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Shan is a very vibrant but quiet, smart, beautiful, mother, friend and author. Someone whom you would love to have in your corner.
When did you begin your love affair with the written word?
I actually started writing in elementary school. I would write plays because it was much easier and it was also like therapy. I could always involve myself in the life of my characters just to escape mine.
You have gained quite the following, tell me how does it feel to have gained so many followers to your work?
Wow it feels great to have so many people looking for something that I wrote. It's a huge blessing and I could only pray that my fam base gets bigger and bigger.
What inspired you to begin a literary career?I actually was sitting in church listening to the pastor speak about having a gift and not using it and how it can be taken away if you don't do something with it. After hearing that I decided to look into publishing my first book. I used to only write for me, allow a couple of my friends to read it but I never once considered publishing until that day in church.
You have not one, not two, but three highly acclaimed novels, how has all of this success changed you?
Well I'm still just the same old Shan. I am just glad to be able to do so well in such a harsh game. It's very hard to get your foot in the door being a newbie and I'm thankful that many have taken a chance on me. I will always remain humble and just look forward to what my future holds.
You have put out three five star bangers in a short time, you are also a parent, dang girl do you have time to breathe? Yes, I am a single mother of three, I work, and I write in my spare time. I get about 3-4 hours of sleep a night so that's the only time I get to breathe. It's all worth it because I want the best for my children. Nothing less.
In your book, Rozalyn, the title character has her head in the clouds, as most teenagers do, but unlike many teenagers Rozalyn is forced to grow up fast. I know that some times when a girl doesn't have the love from her father, she tends to jump into relationships with the wrong type of men because she is seeking the love that her father never gave her. Why do you think many girls fall into this type of habit?
You hit that right on the nail. Girls long for the love of their fathers and when they don't get it, they look for the next best thing. The other sex. From experience I know how easy it is to get caught up with the bad guys and grow up faster than you may have wanted to. A lot of it is watching your peers and doing the same things they are doing in fear of being left out. Sometimes it may be watching your mother and copying what she's doing. If you watch her being abused, you may think that it's okay for you to accept the same from the guy you meet. Back in the day the whole community got involved in raising kids. It was hard to get away with anything cause you always had a neighbor somewhere watching and waiting for you to do something wrong so they can tell on you. (Lol) In today's world kids are practically raising themselves and just making it the best way they know how.
Your books have received lots of very good reviews, but they have also received a few not so good reviews. As a professional author how do you handle the not so favorable reviews? I read over all my reviews, the good and the bad. Even the ones that are bad I still look at them and just take it in. Is there something that can be learned from it? Do they have a valid opinion? I also have to remember that everyone is entitled to their opinion and that everyone will not like your work. No matter how many five star reviews I may receive there always be a few that just hated it and I can respect that.
Years ago I remember sending out query letters to several literary agents and publishing houses only to feel the sting of rejection. After being rejected so many times, I put my pen down for several years until I ran across an article about self-publishing and that began my journey to put out my first novel, Skeletons. Why did you decided to self-publish your novels and how has self-publishing changed the literary world? Well the first one was through a publishing company but the others are self published. I decided to do that because I felt I needed to have control over my work. Creative control, ability to be able control the price, really everything. This whole self publishing world has opened up the doors for so many authors whom you've probably would've never heard of before KDP, Pubit, etc. It has given voices to so many, but at the same time I believe that Urban Fiction still has a long way to go.
Last question, what is next for Shan? Well I have Rozalyn 3 coming very soon. I also signed a deal with SBR Publications(Team Bankroll squad) and my first book of a series with them is titled Hated by Many, Loved by None set to be released in November. After that I'm going to look into some other things that should be very beneficial to my career. I'm just working non-stop over here.
You can find Myss Shan's books at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
You can connect with Myss Shan via
Twitter: myss_shan
Fbook: http://www.facebook.com/author.shan
Thank you for your reading!
