Hello! This morning we have another interrogation! Get a cuppa and come and meet our author of the day.

What makes you tick?
I started writing at age seven when I wrote a one-page mystery based on our neighbors getting robbed. I wouldn’t stop despite my dad getting upset and knew when I was thirteen this was what I wanted to do for life.

Favourite genre/s to read or write?
I love reading science fiction and fantasy. I write mostly science fiction, but everything has some element of conspiracy. I’ve also written and published many poems.

Please tell us about your latest work:
My science fiction series The Time of Changes is three books in. It’s about a young woman who finds herself in the middle of a battle between two alien races before infiltrating a hidden base near Boston occupied by a third race. She knows about an experiment they plan to run that focuses on the human brain and she wants to find out more about it so she surrenders to the base and ends up becoming a part of them. The third book, Traps, sees her make a major step toward finding it while discovering her new life comes with a heavy price.

Do you like chocolate fish?
Never tried them, even though I love Cadbury. I wouldn’t mind seeing them brought back, if just for the opportunity. (Or is this another New Zealand thing?) (It’s definitely a New Zealand thing!)

What’s your main character like?
The main character of my series is self-sacrificing to a fault and a sneak, but I’d be glad to have her over for dinner because she’s always friendly to everyone, including those who don’t like her. She’s too young to drink, though. She had a standard four-door sedan until events took her away from it.

What piece of advice would you give a new writer?
There are several, but here’s what comes to mind:
Failure is an illusion. Many successes were rejected countless times before that one acceptance. Besides, you don’t need someone else to finish the draft you send off that first time.

What part of writing do you find the hardest?
I would say keeping track of each individual character. You can plan it out as much as you want, but the smallest things can be forgotten. Tonight, I had to look up which character I included when I rewrote a scene.

Have you ever had lolly cake?
I’m not sure if it was lolly cake, but I had an aunt who made something similar. She was a world traveler and may have picked it up in New Zealand.

Pantser or outliner? And why?
I think we all start as pantsers, but I’m one who became a plotter. I want to make sure the story makes as much sense as possible from beginning to end. My first book was pantsed from a sketchy outline, but my current series is completely planned out.

Do you write in silence? 
I always choose music to fit the mood of the scene. My musical tastes are very eclectic. Nothing is off limits. Some of the ones I use more often are Foo Fighters, Merle Haggard, Debbie Gibson, DC Talk, Will Smith, Sarah McLaughlin, and Joseph Haydn.

Do you like to listen to audio books?
No, for two reasons. First, I’m a poor audio learner and forget 90% before it’s over. Second, the voice takes away some of what’s supposed to be up to the imagination.

Have you ever visited New Zealand?
No, but it’s on my bucket list!

Dogs, cats, guinea pigs, or some other type of pet?
No, but I live in a wooded area with squirrels, rabbits, opossums, and deer. Also snakes, but that’s a completely different conversation. And I was once attacked by a raccoon on my back porch. Nothing major, just jumped up, bit my knee, and ran off.

Where do you write?
I write wherever and whenever I can. I prefer my home office, which was my childhood bedroom. I renovated it three years ago and love it, now!

You can learn more about WG Walters in the following places:
Facebook author page
Twitter: @Nutso4Dynamo
Amazon Author Page