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Bestselling author and fellow BestSelling Reads member DelSheree Gladden is a prolific writer who has published over 20 titles in nine different series. She was extremely generous to take some precious time from her daily routine, which includes lots of writing, working, teaching, yoga, taking her children to activities and leaving the rest of us in the dust. What does she like best and least about being an author? Read on.

Which element of fiction is most important to you as a writer?

In my own writing and what I like to read, characters are really important to me. A good character can carry even a mediocre story and a weak character can greatly diminish a fantastic plot. As human beings, we have a great need to connect with others. This applies to real life situations and carries over into fiction as well. When we watch a movie, even if it’s terrible, it’s two hours lost. For a book, the time commitment is greater, anywhere from ten hours to fifty hours if you’re reading The Wheel of Time. In order for a book to keep reader’s attention, they have to care about the character and what’s happening to them enough that they are willing to commit that much time to learning about them and their world.

What part of writing do you spend the most time on: research, writing, editing, making coffee or cleaning your work space?

I tend to be a very fast writer when we’re not selling a house or running our kids all over creation. Most first drafts take me a few months to write, barring everyday life and such. Editing is my least favorite part of writing and it’s usually the most time consuming part of my writing process. I send each book out to a team of beta readers, then I take their comments and make changes where needed, then the tedious part of line editing comes into play with several rounds back and forth, and finally I usually read the entire book aloud to catch any lingering typos.

Which of these do you enjoy most?

The actual task of writing is my favorite part of the entire process. I love diving into new characters, getting to know them, developing their backstory, and taking the journey with them. The way I write, I don’t usually have a detailed plan of the plot. At the most, I have scenes in my mind that will come into play and an idea of where the story and character will end up by the end of the story, but I’m open to any and all of those changes as the story progresses. There are plenty of times I’ve been surprised by twists and turns my books have taken and I love that!

What do you wish you had to do less?

Aside from editing, which I’ve already whined about, I’d have to say marketing. Marketing is hard. I spend a lot of time researching marketing tactics, implementing them, trying new things, and attempting to track what works and what doesn’t. That is tougher than you might think! There are so many books out there and getting noticed is not easy. It’s tough to strike a balance between marketing and writing, and every author needs to find what works for them.

Which of your books or other works are you personally happiest with? Why?

Invisible is closest to my heart. When I started writing that book, I just had a random thought about what it would be like if a child’s imaginary friend wasn’t imaginary. What if he was real and only this one little girl could see him, and then they grew up together and experienced life in this very unique way. I didn’t really have a firm goal or idea for where it would go, but by the end of the book I realized how much of my own personal experiences and story had been melded into that book. I grew up feeling very invisible in my own home and school experience. It’s not easy and sometimes you just want someone else to really “see” you and take notice, so I definitely identify with Mason in the story and I hope his experience helps others who feel the same way.

What part of writing or publishing do you think you could help other writers with?

I’ve recently starting teaching writing and publishing classes at my local community college and I love it. As shy as I was as a child and young adult, I never pictured myself standing in front of a group of people and sharing my experiences, but I’ve found that I really enjoy being able to help others writers navigate writing and the world of publishing. I’m certainly not the most experienced or successful writer, but I do feel like I have a talent for taking what I’ve learned and sharing it with others. There is so much to learn when you dive into the book world and I think it’s really important that more established writers reach out and help aspiring readers so it’s not so overwhelming.

Thank you, DelSheree!

DelSheree Gladden lives in New Mexico with her husband and two children. The Southwest is a big influence in her writing because of its culture, beauty, and mythology. Local folk lore is strongly rooted in her writing, particularly ideas of prophecy, destiny, and talents born from natural abilities. When she is not writing, DelSheree is usually teaching yoga, coaching gymnastics, reading, painting, sewing, or cleaning teeth. Her works include Escaping Fate Series, Twin Souls Saga, The Destroyer Trilogy, The Aerling Series, Someone Wicked This Way Comes Series, Date Shark Series, and The Ghost Host.

Visit DelSheree’s links to check out all her books and to get updates and sneak peeks of new projects.