Her favorite work to date is The Conn-Mann Chronicles Steampunk series with five books released so far: The Marvelous Mechanical Man, The Nearly Notorious Nun, The Incredibly Irritating Irishman, The Fiercely Formidable Fugitive, and The Elderly Earl’s Estate.
Rie lives in Texas with her wonderful husband and several spoiled cat-children.
WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:
Website: https://riewriter.com/ and https://theconnmannchronicles.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/RieSheridanRose
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConnMannChronicles/
Alistair’s prize invention is an automaton standing nine feet tall. There’s a bit of a problem though…he can’t quite figure out how to make it move. Jo just might be of help there. Then again, they might not get a chance to find out, as the marvelous mechanical man goes missing.
Jo and Alistair find themselves in the middle of a whirlwind of kidnapping, catnapping, and cross-country chases that involve airships, trains, and a prototype steam car. With a little help from their friends, Herbert Lattimer and Winifred Bond, plots are foiled, inventions are perfected, and a good time is had by all.
ORDER YOUR COPY
Amazon → https://amzn.to/3bfoz55
Thank you for your time in
answering our questions about getting published. Let’s begin by having
you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?
Rie: I don’t think there was ever any question in my mind that I
would eventually be an author. From the
time I knew what writing was, I wanted to do it. And share it with as many
people as possible. I know I was writing poetry by the third grade. Writing
this book was mostly a dare for National Novel Writing Month. My writing
partner suggested I do it—I think he was supposed to do one as well. I finished
mine. I’m still waiting for his.
Is this your first book?
Rie: No. By the time I wrote The Marvelous Mechanical Man,
I had at least four other novels in print—one of them completely re-written and
re-packaged to become a brand-new book basically—several poetry chapbooks and a
short story collection. This one WAS, however, the first time I actually
managed to write a sequel. There are now five books in the series, and a
spin-off on the way.
With this particular book,
how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you
choose this method?
Rie: Originally, it was published by a small press in Texas. I
chose this route because the publisher was a friend who asked to see the book
and was very supportive from the beginning. She did a lot to make the first
edition a success—including commissioning the gorgeous cover.
Can you tell us a little
about your publishing journey? The pros
and cons?
Rie: I think the biggest problem I had with the first edition
was that the publisher is probably more of a micro press. She does excellent
work, and is one of the best editors I know, but she has a stable of dozens of
authors. There was no way she could devote the same resources and time to my
book as I could. That’s just the reality of every press. Even the traditional
presses don’t offer every author the budget of say Stephen King. As an
independent author, I can try as many crazy ideas as I can pay for. And I’ve
come up with some doozies. The other problem with small presses is that it is hard
to maintain one. I’ve outlived probably a dozen including my first and second
publishers back in 2000 when I started.
What lessons do you feel you
learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing
industry as a whole?
Rie: I think the main thing I’ve learned from my publishing
journey is be flexible, and don’t take anything for granted. Publishers come
and go, and even if you are with one of the traditional houses you can be
dropped in a minute if your sales start to fall. It isn’t always a matter of
talent, either. It is sometimes a matter of luck. Knowing the right people;
being in the right place at the right time; making a successful pitch. You
never know what might be the piece that catapults you forward to the next level
of the journey. One thing I’ve always tried to remember—never burn a bridge.
Don’t badmouth other people along the way, or it might come back to haunt you
later.
Would you recommend this
method of publishing to other authors?
Rie: I wouldn’t have self-published any of my novels if they
hadn’t been published by someone else first...until I got to Book Three of my
series, that is and stepped into uncharted waters—but by then there is a bit of
a following. Otherwise, I look for the validation that someone else is willing
to put resources into the project. I never wanted to publish my own work just
because it was the only way it would ever be done. Does that make sense? Except
poetry. Poetry is hard to find a publisher for. ;)
What’s the best advice you
can give to aspiring authors?
Rie: Never quit learning. Read books about writing and apply
what works for you. Research if you are writing about a place or time you
didn’t live through, or just having a character do something you don’t know how
to do yourself. Get feedback—don’t release a child into the world without
having several trusted beta readers to tell you what doesn’t work. Revise your
first draft. Almost no one is perfect out of the gate. Besides, revision is
where the fun starts. Now you know where you are going, you can polish the
story till it shines. (This works for any form—short, long, poetry...all of
them.)
Thank you for your time in
answering our questions about getting published. Let’s begin by having
you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?
Rie: I don’t think there was ever any question in my mind that I
would eventually be an author. From the
time I knew what writing was, I wanted to do it. And share it with as many
people as possible. I know I was writing poetry by the third grade. Writing
this book was mostly a dare for National Novel Writing Month. My writing
partner suggested I do it—I think he was supposed to do one as well. I finished
mine. I’m still waiting for his.
Is this your first book?
Rie: No. By the time I wrote The Marvelous Mechanical Man,
I had at least four other novels in print—one of them completely re-written and
re-packaged to become a brand-new book basically—several poetry chapbooks and a
short story collection. This one WAS, however, the first time I actually
managed to write a sequel. There are now five books in the series, and a
spin-off on the way.
With this particular book,
how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you
choose this method?
Rie: Originally, it was published by a small press in Texas. I
chose this route because the publisher was a friend who asked to see the book
and was very supportive from the beginning. She did a lot to make the first
edition a success—including commissioning the gorgeous cover.
Can you tell us a little
about your publishing journey? The pros
and cons?
Rie: I think the biggest problem I had with the first edition
was that the publisher is probably more of a micro press. She does excellent
work, and is one of the best editors I know, but she has a stable of dozens of
authors. There was no way she could devote the same resources and time to my
book as I could. That’s just the reality of every press. Even the traditional
presses don’t offer every author the budget of say Stephen King. As an
independent author, I can try as many crazy ideas as I can pay for. And I’ve
come up with some doozies. The other problem with small presses is that it is hard
to maintain one. I’ve outlived probably a dozen including my first and second
publishers back in 2000 when I started.
What lessons do you feel you
learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing
industry as a whole?
Rie: I think the main thing I’ve learned from my publishing
journey is be flexible, and don’t take anything for granted. Publishers come
and go, and even if you are with one of the traditional houses you can be
dropped in a minute if your sales start to fall. It isn’t always a matter of
talent, either. It is sometimes a matter of luck. Knowing the right people;
being in the right place at the right time; making a successful pitch. You
never know what might be the piece that catapults you forward to the next level
of the journey. One thing I’ve always tried to remember—never burn a bridge.
Don’t badmouth other people along the way, or it might come back to haunt you
later.
Would you recommend this
method of publishing to other authors?
Rie: I wouldn’t have self-published any of my novels if they
hadn’t been published by someone else first...until I got to Book Three of my
series, that is and stepped into uncharted waters—but by then there is a bit of
a following. Otherwise, I look for the validation that someone else is willing
to put resources into the project. I never wanted to publish my own work just
because it was the only way it would ever be done. Does that make sense? Except
poetry. Poetry is hard to find a publisher for. ;)
What’s the best advice you
can give to aspiring authors?
Rie: Never quit learning. Read books about writing and apply
what works for you. Research if you are writing about a place or time you
didn’t live through, or just having a character do something you don’t know how
to do yourself. Get feedback—don’t release a child into the world without
having several trusted beta readers to tell you what doesn’t work. Revise your
first draft. Almost no one is perfect out of the gate. Besides, revision is
where the fun starts. Now you know where you are going, you can polish the
story till it shines. (This works for any form—short, long, poetry...all of
them.)
