Friday Indie Q&A with Author Shannan Chapman

During our Friday Indie Q&A we spent some time with Author Shannan Chapman. She talks about how much she enjoys writing from the perspective of a child, or teenager, and the difficulty of writing endings. Shannan spends time with us chatting like a friend about her writing journey and how it came later in life. You’ll also enjoy her thoughts on rejection.

Visual Prompt for Inspiration

Indie: Congratulations on your 3rd place winning in our Summer Short Story Writing Contest with your story Two Bridges!  What inspired you to write this winning short story? 

Shannan: I was inspired by a picture of a natural bridge. As I’m trying to improve my craft, I decided to try some short stories based on visual prompts. This happened to be one of them and turned out to be my favorite story I’ve written. 

Endings Are Hard

Indie: What did you learn about yourself, and the craft, while writing Two Bridges?

Shannan: I learned that I absolutely love to write from the perspective of a child or teenager. Not so much for children, but by children; their perspective of the world and life, especially the hard things. I also learned that endings are hard. I mean really hard. I must have rewritten this ending a dozen times and even when I hit submit, I still wasn’t satisfied (but I was at the deadline). So, I know it’s something I need to continue to work on. 

Fulfilling Dreams After on Hold

Indie: I know you were at a writing retreat when you heard the news you came in Top 3! What an exciting place to be at that moment. Tell us how you came to writing?  What is your focus in regards to the craft? What was the writing retreat like? Did you tell anyone there? As you can see, I have lots of questions for you! LOL

Shannan: Yes, it was so very exciting to get the news as I arrived at the retreat! The retreat was for fiction writers and I never in a million years imagined I’d get in. It was a little intimidating at first. Several of my retreat-mates had books published! But everyone was simply wonderful and humble. Every one of us struggled with admitting that we are authors/writers!

I came to writing when I was 15 years old. I wrote a poem and a short story for an English class assignment and my teacher, Ms. Hill, told me I had talent and should consider writing. No one had ever said anything like that to me. So I started writing more poetry and dreamed of publishing one day. But life got in the way and I put that dream on hold. A few years ago, I took an early retirement due to a health issue and suddenly, I had plenty of time on my hands. I was out of excuses. 

My writing has since been a journey. I started out thinking I would write essays and non-fiction, maybe leading to a memoir, but it felt forced. So I took a break and just started reading again and found myself gravitating towards the fiction that used to keep me up way past bedtime when I was a child. And I remember how stories shaped me all throughout my life, even though they weren’t true. So I decided to give it a try and wow! I’ve found my writing happy place.  

Learning from Rejections

Indie: Your piece A Twinkle in the Dark also ranked high as an honorable mention in our Napkin Microfiction Contest. It seems you submit often. Way to go! Tell us what made you decide to be brave and submit frequently?

Shannan: When I first started, I knew I wanted to write to publish.

“I wanted my words out there. And at first, the rejections were daunting. But so many authors shared how this is simply part of the journey. I learned from each rejection and tried to improve. And I knew that if I didn’t keep putting my work out there, I wouldn’t know if I was getting better. And it’s amazing. I still get rejections, but now I am getting more and more of my work published.”

Shannan Chapman, Author

Two Novels

Indie: What other work(s) do you have out there that you’d like to share with us.

Shannan: I am working on my first novel. Actually two because I can’t bear to put one aside. My goal is to have the first drafts done by the end of the year (and already paid an editor a deposit, hoping that will keep me motivated). Other than that, I have a few flash fiction stories on my Instagram page and website. I’ve submitted a few others and am just waiting to hear back.

Sticky Notes be Gone

Indie: Can you give us some sage advice about being a creator?

Shannan: I love that you’re asking me for sage advice 🙂  I would say, don’t be surprised if the story you write isn’t the story you thought you would write. When I first started one of the novels I’m working on, I planned it out, sticky notes on my wall and all. But I ended up throwing most of them away. One cannot simply tell a story what to do!

And also, I’ve learned  that the first draft is just getting the story on the page. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to give up because I think, this is so bad. No one will ever read it! But it’s a firstdraft. Get it down then go back. 

I’m Okay

Indie: What is one BIG WIN that you’d like to share with us?

Shannan: When I left my job a few years ago, I went through a very dark period. I had worked hard to get there and suddenly, who I thought I was and what I thought my future would be was turned upside down (much like stories, right?). My BIG WIN came just over the last year when through writing, I discovered that I was going to be ok. Writing has been a healing journey for me. I have purpose now. And community. A community I had never had before. And though I will always struggle with this health issue, I like what my life has become. If that’s not a win, I don’t know what is 🙂

Sister Writers

Indie: There are so many people who help us along our creative path. Who would you like to give a shoutout to?

Shannan: Yes, so many people, starting with Ms. Hill (who I may write about one day 🙂  But I also want to shout out Cathleen Jackson and Lisa Loots. These are two amazing writers that I consider sisters, even though I’ve only known them for about two years. They have encouraged me and helped me to become a better writer. And Ann Swindell, whose course, Writing With Grace, got me started on this journey. And really, the writing community I belong to, most of whom I have never even met in person! Oh can I add one more? Indie IT Press, because you all have given me a voice and make me feel like a real writer!

Indie: You are a REAL WRITER, Shannan!