World of Writing - Interview: Part 1
We had such a great discussion with Donna Sundblad re: setting up this interview that we decided to split the interview into 2 parts. Part 2 will be published on January 7th.
Donna has a reputation as a maestro of young adult fantasy fiction. She is celebrated for her enchanting tales that explore the timeless struggle between good and evil.
With a distinguished career as a freelance writer, editor, and ghostwriter behind her, Donna now focuses on her own imaginative storytelling. Her novels resonate with readers who appreciate wholesome narratives celebrating friendship, adventure, bravery, and important moral lessons.
Donna’s life is deeply intertwined and profoundly shapes her writing and personal journey. She leads a balanced life with her husband, a beloved shelter cat rescue, and a cockatiel she hand-raised from day one.
Embracing a healthy lifestyle, Donna values time with her family and friends. When not writing, she enjoys time outdoors, blogging, and sharing her literary passions, reflecting her commitment to her craft.
Donna invites our readers to view her books on Amazon & visit her website at: https://donnasundblad.com
Q: What are the biggest surprises you’ve encountered as a writer?
A: The biggest surprises come from fans. I know the fantasy genre is not for everyone, and not every fantasy book is for every fantasy enthusiast. My books don’t contain profanity or sexual content and some people want that. I brace myself to expect polite disinterest or rejection. When I meet a fan who wants me to sign their book or asks when the next book is coming out, it’s very motivating and humbling. I’m probably more thrilled they want me to autograph their book than they are to get a signed copy.
The latest surprise is unfolding as I participate in this interview: the cover of my book, The Inheritance, is currently competing in the Book Cover of the Month contest at All Author. I’ve engaged my fans in the voting process, and I’m thrilled to share that the cover has advanced to the second round and is now headed to the final round. Right now, it’s holding strong in fourth place, and we’re not even halfway through the month! This truly highlights the power of community and the passion for storytelling that my fans have shown. I am genuinely amazed and stunned by this support.
I’m not a fast reader, and one last thing that surprises me is the number of people who say they read one of my books in a day. The first time someone told me that, I didn’t believe them, but when they started talking about elements of the story in detail I realized they had read it and all in one day.
Q: What business challenges have you faced as a writer?
A: The life of a writer is a journey filled with ups and downs. For me, the fun part of writing is the discovery involved in the creation process It’s even more fun than reading a good book because I can’t “turn the page” until I figure it out. As an introvert, I enjoy the anonymity of sitting at the computer in the privacy of my home while I work.
But the fun doesn’t come without its challenges. Many people don’t perceive writing as a business, but deadlines, contracts, publishing, and marketing/promotion are the business end of making a living in this creative venture.
My first book publishing experience was with a publisher that accepted four books for publication: Pumping Your Muse (non-fiction), and three fantasy novels. I was on cloud nine. Things were going great. When my third fantasy, The Inheritance, was released it was nominated for an Eppie E-book Award. It ranked in the top three finalists in the spiritual category. You can’t get more encouraging than that! People were learning about my book!
As I waited to see if it came in first, everything crashed. The owner of the publishing company died unexpectedly and there was nothing in place for the company to continue. Their doors closed and the link to The Inheritance died with the publisher. I scurried to self-publish but even that takes time. I lost a valuable opportunity. Looking back I can say it was just a bump in the writer’s life road but at the time, it felt like an insurmountable mountain.
Writing for fun is one thing and writing for a living is another. The challenge is that most writing that pays deals with topics that aren’t fun to write about. It just becomes work. And you run into many prospects that aren’t worth the time for the pay offered. I won’t go into all the specifics, but I can say, even this, can be a positive learning experience. As a ghostwriter, I penned a dozen or so clean Western romances, and I enjoyed it. Enough, that I’m working on my own Western romance series, while I’m working on my Dragon’s Oath series.
Q: What is the wisest thing anyone has said to you?
A: As a writer, I’d say the wisest advice I had was to join a writer’s group. The writing community for the most part is a nurturing place. It gives you a chance to share your work and get feedback. Even that is a learning experience. I joined Writer’s Village University more than 20 years ago and am still active in a critique group there and I also facilitate a goals-oriented group for writers there.
I’ve belonged to local writers’ groups and online groups. If you decide to go the online route, make sure it is a site that is password protected and not available to the general public or the piece you share can be considered “published.” This means markets that do not accept previously published works for submission will not consider it.
Q: You've written several nonfiction as well as fiction books... Where do you get your book ideas?
A: Nonfiction comes from life experience. Most of the nonfiction I’ve written was ghostwritten dealing with how to topics. Pumping Your Muse is different. It’s a revolutionary process to get you writing. I guess you could say it’s a creative handbook for people who want to write fiction but don’t know where to start, or for people who want to write but don’t think they have the time. I put it together at the start of my writing career based on things I did to jumpstart my imagination and grow as a writer.
It reflects my weaknesses as a writer and what I did to help correct them, while still enjoying the creative process. I journaled the exercises and techniques I developed to change how I wrote fiction, and the process gave me new insights. When I started, I didn’t know I was writing a book. I was chronicling what I was doing to learn to incorporate necessary details in my fictional worlds. I was doing it to create a world and characters for my next book, Windwalker. The unexpected benefit was that thanks to my flip-side exercises it brought about two worlds, two protagonists, and with them two books: Windwalker and Beyond the Fifth Gate. Two very different books from the same exercises.
As for fiction, the ideas come from the world around me. Those who read Pumping Your Muse (which I’m updating because of how much technology has changed since I originally wrote it) will see how my muse works. I sometimes go shopping for story ideas. To do this I particularly like stores with a mixture of antique and classic items. My first junk store publication was a story called The Clock. The piece I based it on was a clock with a fireplace at the base, a man sitting in a chair on the left reading the newspaper, a woman on the right knitting, and a boy sitting on the floor beside her. It became a magical tale of how the mother and child escaped the abusive husband and by the end of the story he was trapped in the clock sitting before the fireplace alone.
Nature is another inspiration. From the sky, vegetation, landscape, or some natural setting I can find the start of a story. And the way my mind works I’ll tweak my surroundings by asking a question like: What if my character was one inch tall? What would their world look like? It opens things up to a fantasy world every time.
People-watching is another great catalyst for story ideas.
Family interactions, good and bad, offer ideas. A child having a tantrum, an old man sitting on a bench alone, a young couple daring to hold hands… Stories are all around us.
Q: When you started writing the Dragon’s Oath series, did you plan on it being a series, or did it grow into one?
A: Drake Ascendant (book 1) is not out yet. Now that I’m with a new publisher it is the next fantasy book on the docket.
My initial idea for this series was a glimpse of two kids being homeschooled. They lived in a hideaway without realizing it. What they learned as “fantasy” stories, was their true history, and was preparing them for the future. Long story short, that bit will be in book 5, in the finale of the Dragon’s Oath series.
Once I had that scene, I kept asking questions. Why are the kids in hiding? Where are they? Who are they? As I answered those questions, the answers generated more questions. The answers led to books 1 through 4. It’s all a process.
* Watch for Part 2 of this interview on January 7th!
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Thank you, Donna, for dropping in today!
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