Several people have asked me if I’m okay: don’t worry as I’ve already had therapy.
L.B. Shimaira – 27 July 2023
The Back Flap
After losing hearth and home, Meya attempts to escape the traumatic memories by travelling east. In 13th century Tristanja, however, it’s not safe to be alone.
A local slave trader catches wind of the kinless woman and abducts her in the dead of night. Beaten and abused, the now meek Meya is sold to Lord Deminas. He’s known to be cruel, yet becomes strangely protective of his new chambermaid, punishing anyone who dares hurt her. After cutting her to drink her blood, he even uses his own to heal her wounds.
Meya and her paramour wonder if Deminas’ dark secret is why servants regularly vanish, including the lord’s previous chambermaids. However, the two women quickly learn that Lord Deminas isn’t the only danger lurking in the castle’s shadows.
About the book
What is the book about?
My Lord is a queer, slow-burn erotic gothic horror novel about rediscovering yourself after trauma—with kinky, blood-drinking immortals and polyamory.
When did you start writing the book?
December 2013.
How long did it take you to write it?
I changed to writing a different book in 2014 and restarted My Lord in 2015. I finished the first draft in 2016. I wrote the bonus scene in 2017, polished the draft in 2018 (for querying), and then in 2020 it received more edits as it got published by my former publisher (now defunct). For the rerelease there was another thorough edit over the course of 4-5 months and a new ending was written.
TL;DR: is “long” an appropriate answer? 😂
Where did you get the idea from?
It actually started as a bit of a challenge/joke amongst friends. “Can you write something akin to 50 shades?” (But with focus on consent). I’m normally a dark fiction writer and that challenge? I failed. As I started the first version of My Lord, I quickly found I couldn’t rush to anything sexual—the characters simply refused—and I also couldn’t manage to keep horror elements at bay. So, deciding to forego the initial challenge, I instead embraced my dark side and ended up with a Dracula inspired story 🖤
Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?
The biggest struggle was when I just started and still tried to make it an erotica story with characters who refused. The plot, too, just didn’t allow for such content. So, I had to adjust my goal and allow the pantser side of me to take over—then the characters took control and it went a lot smoother.
What came easily?
A new scene I added for the first release practically wrote itself over the span of a few days—the characters just took the lead and all I had to do was keep up and write it down.
Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?
Real world people? Not quite. One character first made himself known to me over multiple dreams (well, nightmares). Those were contemporary, though, but that’s not a problem when you’re dealing with immortals.
While the characters are fictitious (though several have since made appearances in my dreams), I should add that they are influenced by my own experiences and thus contain little parts of me, if you will. Some characters might have gotten some bits of friends/partner(s), too, though not intentionally.
We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?
I honestly don’t know. As a kid/teen, I mostly read R.L. Stine and later Stephen King. If there’s any visible influence of them on my writing, I can’t tell—but if someone else says they see it, I’ll believe them.
Do you have a target reader?
Lovers of horror and dark fiction who want to see characters go through hell and then rise above it.
About Writing
Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?
I tend to mull over ideas or even chapters for a while (when commuting, trying to fall asleep), and then when I sit down to write, at night, I reread the last chapter and edit. Once that’s done, I can pump out half to a full chapter in one go. I then reread another day and edit, often aided with text-to-voice.
Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?
I’m a pantser at heart. If I outline, it tends to be a list of plot points and other remarkable things I need to “tick off” as I go. I will keep the list at the bottom of my document and remove things after I’ve written them.
Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?
I do both. I edit while writing, after I finish a chapter, and once I’m done. For the latter, I tend to wait a good while to make sure the story is no longer fresh in my mind, then I listen to it in text-to-voice to get the full plot (to help notice inconsistencies/plotholes) and go for a thorough edit.
Did you hire a professional editor?
I did and I plan to get the same editor for my next books if they’re available.
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?
I have specific playlists for each novel. These playlists help me get in the right mindset with music that matches the story. For editing I go for more instrumental music to help reduce distractions. The playlists I make for my novels I also share publicly. (For My Lord, the playlist can be found here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/06LQSF88PMyMuFeS9Lp7hY)
About Publishing
Did you submit your work to Agents?
I did, without success.
What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?
A new indie press liked and commented on a pitch of mine during a twitter pitch event. They were a perfect match (queer dark fiction) and I decided to investigate further. The team was super kind and answered all my questions. They prioritised the author as they were authors, too, and this was reflected in the contract they offered. Wanting to give them a try, I signed and stayed with them until they closed. During that time, I helped out and proofread books before their release. I learned a lot and when the news came that they were closing, I considered what to do: look for a new publisher or selfpub? I decided on the latter as I wanted full control over the process (and my works are rather niche, so from a $$ viewpoint, not the most likely to be picked up by an agent or bigger publisher). It was a lot of work—and still is, considering book promotion is an ongoing thing—but I’m super proud of the end result and look forward to publishing more books myself.
Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?
I commissioned an artist to make the artwork (front, back, spine and also title font embellishment) but I did the final formatting myself—which I was glad for, as the proof copy’s cover was too dark and the spine slightly too broad (though amazon printers are notoriously bad at spine placement consistency). Because I did the final formatting myself, I was able to quickly make the needed adjustments without having to ask someone else.
Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?
Mostly winging it… I try to approach my target audience personally via twitter (looking for people who want book recommendations). I did arrange for all sorts of goodies and signed bookplates to hopefully entice readers but getting it out there is hard—especially as I don’t like TikTok or making Reels. I do plan to look into some paid promo mailing lists, but I want to make some money back first before spending even more (I already spent a lot of money on publishing this book as it is and I wonder how long—if ever, ha—it’ll take before I actually get into a net profit).
Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?
Do not underestimate the work or the costs involved. There are ways to reduce costs (like using amazon ISBNs and creating your own covers), but when it comes to things like marketing, that will always cost you a lot of time. But then again, I’m still new to the game and figuring things out.
One thing I highly recommend is trying to hype up your book. Send out lots of ARCs and get people excited and reviews pouring in before you publish. Be sure to have preorders for Kindle turned on so people can just get your book, forget about it, and one day POOF! There it is. Without preorders chances are they will have forgotten by the time your book releases. How preorders affect amazon rankings, though, I don’t know—I’ve heard negative things about that. So, more homework for you 😉 Be sure to look into the pros and cons and decide accordingly.
About You
Where did you grow up?
I’m from the Netherlands, born and raised.
Where do you live now?
I still live in the same town as where I grew up.
What would you like readers to know about you?
My writing tends to include darker themes, like dealing with SA and trauma, and those are heavily influenced by my own experiences. I also write a lot of stories (long and short) that are either inspired by or retellings of my dreams and nightmares. Several people have asked me if I’m okay: don’t worry as I’ve already had therapy. 😉
What are you working on now?
I’m currently taking a short break, and after that I plan to edit my contemporary horror novel The Call Him Lucius which takes place in the same universe as My Lord. I was also busy writing a horror dreampunk novel, but that got put on hold because I had to republish My Lord due to my former publisher closing. I intend to selfpub both these novels in the future—with pretty covers and professional editing (time to start saving money for that, haha).
End of Interview:
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