S.E. Ellis currently lives in Colorado and enjoys eating ramen (every day), going for long hikes under the sun (and under the moon), writing, reading and searching used bookstores for hidden treasure.
Often seen on the High Line Canal trails talking to raccoons, squirrels, rabbits, crows and ravens.
S.E. Ellis is the author of “Hestia the Dreamwalker.”
AUTHOR INTERVIEW – S.E. ELLIS
Can you please tell us more about you?
I am S.E. Ellis, the author of “Hestia the Dreamwalker.” I live in Littleton, Colorado with my spouse and two children. For my own mental and physical health, I walk the local trails at least once if not twice or three times a day. If you see someone hunched down speaking to a squirrel, that’s probably me.
My novel “Hestia the Dreamwalker” began as a gift for my 12-year-old. At the time, my child was suffering from panic-attacks and obsessed with wolves. It was comforting to my child to visualize being a wolf as they are apex predators and afraid of nothing. I decided that I would write a novel my 12-year-old would love (which would definitely include wolves).
You can always read about my current projects and news at my website.
Can you please tell us more about your book?
In the world of the novel, “dreamwalking” is a rare ability, which Hestia struggles to learn and master. Dreamwalking is similar to lucid-dreaming in many respects, but a key difference is that the “dreamworld” is a shared realm in which dreamwalkers can meet and interact with each other. This “dreamworld” mirrors the “waking world” but in addition, there are places that only exist within the “dreamworld”.
The novel begins with newly-orphaned Hestia and her younger brother Kuross performing the funeral rites for their deceased mother. Whereas Hestia struggles with her dreamwalking studies, Kuross excels. Powerful interests within the empire notice and kidnap Kuross for their own devious designs. Hestia, still reeling from the death of her mother and the burden of having to raise her younger brother, must now find and rescue Kuross from the imperials.
Is your novel self-published?
Yes. I had a brush with death, and it gave me a new perspective on life, specifically how precious time is. I vowed to make my book available to readers before the anniversary of my brush with death and self-publishing was the best option to make that happen.
Can you tell us more about what you enjoy most about it?
I think what I’ve enjoyed the most so far is when I gave an early draft of my book to a friend’s 11-year-old daughter. She was the exact demographic of who I think would enjoy my novel the most, so I was extremely interested in her response. The short version is that, after finishing my novel, my friend’s daughter went to her mother and said, “I want to read the next book now!” How perfect is that? To me, that was success; knowing that an 11 year old enjoyed my book so much that upon finishing it they wanted to immediately pick up and start reading the next book in the series!
I also really enjoyed being able to achieve my goals: writing a novel with a female protagonist, maintaining conflict tension & action throughout the novel and most of all, having the protagonist resolve conflict with something other than a sword.
What would be the best advice you could give to a new writer?
Learn and respect the craft. Being able to “tune in” to creativity is a wonderful gift that very few people have! But creativity alone does not make one a good writer. That creativity needs to be honed, sharpened and strengthened by learning the craft of writing.
Take your writing seriously. Decide that you are a writer, and not simply a person that writes. Schedule in time for yourself to write every day; make it a priority. Whether it’s writing a first draft, re-writing, or simply writing for writing sake, it’s important to do so every day.
[tweet_dis]Read a lot. Read outside your genre. In developing your own voice it’s important not to imitate others[/tweet_dis] and I think the best way to do so is to read from a diverse number of authors and genres.
Be in the game for the long haul. Perseverance is a requirement. It’s a cliche, but overnight success can take decades to achieve.
Where can we find your book?
My book can be found online at Amazon in both paperback and kindle editions:
And for those local to the Denver metro area, it can also be purchased at Spirit Wise at 6590 S Broadway.
What was your biggest struggle as a writer?
Overall, I would say dealing with all the formatting issues in getting both the paperback and kindle editions looking correct! But specifically with writing, I would say thoroughly outlining the novel. I thought I had, but I sometimes found myself deciding things mid-chapter. I know some authors are comfortable with that and have no problem writing a book with just a simple framework but I prefer to have the entire novel down to the minutest detail outlined before typing the first word.
Social media and website links:
Website: seellis.wordpress.com
Amazon Author’s Page: amazon.com/author/seellis
Facebook: www.facebook.com/seellis
Instagram: www.instagram.com/seellis_author
Twitter: twitter.com/s_e_ellis
Thanks for reading! I’m a Fantasy writer who loves books beyond words. I’d love to hear about you. Connect with me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
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