Why do you think readers are going to enjoy your
book?
My book, Lessons from a Difficult Person, is written to help people have a
positive conversation with a difficult person about what that person does that
is so difficult. I narrate the book with
my experiences as a difficult person, describing what did and didn’t work for
the people who tried to tell me in my life.
It reads quickly and it has exercises that the reader can complete to
explore his or her own life and difficult person. It includes sample dialogues of how
conversations could go and an outline for a potential conversation for the
reader.
Where can readers buy the book
Readers can go to my website
www.sarahelliston.com and click on buy the book. If they sign up for my email list they will
receive 3 exercise from my workshop that can get them started in the process of
the book. They will also receive the
preface of the book as an e-book.
They can also go to www.amazon.com
and buy the paperback or e-book.
Or wherever books are sold.
How long did it take you to write your book?
I had been presenting the
content in a workshop for two years and some of the content was familiar
material. It took about 9 months of
writing and editing, from February 5th – December 1st 2016. I wrote on the book every day but not for
hours every day.
Did you learn anything from writing your book that was
unexpected?
Yes. When I was examining my childhood, and
describing how I had felt unwanted in my family of origin, I was startled to
discover that my two sisters had felt that most of the family focus was on
trying to make me happy. It changed my
perspective of our family dynamic and my memories of my parents. I remember them much more positively
today.
What advice do
you have for other writers?
I encourage them to write every day even if what they write is only what
is on the top of their heads. It is
important to keep the juices flowing, so to speak. I find playing certain music assists my
creativity. I also write until I can’t
think of anything more to say before I start editing. In fact, if I wait until the next day to
edit, it goes better. And lastly, I
encourage other writers to find an editor they can trust, especially if they
are self-publishing. Do not rely on
friends who tell you the writing is good.
Get a professional to look at it.
What did you
edit out of this book?
I edited out a story that demonstrated now difficult I was and the
inability of a colleague to tell me. I
edited it out because it was showed too closely the organization I was working
for and I didn’t want to embarrass any of my colleagues who might read the
book. It didn’t show the organization
very favourably and I didn’t think it was needed to prove my point.
Who designed the cover of your book?
Actually, I
chose the graphic from free clip art but the company that formatted the book
completed the design. I had the title at
the top and they put it at the bottom; I had the picture bigger with more
people in it but they knew what would look better. We started with the graphic of an angry
person but decided against that, then I found the shadows of a crowd and I
liked the suggestion of many people but nobody in particular.
What are some of your all-time favorite books?
I am a fiction reader from way back. My favorite author started with Helen
McGinnis writing about Would War Two and I graduated to Leon Uris, John D.
McDonald, Robert Parker, Lee Childs, Thomas Perry, John Lescroart and Daniel
Silva. My favorite new author is Robert
Galbraith (aka J K Rowling).
What is your favorite book you've read this year so far?
The Drifter,
by Nick Petrie
What are your thoughts on self-publishing verses
traditional publishing?
I think traditional publishing is
harder on the writer because it takes an agent to market the book to a company
and then the company decides how to promote the book, if it promotes it at
all. Very little control for the author
and not much money. Self-publishing is a
good deal more work and an incredible investment but when people buy it and say
they like the book, this author believes them.
I have found professionals abound to help in the branding process and
all of them have been worth the time and money.
Bookstores take more persuading with self-published books but generating
the demand seems to work.
If I could tell my
younger-writing-self anything, what would it be?
I wish we had carried on with the book on substitute
teachers that we began so many years ago. We stopped because it felt so angry
but the writing would have helped and substitutes were being treated
badly. They probably still are. The ideas of the book would have also helped
schools, teachers, substitutes and the students.
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