This week, we had the pleasure of reconnecting with Helen Scheuerer, founding editor of Writer’s Edit and author of the YA fantasy novel, Heart of Mist. When we last spoke with her, Heart of Mist was just about to be published. Now, we’re happy to announce that the sequel to her exciting series is almost here! Reign of Mist will be available for purchase September 13. While you wait, check out what Helen has to say about writing the sequel to her popular debut novel!
What inspired you to write a series as opposed to a stand alone novel?
Personally, I love reading series – I love the addictive nature of them, love looking forward to the next one coming out, love binging on them… Series also work particularly well with the fantasy genre, so when I came up with the idea for Heart of Mist and The Oremere Chronicles, writing a trilogy just seemed natural to me.
What were some of the challenges you faced when writing the sequel to Heart of Mist? How was writing your second book different from your first?
Writing Reign of Mist (Book II) was incredibly different to writing the first book. Mainly, it felt like a massive exercise in problem solving. With Heart of Mist already in print, there were things I couldn’t change, and things that I just had to make work. I also found it challenging making decisions about what to include in Book II and what to leave for Book III!
You also have a few short prequel stories available for free on your website. What inspired you to write about events that occured before the Heart of Mist? Will there be more coming in the future?
I sure do. You can check them out here! Originally I began writing these to get to know my characters better – what had happened in their lives that made them who they are, and what had shaped them… However, I discovered that these stories were self-contained chapters in each character’s life, and I wanted to share them with my readers.
Currently there are 5 free prequel stories available, with one more due out before Reign of Mist (Book II) is released. There are even more planned for after RoM’s publication 🙂
Which book did you enjoy writing the most? Do you have a favorite or do you love both equally?
You can’t ask that! It’s like asking someone who their favourite child is, haha! But in all seriousness, the writing process for each book was so different that there’s no way I could choose. I loved (and at times, hated) writing each book, for different reasons 🙂
I see you have a third book in this series scheduled for 2019, do you have the whole series plotted out in your mind already, or are do you come up with it all as you go?
Yes I do! It’s the third and final book in The Oremere Chronicles, though its title hasn’t been announced yet 😉
When it comes to planning, I had the overall plot points for the whole series in my head originally, but it was very vague. As I’ve moved on to each book, I’ve realised I need to do more planning. Each book is more planned than the last, and the third book was meticulously planned because it has to tie up so many loose ends.
The experience has taught me that I definitely need to plan more from the outset!
In your podcast, you talked about the editing process a little bit and how the second book is a little longer than the first. How many revisions do you think you went through on Reign of the Mist? Do you have any suggestions for writers who are struggling with the revising stage?
Haha, it’s so nice to know someone’s listened to my podcast! Thank you 🙂 Ahhhh that’s a tricky question… From first draft to final manuscript, probably about five or six before being edited?
The revision stage is the hardest stage for me, and I couldn’t do it without the help of my beta readers. So I always advise other writers to get themselves a talented beta team to help them with the bigger picture issues of the manuscript.
You’re an Indie Author who has rejected the traditional publishing route. What made publishing independently the right choice for you and your work?
For me, it was incredibly important to have creative control over my work. I wanted to have a say in the cover design and the marketing, as well as the production schedule. I also wanted a higher royalty rate, if I was putting all the work in, I wanted to be paid properly. These and numerous other factors made indie publishing the right choice for me, and I haven’t looked back.
If you want a more in-depth explanation, I actually wrote a whole post on why I went indie here.
Do you have any advice for writers who are looking to self-publish?
Absolutely. The most important thing is to do your research. Look into all the various options for print, ebooks and audiobook, and most importantly, make sure you put together a realistic budget.
Quality covers, editing and formatting cost money, and you want to do your book justice by hiring the best.
We publish plenty of in-depth self-publishing advice on Writer’s Edit as well 🙂
Is there anything else that you’d like to share with our readers?
I just wanted to say thanks to Literative for having me back! It’s always a blast talking to you guys!
If anyone wants to know more about me and my books, you can check out my website and my FREE Heart of Mist prequel stories here. For more writing and publishing advice, there’s hundreds of amazing articles over on Writer’s Edit.
Author Bio:
Helen Scheuerer is a YA fantasy author from Sydney, Australia. Heart of Mist is the first book in her high fantasy trilogy, The Oremere Chronicles. Helen is also the Founding Editor of Writer’s Edit, an online literary magazine and learning platform for emerging writers. It’s now one of the largest writers’ platforms in the world.
Helen’s love of writing and books led her to pursue a Bachelor of Creative Arts, majoring in Creative Writing at the University of Wollongong and a Masters of Publishing at the University of Sydney.
Helen is now a full-time author living by the beach.
Website/Social Media Links:
Buy Heart of Mist: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07556VD4Y/
Add Heart of Mist on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36128982-heart-of-mist
Add Reign of Mist on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39216289-reign-of-mist
Website: http://helenscheuerer.com/
Heart of Mist Prequels: https://bit.ly/2G0zgIT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/helenscheuererauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HelenScheuerer
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helenscheuerer/
Writer’s Edit: https://writersedit.com/
