The second of back-to-back interviews, EA: Creatively Creative sits down with best-selling author, photographer, and social media strategist, K.M. Robinson.
EA: When did you realize that writing would become something you would love to do as a profession?
KMR: Surprisingly, I had never planned on writing. I had grown up loving books because of my librarian mother, and in college I had no time to read for fun. When I graduated, I focused solely on work for awhile before jumping back into reading. There was a point where I couldn’t find a specific type of book I wanted, so I wrote it just so I could read it. Then I wrote another and another. It was a long time before I told my friend I was writing, and an even longer time before she convinced me to pursue writing. I had a few book deals offered to me that I ultimately turned down. I ended up walking away and not trying to publish for an entire year until Snowy Wings Publishing came along and now I have five books and counting out, two of which are best sellers.
EA: What would you consider to be the main source of your creativity?
KMR: I’m actually a professional fine arts photographer and a lot of my work inspires my stories.
EA: What is the concept of the Golden Trilogy series?
KMR: Goldilocks was never naive. She was sent on a mission and Dov Baer is her new target.
This is a YA retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears with a dystopian twist. She was sent on a mission by her only remaining relative, her cousin, Lowell, to destroy Dov and Berwyn Baer. I twisted Goldilocks to be a strong girl on a deadly mission and the bears are not longer animals, but people with the last name of Baer. Instead of the traditional father/mother/son family unit, it focuses on two brothers, Berwyn and Dov, and Berwyn’s wife, Eden. It’s dark, it’s dangerous, it's amazing…at least according to the authors who blurbed it.
EA: Do you believe writing novels is easy?
KMR: Writing a novel is different for everyone. For some, it’s a very laborious process. For others, it’s super quick. I tend to write incredibly quickly and I always have a process. I tend not to hit many walls, and when I do, I have a strategy for getting around them and still be productive while pausing to work out the walls I hit. Very few people work as quickly as I do though, so please don’t think you have to write quickly to be effective. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Writing a book should be done at your own pace and it’s very important you put the time and effort in to create something well done.
EA: Describe the feeling of being a best-selling author.
KMR: It’s so awesome! I wasn’t expecting it either time. It’s still so strange to think about. Changing my author bio was a little surreal. We haven’t changed my book covers to reflect it yet, but I’m so excited to once things settle down a little!
EA: I understand that you're also a social media marketer and brander. Would you tell us the specifics of what that entails?
KMR: The cool thing about social media strategy is that I get to spend my time learning about social media. I know everything about Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Youtube, etc. I’ve made friends with all the big companies that do Facebook bots and live broadcasting platforms. I know every new social media platform addition before they happen. I get to study the algorithms that determine what posts you see in your newsfeeds. I then turn around and teach this to my students.
I basically run an online university for authors (and also one for photographers) I teach brands how to use social media effectively to market themselves, how to engage, empower and equip their fans/clients to market for them, and how to be so strategic about social media that Instagram actively promotes them without them needing to pay for ads. It’s amazing. When people listen, they hit lists. It’s pretty cool!
EA: Which is more challenging in comparison? Writing novels or marketing?
KMR: That’s a tough question. Writing is definitely more time consuming. I know a lot of authors would say marketing is harder for them, but for me, marketing is like breathing. But I also do marketing very differently than most authors are taught (which is why it’s more effective) But honestly, I don’t consider either to be more challenging than the other. I live and breathe both. Neither feels like work for me because I genuinely love both so much.
EA: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
KMR: You don’t have to take the first deal you are given and don’t sign anything without having a publishing lawyer read the contract first (even if you have an agent) Pub lawyers are so smart and so helpful and many of them will look over contracts on a sliding scale (if you earn less than a certain amount in an advance, it’s free) I’ve had far too many friends sign bad contracts that looked good and regretted it when things started happening.
It’s okay to wait. You don’t need to take your first deal just because you’re desperate to publish. Wait and find the best fit. Protect your book and author brand. It’s okay to wait. You’ll find the perfect fit when the time is right.
I waited for years before I allowed myself to sign on. I turned down good bonuses because the contract wasn’t the right fit or the publisher wasn’t the right fit. Because I waited, I hit best seller status twice within my first year of being published. That never would have happened had I signed with those other companies.
It’s okay to wait.
EA: Finally, tell the readers why the Golden Trilogy series is a must read.
KMR: Golden is a best seller. People have been raving about it since it’s release. Best selling authors have called it a “must read” series. You’ve never seen Goldilocks twisted like this before.
Epilogue
I agree that writing and creating your work should be done at your own pace. Everyone's different; don't try to keep up with the Joneses, or emulate a certain style or trend simply because other authors are doing it.
To expand a little more on K.M.'s advice, I've said in many of these epilogues that confidence and persistence are key elements to achieving success in anything. Just as important as those two traits is patience. I definitely would like to thank K.M. for speaking with me. Some final words from the author:
For an added bonus, you can get free excerpts at excerpt.kmrobinsonbooks.com, play interactive, choose-your-own-adventure games on Facebook.com/kmrobinsonbooks, use our book-inspired Facebook filters, and more!
You can find me online at
www.kmrobinsonbooks.com
www.facebook.com/kmrobinsonbooks
www.instagram.com/kmrobinsonbooks
www.twitter.com/kmrobinsonbooks
Katie Robinson
K.M. Robinson Photography
www.kmrobinsonphotography.com
Reading Transforms
www.readingtransforms.com
Author Services
www.readingtransforms.com/authors
I’m also on Youtube and Snapchat!
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