The idea came to me when my friend was deploying with the Marines to Iraq, and I couldn’t imagine the pain his daughter would feel if he never returned. 

Justin Sloan – 2 July 2015

The Back Flap

A young girl named Brooke becomes a bird with the help of a magical necklace her dad left behind before deploying with the Army. When the necklace is stolen by a conniving raven, Brooke must battle his pigeon minions and enlist the help of a friendly mouse and some not-so-friendly rats to take back her necklace and return home, in the process learning that love and family are forever.

About the book

What is the book about?

Back by Sunrise is about a young girl who becomes a bird with the help of a magical necklace, as a way of dealing with grief when she learns her father won’t be returning from his Army deployment. The girl goes on an adventure, at first thinking she can fly to heaven and find her father, and then getting caught up in a series of problems that start with a raven and his pigeon minions stealing the necklace. But what the book is really about is dealing with grief and remembering that family and love will always be with us, in one form or another.

When did you start writing the book?

I started writing this book as a screenplay actually, and it did quite well in screenplay contests. It was only after I started getting serious about the idea of self-publishing that I decided to adapt the screenplay into a novel, because I love this story so much and wanted to share it.

How long did it take you to write it?

In the original screenplay form, I would say it took a year of writing and re-writing, but with plenty of time in between when I was taking time away from the project so that I could come back to it with a clear mind. Then when I went into the novel writing stage, it took me about a month to write and then another month for edits.

Where did you get the idea from?

I love this story because it feels very personal to me, even if it is so different from anything I will ever actually experience. The idea came to me when my friend was deploying with the Marines to Iraq, and I couldn’t imagine the pain his daughter would feel if he never returned. So I wrote this fantastical way of dealing with the grief, sort of a modern Land Before Time but with birds and a mouse and a magical necklace.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

It went through many changes, to include some major struggles where I was trying to figure out what the book really was. At one point all of the bird talk was in rhyme! This was my way of saying they were singing without having them actually sing, but at the end of the day the story flowed better without the rhyme (although I’m sure some people would have preferred the old version – it was awesome). It’s those hard decisions that are my biggest hurdles when approaching a story such as this.

What came easily?

The story itself just seemed to flow out of me. It was one of those tales that seems to be floating out there for you to grab ahold of, and so I did. I have written plenty of stories where I wasn’t sure where they would go, but this was not one of them.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

The characters are very much fictitious, but with loose ties to the Marine and his daughter that I mentioned for the story’s inspiration.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

Of course! I loved reading The Hobbit and the Narnia books as a child, so of course J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, and more recently there is naturally J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter, but also on the less directly related side Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn) and George R.R. Martin (Game of Thrones). They are both fantasy authors that definitely have their craft down. In fact, I started writing fiction with a YA fantasy after reading Martin’s books and being frustrated that I couldn’t’ find anything else that grasped my attention like his books did.

Do you have a target reader?

The target audience for Back by Sunrise is kids from 7-12, thought I certainly approached it as Pixar would, writing it with the adult in mind. I have heard from multiple adults that they enjoyed reading it, as well as a younger audience. One reader told me she used to be a hospice worker and that she thought my book would be perfect for the people she used to help. I certainly hope my book can help people dealing with grief, and of course anyone who loves a fun story of magic and animals.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I certainly did, but now I have a 2.5 year old and a 6 month old! That said, I try to wake up at 4:30 or 5:00 every morning and write until they wake up, and sometimes get writing in during lunch. I am lucky to write for a living though (I write video games at Telltale Games, to include Game of Thrones), so in that sense I get to craft my creative tools all day. But if we are talking about when I did have more time, my process was to edit in the evenings, and then wake up and have some coffee and breakfast, put on some music, and then write for 2 to 4 hours before work, and then when I got home too if time permitted.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

After studying screenwriting, I have definitely become an outliner. How I tend to do it is I write a one sentence version of the story, then I expand that into three sentences (one for each act), and then I take each of those sentences and expand them into beat sheets (the main beats that should go into each act of the story). I don’t get too into the details, but I like to know where my story is headed and what the characters are feeling along the way.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

I prefer to edit as I go, if possible. Early on I didn’t do this, and realized it created A LOT more work later on in the process. If I edit as I go, I can catch story mistakes early on, and plant foreshadowing and whatnot as I go. Of course I edit when it’s all over as well – I usually put it aside for a month or two, and then read it on my phone (so it feels different) while highlighting anything that doesn’t feel right, so that I can fix it on the final pass.

Did you hire a professional editor?

