1. Tell us a little about yourself.
I am a creative writer and USMC Veteran Cara North. I’ve been creating characters and writing stories since grade school. I had my first in-school suspension my freshman year of high school thanks to a story I turned in for English. I guess that romance was a bit much for her.
I’m sure some of what I write as Cara North would get me suspended again.
I’m a USMC veteran, so I often write military characters. I enjoy fiction because it allows me to escape from reality and provides a reader with that escape for entertainment purposes.
My non-fiction is all about writing and my perspective in this industry after two decades and counting. I don’t always do what I suggest, but I own and admit that.
I could probably be more successful if I did, but I’m comfortable where I am and with what I’m producing. When I first started, I had the energy for all that stuff.
Now, I just want to write and connect with my readers. If that is seven people who can’t wait for the next book, so be it. I want to get those people the next book.
2. Why Do you write?
I write for myself, my sanity, so maybe I can add everyone around me to that list. When I don’t write creatively for an extended period of time, it has an effect on everything else I do. I don’t know how else to describe it, but I do know that people who know me well will ask if I have been writing and say it shows or they can tell if I haven’t been.
3. What genre do you write and Why did you pick this genre?
I read in a variety of genres so I write in a variety of genres. Primarily, my work is contemporary. I think when I started writing for publication, these were the characters that came to me and wanted their stories told. As I’ve progressed, more characters have popped up and they didn’t come from this reality, so I began writing some other genres.
My niece was upset that she was not 18 yet so she asked me to write something she could read. That was a few years ago. During the pandemic, Dating Wyatt’s Mom came about (it is standalone and free in e-book). Then, I woke one morning and The Drummonds happened.
I spent a year writing them and sending them out for edits. I began releasing them this year so they could roll out each month. Thanks to readers, I am working on the last of those books this year and they will release next year. I like to have a series finished before I release it these days.
4. Tell us about your book.
I have several, so I will pick the most recent release for my YA series which is JoJo. This book shows the PTSD and recovery process of sexual assault when the victim is not a female. My YA is for mature readers. I grew up in a rough area and poor, so I was not blind to the variety of horrors life could bring.
I spent my senior year of high school with a foster family and attended a good school. It was like I went to another world sometimes, so I guess my YA is a clash of those experiences with some modern twists.
5. How much time do you dedicate to your author career?
Time writing is any free time I have. Weekends, in between semesters, early morning, a lunch break in the afternoon, or before bed at night. Writing is what I do the most. Social media...I could do better and I don’t put in as much time as I should.
I attend Literary Love Savannah on an annual basis. It is the one conference I take time off from any and all jobs I am working to attend.
6. How long on average does it take you to write your books?
This varies on the length of the book and what else is going on. When I lost my full-time job, was looking for work, I was splitting my time with the grueling task of finding steady employment and writing because it made me less sad about my situation.
Now that I have full-time employment, I make time for writing, but it has slowed down again for sure.
7. What is the best money you have ever spent on your author career?
Literary Love Savannah annual reader author convention. I love the reader connection. I get to spend time with readers and other authors. We have fun and I feel rejuvenated at the end of that conference and motivated by my readers, the ones I meet, have meals with, speak to in person.
Sales are a motivator to keep writing, but even with a low sale on a book, if one of those readers liked it, I feel like it just sold a million copies. After all, not everyone will enjoy what I write, so those who do…connecting with them. Yeah, that is the best.
8. What is the most difficult part of being an author?
Marketing. I want to write. I need to sell books in order to pay for edits and covers, but when I spend time online it takes away from the writing, and marketing is one of those tricky things where I never really know what is working for me with the exception of a live event, which is why I do LLS every year.
Those readers buy print books on-site and ebooks throughout the year. They support me and I show up for them. The rest of my marketing…I have no idea. I just do what I can with what I have.
9. What is the best piece of advice you have for other authors?
Write your story. Your story, the one you want to write, not the one you think everyone else is writing or reading.
10. What is your favorite book?
Just one? Sheesh!
My favorite book I’ve read…wow. This is a tough question. Wuthering Heights, The Catcher in the Rye, Circle of Friends, On the Road, and more. All different types of stories, but ones I still enjoy to this day.
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