The Responsibilities of a Modern-Day Author

This week's guest blogger is Louisville, Kentucky native Stephanie M. Hogan.

She said that becoming a novelist was always the ultimate dream, however, her writing career didn't officially begin until 2014 with the publication of one of her many short stories.

Although the thought of writing as a career was always spinning around in the back of her mind, Stephanie said she "traveled down a harried path" before she saw writing full-time as an achievable goal.

Starting college as a nursing major and then quickly switching to education after three semesters, Stephanie became an Elementary Math and Reading Interventionist for the public school system, all while spending as many hours as she could creating works of fiction at night.

Now, writing is slowly sneaking into the forefront as more of her works are becoming available in e-book format.

P: What are some of the misconceptions or surprises that you've encountered throughout you career? How have your responsibilities and goals as a writer changed and evolved?

SH: First, I should let everyone know that I am an independent author, which means I do not have an agent or publishing house. There are several misconceptions, many of which I've had myself, that go along with being an indie author.

Many people think that if you choose to publish on your own that you most likely have been unsuccessful in the pursuit of obtaining an agent. For me, that's not true. I never went through the submission process. I decided long before I ever completed my first novel, that if I did indeed finish it, that I wanted to self-publish.

Another misconception is that it is easier to self-publish than to go the traditional submission route. Though you do not have to face the rejection that comes along with the traditional submission process, it is anything but easy. You alone are responsible for not only writing your novel, but the editing, the promotion, the artwork for your cover, obtaining your copyright, etc. The list goes on and on, but for me, it was the right choice.

My main goal as a writer has always been to connect with others through my work. If someone can read my stories and find a part of themselves in one of the characters, laugh out loud at the situations, or make a connection to it at all, my goal has been met. Of course, it would be absolutely amazing to make enough money to not need a day job to supplement my income. However, that day is not today and my goal of connecting with people through writing has remained the same.

I will keep creating new characters and new worlds in hopes that my readers will enjoy them as much as I do.

-Stephanie Hogan

Stephanie is the author of two New Adult Romance novels: The Way Back Home, a full-length novel, and Running Out of Time, a companion novella. Both are available on Amazon and through Kindle Unlimited.

SOLD, a dystopian short about a young girl named Ada, was printed in the May 2014 online edition of Reader's Carnival, an international column that celebrates emerging independent authors.

For more information on SOLD, The Way Back Home, or Running Out of Time, please visit Stephanie's website at http://www.stephaniemhogan.com. You can also follower her here @StephanieMHogan and on Twitter @stephaniemhogan.

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