HELLO FRIENDS! Today I’m pleased to share an interview with Renee Dugan, current trilogy writer of witches!
Read below to hear more about her writing journey and where Renee hopes to take her writing career!
What is the first thing you remember writing?
Ahhh, the infamous start! The very first thing I ever wrote was a story about a little fat dog who had to go to an agility school because he was so out of shape (inspired by our cat who at the time was also very out of shape). I was five years old. My mom kept that one-page story forever.
What is your favorite thing to write about?
Anything I can fit into a fantasy-shaped box, haha! I love writing about swords and kingdoms, dragons, grand-scale battles, saving the world, that kind of thing. But ultimately my favorite elements in any story, fantasy or not, are romance, found family, self-growth, and spiritual/emotional matters.
Tell me one of your writing goals.
Successfully rewrite the latter half of my STARCHASER series! I’ve always balked at doing rewrites, but this year I’m really diving into the hard work of it, and so far I’m two down, three to go!
Have any particular writers inspired you?
So many! It’s funny, as a young adult I was much more inspired by the writers who “made it big”- JK Rowling, Sarah J Maas, Tamora Pierce, etc. But the older I get, the more inspired I am by the people I see in the trenches on Instagram and Twitter who invite us into their process. It’s the blood, sweat and tears I find so motivating these days. So here’s a shoutout to Lina Amarego, Cassidy Eubanks, Bethany Atazadeh, and Miranda Kulig, just to name a few inspirers!
Tell us about a favorite character you’ve created.
I have SO MANY to choose from, this is really hard! But right now I am very much loving being in my boy Thorne’s head. He’s so real and so flawed and so fun. A man coming from a family full of generational abuse, saved by his grandmother’s self-sacrificial love from becoming the same kind of monster as his own father, but he still struggles with that shadow on his back every single day. He’s so fierce and so tender, I love him to bits. Can you tell? 😉
Do you have any writing advice to share with us?
Yes! But how much time have you got? Ha! I think one piece of advice every writer needs, myself included, is to not worry about getting it perfect – just make it good enough. Even your already-published peers have said years later “If I could, I would change x, y, and z.” I don’t think there’s a book in existence whose author is completely, 100% satisfied with it, so don’t feel like your book will be ready only when you run out of things to change. It’ll never happen. Just concentrate on getting it to the place where it’s telling the tale and sending the message you’re after, even with tiny things you’d still tweak!
What’s the last book you read?
A Treason of Thorns by Laura E. Weymouth. Such a great, haunting, Spooktacular, LOVELY book! I highly recommend it to fantasy fans, especially those with a taste for English culture!
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Renee Dugan is an Indiana-based YA/NA author who grew up reading fantasy books, chasing stray cats, and writing stories full of dashing heroes and evil masterminds. Now with over a decade of professional editing, administrative work, and writing every spare second under her belt, she has authored THE CHAOS CIRCUS, a horror-lite fantasy novel available now at online retailers everywhere, and THE STARCHASER SAGA, an epic high fantasy series with its first installment debuting December 3rd, 2019. Living with her husband, dog, and three not-so-stray cats in the magical Midwest, she continues to explore new worlds and spends her time in this one encouraging and helping other writers on their journey to fulfilling their dreams.
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THANK YOU so much for joining us, Renee! I’m excited to check out that trilogy.
WRITER’S CHAT is a weekly feature where writers from all stages of their journey come to speak to us about their craft, spreading positivity, advice, and amazing book recommendations. Join us every Saturday!
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