Best known for his Runelords series, David Farland is one of those writers you want to emulate if you are trying to break into the publishing industry. The man is a machine, working tirelessly to hone his craft, wanting to reach his fans with a very good yarn every time. He is also one of the nicest authors you will ever meet.
If you haven’t read Runelords by David Farland, definitely do so! It’s very well done high fantasy. If you have, his newest book, The Wyrmling Horde, is in bookstores now!
And if you have more questions for David, post them in the comments field or visit his blog and post them there; we’ll see if we can’t get them answered in a new batch of Five Questions!
Below is Five Questions with David Farland. Enjoy!
Suvudu: When did you start writing? Why do you write?
David Farland: I began writing when I was seventeen. I’d loved Lord of the Rings, and so I began to devour any fantasy that I could find. On an off day, I started creating my own story. I told it to a coworker, and he said, “You should take that and put it in a book!” It suddenly struck me, like a revelation, that not only could I do that, but that I might even be able to sell it. So the next day I went out and bought a used typewriter and began to plug away. Forty years later, I’m still writing fantasy—for the love of it!
S: Describe your writing day? How many words/pages do you write a day on average? Breaks? How much time do you spend editing and how do you go about it?
DF:Sometimes I take writing retreats to Mexico and compose for twelve hours per day, other days I spend working on answering mail and don't write anything at all. I like to immerse myself into the task. I can't just sit and write three pages a day like some people do. So, overall, here's what I've done this year: By the year's end I will have written four novels, two adult fantasies and two for young adults. I've also written a novella and a long novel outline that includes half a dozen sample chapters--all in all, that's about
500,000 words of new fiction, or two thousand pages. That comes to an average of maybe 6 pages a day. I also taught writing workshops for three weeks, went on a book tour for a month, and did rewrites on about three thousand pages of fiction--oh, and I wrote an advice column for new writers on a regular basis, so you'd better add another
six hundred pages to my output.
To get my column, which is called David Farland's Daily Kick in the Pants, email me at davidfarland@xmission.com and in the subject line say "Kick me!"
S: How many books did you write before you signed your first book contract? How did you get that contract? Via agent? Industry friend? Writer's retreat? Slushpile? Other?
DF: I started a couple of books before I got my first contract, but halfway through I felt stumped. So I went back to the books and studied how to write middles. I actually began winning writing contests when I was in college, and that led to a three-novel contract with Bantam Books. My first agent was Virginia Kidd, and she submitted the book for me based upon an award-winning short story and an outine. So my first completed book became my first published novel.
S: What advice would you give beginning writers? What is the best way to break into the industry?
DF:My best piece of advice is this: getting published often requires more
perseverance than initial talent. If you work hard, you can build up writing skills that might come naturally to some other person who was born with certain gifts. If, on the other hand, you do have some natural talent, you'll soon falter if you don't learn to build on your
talents, increase your own skills. So perservere! I like the advice that I once heard Kevin J. Anderson give: "I find that the harder I work, the luckier I get!"
S: What are you currently working on? When can we expect it?
DF:I'm currently working on Berserker, book eight in the Runelords series. It will come out in October of 2009, I believe. I should have a YA book out at the same time—Freaky Fly Day—the third in my Ravenspell series. Until then, I'm going to keep my head down and write!
What is your take on the bloggosphere? Does it help or hinder genre writers?