Another upcoming author who deserves some publicity is Francisco Cordoba. Most of his writing has to do with his beloved horses.
Here he gives us some insight into how he came to be an author, as well as some other personal insights.
What gave you the push to start writing?
I dictated my first story to my mother when I was three. So I guess it was always something I was meant to do. I wrote many short stories in my youth, but they were all lost during an international move. I wrote again for a while in my twenties before other events took over. Then, two years ago, after I’d finally completed my master’s degree, my wife found the last manuscript I’d written. I read it and was both blown away by the story and ashamed at how bad the prose was. I sat down and rewrote it. Then I rewrote it again. That took a year. Finally, I figured out my writing skills weren’t yet good enough to tell that story.
So my wife and I sat down and came up with another concept, The Horsemen of Golegã. That was about two years ago. My skills have improved hugely since then.
So I guess you could say that, aside from a natural tendency, my main push as an adult has come from being free of my masters and my wife telling me to get off my lazy arse and write.
So, what does your family think of your writing?
They love it. Most of the time. My wife and son are 200% supportive of my writing. It’s fantastic. My wife is completely involved in the whole process. We discuss ideas together, plot and edit together. She formats, makes covers, and handles a lot of the marketing. It’s truly a joint endeavour.
Fiction: what do you most enjoy about reading and writing novels?
Getting lost. When I’m really into a good book, whether it’s one I’m reading or one I’m writing, real life and the problems of real life disappear. I can be a bigger, better person. I can be a smaller, badder person too. Sometimes that’s just as fun.
You’ve gone through the process; what advice would you give someone who wants to become an author?
Read. Read. Read some more. And then read again. Read widely. Read books that don’t have happy endings as well as those that do. Read old stuff as well as new. Read beyond your comfort zone. Read material that makes you think. Let yourself feel the emotion and depth of what you read and don’t be afraid to say you don’t like something that everyone else says they do. Or vice versa. Think about what you read.
In between reading, observe the world around you. Think about it. Dig into yourself, compare and connect that which you find inside to what you read and see around you.
Write. Study grammar so you can convey your ideas in an understandable and entertaining fashion. Write some more. Write. Write and write.
Write as if no one will ever read it. Write with honesty. Write with courage.
Expect to fail. Expect to succeed.
Let your imagination fly: if you could live in any fictional world, which would you choose? And why?
I’d live with The Horsemen of Golegã. Preferably as one of Bosanquet’s best friends. That way I could benefit from both the positive effects of the Moon Pool and from having a generous billionaire for a buddy—without all the responsibilities Bosanquet is saddled with.
Some more about Francisco Cordoba
A passionate romantic and obsessive equestrian, Francisco Cordoba has been writing for as long as he can remember. However, it’s only in the last few years, since completing his Master’s Degree in Linguistics and suffering regular chastisement from his wife, that he has dared to fully unleash his muse. He loves writing about romance, relationships, adventures and sex.
Francisco lives a largely reclusive life tucked away in an old farmhouse somewhere, with his wife, teenage son, four cats, two dogs, horse, ducks and chickens. He freely admits to loving them all, although he refuses to allow more than three bodies to occupy his bed at any one time. His six-book slightly erotic, paranormally romantic, mysteriously suspenseful, thrillingly adventurous, and possibly fictional debut series, The Horsemen of Golegã, will be self-published soon.
Email: contact@franciscocordoba.com
Website and Blog: http://franciscocordoba.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/franciscocordobaauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CordobaContact