Author Grayson Bell
GRAYSON, WELCOME! IT’S AN HONOR TO HAVE YOU HERE.
TELL THE READERS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF.
WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOU WERE A WRITER?
I never had an epiphany. Writing is something that has been a part of me since I began school. After I left school, I found myself creating websites and I enjoyed writing content for them. Eventually, I landed a position as a tech writing intern, and later found myself writing most of the process documents and procedure manuals for the online marketing department I worked in. Then in 2015 I was inspired by a video game called “Dragon Age” to write a fictional story, and that’s when writing took over my life. Stories keep pouring out of me and I can barely keep up with them.
WHAT GENRES DO YOU WRITE IN?
I write queer fiction in multiple genres. For me, there has never been enough queer representation in mainstream fiction, at least not in the books I’ve read over the years. I’ve published gay and transgender romance and erotica stories, and I’m now delving into science fiction.
NOW, I HAVE BEEN READING CYCLES OF REVELATION: Artifact of the DAWN. (IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH KINDLE VELLA, BELL HAS WRITTEN AN OUTSTANDING ARTICLE YOU CAN READ HERE.) TELL US ABOUT THAT SERIES.
“Artifact of the Dawn” is the first story in “The Cycles of Revelation” series and it introduces the main characters, Ardyn and Jevan. This story was inspired by a random thought I had back in 2015, “what if elves were really aliens, who had crashed on our world and forgot where they came from?” This speculation was inspired by the “Shannara” series by Terry Brooks and “Golden Dream: A Fuzzy Odyssey” by Ardath Mayhar.
The story has evolved from that initial speculation and is set around ten thousand years in the future, in a different star system. Ardyn is an alien elf from a people who call themselves Athla’naa, and he discovers a mysterious artifact that leads him to question everything he’d ever been taught about his people. A Medellan named Jevan saves his life and then joins Ardyn in his quest to discover the truth.
WHAT I HAVE FOUND WITH KINDLE VELLA IS THAT YOU HAVE TO AIM FOR A WHOLE DIFFERENT READING AUDIENCE. DO YOU FIND THAT IS ALSO THE CASE, AND IF SO, HOW DO YOU REACH YOUR KINDLE VELLA AUDIENCE?
Kindle Vella is a serialized story platform, where chapters (called episodes) are posted one at a time, on a regular schedule. This attracts a different kind of reader, people who enjoy consuming a story more like a TV series. Some of my favorite authors, like Edgar Rice Burroughs, once published their novels in a similar fashion through literary magazines.
Reaching my audience has been a challenge, and I mostly find them through Kindle Vella groups on social media. The platform is still very new, and restricted to only the US, so I’ve also been posting the episodes to Medium. That way I can also offer international readers a way to read the story.
YOU HAVE ALSO WRITTEN A NUMBER OF BOOKS. WHICH ONE IS YOUR FAVORITE AND WHY?
I can’t pick a favorite book any more than a parent can choose a favorite child. The way I approach writing, is to write the stories I want to read, so I love every one of my books. Perhaps the one I’m most proud of is “Transcendent,” only because it’s the first one I’ve written featuring a transgender male character. While it’s a salacious little erotic novella, I tried to write the main character, Cory, as authentically as I could. While he is not based on me, he shares some of my personal experiences in being a transgender man (and a few of my kinks as well).
FOR OUR ASPIRING AUTHORS, WHAT THREE KERNELS OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE NEW WRITERS? OR PERHAPS SEASONED WRITERS?
When writing your first draft, keep writing. Try to avoid looking back and editing. You can do that after you’ve completed that first draft. I’ve seen too many new writers get discouraged by how long their first draft is taking, all because they are constantly trying to perfect what they just wrote. Remember, you can always fix it later.
Next, and this is specifically for anyone planning to self-publish, always get another pair of eyeballs on your work before you publish. Whether you engage with beta readers or hire a professional editor, never publish without someone else reading through your story. You may think it’s the best thing since sliced bread, but I guarantee someone else is going to find a plot hole, pacing issues, or some other inconsistency that you missed.
Finally, if you plan to use a publisher, keep one thing in mind. A literary agent or traditional publisher will never ask you for money up-front. If an agent or publisher has a submission fee, or wants to charge you for services such as editing, formatting, book cover design, or marketing, they are not a traditional publisher. Those are known as vanity publishers (sometimes they call themselves a hybrid publisher, but it’s practically the same thing). A traditional publisher will earn their money by keeping a percentage of the sales of your book. This gives them an incentive to get your book to sell, and why they can be selective in which books they are willing to publish.
WHERE CAN READERS FIND YOU ONLINE OR ON SOCIAL MEDIA?
My website is graysonbell.net and you can find all my social media links at linktr.ee/graysonbell.
THANK YOU FOR DOING THE FIRST INTERVIEW OF 2023! I HOPE TO HAVE YOU BACK SOON AND CAN’T WAIT TO READ ALL OF CYCLES OF REVELATION: Artifact of the DAWN.
