I'm Erik Meyers, an American who's lived in Europe for years and years, currently in Germany.
I have published two books:
A business book based on my years of experience in the corporate world: The Accidental Change Agent (published in 2020)
A Jewish, LGBTQ, historical fiction novel Caged Time, a fictional account of a sad family story (published in 2021)
I'm also working on a cozy crime/murder mystery series.
2. What are your favourite books?
I love mysteries, which is why I decided to write my own series. I also love reading about history, in particular about the US presidents. If you looked at my bookshelves you would find a wide range of fiction and non-fiction and I'm always looking for something new and unusual to read.
3. When did you know you wanted to be an author?
I've always enjoyed writing, so I'm not sure when I decided to be an author. But I started writing Caged Time because I wanted to see if I could finish writing one book. At the time that was the goal, not necessarily to get published, but to finish a manuscript.
4. What is your favourite part of the writing process? What is your least favourite and how do you get through it?
I love telling a tale and getting lost in the writing. Whatever I'm writing, the characters seem to have minds of their own.
The editing process can be quite a slog, but I find if I set myself a goal of say editing 3 chapters a day, then it becomes much more manageable. Taking it in small chunks is really helpful to move forward and not feel overwhelmed.
5. What is your writing routine?
When I have time, I try to write in the morning every day. Otherwise, I write on weekend mornings. I find that although I'm definitely not a morning person, writing just after breakfast before I head into the day is really helpful for making progress. And writing for me takes a fresh mind uncluttered and wide awake.
6. How do you balance writing (and everything else to do with it) with the rest of your life?
Starting in the morning helps me move my writing forward. Some weeks, I just write and post a blog, but I always try to make progress every week.
7. What inspires you? How do you beat writers block?
Connecting with the wonderful Twitter writing community gives me inspiration, ideas, and helps me keep a fresh look at what I'm writing.
8. How do you keep consistent/write a lot?
My goal isn't to write a lot, but to make sure I'm making progress on whatever project I'm working on at the moment. Usually this is several things, like editing a novel, writing a short story or preparing my next Living Abroad blog.
9. Does anyone read or edit your work before publication? If so, how did you find them?
Both books I have published were edited by a professional editor beforehand. For the business book, this was the publishing company I worked with. For Caged Time, I found a great editor through Reedsy.
For Caged Time and for my murder mysteries, I've gotten some friends/family to read them and give honest feedback.
10. Can we have a sneaky look at your future plans?
Besides the murder mystery series I'm working on, I also have a horror/thriller script I need to rework.
11. Finally, what advice would you give to other writers (inspiring, those publishing and those published)?
Ignore the "rules," write what you want and never give up!
Links:
Check out my author website
Support me and my writing, and read short stories on my Kofi profile/shop
Read my essays and blogs on Medium
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Goodreads
Have a look at my Amazon bio
A Jewish, LGBTQ, historical fiction novel Caged Time, a fictional account of a sad family story (published in 2021)
I'm also working on a cozy crime/murder mystery series.
2. What are your favourite books?
I love mysteries, which is why I decided to write my own series. I also love reading about history, in particular about the US presidents. If you looked at my bookshelves you would find a wide range of fiction and non-fiction and I'm always looking for something new and unusual to read.
3. When did you know you wanted to be an author?
I've always enjoyed writing, so I'm not sure when I decided to be an author. But I started writing Caged Time because I wanted to see if I could finish writing one book. At the time that was the goal, not necessarily to get published, but to finish a manuscript.
4. What is your favourite part of the writing process? What is your least favourite and how do you get through it?
I love telling a tale and getting lost in the writing. Whatever I'm writing, the characters seem to have minds of their own.
The editing process can be quite a slog, but I find if I set myself a goal of say editing 3 chapters a day, then it becomes much more manageable. Taking it in small chunks is really helpful to move forward and not feel overwhelmed.
5. What is your writing routine?
When I have time, I try to write in the morning every day. Otherwise, I write on weekend mornings. I find that although I'm definitely not a morning person, writing just after breakfast before I head into the day is really helpful for making progress. And writing for me takes a fresh mind uncluttered and wide awake.
6. How do you balance writing (and everything else to do with it) with the rest of your life?
Starting in the morning helps me move my writing forward. Some weeks, I just write and post a blog, but I always try to make progress every week.
7. What inspires you? How do you beat writers block?
Connecting with the wonderful Twitter writing community gives me inspiration, ideas, and helps me keep a fresh look at what I'm writing.
8. How do you keep consistent/write a lot?
My goal isn't to write a lot, but to make sure I'm making progress on whatever project I'm working on at the moment. Usually this is several things, like editing a novel, writing a short story or preparing my next Living Abroad blog.
9. Does anyone read or edit your work before publication? If so, how did you find them?
Both books I have published were edited by a professional editor beforehand. For the business book, this was the publishing company I worked with. For Caged Time, I found a great editor through Reedsy.
For Caged Time and for my murder mysteries, I've gotten some friends/family to read them and give honest feedback.
10. Can we have a sneaky look at your future plans?
Besides the murder mystery series I'm working on, I also have a horror/thriller script I need to rework.
11. Finally, what advice would you give to other writers (inspiring, those publishing and those published)?
Ignore the "rules," write what you want and never give up!
Links:
Check out my author website
Support me and my writing, and read short stories on my Kofi profile/shop
Read my essays and blogs on Medium
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Goodreads
Have a look at my Amazon bio
I'm impressed by his work habits and focus on writing continually on several platforms. That takes concentration for new ideas. I'm from CT.
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