Louise Sorensen is an author of science fiction and fantasy tales. She prefers to write short fiction over longer novels, and has been published multiple times by Cirsova magazine; which is a very popular science fiction/fantasy magazine in the new pulp movement.
Recently, she gave me the courtesy of sitting down to answer some of my burning questions.
Tell us a little about yourself. Where are you from? Where do you live now? What did you want to be when you grew up?
I was born in the Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada. This was settled originally by a hardy mix of French and English/Irish/Scottish, and many of the older people still speak with a colourful Ottawa Valley accent. I use this for a lot of my dialogue. “It’s all about the young lad, eh?” Though the young lad can be eighty years old.
The winters were harsh, the summers hot and dry. As time went on, Climate Change has warmed it a bit. When I was a teenager, we got horses and moved from town out to a sand farm, that is a marginal farm that doesn’t grow much, so we could take care of them ourselves.
Nowadays, I live on a farm in Eastern Ontario. We still have horses. It was out of my passion for them as a child that I wanted to become a veterinarian, but that didn’t work out.
What made you want to start writing? What motivates you to keep writing?
All my life, I was a painter. Sketching and painting mostly animals. I never was very good at people. Then, in January 1998, at the start of a brutal Canadian winter, Eastern Ontario suffered a massive ice storm that left five million people from Kingston to Montreal without electrical power.
We had no power at home for nine days, with no heat, light, or water. After the initial freezing rain that caused all the ice, temperatures dipped to -25C, freezing everything. In country living, everything is the responsibility of the home owner. We weren’t hooked up to a town water tower, sewage, or gas lines. Our driveway was full of fallen trees we had to clear out before we could get out for food and supplies. We had to keep a wood stove burning 24/7 to keep the house from freezing. A farmer brought over a livestock trough full of water for our horses, and we dipped the water into pails, stored them in the basement, and watered the horses from them twice a day. Ice fell from the trees overhead for days, and we wore bike helmets to protect our heads. Carrying heavy water pails over icy paths from the house to the barn was dangerous and hard on the back.
All in all, it was a grueling experience, made worse when the landline phones went dead. We didn’t have cell phones and they probably wouldn’t have worked anyway with a great swath of both hydroelectric and cell towers down and no electricity to charge them. So we were cut off from the world except for forays into town for food, water and batteries, with no idea when the power would be restored.
When the power finally came back on, I couldn’t paint anymore. I worked on my garden for a few years, and then my son invited me to join him in a Creative Writing course at a local college. And I did.
Motivation to write? Turns out I love writing, and I’ve never looked back.
What is your latest book about?
My latest book I’m working on is my second book. It’s a SciFi Fantasy Memoir about the adventures of an interesting woman.
When did you start writing?
1998. I took Creative Writing and Poetry courses years with no thought of being published. I wrote mostly poetry and short stories. It was only about 2015 that someone on Twitter read one of my short stories and told me I should get it published.
After that, I did write one novel, and half of another, and got the first novel edited, but not published. That was when I learned about traditional versus self-publishing, the differences and the obstacles. For traditional publishing, you had to first get an agent and the odds of actually getting published traditionally are not good.
I never did try very hard for an agent. I had some success getting many of my short stories published by small presses while I pondered how to get the novel published. I’m not a patient person, and I’d rather write than query, so I finally decided to keep writing and eventually self-publish. My first novel I wrote almost ten year ago. As I’m a much better writer now, before I do anything more with it, I need to revise it.
How did you come up with the idea for this book specifically?
In writing, I discovered that I didn’t like writing long stories, specifically novels. Short stories and novellas are my forte. So for my current work, my second novel, I decided instead of a novel, to publish an anthology of my short stories that hadn’t been published. Bits and pieces. Leftovers. Then, I had the bright idea of taking some of my short stories, changing the characters into the same ones throughout all the stories, and publishing them as one altogether novel. That’s what I’m working on now. It went smoothly until I got to the last two story/chapters and I hit snags on melding them together. So it’s a slow but sure process to bring them together seamlessly, and while I do that, I also write articles for an online magazine and beta and critique others’ work.
What was it like writing your first book?
Writing my first book, Duel Visions, was a collaboration of short stories on similar themes, in an anthology with author Misha Burnett, and it was published by Cirsova Publishing about four years ago. Cirsova didn’t renew the contract when it expired and it’s no longer available. Rights have reverted to the authors, and we’re free to publish them on our own.
I haven’t gotten to that point in self-publishing yet. To me the tech is daunting. I’ve decided to finish my current novel and then explore self-publishing.
How did you go about publishing your book? Would you do it that way again? Why or why not?
