Meet Indie Author Lori Pescatore

This morning we're having coffee with a new Amazon friend Lori Pescatore.

Lori is like a super hero. By day, she's a mild-mannered preschool teacher and a wife and mom. By night, though she's still a wife and a mom, she's also a writer weaving stories incorporating romance, fantasy, and science fiction.

Lori said:  "Although I love all of these titles, I can now add published author to the list of things I can consider myself. I was proud the day I got married, I was proud the day I gave birth to each of my boys, (now grown men) and I was proud when I got my certification to teach.

Book Details

First, let me give you Lori's book details for the Kindle edition of her novel, which is the first of a trilogy, Human Blend which is also available in print.

Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 334 KB
Print Length: 234 pages

Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
Language: English
ASIN: B003RWS5Y6

Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars (63 customer reviews with 62 being 4 & 5 star reviews!)

Blurb

Laney isn't like other girls. She has special "abilities" that made her a prize for her captors, but she escaped. Now she's hiding in the small town where she found sanctuary. Though she knows it's dangerous, she forms a relationship with a local boy, and that's when everything begins to unravel.

Fun Questions To Break The Ice

Joan: Which do you prefer and why? Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet or movie version of West Side Story?

Lori: I prefer Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet because I have always been a fan of Shakespeare. I love his characters and the hidden jokes, and it is really literature that makes you think. I love books that challenge me.

Joan: What's your TV guilty pleasure? Why?

Lori: I love Vampire Diaries. Why? Uh, maybe 'cause the guys are hot, and it has vampires, enough said.

Joan: Name a book, any genre, that means a lot to you and tell us why.

Lori: My favorite book of all time is S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders. I love the characters in this book. My own novels are character driven, and her book has some amazingly colorful characters. Each one leaves you wanting to know more about them.


Down To The Nitty Gritty

Joan: How long have you been working at your craft? Please tell us something about your first published book, the journey from the idea that you wanted to write a book to finally writing one for which you received a publishing contract or decided to publish yourself.

Lori: I've been writing all my life for family and friends and finally decided to put myself out there with Human Blend in 2010. The idea came from just a thought of a girl on the run, and it took off from there. I had no idea it would turn out with these fantastical creatures and characters. I self- published just to test the waters and even entered the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards where I was a quarter finalist.

Joan: The book we're featuring today was what number book for you? 1st, 3rd, 7th?

Lori: Human Blend is not only my first published novel, but also it's the first novel I wrote.

Joan: Tell us something about this particular book that makes it special to you: either how you came up with the title or premise or what inspired it?

Lori: The book is special because it is a labor of love. It is a book I would have bought myself if I'd seen it on a shelf and read the synopsis. The characters themselves inspired the story as they took hold of my imagination and told the story.

The main thought was a girl on the run, from what, I did not know. I really just opened my mind up and let it flow from the character's point of view. As each character came on the scene, the more the voices grew. I can't really explain it. The characters' voices really developed the story. As they became more fleshed out, so did the storyline.

Joan: Did you publish with traditional publishers before this book? If not, did you ever consider going the traditional route?

Lori: I self-published because right now, the publishing business is in turmoil. Most agents and/or publishers are not really looking to sign new and unproven authors. There have been many self-publishing success stories, and I like the idea of having control over my own work. I first published as an e-book on Amazon and Smashwords, then created a print version using Create Space.

I even held a book signing in December of 2010, and it was an amazing experience. It has been less than a year, and I have 63 reviews on Amazon alone. My sales are increasing every month, so I'm pretty content with my decision to self-publish.

Joan: How satisfied are you with being an indie author?

Lori: My numbers have been great. I am very satisfied with being self-published, but that is not to say that if a big six knocks on my door that I would not give them a listen.

Joan: If they made a movie of your book, who would be cast to portray the characters?

Lori: Tough question. So many talent actors out there. I used model pictures when I wrote the character descriptions, and the only one who was an actor/singer was Jesse McCartney for one of my leads of Austin. The rest I leave up to your imaginations. Okay, maybe Paul Walker for Eli.

Joan: What are you working on now?

Lori: The second book in the trilogy, Earth Blend, which picks up where the last one left off. It will also give readers an insight to the new fantasy creatures created in Human Blend.

Joan: What do you now know that you wish you'd known when you started?

Lori: That time is relative. When it feels right, it's complete. Sometimes you tweak a book so much that it ends up nothing like what you planned. Make sure you know when to walk away and hit publish.

Joan: What advice would you give someone just starting out?

Lori: Invest in an editor. Well worth the price. I learned the hard way. My first edition was riddled with errors, minor ones, but they still made the book seem unprofessional. I've since hired an editor who fixed my mistakes and is working on the second book with me.

The Last Word

Joan: Is there anything else you'd like to tell us about anything?

Lori: I just would like to say thank you for the opportunity to talk about myself and the book and a huge HUG to all the readers out there. You make it all worth it.

Takeaway Truth

Thank you, Lori Pescatore, for sharing a cup of coffee and your journey with me today on SlingWords.