Author Interview
Name: Airian N. Eastman
Pen Name if different: N/A
What first inspired you to write? My grandmother died when I was young and I was always told how much I was like her and that she was a writer. By the age of 10 I was using writing to cope with things I did not understand, including her death, which was my first memory. I felt like I could express in writing my feelings and emotions in ways I could never tell anyone verbally. The desire for a deeper connection, not only to the grandmother I lost so young, but to everyone around me was the driving force to write.
How do you come up with the ideas for your stories? Life! Sometimes from dreams, sometimes from conversations in the car with my husband, or sometimes I hear a story and think “I could write that better!” (Us authors and our egos!) I am a fantasy writer first and foremost. I’ve always loved fairy tales, epic adventures, and true love, which are themes in (almost) all my work. For me A Kiss for Cadence and Breckenridge Boys, my contemporary Romance duo took me out of my comfort zone, but sometimes these stories nag at us authors until they are on the page. My stories always connect to my life in some way even if the readers don’t know it.
What question do you hate the most about being a writer? As a kid it was always “what’s your backup plan?” that bothered me the most, but I learned to live with public opinion about the arts as a way of life. I think now the questions that bother me the most are the argument of indie vs. traditional publishing as if one over other is bad. Also the question of genre comes up a lot and when I say fantasy and romance it is almost always an eye rolling reaction. Yes I write fantasy and romance, at least I write.
Are you indie or traditionally published? Indie for now, but I have a trilogy which I am looking to have traditionally published. I felt my contemporary romance would benefit more from Indie publishing because it is not my favored genre and I simply wanted to get the story into the world.
Have you ever tried the other style of publishing? I have submitted several pieces for trade magazines and agents but not consistently. I believe that I will be able to polish and publish my trilogy with a larger publisher if I decide to go that route. Having been involved with both sides, it is a personal choice for many authors to go indie or traditional publishing, and I understand why as both have their benefits and pitfalls.
What are you working on now? I have 15 works in progress! My current lineup is a short story entitled ‘Seconds.’ It is an anthology piece for the Suicide Awareness and Prevention anthology due out in September. My sequel to A Kiss for Cadence is my current writing piece, ‘Breckenridge Boys,’ which continues the story about 20 years after the end of the first novel. I also have a non-fiction piece about my family’s Maple Sugar business, two fantasy/steampunk trilogies and a modern fantasy quintet. I’m a busy bee.
What is your most recent/upcoming release? Breckenridge Boys, the highly anticipated follow up to A Kiss for Cadence, will be out this fall. Release date TBD so you will have to follow me to find out details!
Links to stalk you online:
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/Airian-Eastman-Author-1488786074705465/
Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/104301403783963/
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