TELL THE READERS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF.
WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOU WERE A WRITER?
I never had an epiphany. Writing is something that has been a part of me since I began school. After I left school, I found myself creating websites and I enjoyed writing content for them. Eventually, I landed a position as a tech writing intern, and later found myself writing most of the process documents and procedure manuals for the online marketing department I worked in. Then in 2015 I was inspired by a video game called “Dragon Age” to write a fictional story, and that’s when writing took over my life. Stories keep pouring out of me and I can barely keep up with them.
WHAT GENRES DO YOU WRITE IN?
I write queer fiction in multiple genres. For me, there has never been enough queer representation in mainstream fiction, at least not in the books I’ve read over the years. I’ve published gay and transgender romance and erotica stories, and I’m now delving into science fiction.
NOW, I HAVE BEEN READING CYCLES OF REVELATION: Artifact of the DAWN. (IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH KINDLE VELLA, BELL HAS WRITTEN AN OUTSTANDING ARTICLE YOU CAN READ HERE.) TELL US ABOUT THAT SERIES.
“Artifact of the Dawn” is the first story in “The Cycles of Revelation” series and it introduces the main characters, Ardyn and Jevan. This story was inspired by a random thought I had back in 2015, “what if elves were really aliens, who had crashed on our world and forgot where they came from?” This speculation was inspired by the “Shannara” series by Terry Brooks and “Golden Dream: A Fuzzy Odyssey” by Ardath Mayhar.
The story has evolved from that initial speculation and is set around ten thousand years in the future, in a different star system. Ardyn is an alien elf from a people who call themselves Athla’naa, and he discovers a mysterious artifact that leads him to question everything he’d ever been taught about his people. A Medellan named Jevan saves his life and then joins Ardyn in his quest to discover the truth.
WHAT I HAVE FOUND WITH KINDLE VELLA IS THAT YOU HAVE TO AIM FOR A WHOLE DIFFERENT READING AUDIENCE. DO YOU FIND THAT IS ALSO THE CASE, AND IF SO, HOW DO YOU REACH YOUR KINDLE VELLA AUDIENCE?
Kindle Vella is a serialized story platform, where chapters (called episodes) are posted one at a time, on a regular schedule. This attracts a different kind of reader, people who enjoy consuming a story more like a TV series. Some of my favorite authors, like Edgar Rice Burroughs, once published their novels in a similar fashion through literary magazines.
Reaching my audience has been a challenge, and I mostly find them through Kindle Vella groups on social media. The platform is still very new, and restricted to only the US, so I’ve also been posting the episodes to Medium. That way I can also offer international readers a way to read the story.
YOU HAVE ALSO WRITTEN A NUMBER OF BOOKS. WHICH ONE IS YOUR FAVORITE AND WHY?
I can’t pick a favorite book any more than a parent can choose a favorite child. The way I approach writing, is to write the stories I want to read, so I love every one of my books. Perhaps the one I’m most proud of is “Transcendent,” only because it’s the first one I’ve written featuring a transgender male character. While it’s a salacious little erotic novella, I tried to write the main character, Cory, as authentically as I could. While he is not based on me, he shares some of my personal experiences in being a transgender man (and a few of my kinks as well).
FOR OUR ASPIRING AUTHORS, WHAT THREE KERNELS OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE NEW WRITERS? OR PERHAPS SEASONED WRITERS?
When writing your first draft, keep writing. Try to avoid looking back and editing. You can do that after you’ve completed that first draft. I’ve seen too many new writers get discouraged by how long their first draft is taking, all because they are constantly trying to perfect what they just wrote. Remember, you can always fix it later.
Next, and this is specifically for anyone planning to self-publish, always get another pair of eyeballs on your work before you publish. Whether you engage with beta readers or hire a professional editor, never publish without someone else reading through your story. You may think it’s the best thing since sliced bread, but I guarantee someone else is going to find a plot hole, pacing issues, or some other inconsistency that you missed.
Finally, if you plan to use a publisher, keep one thing in mind. A literary agent or traditional publisher will never ask you for money up-front. If an agent or publisher has a submission fee, or wants to charge you for services such as editing, formatting, book cover design, or marketing, they are not a traditional publisher. Those are known as vanity publishers (sometimes they call themselves a hybrid publisher, but it’s practically the same thing). A traditional publisher will earn their money by keeping a percentage of the sales of your book. This gives them an incentive to get your book to sell, and why they can be selective in which books they are willing to publish.
WHERE CAN READERS FIND YOU ONLINE OR ON SOCIAL MEDIA?
My website is graysonbell.net and you can find all my social media links at linktr.ee/graysonbell.
THANK YOU FOR DOING THE FIRST INTERVIEW OF 2023! I HOPE TO HAVE YOU BACK SOON AND CAN’T WAIT TO READ ALL OF CYCLES OF REVELATION: Artifact of the DAWN.
