Author Interview: K.M. Weiland

Who are you?
​Bio:

K.M. Weiland lives in make-believe worlds, talks to imaginary friends, and survives primarily on chocolate truffles and espresso.

​She is the IPPY, NIEA, and Lyra Award-winning and internationally published author of Outlining Your Novel, Structuring Your Novel, and Creating Character Arcs. 

​She writes historical and speculative fiction from her home in western Nebraska and mentors authors on her award-winning website Helping Writers Become Authors.

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Why did you start writing?

​It’s not so much that I’ve chosen writing, as it is that writing has chosen me. It’s a compulsion of sorts. I can’t imagine not writing. It’s a crazy lifestyle really. So much of my life is lived on the page, instead of out loud, in the real world. I have to sacrifice certain things to feed the fire. But I wake up every morning with this incredible feeling of gratitude that I get to spend a good-sized chunk of my day doing what I love best. How many people get to say that?

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What do you do when you’re not writing?

​Right now, I’m having fun with a redecorating project that is taking me most of the summer. Spending lots of time outside painting doors and furniture!

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Where do you like to go when looking for a new book to read?

​I don’t so much look for books as let them find me (since my TBR pile is already huge). Word of mouth is a big part of my decision. If someone I know, whose reading tastes are similar to mine, liked a book, I’ll take a look.
 
From there, I have to be hooked by the blurb and feel like the writing style in the first chapter is competent and has personality.

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Are you independently or traditionally published?

​After looking over the options way back in 2006 (when self-publishing was still more of the woebegone stepchild than the groovy trend it’s become of late), I decided to be a wild-eyed pioneer and take the path less traveled.
 
I can’t tell you the self-published road has been without its potholes, but, all in all, it’s a decision I’ve never regretted. With every book I finish, I take a long hard look at traditional publishing, but (so far) I always come back to the indie side of the playground. Self-publishing fits my needs and desires for my writing perfectly, and I love being involved in every part of the process.

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How many books/stories have you published so far?

​Four novels (A Man Called Outlaw, Behold the Dawn, Dreamlander, and Storming) and eight non-fiction (Outlining Your Novel, Outlining Your Novel Workbook, Structuring Your Novel, Structuring Your Novel Workbook, Creating Character Arcs, Conquering Writer’s Block and Summoning Inspiration, 5 Secrets of Story Structure, and Jane Eyre: The Writer’s Digest Annotated Classic).

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What book/story are you currently promoting or working on?

My latest novel Storming came out a year and a half ago. It’s a historical with a touch of dieselpunk that combines rip-roaring steampunk adventure and small-town charm with the thrill of futuristic possibilities.
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The story started out as straight historical, set in western Nebraska in the 1920s, but it soon took a turn into something with a slightly fantastical bend. I knew from the beginning I wanted it to have a distinct “summer blockbuster” vibe—an adventurous romp of a story, but one with a lot of heart.
 

It’s deeply grounded in our realistic world, with only touches here and there of the speculative, and those I tried to keep realistic in their own right, even as I had fun with them and didn’t worry too much about the physics and science.

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I'm so grateful to Ms. Weiland for taking the time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions so we (that is I) can get to know her better as an author. I absolutely loved Dreamlander. Here's a link to my review.

Sincerely,
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Nicholas Adams