Interview with Sara Wilke
Author of Bitten Book 1
SJ Wilke has spent a lifetime or two in the world of IT and Psychology. She’s traveled the physical world and explored the psyche of herself and those around her. She likes to create stories that make you lose time, fall into another place, and leave eality.
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How would you describe Bitten to a new reader?
- Bitten is not the typical Vampire book. In fact, it's not a Vampire book at all. However, it has the same mystic, danger, and romance aspects with a very different twist. How about being bitten, not for blood, but to be envenomate like a snake, but how you're bitten determines which venom you get. Death? Or unquenchable sexual desire?
What was the inspiration behind Bitten?
- There are so many Vampire books that i thought there needed to be something different. So I totally changed what a bite does.
What is unique about your writing style?
- Most writers are influenced by other writers. However, I rarely read other books other than my own. I don't watch televisions and rarely go to movies. I have an overactive imagination and I use my own life experiences with a little twist of insanity (okay, a whole lot of a twist) .
Can you tell us a little about the locations in the book?
- The book occurs in the city of A'ppolo with a subcity called Viperia and another called Hell. They are totally made up. Perhaps based on many cities. When you use an imaginary place, then there are no rules and you can change things to suit the flow of the story.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors? How would you advise a new author about traditional publishing versus self publishing?
- If you want to be a writer, you should enjoy writing. Getting recognition can be hard. Friends and family may support you, but then never read your work. You will feel under appreciated and your novel of the century will go unread. Persistence is necessary. Also, read and reread your work, and edit, edit edit. The easiest way to get published is to self publish, but then you will have to handle all of the marketing. It is difficult to stand out. Good Luck.
What's your writing process?
- I start with an idea. Sometimes, I write the first chapter, introducing the main character doing what they do, then I write the ending. I just have to fill in the middle. I've gotten to the point where I can pretty much write a chapter that most people would call a finished product but is my rough draft. I rarely outline the story. I know what needs to happen and the characters tend to write thing themselves - move the plot along because of who they are and what they do. I have good character development and people can relate to them.
Which character in Bitten has had the greatest impact on readers?
- Natalia (aka Nattie) is the "normal" person who finds herself drawn into a totally foreign world. It's through her eyes that you experience everything. She is a strong female character.
Is Bitten a one-off book or a series.
- Bitten is part of a series. The second book, Bitten Again, is almost complete. A third book, Bitten Babe is planned.
How have readers responded to Bitten
- Bitten was just published in January. Before that I had it out on a free site to get feed back. The feed back has been overwhelming. The readers have driven me to get Bitten Again written. Here is the feedback from one of my readers: This book is so dang good. I mean really good. It just flows so effortlessly. I’m addicted. I can’t get anything done today for reading this story.
Where next? What are you working on now?
- I am currently writing Bitten Again. I have notes for Bitten Babe. I am also working on another series that is more of a murder mystery type. For more about that see http://www.iamsara.com.
