For my second Dave Chat, I’m happy to be talking to Meghan Douglass, an indie author I met on Twitter through the Writing Community on that platform. I really wanted to dive inside what started her journey, and where it’s taken her so far – and I think you’ll be surprised to see how much it strikes a chord. It did with me, and just shows how we’re all on the same path, really, even if we branch off in different ways.
So, here we go.
Dave: Hiya, Meghan. Thanks for joining me for a Dave Chat! I’m going to kick things off with a bang. When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
Meghan: Tough question right out the gate! I’m honestly not sure. It’s something that kind of evolved in more recent years. Unlike a lot of other writers, I didn’t spend my life dreaming of being one, but I’ve always been a massive reader.
I’m a terrible speller, so when I was younger, I thought that meant I couldn’t be a writer, and I was good at math, so I thought that meant I wasn’t creative. One day I just woke up with an idea for a short story and wrote it. It was a few years after that that I started writing more and more, and now I’m here and I can’t imagine doing anything else now.
How was it for you? Were you one of those people born to be a writer or did it kind of just happen?
It’s interesting to see so many different journeys – and it’s great that these experiences shape our writing. I’ve always wanted to tell stories – and did – but it wasn’t until my teens that I knew I wanted to write my own, rather than expand or live in someone else’s worlds. Speaking of someone else’s world, I’ve read your debut book, Humanity Lost, recently, and was thoroughly gripped throughout. What inspired you to write it?
Someone actually asked if I’d be interested in writing a short story for an anthology, a horror based in space. The idea just sort of popped into my head, I knew I wanted to do something dark but without the usual aliens. In the end the idea grew beyond the scope of the anthology, so I published it as a novella or novelette, whichever you prefer to call it.
That’s awesome – a great example of how stories can take a completely different shape than we expected. Were you nervous about self-publishing? What did you do to get yourself ready to put your work out there in the world?
I think for me it just felt like the logical step. Being a stay-at-home mum means my time isn’t super structured and life with kids can be so unpredictable, so by self-publishing I could do everything in my own time with no real deadlines. I think what really pushed me in that direction though was the writing community on Twitter. I saw so many different people taking different paths and this one just felt right for me.
Getting ready for it, though, definitely took a lot of work and research. I read as much as I could on different aspects of it and took advice from people with personal experience. It was here I realised just how valuable being a part of the writing community on Twitter was for me.
Would you say you’re a sci-fi writer, or is this just one of the genres you have plans to write in?
I would say at this stage I’m more of a horror writer who dabbles in sci-fi. I’m hoping to branch out more, I have a lot of WIPs right now and a range of genres from horror, straight sci-fi, YA and I’m even hoping I can work my head around a romance one day.
A range of genres, you say? I’m intrigued. I plan to cross over a couple of genres, too. Are you worried that it will be harder to build a fanbase over them, or are you looking for that niche of people interested in them all?
It’s a huge fear of mine to be honest. I’m already becoming known for my horror and I’m terrified if I venture out of that I’ll lose readers. I hope there will be some people that enjoy all my writing, but I also know it’s a big risk – especially if I switched to romance. Maybe I’ll pick up a whole different group of readers or I may just end up spreading myself too thin and shooting myself in the foot.
Yes, that is a real concern for many writers who want to jump genres. Who has, or have, been your big author influences over the years? Who made you want to write, helped you find your style?
I think my biggest author influence would have to be Stephen King. I love his books, and his book, On Writing, is probably one of the things that tipped me over the edge to start writing more seriously. I could probably list another twenty authors that have contributed to my writing, my love of writing, and my love of reading.
I’ve read a fair of Stephen King – what a storyteller! My favourite has to be The Dark Tower series. I remember being so annoyed at how it ended I threw the book across the room! Once I’d calmed down and thought it through, it made perfect sense, though. Have you read it?
That is one of my all-time favourite series, and I have read it through multiple times! I love everything about it! I remember I got to the end, and I was just in shock, so much so I woke my dad up to talk to him about it because he was the one that introduced me to it. Both of my parents have hugely influenced my reading over the years and Have helped shape the writer I am now.
What’s next for you? Got any secrets or details you can share?
I’m hoping to get two books out this year, possibly three, but I think that’s a long shot. I’m pretty excited about all of them.
One is a horror novel about a board game, and for anyone who follows me on Twitter, I’ve included some of my more gruesome Fun Facts in it too. The other is a collection of horror short stories I’ve been gradually putting together in the background and I’m pretty excited to share these with the world, including one I wrote years ago that got me an honourable mention in a competition I entered it in!
The third still needs a lot of work. It will be a flash fiction collection with each story illustrated by my husband (he did the cover art for Humanity Lost). Some of the stories will be inspired by his art and some of the art will be inspired by my stories.
Those sound amazing – and it’s awesome your husband is involved, too. I love stories inspired by images – I have a writing exercise focused on this idea. Do you have a tip you’d like to give other writers? Something you wish you’d known or had done differently?
I think I’m still way too new to dole out too much advice, I still have bucketloads to learn. I know one thing that has helped me a lot has been the fact I built an interactive social media following before I released my book. People had read some of my short stories, enjoyed them and were keen to read more before I even released Humanity Lost and I think that helped create momentum for the book.
That’s a great tip – and one I wish I’d done better! Your daily facts are so much fun, too. Where can people find you, and your book?
Check me and my fun facts out on Twitter, @douglass_meghan, and my amazon author page.
One day I’ll get around to setting up another website, hopefully.
I wish you all the best – and many more sales of Humanity Lost. I can’t wait to read what you do next. Thanks for chatting!
Thank you so much for the opportunity, I really appreciate it.
Keep an eye out for more Dave Chats this year, and make sure you sign up to my newsletter to get your eyes on them before anyone else!