[box type="note"]Hey guys! Kat here today with Heather Marie, author of the upcoming YA book The Gateway Through Which They Came. It's her debut, and it's releasing on August 25th with Curiosity Quills, so I invited her on Pub Crawl to chat with us a little about her publishing journey :)[/box]

Before we begin in earnest, I asked Heather to summarize Gateway for me in one sentence, and she said:

Seventeen-year-old Aiden Ortiz is a Gateway for the dead, who discovers that sending the dead away can be easy—but stopping them from coming back is a whole other story.

Read until the end for the book's full summary, as well as a chance to win a copy!

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So, Heather, tell us a little about your writing/publishing process with Gateway!

Where do I start? Well, I wrote Gateway during NaNoWriMo in November of 2012. At that time I was on submission with another YA supernatural about a girl haunted by the ghost of her half-sister. After only a few months, I pulled that manuscript and parted ways with my agent for personal reasons. This happens more often than you think, but it really leaves you feeling pretty jaded about publishing.

It was a rough road picking myself back up from there. I went through a lot of ups and downs, but eventually I pushed myself to finish Gateway, which was my sixth manuscript. (The one that went on submission was my fourth.) I honestly didn't know if I'd ever get back on track. After you go from having an agent to not, you start to question your writing and publishing in general, because so much changes at once.

But I've dreamed of being an author since I was a kid—books have been a huge part of my life—and I just couldn't allow myself to give up that easily. So after going through querying, and several revisions with Gateway, I was ecstatic to find out that Curiosity Quills Press wanted to sign me. As they say, it was a dream come true.

That's really great! The road to finally getting a book published can definitely be rough, and I always love a happy ending :) What has working with Curiosity Quills been like? Any challenges you've faced as a debut author?

As a writer, I think we all know how important it is to market ourselves. Even those with Big 5 publishers have to get themselves out there, because no one is gonna do the work for you. However, having a big name backing your book is definitely a huge help. Going into my contract, I realized that it would mean working a little harder on the marketing front for myself. I'd like to think I'm okay as far as that goes, but I always worry that I'm pushing it too much. Maybe we all feel that way, because it's weird to talk about yourself all the time, or to try and promote something without being pushy. That has been my biggest challenge.

When it comes to CQ as a whole, I have nothing but good things to say. They have been incredibly supportive and easy to work with. I love that I can go to them with questions or concerns or pretty much anything. I'm one of those writers that tends to need a little more attention because I'm constantly worrying, or I have some new idea that I want to share, and they always back me up. My experience with them has been wonderful.

I'd have to say what I find most unique about working with a small publisher is the time and attention they provide. From what I hear, I'm pretty lucky when it comes to this, because I'm more in-the-know than most writers with their publishers.

I think marketing as a writer is always tricky. That line between "I feel like I'm talking about myself all the time!!!" and "No one even knows I write books" is oddly weird to walk sometimes. But the most important part of being a writer, of course, is the actual writing! What's your process like? Panster or Plotter? (or, as GRR Martin said once: "Architect" or "Gardener")

I rarely ever outline. In fact, if I do outline it's usually when I'm halfway through the story. Even if this happens, I only write about a page or two of random notes that bring the story together. Ideally I prefer the pantser method. I enjoy learning along with my characters what's going to happen next.

With that being said, I tend to write the first draft fairly quick. I work on this with my critique partners for a while and rarely ever start a new draft with all the changes. The only time I start collecting more and more drafts is during the editing phase with my publisher. I can't even tell you how many drafts I have of Gateway. My "Gateway" folder is a train wreck.

Sounds like my folders for the Hybrid Chronicles, lol. I literally had files titled "Hybrid 1" through something like "Hybrid 8" before I even sold the trilogy!

Thanks for coming on Pub Crawl to chat with us today, Heather :) Before you leave, tell us: What are your future writing plans?

I keep setting the bar higher and higher for myself with each manuscript. To keep writing Young Adult is definitely my main plan—I love it too much to write anything else. My biggest thing is hopefully finding another agent with my next manuscript. I miss the security of having someone on my side that is experienced in the publishing world. People keep telling me I'm doing great without one, but I don't want to limit myself as a writer. Agents are there to help us grow in our craft and in publishing—I'd hate to deprive myself of that experience and knowledge.

That sounds fantastic :) Everyone should check out Gateway when it releases, and in fact we're giving out an ARC today!

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To seventeen-year-old Aiden Ortiz, letting the dead walk through his body to reach the other side comes with the territory. Being a Gateway isn’t an easy job, but someone’s gotta send Bleeders where they belong. Heaven. Salvation. Call it whatever you want. Dead is dead. But when his search for Koren Banks—the girl who went mysteriously missing seven months ago—leaves him with more questions than answers, he finds himself involved in something far more sinister and beyond his control.
With the threat of the Dark Priest's resurrection, and his plan to summon his demon brothers from hell, Aiden is left to discover his identity before the Dark Priest's curse infecting his blood consumes him, and before the world as he knows it succumbs to the darkness of hell on earth.

(Sorry international readers, the giveaway is US only!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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HEATHER MARIE lives in Northern California with her husband, and spends the majority of her time at home reading. Before she followed her dreams of becoming a writer, Heather worked as a hairstylist and makeup artist for several years. Although she enjoyed the artistic aspect of it all, nothing quite quenched her creative side like the telling of a good story. When the day had come for her to make a choice, she left behind her promising career to start another, and never looked back.

Pub(lishing) Crawl

Guest Interview: Heather Marie

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