Ways to Reach Maggie Ray
Website: Www.mrsauthor.com
About Maggie Ray
MR: Author of dystopian books fueled by iced coffees & pizza. Special talents include: buying too many books, talking while being photographed, and being caught daydreaming at inopportune moments. Can be otherwise found busy snuggling one very precious daughter, a handsome husband of 10 years, and two ungrateful cats.
Writing
HS: What type of writing do you do? Do you have any published works?
MR: Despite having written over 25 books in a variety of genres, at the time of this interview I only have one published work, which is the first in a dystopian series inspired by the lobotomy. The book in question is titled Citizen: Season 1 of the Uncured series. It's about a society that enforces a cure for mental illness and the one citizen whose cure has failed.
HS: Why did you start writing? When did you start writing?
MR: One especially rainy afternoon in middle school, my class was forced to remain indoors for recess. A friend of mine suggested a game: we'd give each other a title and write a short story based on that title. The title she gave me was: "I fell off the Eiffel Tower." It was the first time I considered writing for fun, instead of for schoolwork. I started writing and never stopped. Before I knew it, my short story had turned into a whole book. I was 11 years old.
HS: Who are your inspirations?
MR: Scott Westerfeld is a big inspiration of mine since he was the whole reason I fell in love with the dystopian genre in the first place. In my teens, I was also inspired by Stephanie Meyer, since I greatly admired her journey from common nobody to household name. Others include Paula McLain for her beautiful prose and Margaret Atwood for her outstanding talent and career.
HS: What are your favorite books/genres?
MR: My two favorite genres are dystopian fiction and historical fiction, although I enjoy the occasional thriller and chick lit. Some favorites are the Uglies series, the Paris Wife, and Alias Grace.
HS: If you suffer from it, how do you overcome writer's block?
MR: I don't get writer's block anymore, but I used to back when I constantly worried if my work was any good. I would squint at the screen for hours, judging and scrutinizing every word. Once I let go of the pressures of being good, I found writing easy. First drafts are meant to be written, the rewrites are for making it good. But you'll never have anything to edit until you have something written down to work with.
HS: What do you wish someone had told you about writing?
MR: Probably "stop worrying so much about being good," and "impostor syndrome is common," and "for crying out loud, use a formula, because even books written by the seat of the pants have some basic structure!"
HS: How do you get into the "mood" of writing?
MR: Reading books that inspire me, listening to music, and sitting in cafés with an iced coffee at hand.
HS: When starting a new book, what are your first steps?
MR: I start with a formula and a few questions: Who is the character, what is their normal, and what is the incident that changes everything and kickstarts the story?
HS: What are some of your writing goals?
MR: Self-publish some more books... try not to fall flat on my face and totally embarrass myself in the process... retain some sanity despite lack of sleep and unhealthy amounts of iced coffee. (Also, let's be honest, don't all writers dream of having their stories end up on the big screen someday?)
"Fun fact: I've never read Harry Potter!"
Her Work
Title
Citizen: Season 1 | Uncured series
Summary
The cure had never been enforced. Until now.
In the small collective of Reye, Sabine LeRoux is one of the first citizens to receive the mandatory cure for mental illness. A fate she welcomes, in the hope the cure will somehow eradicate the unspoken curse that has plagued her all her life: everyone she cares about leaves, one way or another.
It isn't until after her curing that Sabine begins to wonder if there isn't something else going on.
First, she wakes up to learn she's been inexplicably unconscious for weeks following the procedure. Second, her best friend Rory has mysteriously gone missing since the curings began, and no one seems to be looking for her. No one seems to care. And third, a precautionary examination at the curing clinic confirms Sabine's worst fears: the cure has not worked for her, and Sabine is warned to keep this a secret at all costs. Or else.
Except Rory is still missing, and Sabine isn't about to just let that go.
Link to Story
Cover
HS: What was the inspiration for writing this book?
MR: I was watching a documentary about lobotomy and someone remarked: it's like they were hoping to cure mental illness. I immediately thought: what if they had succeeded?
HS: When did you start writing this story?
MR: I started writing the outline several years ago, but I was in the midst of working on another book at the time, so I only got around to actually writing this one about 2 years ago.
HS: Why did you write this story?
MR: I wrote the book I wanted to read. Before this one, I had written a book that was "different from other books", so I guess this time I wanted a book that was more of a classic dystopian. Because sometimes that's exactly what I'm looking for.
HS: What are some of your goals for this book?
MR: I wrote the book for some fun escapism, but also with the goal of helping people get out of reading slumps since it's a fast read.
HS: What are some of your accomplishments for this book?
MR: I've had the pleasure of having the book reviewed by some great people, including the Readers' Favorite and some talented social media presences, such as Munnyreads. The book has also been submitted to some awards but none of which the results have yet to be announced.