Q&A with Stacy Overby
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So, tell us a little about yourself.
Hmm. The tough question right off the bat. I hate talking about myself, so that’s something. Well, I’ve been writing since I was old enough to know how to right. I think some of that is because my mom used to write stories around holiday themes for us in school. She’d have all the kids in our class in the story. I also grew up with a ton of sci-fi/fantasy stuff, probably literally. My dad is a huge sci-fi/fantasy fan and passed that on. I got lucky and married someone just as in to sci-fi/fantasy as me. Now we’re having fun teaching our six-year-old son all the wonderful sci-fi/fantasy worlds out there.
And your book?
My new book, Scath Oran: Poetry from the Otherworld, coming out on September 22nd is a poetry collection—fantasy, of course. Well, there’s some history mixed in. I get that from my mom; she’s the history aficionado in the family. Anyways, the collection is based mostly on Celtic mythology, though there are sprinklings of Norse and Greek mythology as well. The collection takes readers into the Otherworld, the realm of the Fae, and back. But, you never know what may happen on that journey.
What was the process you used for writing this collection?
Process? I’m supposed to have one? Honestly, I’m a total pantser. Most all my first drafts, whether it’s a poem or a novel, are spun out with little to no planning. Something about trying to outline and plan projects completely kills things for me. So, with Scath Oran, it started out as part writing exercise to learn classical poetry forms, part challenge in a writing group to create a project and see it through, and part I got carried away researching Celtic mythology and was fascinated with the stories I saw there. From there, I got to work with some wonderful people at OWS Ink to take the stack of poems I’d created and turn them into this beautiful collection.
What was one of your favorite stories from your research?
That’s hard to say. There are several that stick out, but I’d say my favorite from what I used for Scath Oran was the tales of the banshees, particularly their origin story. Basically, some legends say a woman who dies in childbirth will become a banshee and roam this world until what should have been the end of her natural life. Other legends ascribe the woman’s death to murder instead. The banshee sometimes appears as a beautiful young woman and other times as an older woman washing blood stained clothing. These origin stories captured my imagination. I mean, think about the tragedy here.
With a family, how do you make time to write?
Good question. Between my family and my day job, time is limited. So, I’ve learned to write on the backs of receipts or other random pieces of paper I may have with me. I have apps on my phone and iPad when I can pull them out safely. I have learned the pool is a place I need to be careful with my iPad, thankfully not the hard way but there was a close call at one of my son’s swimming lessons. I also tend to stay up way later than I should working on projects. My husband works overnights, so the house gets quiet after about 9:30-10 pm. So, while not a consistent set schedule like some authors and writing advice recommends, it works for me.
What else are you working on? Anything you can share?
Yes, there is something I can share. I’m currently finishing edits on my first novel, Tattoos. It is the first novel in my Black Ops series and is due out the beginning of December this year. This is a space opera about a para-military/spy/police force type hybrid branch of a future military and how one specialist, Eli Thorson, stumbles into something much bigger than he ever thought possible. Eli’s left facing some tough choices about his future with Black Ops and everything he knows.
What advice would you offer other authors?
This is a little hard to answer for me because there’s such a big part of me that still feels like I should be the one looking for that advice, not dispensing it. But, here’s what I would say. There’s going to be tough times just as much as there’s great times. Probably more. Rejections suck. Poor reviews hurt, particularly when they’re attached to a project near and dear to your heart. Keep writing. Write through the stuff that leads to all the self-doubt. Write about the self-doubt. Just don’t quit. Why? Because the world needs your story or poem or novel. No one else in the world can tell it like you can. Now, more then ever, we need these stories in the world.
Where can we find you on the internet?
First, there’s my social media pages:
www.thisisnothitchhikersguide.com
www.Facebook.com/thisisnothitchhikersguide
https://www.amazon.com/Stacy-Overby/e/B01M15GWGI
https://plus.google.com/+StacyOverby
www.Instagram.com/mamawisper78
I think that covers most of my social media pages. I also work with Our Write Side, a small press and writer community. I manage our author support group, OWS Word Mafia, and our poetry support group, OWS Mafia Muses: Poetry.
Stacy Overby is a columnist and graphic designer at www.ourwriteside.com. Her short stories and poems have been featured in multiple anthologies, online, and in lit journals and in her collection Scath Oran. Her day job as program director for an adolescent dual diagnosis treatment program provides inspiration for many of her stories. When not at work or writing, she and her husband are playing with their son, hiking, camping, or involved in other outdoor activities – if it is not too cold.
