How did you come up with the title for your book?
Originally the book was going to be titled ‘Moonlight Chronicles’ but after redoing several scenes, the title ‘Moonlight Walkers’ just sounded better as I started to give my wolf characters ‘special’ abilities.
What inspired the idea for your book?
Growing up I loved reading books about dragons, wolves, and visiting far away magical worlds. Also, sometimes when reading, I would wonder to myself what if it ended a different way… So, that began the journey of creating my own work of writing!
How long did it take you to write this book?
The rough draft started in high school–over 15 years ago. Then about a few years back I got the inspiration to pick up the book again and I was determined to get it published. I pushed and pushed myself and I made it happen! My book was first published under a small vanity press back in late 2019 and just recently (on 07/01/22) I self-published the book as a Revised Edition with a fresh new cover and interior graphics.What books did you grow up reading? My favorites were the ‘Warriors’ series, ‘Wishbone,’ ‘Unicorns of Balinor,’ and anything ‘dragon-related’ that I could find!
What do you do to get inside your character’s heads? When I am writing it’s like watching a movie. I visualize the scenery–what is the character seeing, hearing, touching. Then my hand just records the motions I’m witnessing. It’s a great feeling to review what I have written and to think wow, I wrote that!
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
I enjoy art-related things such as drawing and painting. Also, I like to hangout with my little family of pet chickens. They are my entertainment and stress relief.
What is the most difficult part of your writing process?
Finding the time to write. With working a full time job, taking care of pets, and spending time with my husband (he’s important too!), I do struggle with finding the time to work on my writing projects. Mostly my weekends are spent writing but I am trying to squeeze in time during the work week.
How do you use social media as an author?
I have an author social media page on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok (all the pages have the same username – @cmooreauthor). For me, it is still a learning experience. If you are shy about getting in front of the camera, you will need to push yourself to get out of that mind frame. Marketing yourself (and your book) is important if you want to be heard and seen. This is especially for indie (self-published) authors. All I can say is keep going at it and practice. Build an agenda and set personal goals. The more you record yourself, your thoughts and feelings about your book, the better and more confident that you will become in front of others.
What advice would you give to a writer working on their first book?
Don’t ever give up! If it’s your passion to write and create a book that no one has ever read before, keep on writing and make that book-dream of yours happen. If you have plans to publish traditionally instead of self, that is great! Just keep in mind to not throw in the towel on the first rejection that you receive. There are thousands of agents out there and all it takes is to impress the right ‘one.’ If you are self publishing, that is great too and there are numerous options out there that are cost-efficient. Don’t let money get in the way of your dreams. There is always a way to make it happen.
If you were to write a spin-off about a side character, which would you pick?
Yes–I actually have plans to do this! I thought about doing it with a character named Staine. There is a big backstory about who he is and how he became a Guardian and I eventually want to make that story into a book. I don’t want to give out too many spoilers–you would need to read book 1 (Forbidden Lands) to learn more about this special wolf.
If you’re planning a sequel, can you share a tiny bit about your plans for it?
I’m trying not to give out too much of what happens at the end of book 1 but yes book 2 is in process! I hope to have it pretty much wrapped up by the end of the year (including editing). If you have read book 1 of my Revised Edition, there is a ‘sneak peek’ page toward the end that has my email address. Send me an email inquiry and I can provide the first few pages as a sample of the sequel. If you have the original 1st Edition only, no worries, here is my email address for you! Courtneymooreauthor@gmail.com
Courtney Moore
Author – Moonlight Walkers: Forbidden Lands
Design Artist – Trail of Painted Ponies
silverwolf539@aol.com | Website: Courtneymooreauthor.com