro-lover, and foodie.
I am a proud to be NYer currently living in a New England farmtown. I love raising chickens, sitting in the sun, watching pro-wrestling with my boys, and procrastinating in bed. When I am not writing, I am working my media editing side hustle, creating epic playlists, or stuffing my face in a book (or with food 😁).
Get to Know the Author
1. When did your writing journey begin? What was the inspiring moment?
I can’t remember a defining moment when I started writing. I think I’ve always been a bit of a dreamer. Living in fantasy worlds like Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal and Raskin and Bass The Last Unicorn. I always was attracted to stories of adventure fraught with perils. Not that my early writing turned out that way.
The first memory I have of ever writing anything was in 2nd grade. I got the idea in my head to create a comic book. I loved reading the Sunday morning comics in the newspaper every week. Garfield, Peanuts, Ziggy, Baby Blues (to name a few). When Zits came out, I was hooked on whatever adolescent misadventures Jeremy would face.
So I grabbed some notebook paper, draw lines for 6 panels to live and created my story. ‘The Adventures of Bedder and Roller’ is a simple comic strip featuring a bed bug and his pet pill bug. They’d go on cute adventures like to the pet store to buy food, to figuring out what to eat for breakfast, to finding a penny on a morning walk and buying ice cream (bc ice cream only cost a penny in those days, yeah right). I made about a dozen or so strips and created a book, which has long been lost to time.
My writing stopped after that and I didn’t really pick up the pen again until middle school, when Harry Potter was the most talked about book series for tweens and teens. I actually didn’t touch a HP book until the films came out. My favorite book series at the time being Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, where I found my love for all things miserable and unhappy. But, when I received a HP themed notebook as a gift, I started writing my own fan fiction themed story about a girl who went to Hogwarts with Harry.
After that, I focused more on screen plays than novels and wrote tons of scripts that I acted out with my cousins, which we filmed whenever we met for family gatherings. Mostly scary horror mysteries with killers that always got away with murder.
It wasn’t until my first year of college, when my then boyfriend, now hubs, fed my addiction for dragons, and my first fantasy novel began to take shape. That was 2006 (wow, dating myself here) but it wasn’t until 2018 that I started to get serious about writing and wanting to be a published author.
2. What does your writing process look like? Pantser, planner, or plantser?
My process kind of ranges from project to project. I used to fly by the seat of my pants. But that resulted in drafts taking FOREVER to finish bc I would get stuck for weeks, months, even years. Those were the early days of writing.
I started taking a more practical approach. You still won’t see me with a cork board covered with index cards with endless notes on this, that and the other thing. I can’t focus when there is too much clutter, despite how organized it may be.
I created an outline after doing a lot of picking brains and articles by fellow authors that covers everything from the WHY to the HOW to character descriptions and START, MIDDLE & END of the novel. I used it religiously for a while and it helped me plan out my books before taking to the first page. I allowed myself to change things on the fly while writing because sometimes that’s just how it pans out.
Recently, I have neglected everything. The last draft I completed came from nothing but an idea in my head. Did end up writing a check-list of where I thought the chapters would go, but didn't use it for the first 16 and last 5 chapters of the draft.
So long story short, I am a bouncer. I plan a little or don’t plan at all. I think every story needs to be approached in a different way, at least for me. Sometimes I need a skeleton structure and sometimes I don’t need anything but an idea.
3. What was your biggest challenge pursuing your author dream?
I think, for me, it was making sure I crossed all my T’s and dotted all my I’s. It wasn’t confidence or fear that it wouldn’t be well received. I’ve never lacked confidence. I attribute that to jumping off a cliff in 2017 when I decided to quit my job and start my own business without any knowledge in how to do it. It worked, successfully. I made more than my 9 to 5 salary for 3 straight years working from home with a newborn baby. I take criticism well and don’t let it rattle my cage to the point of completely crumbling apart. Not that I am not immune to impostor syndrome. But that usually comes from burnout because I am a non-stop worker, which is the NYer in me. I don’t know when to take a step back and breathe.
So, because I ramble and can’t answer questions that are asked (just ask my hubs), my biggest challenge is me. Knowing when to stop. Take a break and know when to stop overanalyzing and just press the GO button.
4. What are your author hopes for the future? Where do you see your writing career going in the next 5 years?
This is a tough question to answer, even for me. To publish more books. I’ve already self-published 3 works and self-publishing is great. But it is a LOT of work and a LOT of money that I don’t necessarily have. So, my biggest goal is to publish differently.
Right now, I am learning how to use kickstarter to fund a book launch. I am also taking a course through The Novelry, which covers all things from writing a book, to editing, to finding an agent. I’d love to succeed in either one or both of these methods of publishing. Traditional or Kickstarter.
5. If your book was a playlist, what artists/songs would be on it?
Now THIS is an easy question. Music is the blood of my books. I don’t write without music. I’ve made countless playlists for all my works, even those I never finish. When I am working on a specific one, I pop on the playlist and listen to it while I write. It takes me there, wherever there may be. Puts me in the shoes of my characters and let’s me feel what they feel and experience what they experience.
Right now, I am working on a historical fiction series. There are 3 books in the series. The first book takes place in the 1950’s so there are tons of classic artists to sing along to as I write. Ella Fitzgereald, The Flamingos, Solomon Burke, Doris Day, Elvis, and of course The Rat Pack (to name a few).
The final book in the series jumps to 1985, so grab me some Prince, Heart, Michael Jackson, Tears for Fears, The Smiths, and Madonna to fuel that writing fire.
I also LOVE synthwave so any reason to throw some modern wavers into the music mix is a plus. My YouTube channel is where my countless playlists live.
All the Things D. Allyson Howlett
Thanks so much for taking the time to learn more about me, your hostess with the mostest. All my links are down below, so check'em if you'd like. Next month, will be a new author feature. Until next time, stay classy 😎.
Check out my Books on my Book Page.
Check out my social media:
Instagram (my main squeeze)
If you want to sign up for my newsletter, click here.
Comments