Savanna Roberts lives in Park City, Utah with her wonderful husband and their snuggly cats, Chip and Queso. She has a fetish with socks and a psychotic obsession with coffee. She began writing seriously when she was ten years old, after she completed a short novel involving scavenger hunts and deceit. When she's not writing, her passions include collecting Nutcrackers, burying her nose in a book, or falling down Pinterest wormholes.

Interview

1. Will you tell us about your most recent published work?

Absolutely!  My most recently published piece is a modern fantasy romance novella set in Paris.  What if every 1,000 years the Greek gods and goddesses are reincarnated in human form to complete a task on earth? And what happens if the god of peace and goddess of chaos meet up by chance and fall in love?  I loved working on this story because not only am I a huge fan of Greek mythology, but my husband took me to Paris for our honeymoon.  Every single place described in the novella was a place I visited, and I was able to use memories and my honeymoon trip pictures for reference!

 2. What personal challenges do you face as a writer?

This is a great question.  I would say I have two big challenges.  First, while I want my writing to become a full-time deal, it's not financially viable right now.  Because of that, I have to work writing in whenever I can around my other two jobs.  My other biggest challenge is really just discovering my own writing style.  I feel like I have a pretty good handle on how I want to write and how I want to say things, but it's always scary to put yourself out there, you know?  Especially with the knowledge that family and friends may not like what you're saying.  It's a process of growing up and allowing yourself to write exactly how you feel without apologizing for it. 

 3. What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?

Outside of editing, the most difficult part of my process is marketing.  I'm a self-published author, meaning not only do I have to do everything myself, but I also have to prove to people that I'm just as good as the authors who get contracts with big-name publishing houses.  Also, since the marketing world is always changing, it's hard to keep up with all of the different strategies.  I have made it a goal to consistently study marketing and learn new techniques to see what does and doesn't work for me.  In the self-publishing world, you have to be willing to constantly learn and try new things.  While that does make it difficult, it's also one of my favorite things about it.

 4. What one thing would you give up to become a better writer?

Perhaps this one is just an easy answer, just because I mentioned it above, but I would give up one or both of my other jobs in order to become a better writer and put more focus on my writing career.  Again, I'm not to the point where that's financially viable yet, but once it is...man!  That's the first step I'm taking.  Haha.

 5. How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?

This is another fantastic question.  Publishing my debut novel, Smoke and Mirrors, was honestly terrifying.  I deemed it my "grown up" book.  I had just moved out and gotten married, and with this book, I was exploring how I wanted to write and how I wanted to say things as an adult.  There are so many things I wish I had known prior to publishing my debut novel that I know now, and there's a lot about my writing that has changed since getting published.  I think the two biggest changes were first, marketing.  I thought I had done a good amount of marketing for my debut novel, but after studying marketing more in-depth, I realized I hadn't.  Thus, since Smoke and Mirrors, I've been actively working on marketing my books in different ways, and I've seen a lot of success with that.  The second thing is that I attended a self-publishing conference and was told that if you want to make a livable income off of your writing, you need to be self-publishing at least three books a year.  At first I was daunted by the idea - who wouldn't be?  But after publishing my debut and getting such great feedback from people, I realized that I wanted to be sure people didn't forget me, my name, or my books.  I wanted to be sure I was providing them with novels that they could enjoy, and once I realized that, I decided that I would put in the extra effort and work to try to churn out two to three books per year.  It's a challenge, especially with working around my other jobs and also making sure I'm spending time with my husband and not holing myself up in my office every night, ha!  But I'm figuring out ways to make that work, and I'm really excited about that.

 6. How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have? Will you tell us about them?

Oh, wow.  I have dozens of unpublished books - most of them unpublished because I wrote them in middle school, haha.  Half-finished books...  I actually don't have very many of these, if any, anymore.  Back in middle school and early high school, I would try to write 4-6 books at a time, and I would end up with multiple half-finished manuscripts.  Part of growing up and realizing I wanted to make writing a serious career, though, forced me to focus on one story at a time.  Right now, I have two unpublished books simply because I'm in the process of editing them to get them publishing worthy.  It's a fantasy duology with lots of political intrigue and a ragtag bunch of characters trying to navigate through it all.  I can't wait to share it with everyone!

