LA Cloutier, the author of The Story of M and The Story of L series is here to share her writing life with us.
Celeste Jones: Are you a full time or part time writer?
LA Cloutier: I’m a part-time writer. I would very much like
to go full time eventually.
Celeste Jones: What
other responsibilities do you have to juggle along with writing? Children?
Aging parents? Exercise? A disturbing number of pets? Critiquing for other
writers?
LA Cloutier: Although I do
have a disturbing number of pets, they
aren’t what takes me away from my love of writing. Well, at least not for long.
My children have left the nest, but still have a need for me. (It’s always something with children no
matter how old they are.) I’m also a bit of a computer geek. I work on
computers as well as teaching people how to use their computers. That tends to get a bit demanding, but it
also keeps me updated on newer versions of apps, programs and other
softwares. Yes, I do beta read and
critique for fellow authors which I very much enjoy because I get to read their
stories before they actually come out. It also feels good to help while
learning along the way.
Celeste Jones: Do you have a set schedule for when you write?
If so, what is it?
LA Cloutier: I try to
set a schedule for at least 4 hours a day for just writing. Unfortunately,
that’s been challenging for me and in 2014 I am determined to rectify that and stick to it.
Celeste Jones: Do you have particular productivity goals for
each day or week or just go for it?
LA Cloutier: What would life be without goals? J My goal for this year
is to write at least 5k a day as well as being more active online with social
networking.
Celeste Jones: What is a typical day (if such a thing
exists) like for you?
LA Cloutier: Typical? What’s that? I would have to say the
most typical part of my day is my morning coffee. I must
have my coffee. After that I do my best
to focus on writing until the phone starts ringing.
Celeste Jones: Do you
work on more than one manuscript at a time?
LA Cloutier: Until recently I have only worked on one story
at a time. It has been suggested to me
by fellow authors to have more than one work in progress going at a time. Thus,
if you get stuck on one you can take a break and move to another for a little
while. Which is working out well for me right now.
Celeste Jones: Do you use any special writing programs like
Write or Die?
LA Cloutier: I’ve noticed friends talking about the Write or
Die program. As of yet, I’ve not checked it out. It sounds scary, LOL. The only special
programs I’ve been using is Ginger. A
program that helps me with grammar and spelling while I write. It has a nice
feature of reading out loud to me when it comes time to edit my work.
Celeste Jones: What about promotion? Do you have particular
time when you visit blogs or use other social media? How do you monitor your
time?
LA Cloutier: This so far has been my biggest challenge. I
try very hard to visit blogs as well as promote my fellow authors. Especially
if I’ve beta read for them and know what their new release is all about. Being a part-time computer geek you might
think I’d be a whiz at understanding all the in’s and out’s of all the social
platforms available today. Sadly, such is not the case. I’m still learning more about Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pintrest. I
really love all of the Saturday Spanks blogs and try to participate in the blog
hop each week.
Celeste Jones: What about your blog? Do you have a set
schedule or just blog when the mood
strikes you?
LA Cloutier: This is one of my New Year's resolutions. To be
more active on my blog posts. I would
like to find more blog hops that I can participate in. I really enjoy being
part of a group and seeing how other authors present their pages and posts. I’ve
found a lot of wonderful authors and many exiting books for my ‘to be read’ list.
My goal is to post at least twice a week to my blog and also to start hosting
fellow authors on my blog.
Celeste Jones: What tips or pointers do you have to share to
help others be more productive?
LA Cloutier: The most important tip I can share is to
discipline yourself to stick to your own personal goals. When discouragement strikes, fight it! Don’t
let a bad review get to you. Stay positive and remind yourself often that you
have a lot to offer in the writing community.
Celeste Jones: What books are you working on now? What are
your goals for 2014?
LA Cloutier: I’m currently working on a couple of stories. A
spanking/ DD story about a couple with empty nest syndrome, and a paranormal
story that I’m currently having a lot of fun with.
Celeste Jones: Anything else you’d like to share?
LA Cloutier: I’m very excited to be here on your blog today,
Celeste, and can’t thank you enough for having me. I can only hope that I met
and surpass my goals for 2014 as well as helping others meet theirs by sharing
and becoming more active on the social networks.
Blog link: http://inthemindoflacloutier.blogspot.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/la.cloutier.7
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LA_Cloutier
Thank you again for having me today, Celeste. For those
interested in my newest release I shall leave you with the blurb for
‘Redemption: The story of L concludes’
Although free from her duplicitous master, L is anything but
free. Now she has reason to believe that he has stolen her identify and
embroiled her in his embezzlement scheme. Worried that she will be implicated,
she plots to clear her good name.
Now that she's free, Clay is ready to finally make her his, and his alone. However, that hope starts to dwindle when L expresses her desire to end her membership at The Inn. She no longer wishes to be a pleasure slave or to have another Master in her life. What will that mean for a future together?
In the third book in the trilogy, L's odyssey into the world of BDSM continues. But after a betrayal from her last master, can L learn to trust again? Will she trust Clay enough to share both her heart and her secret? And will Clay risk it all to help clear her name even if it means losing the one woman he is destined to love? Can this turbulent couple learn to set aside the pain from the past and find Redemption?
Now that she's free, Clay is ready to finally make her his, and his alone. However, that hope starts to dwindle when L expresses her desire to end her membership at The Inn. She no longer wishes to be a pleasure slave or to have another Master in her life. What will that mean for a future together?
In the third book in the trilogy, L's odyssey into the world of BDSM continues. But after a betrayal from her last master, can L learn to trust again? Will she trust Clay enough to share both her heart and her secret? And will Clay risk it all to help clear her name even if it means losing the one woman he is destined to love? Can this turbulent couple learn to set aside the pain from the past and find Redemption?
One thing I've learned from this series is how busy authors are. 5K a day is a heck of a goal!
ReplyDeleteCara, you might be right. 5k Daily might be pushing it a little. So far I've been averaging about 2k a day when I can give significant time to writing. Although when a story starts to take off, that 5k comes pretty easily.
ReplyDeleteCeleste, Thank you so much for having me on your blog today. It's wonderful to learn more about fellow authors and how they handle keeping up with their writing careers.
I'm seeing that lots of writer are challenged by the promoting end of things. It time consuming, but very necessary. I'm impressed with the 2K a day!
ReplyDelete