Author Interview
Another author I have had the privilege of meeting on Twitter and have bought her books but haven’t read them just yet. But I am looking forward to it once I grab some time to do so. When we chat on Twitter and she engages with others, I can see her passion and love of writing as well as being a friend and a great person. So when I put it out there that I would love to do author interviews, she reached out to me to do one. I am glad she did so now we can find out more about her as a writer and a person. Let’s talk to Hayley Walsh, shall we?
- What sparked your interest in writing?
I know it’s a cliché, but I have always loved to write. I would jot down short stories, or poems as a child. English was my favourite subject in high school, and I feel it was my essay writing skills, that got me through my Nursing Degree. I was most probably the only person who got excited, when we were given an essay as an assessment task. What can I say, I am, and always will be a word nerd. I didn’t start working on my first novel until my late thirties.
2. Has anyone in your life inspired you to write?
I am inspired by real life. My novella titled ‘Crayons and Chaos’, was inspired by my real life experience of becoming an instant step mum to two miniature terrorists, at the ripe old age of forty two, with no kids of my own. My current two works in progress were inspired by the stories I hear from my older patients. I work as an Aged Care Clinical Nurse Consultant in an Emergency Department.
3. When did you decide to publish?
After years of blood sweat and tears, I published my first book in March this year, and have since published two more.
4. Are you an Indie Author or Traditional Author? Why did you choose the path you did?
I am self-published. I self-published to get my work out there. I would love to be traditionally published, and am continually working towards that goal. I queried my novel titled ‘Making March’ for nearly twelve months, and after four full manuscript requests, that ultimately ended in rejection, I published it myself.
5. What is your first published book?
‘Crayons and Chaos’ was my first published book. After working on ‘Making March’ for four years, I was looking for something to write, while querying. It was published in March this year.
6. Are you happy with how your books are coming out? Would you change anything?
I am happy that, thanks to the self-publishing platform, I have been able to get my babies out into the big bad world, and hopefully into the hands of readers who will enjoy them. No, I wouldn’t change anything.
7. Will you continue to publish books for many years to come?
Absolutely! Writing is my therapy, my happy place. There is always a new story in my head, bursting to get out. The characters keep tapping away, and if you don’t write their story, it gives you one hell of a headache.
8. What genres inspire you to write?
I love books by Sophie Kinsella and Marian Keyes, who are two of the most successful light hearted women’s fiction writers of our time. Their books are full of humour, and relatable characters. I have always had a wicked sense of humour and love a good laugh, so I thought I would try my hand at writing the genre myself.
9. What is your favorite genre to write? What is your least favorite genre to write?
I only write the one genre.
10. What challenges have you faced publishing?
Oh dear, go and make yourself a coffee, this may take a while. After I had finished ‘Making March’ and paid to have it professionally edited and proof read, I remember thinking, what the hell do I do now? I decided to join the writing community on Twitter, as I heard it was very supportive.
I have made many wonderful friends, and have learned a lot from others. If it wasn’t for Twitter, and its wonderful community of writers, I don’t think I would ever have got there on my own.
After lots of advice and help form others, many many tears, numerous mistakes, and many a glass of wine, accompanied by a tub of mint choc-chip ice-cream, I finally got my head around, formatting, cover design, publishing, and promoting my work.
After my experience of self-publishing, I decided to write a third little book titled ‘Write That Book – Helpful Ramblings of a Self-Published Author’, in order to share with others what I have learned.
11. What challenges have you faced in writing?
The hardest thing by far, is promoting and marketing your book once it is published. Writing the book is the easy part. It is a second full time job, on top of my full time day job. But unlike my day job, it doesn’t pay the bills. It can be exhausting, but it is a labour of love. If one person gets a good giggle reading one of my books, then it’s all worth it.
12. Where do your ideas for your books come from? Where do you keep those ideas?
My ideas come from everything going on around me. Either my own life, friends and family, or the patients I care for. I usually keep them scribbled on notepads all around the place, until I find time to type them into a word document. I am a huge animal lover, so there is always a pet in the story. A dog, a cat, or sometimes both.
13. Are you also a bookworm and does reading other works help inspire your own writing?
I love to read, and I am great believer, that a writer needs to read in order to improve their craft. I don’t get as much time to read, as I would like, but I fit it in when I can.
14. Do you have a website where we can follow you?
I sure do. On my author site, I have a blog, where I post excerpts from my books, interview other authors, write book reviews, and share my thoughts on all things writing. You can find me at hayleywalshauthor.com
15. What is the link for your books so others may look and possibly purchase them from?
I have two out of three books so I think I need to go snag the other one and get to reading. Once I have read her books, there will be book review blogs so stay tuned for those. But I say you all go buy a copy of her books and read them yourselves. And you know the best way to support Hayley beside buying and reading her books? Leaving her a review! Please never forget to leave a review for the books you read. It really does help authors out and plus it is just the nice thing to do.
Hayley, thank you for taking time out of your day to do this with me. I enjoyed learning more about your and I am not going to lie, I giggles at the coffee remark. You definitely have a sense of humour I like.