Chats with Creatives (Part 3)

(The one with author Lindsay Barrett)

Lindsay Barrett is a Maggie and RWA award-winning suspense and romance author who crafts dark stories with lots of kissing. Her books are twisty, deeply atmospheric, and feature heroines kicking butt while wearing ballgowns and high heels.

Photo courtesy of Lindsay Barrett

What made you want to become an author?

It started with being a voracious reader, falling in love with stories when I was young. My mom would take me to the library every few weeks, walking out with bags upon bags filled with books. When I read through them all, we would go back and get more. Despite my love of books, I never fully considered a career as an author because I was concerned—as were my parents!—about job stability. I ultimately went into the medical field, but I never stopped writing on the side. For eleven years, while working in hospitals and pursuing higher education, I continued to write. A passion that never fades is a dream worth pursuing. Reading books is where that passion began. Writing books is where that passion led.

Look at this gorgeous cover!

What are the inspirations for your stories?

Inspiration can come from many things, but my settings are often where an idea first sparks. I’m an avid traveler, endlessly inspired by the world around me. Unraveling the story behind a place, a story that couldn’t unfold the same way anywhere else in the world...that is beautiful to me. My upcoming debut novel, Savannah Royals, was inspired by a trip to Savannah, Georgia. My sophomore novel was drafted after visiting bourbon country Kentucky. I don’t fall in love with every place I visit, but when I do, a character voice naturally follows—the voice of someone who lives and loves against a captivating backdrop. A place I want to return to again and again when I’m writing.

You recently decided to self-publish your book [pre-order link here]. Can you talk about your decision to pursue indie publishing?

Between querying and then going on submission to publishing houses with my agent, I did spend three to four years originally pursuing traditional publishing. Hot take incoming but…the largest component of securing a Big Five contract once you’re agented and on submission is luck (some people may disagree, but I will die on this hill). Everyone at the submission level with an agent is a great writer with a great book behind them that deserves to be published. You are waiting, endlessly waiting, to hit the right desk at the right time with the right concept.

While I was on submission, I began having significant problems with my author-agent relationship. That goes beyond the scope of this question, but it was a contributing factor in deciding to self-publish. I signed with an agent with a great reputation, but I somehow found myself in an unhealthy partnership that affected both my mental health and my odds of hitting that “right desk at the right time.” After years of hard work, I felt trapped in a broken system with few options and even less support. But if I wanted a to publish a book (and god, did I), this was the only way forward…

Or was it? I stepped back. Looked at my goals, weighing my wants versus my needs. A realization dawned: I want a Big Five publishing contract and a shelf spot at Barnes & Noble, but I sure as hell don’t need one to publish. Especially not when continued effort comes with zero guarantees and a whole lot of powerless misery. In trad pub, no matter how hard you work, you will always be reliant on gatekeepers to validate or green light your dreams. For years, I’d been shaping myself to answer the question “what can I offer them?” but I finally asked myself, “what can they offer me?” Distribution, yes. But in exchange for a big cut of my profits while still expecting me to do the heavy lifting on creating and marketing my book.

I began to unpack my biases about the self-publishing path: I was intimidated by the amount of work (but capable of doing it), I thought it meant “giving up” (it doesn’t, it means choosing to bet on yourself instead of waiting for others to bet on you), and I thought it meant people wouldn’t see me as a “real” or “talented” writer (maybeee I need to stop self-rejecting and put my work out there, trusting it will be judged on its own merit).

I decided to take the leap, and I haven’t looked back since. Taking the power of my dreams into my own hands has been liberating.

Character art for Lindsay’s debut novel by Zane Fannin

What has the process been like for you? Are there any aspects of it that you loved?

