Inquiring Minds Want to Know About Margaret Fieland

This morning, author Margaret Fieland, the author of Geek Games, and I are chatting over coffee.

Margaret was born and raised in New York City. She's been around art and music all her life. Her poems and stories have appeared in journals such as Turbulence Magazine, Front Range Review, and All Rights Reserved. She is one of the Poetic Muselings whose poetry anthology, Lifelines, was published by Inkspotter Publishing in November 2011. Margaret is the author of Relocated, Geek Games, and Broken Bonds, published by MuseItUp Publishing. She has also published Sand in the Desert, a collection of science fiction persona poems, and the chapter book, The Angry Little Boy, due to be published later this year.

Find Margaret Fieland Online

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/margaretfieland/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/margaret.fielandAuthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/madcapmaggie
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4417476.Margaret_Fieland
Blog: http://www.margaretfieland.com/blog1/

The Dirty Dozen

In which genre do you write and why that particular genre?

I write poetry and science fiction. I started writing poetry as a teen and continued but didn't take myself seriously until about 2005, when I placed as a finalist in an online contest. As to the sci fi, I'm a huge fan of the genre – I've been reading the stuff since I was in elementary school – but didn't start writing any until 2010. In September of 2010, I decided to write a sci fi novel for National Novel Writing Month as a way to overcome my phobia about world building. I spent the six weeks I had before the first of November mostly planning out the alien culture, the political landscape, the history of the Terran Federation and the aliens, the art, the literature, etc. I had about a page of plot notes.

What's your most recent book and what's it about?

The most recently published is Geek Games, the second novel in the Aleyne Series.

When fourteen-year-old Martin lets Tom, a charismatic bully, persuade him to bring down the spaceport computer network, he never considers someone will place a bomb resulting in the death of his friend's father. Nothing will bring Captain Frey back, but if Martin can help locate the terrorists' drug lab, perhaps he'll be able to forgive himself.

(The third novel in the series, Broken Bonds, is also available.)

As an author, what can readers expect when they read one of your books?

Romance, adventure, detailed alien cultures, political intrigue, lots about music, literature, and computers, all of which are passions of mine.

How did you "become" an author? For instance, was there a moment when you said: "I think I'll write a book."

I fell into it. After I started writing more poetry, I discovered the Muse Online Writers Conference and met Linda Barnett Johnson. I was writing only poetry at the time, but to join Linda's writing forums, you had to write both fiction and poetry. I reluctantly began writing fiction. Then one weekend I wrote a chapter book based on an experience of a friend who lost his family in a tragic fire. I spent the next year and a half to two years learning enough about fiction writing to make it publishable. It's due out sometime later this year.

What's the best thing about being an author?

I get to write down all the stories in my head and clear out the resultant real estate, leaving room for more stories.

What's the worst thing about being an author?

I have to choose which of the many stories floating around in my brain to work on next. I do keep notes, but I have a lot of ideas.

Do you have editions of your books available other than ebook editions?

The three sci fi novels are so far available only as ebooks, but I'm planning to take the first one, Relocated, to print in a couple of months. The poetry book that goes with Relocated is available in print and as an audio book.

Do you listen to audio books? If so, what device do you use?

I don't listen to audio books often. When I do, I borrow them from the library. They're on CDs, and I listen in my car.

What device do you use to read ebooks?

A Kindle Fire.

If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring author, what would it be?

Keep writing, and don't listen to the voice in your head that tells you you have nothing to say, don't know how to write, or any of the other negatives floating around. Make it your business to learn your craft, and develop a realistic picture of what your strengths and weaknesses are. Play to your strengths and work on your weak points.

If you could tell readers one thing, what would it be?

Don't limit your sense of adventure. Read beyond your comfort zone. Let yourself be jolted out of the familiar. Reading is a venture into the unknown.

What is your big dream (or goal) as a writer?

Truthfully, I've moved so far beyond where I ever imagined I'd be as a writer … but my next goal is to organize an in-person writing event. This is still on my to-do list. I'd also like to organize and publish another book of poems.

Buy Geek Games

Amazon Kindle

Barnes & Noble


Muse It Up Publishing

OmniLit

Takeaway Truth

Why not add Margaret Fieland to your "collection" of authors?