Brienna Schroeder Interview
How would you say Untreed reads is different than traditional publishing houses?
The personal attention I received. When I first submitted to Jay Hartman, within 24 hours I received a personal note, addressing me as “Kathleen” (call me that and you’re dead), and informing me of what I needed to be informed of. Other e-publishers sent me an auto-response “We have received your submission – please wait whatever X amount of days before worrying we don’t like you”, without even knowing who the heck I was. I liked that personal attention I received from Untreed Reads and was ecstatic they accepted me.
How do you go about promoting your books, do you have anyone helping you? An agent? Untreed? Please tell me about what they do to help you if this is the case.
I’m afraid I’m on my own as far as promoting my books. I have no agent, and Untreed Reads has a grand total of four employees and a few contractors. They haven’t the manpower nor the budget for marketing. It’s all on me. Lately I’ve been doing book blog tours, but other than that, Facebook and Twitter are my central means to marketing.
Dealing with cover design, have you always had a say in the appearance of the cover or do you give the artistic rights to the designer?
I’m given some say in the design, which boils down to I offer some input and they do their best to implement it. Other than my suggestions via a form to fill out, I have no say. The rights to the cover are Untreed Reads, but the books acknowledge the cover designer. I do admit she does good work, but I feel she’s probably over worked, has too much to do. I may be wrong, but I get those vibes.
How do you get into a writing zone? Are there any places that you like to go for inspiration or do you have methods that you practice?
My ‘zone’ actually starts long before I begin writing. As I still have a day job that requires physical work but little mental needs, I spend my days working out issues like plot, scenes, dialogue – the writing I plan to do that evening – before I finish for the day. With luck, I later sit down to write with (hopefully) a fresh muse, and write everything out. Unfortunately, though, I do need to switch gears and that sometimes takes a while. By that I mean, once I get home, care for horses and cats, sit down to my computer, I’m not quite mentally ready to write. Thus I’ll surf the news while I fix and eat supper, then re-read what I wrote and begin fresh. Thus, I may not begin actually writing until midway through my evening. I think I need to work on that part. Less news more discipline.
How did getting published through Untreed Reads help you? What have they helped you with throughout the process? Please explain details.
Quite simply by their constant encouragement. ‘Don’t worry about that, get on with this’, telling me how great I am for the marketing I do for my own books, applauding me for the great reviews my books get. They are easy to communicate with, always answering e-mails, terrific to talk to in person. I went out to San Francisco last summer to meet with everyone. Instantly impressed with their dedication and strives for perfections. I learned how they’re trying so hard to grow the company.
Any advice for getting published? Proudest moments? Anything else you want to add about your authoring experience?
No true advice for getting published other than keep at it. Somewhere, someone will want your work. It’s a matter of finding that perfect niche. My proudest moment was about a year ago when Jay Hartman accepted my second book without even reading it. Knowing how well received my first book was and how I’m out there marketing and promoting myself and my work – that was awesome! An editor who says if you wrote it, it’s good enough for me. It’s like how I was hired for my current job – my boss hired me without ever meeting me, based on my reputation as a worker and someone else’s recommendation. You can’t beat that with a two by four.