I love everything about self-publishing, even the hard parts. Perspective is everything—because I’ve been in a situation where I had my power and voice stripped away, I appreciate every opportunity to make choices about my work, even in areas that aren’t my strength or greatest passion (cough marketing). For the first time in years, my projects are my own again. I get to decide how my stories are told, packaged, and delivered to readers. And I get to decide how quickly or slowly that happens based on my own needs. I’m putting myself first again. In that way, self-publishing feels indulgent and healing after spending years getting worn down on the trad hamster wheel. I’m proud of myself. It’s a privilege to build something that’s wholly mine from the ground up.

What has been difficult about self-publishing, if anything?

I underestimated the time commitment self-publishing requires. Of course I did my research and made a thorough action plan, but when I put “form an LLC” on my to-do list, for example, I didn’t realize that in addition to filing all the legal papers, this also required learning about registered agents for privacy protections, demystifying DBAs to operate under my pen name, talking to an accountant for tax considerations…“commission a book cover” went similarly with many rabbit holes to explore beyond merely researching and contracting the cover artist.

My takeaway has been this: when you dive into self-publishing, you don’t know what you don’t know. I’ve learned most of the milestone tasks you see online for planning (ie: commission a book cover) require an asterisk with three to five other tasks underneath. Learning the ropes takes a lot of time, and I’m grateful to have many supportive friends in the industry helping me along the way.

You are an avid traveler. Do you have any favorite trips you've taken in the past five years?

Winter in Alaska and Hawaii are absolute standouts. I have story ideas and character voices just begging to be written against those backdrops. Internationally, the Lofoten Islands in Norway was my favorite trip—such jaw-dropping beauty in the intersection between the mountains, islands, and fjords.

Any bucket list trips?

A tour through Asia is probably the biggest dream right now, visiting places spanning the continent like Japan, Thailand, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. My husband was born in Korea, so that’s on the list as well.

If you could only bring three books to a desert island, which ones would you pick and why?

This is an IMPOSSIBLE question, and it hurts my soul! But it would have to be Forever Your Rogue by Erin Langston because it’s the most beautiful and transformative romance novel I’ve ever read. The Invasion of the Tearling—the second book in Erika Johansen’s exquisite Queen of the Tearling fantasy trilogy—because that story is transportive escapism at its finest. And finally, The Penultimate Peril from Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. That series was the one that made me fall in love with books, words, and storytelling as a child, so it’s a comfort I carry with me every day.

Which Taylor Swift Era best exemplifies your writing style? (or maybe your WIP?)

Love this question—I am always entrenched in a different Taylor era with every book I write! My upcoming debut, Savannah Royals, is a 1920s heist romance novel deep in its Midnights era, think songs like Mastermind, Vigilante Shit, Bejeweled, and Midnight Rain. My gothic romance, which I hope to publish in the fall, lives in the somewhat fused Folklore/Evermore aesthetic—think sweeping, dreamy, and hauntingly atmospheric.

What are you currently working on?

I have paused all drafting for now because I’m consumed with preparing my two completed books for publication this year. On June 12^th, I’m releasing Savannah Royals, my histrom heist novel full of thieving shenanigans, double crosses, and a love triangle hotter than the Savannah summer. Meanwhile, I’m deep in final edits and cover production for my gothic romance, a marriage of convenience story set on a haunted bourbon distillery. That book is slated to publish in the fall.

Anything else you'd like to share? Where can readers find you?

It’s important to me that people know…whatever path you choose—in life or publishing—just make sure there is joy and pride in the process. You spend most of your life on the journey, not at the destination. And if your current path isn’t serving you, don’t be afraid to take up space and make a change. Don’t let fear keep you paralyzed or stagnant in a situation that harms your well-being or keeps you from reaching your full potential.

For the readers out there, the best place to find me chaos posting about my work is on Instagram, @lindsay_barrett_books. If you’re looking for a heist-y summer romance read, consider preordering my debut novel, which releases next week! And the best place to support me and learn more about my upcoming publishing projects is by subscribing to my monthly newsletter, which can be found at www.lindsaybarrettbooks.com.

Thanks so much, Lindsay!