Today is Wednesday and I’m pleased to have L.E. Fred join us with her debut release, Lucid. Take a look at this intriguing cover and blurb. Then we’ll talk to Lauren about Lucid.
Blurb
Devon Alexander is a 15 year-old teenager coping with the monotonous reality of his average life. His life receives an interesting reprieve as he has his first realistic dream of a spaceship. The strangest thing about the dream is that he seems to be the only one on board who isn’t in a dream-like trance. Before he can figure out anything about the dream or his strange shipmates, he manages to. The next day, Devon catches a news story about inexplicable comas taking place all over the world. Devon’s life becomes increasingly interesting as he recognizes some of the victims from his spaceship trip.
Devon, and an unlikely group of other teens, start devising a plan to find out who is behind the strange dreams and the comas. Their plan is not only successful but immerses them in to the fantastical world that only resides in dreams. While in the dream world, the teens learn about the power of teamwork, a new world of culture, and their hidden potential to be heroes.
Suspenseful, funny at the worst times, and just a hint of teenage romance, Lucid takes a group of young adults and throws them into a fantasy world that they only thought could exist in their dreams. In a sense, they’re right.
CL: Tell us what sparked the idea for Lucid.
LE: I started writing Lucid after experiencing my first lucid dream. It’s a very out-of-body and surreal experience. We’re used to dreaming every night, but being able to control your actions and fate in the dream world is almost a magical thing. After figuring out how to wake up (yes, you have to oftentimes find your way out of the dreams,) I started pondering the idea of a dream world actually existing, and before I knew it, I had Devon and the plot for Lucid.
CL: Tell us a little bit about your writing process. Do you outline before you begin to write or are you a pantster?
LE: I never even think to outline. Ever. Honestly, I’m more of a “big picture” kind of thinker and writer. I come up with the large ideas, start typing, and the characters figure the rest out. I don’t think I could write any other way. Lucid has several unsuspecting plot twists that wouldn’t have been possible if I stuck to a rigid outline!
CL: What was the most difficult part of writing Lucid?
LE: The most difficult part of writing Lucid was finishing it at a decent length. The first draft was only 45,000 words long, which is barely more than a novella. After I started writing more, I found it difficult to cap it at 85,000 words. There’s just so much going on once Devon and his friends are in the dream world, that I slowly realized this will be a multi-book series.
CL: Tell us a little bit about your journey to becoming a published author.
LE: I was honestly scared about trying to get my work published. For me, finishing the story was great, but I knew the real work had only just begun. I received a lot of rejection letters (too many to even specify, as I’m still mortified about it!) You really have to have tough skin to continue pushing to get your work out there. It also helps if you have a desire to publish your work (other than the publicity and ~fame~.) I wrote Lucid for my middle schoolers. I know the power a book can have over a young mind; one good story can convert a non-reader in to a bookworm. In order for Lucid to get out there and touch YA readers’ lives, I continued wading through the rejection letters to seek publication.
CL: What advice would you offer aspiring writers on the writing business?
LE: Be tough, stand your ground, and be open to criticism. Also, shamelessly promote your work. Whether it be online, in your communities, or even telling random people about your book, getting the word out there means everything.
CL: Any special tips for writers who are juggling writing with raising a family, working a day job or just everyday life in general?
LE: Don’t push your work off for when you “have time.” If writing is that important to you, trust me you will make the time to write. Treat it like an exercise routine: do it daily, and give it all you got. One of my author idols, Rachel Aaron, once posted on her blog that she psyches herself up for writing each morning by telling herself that if she really wants to publish that book, she’ll get out of bed and start writing. Also, don’t write for the purpose of merely being published; write for someone or an idea. Your story getting out on the shelves is great, but if it doesn’t have a purpose, it won’t go far.
L.E. Fred is a perpetual dreamer who writes about worlds both within and without this realm. With a degree in psychology, L. E. Fred tends to get lost in the mind, the greatest adventure of all. L. E. Fred is currently traveling the world, finding more adventures to inspire new tales of dreams and beyond.
You can find L.E. Fred at:
You can purchase Lucid at:
Congrats LE glad u hung in there ! Can’t wait for my autograph !!