I am very excited to have Shayla Eaton, author of The Curiouser Crusade: Your Strategy Guide for Defeating Writer’s Block and Conquering Your Novel in Six Months, as my guest today.

• What is your name and where do you call home? Shayla Eaton. Yukon, Oklahoma, until September 1, where I’ll rename my home Pensacola Beach, Florida.
• Do you have a pen name? I don’t.
• What is the name of your most recent book and if you had to sum it up in 20 or fewer words, what would you say? The Curiouser Crusade: Your Strategy Guide for Defeating Writer’s Block and Conquering Your Novel in Six Months.

A week ago Shayla sent me an advance reader copy of her book. I opened the eBook and dug right in. The book is a daily countdown with writing prompts and tips and of course the story of Curi and his sidekick, Sir. As they go along the map to defeat Writer’s Block, the reader, the hero, will unlock top secret stuff every 5 days. That could be a letter from the queen, a helpful PDF on dialogue, or a new location on the map.

I found the book to be a very easy, simple read. Although not all of the tips are going to apply to all writers it is a fun way to promote motivation and to make your daily word count goals. I did find myself, as I read, bookmarking many pages with helpful hints that I thought I would want to come back to later down the road. 

• Is the above book part of a series? It is not a series. It is an interactive ebook with a countdown, daily writing prompts, and tips.

I kind of feel like this is a basic how to book for authors. It is a way to hold yourself accountable, and it does make you want to reach your daily writing goals.

• What or who inspired you to start writing? And how long have you been writing? My mom always supported my writing. Also, at the age of 16, I read Stephen King’s memoir, which had a huge part in convincing me to become a writing major. I have been professionally writing for five years. I’ve been writing since I was a teenager.

I have to interject here… Stephen King is one of my favorite authors and a huge influence on my writing style today.

• How did you come up with the cover? Who designed the cover of your book(s)? Jessica Allee designed it for me, including all of the characters in the book.

• Did you listen to any particular songs while writing your book(s)? I mostly listened to rainfor.me to allow for distraction-free writing.
• How did you come up with the title for your book(s)? A friend of mine, Jen, read the Hero’s Journey to me, which sparked the idea for the title and subtitle.
• Do you have a book trailer? No.
• Do you prefer e-books, paperbacks, hard-covers or audio-books? I love all books, but I’m a fan of the hardcover.
• Are you a self-published/Indie author? I am a self-published author.
• If you’re a self-published/Indie author what made you go that route instead of the traditional publishing route? I believed my audience would benefit the most if I self-published.
• Have you ever read a book more than once? And if so what was it? Stephen King’s memoir—I’ve read that twice.
• What is your opinion of novellas? I think they’re great! Short and sweet.
• Have you ever read a book just based on its cover? Sure, who hasn’t?
• What is your favorite film based on a book? The Great Gatsby
• What is your favorite book genre at the moment? Dystopian

Well let me just say, my latest novel SECTOR C ~ The Chosen falls into the genre of dystopian… If you’re interested you can check it out here: Nina Soden on Amazon

• What books have made it onto your wish list recently? And why? Brave New World and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape—I just wanted to read them.
• What book are you reading at the moment? And in what format? 11/22/63 and Do Over in paperback and hardback

Do Over is currently on my ‘To Read’ list as well.

• If you could invite any four (4) celebrities (alive or dead) to your dinner party, who would you invite and why? Jon Acuff, Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, and Ewan McGregor
• What’s the best advice that you have been given when it comes to writing? Kill your babies. It means that there will be times when you write something amazing, but it doesn’t fit, so you have to kill it.

As a writer, I know that is one of the hardest things to do. I’ve written scenes that I LOVE and then had to delete because they just didn’t move the story forward. It’s painful but in the end it usually makes for a better story.

• Do you have any hobbies that aren’t related to reading & writing? Cooking Italian food.
• Where can your readers follow you? 

Blog: www.curiouserediting.com/blog

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/CuriouserEditing

Twitter: www.Twitter.com/CuriouserEdit

Amazon: TBA

BOOK BLURB

Did you know you only need to write 547 words a day for six months to get a 100,000-word novel?

Shayla Eaton is a connoisseur of the writing and editing process, having edited over 200 books and countless articles, blogs, social media posts, and marketing campaigns. She now helps authors and organizations in her own business, Curiouser Editing. Of course, Shayla loves coffee and is an admirer of all things creative and bookish.