Author Interview – Denna Holm

1. Do you write books as a career, or are you currently still juggling your author time with a full or part time job?
I’ve spent most of my life training and showing horses in Dressage. An injury forced me to retire about eight years ago and I needed something to help keep me busy. That’s when I took up writing on a full time basis and I’ve been going strong with it ever since. I consider myself lucky to be able to spend all my free time writing. I feel for those who are forced to juggle an outside job. Writing is a full time project in itself.

2. Have you always wanted to be an author, or did some time or event in your life set you on the path?
I would have to say I was born with a need to write. I remember writing my first science fiction short story while in the sixth grade. In the seventh grade I wrote my first novel, a story about a wild mustang. Though neither story was ever published I enjoyed the creative side of putting a story together. It wasn’t until my last injury with horses that I set out to learn how to do it right, taking an over the mail creative writing course with Stratford Career Institute. Once I finished with this, Stratford offered another course on learning to write a novel. Meredith Baxter, the editor who worked with me, was fantastic about keeping her criticism balanced with praise. I’m not sure I would’ve ever found the courage to take my writing to the next level and begin to query publishers without her excellent feedback.

3. Do you always write in the same genre, or do you sometimes like a change of theme? If you haven’t already, is there another genre you would like to write?
I’m most comfortable writing paranormal and science fiction romance. I’ve tried a couple of times to write in what I would consider more mainstream genres, but my heart just wasn’t in the stories. I couldn’t seem to get past the first couple of chapters. But I’ve always been a hopeless romantic so this is probably why I prefer to write in this genre. If the right story came to mind, I might try my hand at writing horror. I’ve always been a big fan of Stephen King.

4. As a writer, what is the best thing that has happened to you, and what is that most exciting thing that could happen to you?
The best thing that ever happened to me was getting positive feedback from my very first beta readers for Soul of a Warrior. A big piece of my heart and soul went into that first novel and I was terrified about what another person might think about it. It didn’t matter that my first readers were family and friends. I still worried they wouldn’t like it. The most exciting thing that could happen now would be to learn the general public enjoyed it as much as my family.

5. How do you view the promotion, book signings etc. Is it something you enjoy, or do you prefer the writing stage?
My novel was just released on October 30, 2013 so I haven’t had much time to get serious about promotion. I’m lucky to have many author friends with experience in this department and I’m sure I’ll be leaning heavily on them to help point me in the right direction. I’m a little nervous about the idea of book signings and public speaking, but I’m sure it will be like everything new that works to knock me out of my comfort zone. In time I’ll learn it’s not so scary. Though I think interacting with future fans will be a blast, I don’t know as it’ll ever beat my first love of creating the story.

6. Could you tell us something about your published books, and let us know what they are about?
My debut novel “Soul of a Warrior” is a science fiction romance. It follows Kimi Wicker as she and her two best friends are kidnapped and taken to a hostile new world. When they are abandoned in this strange land, Kimi and her friends must learn to rely on each other in order to survive. It is a story about learning to find and use the hidden strengths that live inside us all. We are all capable of doing so much more than we tend to give ourselves credit for. If someone is lacking in confidence and self-respect, it tends to make it difficult for others to feel the same respect. Before true love can be given to another person, it must first be found inside oneself. My prayer is for everyone to find both.

Thanks for your great answers, Denna. Best of luck with your book. I thoroughly enjoyed proofreading for you as the tale progressed!

“Soul of a Warrior” is available on all good online Book Distribution sites including Amazon.

Click here to buy from Amazon UK!.

Click here to buy from Amazon USA!.