The first book was published by a small press, Cirsova. I would go that way again, but only if I could change the conditions of publishing so that I could take it over as is if the publisher wanted to pull out. Otherwise, I’d want to do it myself.
Are you planning on writing more? If so what are you working on now? / When is your next book going to be coming out?
I’m always writing and will continue. My SciFi Fantasy Memoir will come out when it comes out. I’m not good at tech and it will take time.
In the meantime, I will probably find anthology homes for more of my short stories. I have an interesting story that will be published by A Muse Bouche Review (on Twitter) in or around July, 2022.
Can you tell us about your other books?
My other books. As I have decided to write no more novels, my other books will be short story anthologies, and novellas. I have at least two novellas in the wings and when I have time, I’ll revise them and then let them fly.
What helps you to write? Music, pets, reading, specific pen, etc.?
I write in silence on a laptop. When I get into a story, it’s just like reading or watching a movie. I’m in there so deep, figuring out the scenes, dialogues, that I don’t see, hear, or know, anything else. Recently I wrote a complete thousand word short story from prompts in about an hour. It was a thrill from start to finish. Better than drugs. Not that I would know about drugs, other than what I’ve read.
When I get writer’s block, which I sometimes do, I binge read.
I work with my horses and go for a walk every day. Physical exercise is very important for a writer, whose work is so sedentary.
What has writing taught you?
Writing has taught me perseverance. It took me about six months to learn how to type a story directly onto the laptop, instead of writing it out by hand and then transposing it to the laptop. Also, it taught me how to finish stories. It’s easy to start a story, but many people get stuck and give up because they never persevered and learned how to finish it. Stephen King and Chuck Wendig (on Twitter) both said “Finish your stories!” Though in Chuck’s case it was, “Finish your sh*t!” I followed Chuck Wendig’s weekly story prompts for two years, learned about all kinds of genres, learned to finish a short story in a week, and got forty or more poems and short stories out of it.
What authors inspire you?
Some of my favourite writers are Heinlein, Stephen King, Jim Butcher, and Robin Hobb, but I read widely, just about anything, and I’m inspired by every author I read.
Do you go back and reread your writing after it’s been completed?
I read my work while I’m writing it, after it’s finished, and before it’s published. Even when I think it’s ready for publishing and I submit it, I go over it again, proofreading. One thing I forget regularly is to read it aloud, to check for realistic dialogue and good rhythm. That’s very important. Something every writer should do.
What is your advice for writers?
My advice for writers. If writing makes you happy, write. Otherwise, it a tough job.
Read a lot. I’ve heard of some writers who don’t read, but most people need to read a lot in order to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t. Even Stephen King constantly reads and recommends books.
Pay attention to what your critiquers, beta readers, and editors tell you about your work. Do not argue and defend. Beta readers and critiquers usually do their thing for free, and they’ve spent their valuable time giving you feedback on your work. Think about it. You may not always agree, but think about their advice and thank them. As you’ve paid for editors, pick one from recommendations, try them out, and if you value their insights, act on their comments.
Is there anything else you want to add?
Anything else to add … eat healthy, get plenty of sleep, exercise daily, avoid drugs and alcohol. Maybe Hemingway wrote drunk and edited sober, but I think that’s a myth. Unless that is your genius, writing is hard. It’s a marathon. With few exceptions, successful writing is made up of two parts, storytelling, and the craft, the nuts and bolts of actually writing, communicating your ideas clearly and with proper grammar and punctuation. Many beginning writers balk at proper grammar and punctuation, but it’s the craft part of writing. Like building a chair that isn’t wobbly or missing a leg, using traditional grammar and punctuation makes reading a story easier.
Writing is a lot of challenge and joy, but there are also many obstacles and disappointments. Critics and most readers have no idea how difficult and what an achievement it is to get even the most humble effort written, let alone published. And no matter how hard you work or how well you write, there are always people who don’t get, and don’t like your work. You can’t please everyone.
Family members won’t always understand why you spend hours writing. They’ll miss you. Relationships can suffer. It’s a delicate balance. Spend a certain amount of time every day writing, and then stop and interact with your family, spouse, partner, the real world. This will let family know that you are not always unavailable, and they’ll get used to your routine.
When dealing with anyone in real life, give them your undivided attention.
Finally and above all, my secret weapon for writing. You can go on the internet for checking facts, grammar, and spelling, but don’t go on social media when you’re supposed to be writing. It’s a black hole of mind and time suck.
In writing, may you find your bliss.
You can find me on Twitter at @louise3anne
My amazon author page is Amazon.com: Louise Sorensen: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle