J.M. Northup: BLOG HOP with Sisters in Crime

Want To Take A Blog Hop?

September Sisters in Crime SinC-Up for Bloggers!

A friend and colleague of mine, Robin Murphy invited me to partake in the September Blog Hop hosted by Sisters in Crime!

This is a linking of blogs and blog posts that answer one or all of the questions I have answered below. It is a great way to introduce readers to some awesome writers, books they love, and authors who inspire them!

ENJOY!

· Which authors have inspired you?

Kathleen O’Neal Gear & W. Michael Gear, Jean M. Auel, Stephenie Meyer, Ray Bradbury, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Margaret Mitchell are my top writers J

· Which male authors write great women characters? Which female authors write great male characters?

Kathleen O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear write amazing characters!
I love William Shakespeare too!

· If someone said "Nothing against women writers, but all of my favorite crime fiction authors happen to be men," how would you respond?

That’s stupid! LOL
Half the time you don’t realize that the writer is using a pen name and they aren’t who or what you think they are anyway!
Plus, a lot of genres cross and blend so there are a lot of good novels that are classified as something else which are fantastic crime novels! I love Charlaine Harris, for example J
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_crime_writers

· What's the best part of the writing process for you? What's the most challenging?

The best part for me is creating a story. I like to invite the characters and to see the movie play out in my head. It is a wonderfully artist expression that I enjoy sharing with others!
The most challenging is making sure that I have accurate depictions. I want to make sure that my descriptions are correct and that the logistics is right. I mean, the effects of someone being shot by a musket opposed to an SKS are quite different!

· Do you listen to music while writing? What's on your playlist?

I do not. I usually write in silence, absorbed in the story and research for the stories I write.

· What books are on your nightstand right now?

· If you were to mentor a new writer, what would you tell her about the writing business?

First, always write for yourself! If you write in order to please an audience, then you will fall short. You have to write the story that lives inside you and express it the way it feels right.
Second, there's a lot of self-promotion required if you want to publish. Whether you're Indie or not, you have to immerse yourself in social media in order to connect with readers and reviewers alike. Smartphones are invaluable tools! J