 7. Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?

 I used to read my book reviews, but I'm trying to get into the habit of not reading them, haha!  I don't mind when people give me a low review.  I know that my writing isn't for everyone, and I can respect that.  That being said, I also feel like it's detrimental to a writer to read every review they get - good or bad - because it can start wearing on their self-esteem.  They can get in their head and start being afraid to write because of bad reviews.  For those reasons, I'm trying to stop reading my own on Goodreads and/or Amazon.  I can respect people not liking my books, and I can accept constructive criticism for sure, but I don't want to reach the point where I'm getting in my head just because someone gave my book one star.  Hopefully that makes sense!

8. Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

I wouldn't say I hide any secrets in my books, no.  Sometimes my writing does reflect what's going on in the world or in my own life at the time, but I try to make it cohesive to the story plot, or I just remove it altogether in the end.  I don't like sharing secrets about myself and my life on social media platforms, so if details or events in my life happen to make it into a story accidentally, they're normally covered up expertly to flow with the story, and nobody knows otherwise.

 9. What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

Truth be told, I don't have a ton of author friends.  Instead, I have a lot of reader friends, haha!  But I do have a few that really push me to be a better writer through the critiques they give me and the times they help me brainstorm through a plot.  Avrie, my sister-in-law, is fantastic with encouraging me to keep at a story even when it gets hard, as well as helping me brainstorm and think through themes in my book that I may not have known were there.  Krissa and Rachel are my two beta readers, and while they don't write as actively anymore because they have other interests, they're always there to lend a hand and keep me on track.  Also their critiques are fantastic and help me see flaws in my story that I wouldn't have without their extra eyes.  Cherise pushes me like crazy, but in a good way.  She always makes me want to put forth the best I possibly can.  Finally, my wonderful husband Bryce, who is an author as well.  He is the best when it comes to critiquing.  He doesn't let anything slip past his nose, and even though he nitpicks sometimes, my writing wouldn't be half as good without his help.

 10. If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

I would tell my younger writing self to be more open to constructive criticism.  In this business, you have to have a thick skin, and when I was in middle school/early high school, the truth was...I didn't have one.  I took everything way too personally and I thought authors that were supposed to be my friends were attacking me.  It wasn't until I was 16/17 years old that I was able to see the difference and move past that childish thinking.  I would also tell my younger writing self to write for myself and not care what other people think.  I almost stopped writing because of a tactless comment someone made about my writing, and it took me months to realize that I didn't need to care about what others thought.  I just needed to move forward with the gift God gave me, regardless of the haters.

 11. What are common traps for aspiring writers?

Common traps for aspiring writers: getting in your head and being afraid to write or put yourself out there because of what others will think of you, believing your book doesn't need any edits because you're a "flawless writer", and not being open to constructive criticism and thus putting a book out in the world that could be made so much better if you would just listen to your critique partners.  (Assuming you have healthy and helpful critique partners, of course, but that's another topic entirely.)

12. What’s the best way to market your books?

This is a hard question just because I'm still studying marketing, but as a YA author, I've found marketing my books on Instagram and getting in with the writing/reading/Bookstagram community there has been my best marketing strategy.  Not only do I get to meet fantastic authors and readers and make new friends, but I can also share about my books with them.  The genuine support and excitement they share with me about my writing is overwhelming.  Also, book giveaways.  They are great for getting honest reviews as well as getting people to read my stories.  Free books are the best!

13. What is your favorite childhood book?

My favorite childhood book is actually a series - The Hardy Boys series.  They were my favorite books growing up and they really inspired me to become a writer (even though I can't write mysteries worth anything!).

Social Media Links: 

https://www.facebook.com/booksbysr

https://www.instagram.com/booksbysr/

https://booksbysr.com/ (this link here is for my website where people can find my blog, newsletter, and books)

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18591056.Savanna_Roberts