In this series, guest bloggers tell us about fighting their way through the writing landscape, from their early beginnings to where they are now. My guest today is Laura Welling, author of Talent To Burn, which is released this week. 
For more information on the author and her book, see below. But first, let’s get to know Laura a little better.
So let me hand over my mic. The next voice you’ll hear will be Laura’s.
1. What made you want to be a writer?
I have been writing as long as I can remember! It started when I was four and wrote my first book, about spies. It filled an entire notebook with mostly pictures. I also taught myself to type around then, because I decided my handwriting was too babyish. When I was in kindergarten I typed out a long story about dinosaurs, which the vice principal made me read to the whole school. I was so terrified I could barely see through the tears to read it, but I have never been scared of public speaking since.
The point of this is that it wasn’t a conscious decision: it’s something I’ve been doing for my entire life. I can’t imagine not being a writer.
2. What is the toughest part about writing?
At this stage in my life, making the time. I have a full-time job, a four year old, and a farm. I have learned though that if you wait for the time, it will never come. You have to make it. Taking a workshop with Kerri Nelson inspired me – she has a bunch of kids, and a job, and writes a huge number of books every year. The key is to learn to get something done in fifteen minutes or less, and find those gaps. If you wait for a solid day, it will never happen.
3. Have you experienced an aha moment, a piece of advice or a moment where something fell into place?
Not a particular one, but this is generally how my brain works if I’m trying to solve a problem, writing or otherwise. I’ll throw myself into it – total immersion in the problem. Then I find the trick is to go do something unrelated: go for a walk, take a long shower, take a day off. My subconscious will often pop the answer up for me and it’s as if I always knew it. This is very helpful for plotting, for example.
4. Whose style do you admire, or is there a line you wish you’d come up with?
This is a very long list of writers indeed. Most recently, some of my favorite authors are Ilona Andrews and Kristin Cashore. Incredible world-building, and a lyrical writing style on both counts.
5. Describe your ideal reader.
I write for myself! I think you have to. If you try to please other people…well, you’d have to be a mind reader. If I write to please myself, chances are, some other people will like it too.
About the book:
TALENT TO BURN by LAURA WELLING
Passion burns. Betrayal scars.
Cat Wilson grew up a misfit among misfits. She couldn’t read minds, see the future, or start fires like the other Talented kids inside the shadowy Grey Institute. Finally she ran, leaving her beloved brother, Eric, behind. She’s been running ever since.
When she learns that Eric has escaped, leaving deadly fires in his wake, Cat is torn between fear for her brother, and unwanted attraction to the messenger, a charming, Talented ex-con who lives for the next adrenaline rush.
Jamie Murphy is sure his group of outcast Talents can help Eric—if they can get to him before the cops or the Institute, and before he kills again. Cat’s aversion to Talented bad boys is like a wall of ice, but to his surprise, he doesn’t have to use an ounce of his own unique gift to find a way through it.
Yet locating Eric is only the beginning. In the battle to pull him back from the brink, Cat must find the courage to unlock a fearsome Talent of her own. And pray the psychic backdraft doesn’t destroy everyone she loves.
About the author:
When’s she’s not writing, Laura Welling wears a lot of other hats: mother, farmer, and software engineer. She’s Australian but lives in the United States on a horse farm, which she shares with her family, an over-sized dog, and various horses, cats and chickens. She is a compulsive reader of all genre fiction, who started reading before the age of two, and never stopped. She wrote her first “book” when she was five—a spy story, which has since been joined in a bottom drawer by various other early attempts.
This book was inspired by some of her favorite stories: Anne McCaffrey’s science fiction novels, Marvel’s X-Men comics, and The X-Files television series.
Blog/website: http://laurawelling.com
BUY THE BOOK: Samhain | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Google Play
