Author Interview - Ashley Zakrzewski

What inspires you to write? Each book has been inspired by different things. My vampire series was inspired by a nightmare after watching Dracula. For about a week, I had dreams about two opposing rival gangs of vampires and it took me 2.5 years to write the trilogy. For my firefighter series, inspiration came from my own small town, and really wanting to give the readers a look into the feel of what it is like to be from a very small town while also navigating the dating world to find the one. What are your current/future projects? My future projects are already up for preorder on Amazon which will be the Roommate series, Seductive Bosses series, and some standalones that will hold you over until your next fix. Do you have a routine you follow when writing? I am a plotter by nature. Many people have heard of the panster vs plotter scenario. When I begin the writing process, I have a very thorough detailed outline before jumping in. This means that I know almost everything my characters are going to do, and each plot point leading through the book. Without it, I get writer's block and that is very tiresome to overcome. If you could go back in time and give yourself advice, what would it be? If I could go back in time and give myself advice as an author, it would be not to try to be like everyone else. When I first started, everything seemed like a competition. Everyone was competing for their share of the market, however, in this type of career, it's easy to get sidetracked. I choose to believe that other author's aren't my competition. Readers don't just read one book and then stop. They are voracious and sometimes read five books a week. My advice would be not to worry about everyone else and focus on finding the readers that fit my audience. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers? My advice for aspiring writers is to sit down and write. Starting a book is easy, but finishing it is hard. The trick is not letting yourself get discouraged when you hit act two of your draft and it starts to get harder. Push through, persevere and it will be worth it once you have finally typed THE END. * What is your preferred method for readers to get in touch with you?My readers can reach me on the following platforms: Instagram: authorashleyzakrzewski (https://www.instagram.com/authorashleyzakrzewski/) Tiktok: @authorashleyz (https://www.tiktok.com/@authorashleyz) Facebook Reader Group: Ashley Zakrzewski's Insatiable Readers (https://www.facebook.com/groups/ashleyzakrzewskisinsatiablereaders)