Up Close & Personal with 'The Earl Not Taken' A.S. Fenichel @asfenichel #upcloseandpersonal

Up Close & Personal is one of The Writer's Life newest and fun features. We feature authors who don't mind spilling the beans and telling what it's really like to write, get published and sell that book. Today's guest is A.S. Fenichel, author of the historical fiction, THE EARL NOT TAKEN. You can visit Ms. Fenichel's website at http://asfenichel.com.

On Writing…

When I was in my early twenties, my husband took a night shift. I was really lonely and the ladies I worked with brought me books to read. I devoured them. One day I was reading a Star Trek novel and the ending was terrible. I thought, I can do better than this.

After that, I started writing stories. I wrote several books over the next few years. Good stories, but the writing wasn’t very refined. I kept at it and took some classes on fiction writing.

Finally, after years of trying, I had a novella accepted by a publisher. Mayan Afterglow was my first published book. It’s a post-apocalyptic paranormal romp with lots of heat. Now I write Regency Romance with a bit of heat.

With each book my writing gets better. I hope one day, when I ninety I still say the books are getting better.

On Being Published…

After so many years, when I got the email telling me I was going to be published, I was shocked. My husband was fishing off our dock. I went outside in a bit of a stupor and walked out to where he was. I said, “someone wants to publish my book.” He whooped and we jumped in the lake.

Twenty-one books later, I still get a huge thrill when my books come out. Finishing a book is the greatest feeling. Giving voice to Poppy and her friends in The Earl Not Taken is the reason I’m on this planet. The women of The Wallflowers of West Lane series are dealing with the same issues’ women deal with today. It’s ironic and maybe a little sad, but there you have it.

On Publishing Industry…

I don’t think the publishing industry has ever stopped changing. It has changed with every generation since the invention of the first printing press. It grows and books become available to more people just as it always has. It will never stop changing, in my opinion.

I’m traditionally published with Kensington Publishing Corp. It was the right choice for me. I’ve tried self-publishing, and I know a lot of fabulous authors who do really well putting out their own books. It’s not for me right now. I’m not a fan of dealing with all the details that go into putting out your own book.

Mistakes Along the Way…

My first publisher went out of business. The writing was on the wall, but I ignored the signs. I’ve been a business woman for years and should have pulled my stories earlier, but I didn’t and that meant a long wait to get my rights back.

However, it’s all an education. Each step along the way has made me the writer I am today. The steps up and the ones down have all shaped me and regrets are a waste of energy.

On Marketing…

It’s hard. Maybe because it’s constantly changing. Newsletters work really well. Blog hops do well. I think interacting with readers on social media is probably the best way to promote books. As an author, it’s a constant balance between time to write and edit and time to chat with readers. I love the latter as much as the former. It’s all about balancing the days so that you can do a bit of it all.

I absolutely love Instagram and Pinterest. Those are my happy places to interact with readers.

On Goals and Dreams…

Like most authors, I’d like to make a living that would feed me if I ever lost everything else. I’d like to see my book on the New York Times Bestseller list. I’d love to make my family proud.

For the record, my family probably is already proud of me because they love me. Still, I’d love to call my mom and tell her I’m a NY Times Bestselling Author. So… I’ll continue to work hard, write great books and promote them to the best of my ability. The key to success is to never give up.

If you really want to be a published author:

Join a good writing group in your genre.

Hone your craft. Take classes, ask questions and do research.

Grow a thick skin. You will get criticism for the rest of your life. Deal with it, use it, toss out what doesn’t serve you.

Write your heart out and don’t be afraid to share what you’ve created.

When things get really bad and they will, ask yourself this questions. If you knew right now, you would never publish another word, would you keep writing? If the answer is yes, then you have nothing to lose. You’re a writer, so never give up.

About the Book

Left standing on the side while their contemporaries marry into society, four young ladies forge a bond to guard each other from a similar fate . . .

Finishing school failed to make a proper lady of Penelope Arrington. But as a Wallflower of West Lane, Poppy has a far more vital role—she and her three best friends have made a pact to protect each other from the clutches of dangerous, disreputable men. So when one of them is about to be married off to a duke sight unseen, Poppy makes it her mission to divine the prospective husband’s true character. If only she didn’t require the aid of London’s most unsuitable rake.

Rhys Draper, Earl of Marsden, has known the headstrong Poppy since she was a young girl, naïve to the ways of men. To her eternal chagrin—and to his vague amusement—they have been at odds over the memory of their embarrassing first encounter all these years. Now, with his services in need, Rhys sees a chance to finally clear the air between them. Instead, he is surprised by the heat of their feelings. If the two do not tread carefully, they may end up in a most agreeably compromising position . . .