I would never publish something without hiring a professional editor – we simply can’t catch everything in our own works (that said, you often need 2-3 editors, because even they don’t always catch everything). For Back by Sunrise I hired an editor I found through a recommendation at my graduate program on writing at Johns Hopkins, and she was great.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

For me it’s all about the movie soundtracks. Usually the soundtrack from Pirates of the Caribbean, Back to the Future, or Star Wars will do the trick, but sometimes I have to result to Mozart, depending on the scene and my mood.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

When I finished my first novel, I submitted to agents and publishers like crazy. And got rejected like crazy. Then I wrote another, and did it again. Then I got smart and wrote and wrote and wrote, attended writing conferences to network with publishers and agents, and did everything else I could – but in the process learned a lot about self-publishing that made me change my mind about the need to have an agent.

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

The decision to go Indie, came about from meeting so many awesome authors that had self-published (I really see this different from publishing with an Indie press, which I am also doing). I read Will Wight’s The Traveler’s Gate trilogy and loved it, and then found out he was self-published and got advice from him. I listened to the Self-Publishing Podcast and was inspired, and listened to a lot of horror stories from people who had published traditionally and lost out on certain freedoms that come with self-publishing. At the end of the day it came down to those freedoms for me—I wanted to have final say, be able to price how I wanted, and make changes if I wanted.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

The cover art for Back by Sunrise was done by Melanie De Carvalho, who I hired after being introduced through Will Wight (she has since done a cover or two for him, I believe). You can definitely tell which book covers out there are done by professionals (like Back by Sunrise), and which are not. For example, while I still love my cover for Teddy Bears in Monsterland, I drew most of it myself, and for the sequel I am hiring someone to make the difference.

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

The guys from the Self-Publishing Podcast wrote a book called Write. Publish. Repeat. I think that is a great marketing plan – write a bunch of books so that you are discoverable. In addition to that, I am going on podcasts, blogging, guest blogging, and doing other interviews. I am participating in Goodreads, Facebook, and Google+ forums to be active, and writing reviews of books I enjoy in the genre as mine, such as Spirit Animals. I post these reviews and other updates on my author site at www.JustinMSloan.com, or my blog at www.CreativeWritingCareer.com.

I have a literary novel coming out soon with a small press, and look forward to seeing how they approach the ‘marketing plan’ concept, as I know I have much to learn in this area.

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

Being an Indie author can be a thrill, but it is also a lot of work. Now that I am about to have my fourth novel published (plus a couple of spin-off short stories and some non-fiction), I am looking at an agent for my next novel (it’s being considered right now, so we’ll see!). But I love the idea of having my own books out there than I can market how I want, or publish sequels to in a timely manner (some publishers say they take as much as three years for your book to hit the shelves from the moment they pick it up).

My advice is to look at the publishing market with open eyes, and don’t dismiss the Indie route. But also think about what you’re willing to put into it. Are you willing to invest the money to hire an editor? How about a cover artist? What are you going to do to promote your book? I have talked to way too many Indie authors who have horrible looking covers and sell one or two copies a year, because they don’t make the commitment needed. Analyze yourself and, if you are ready, make the commitment. Otherwise keep on submitting and wait patiently (but write in the meantime).

About You

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Federal Way, Washington. This is probably fairly obvious when you read my books, because they all have green trees, often rain, and sometimes mountains looming in the distance. That’s Washington!

Where do you live now?

My job at Telltale Games is in San Rafael and I live just north of Berkeley, CA. I love having sunny days and being able to take my children outside whenever I want. The scenery here is beautiful, and a foggy morning or evening is great for pulling forth the creative juices.

What would you like readers to know about you?

I was in the Marines and now write novels, screenplays, and video games. I love to read, but even more I love to write. I hope my readers see my passion shine through my work.

What are you working on now?

I am always working on multiple projects. I just finished up a short spin off to my Teddy Bears in Monsterland novel, and am working with an illustrator for the cover and a narrator for the audiobook. The audiobook for Back by Sunrise has just been released, by the way, and the narrator did an amazing job. I have book two of Falls of Redemption (The Land of Gods trilogy) outlined and ready to go, and am finishing up my first draft to book two of my Allie Strom series (the first in the series is the one I am sending to agents). I can’t wait to share more with everyone on my website.

End of Interview:

For more from Justin, visit his website or blog, follow him on Twitter, or like his page on Facebook.

Get your copy of Back by Sunrise from Amazon US (paper or ebook) or Amazon UK (paper or ebook).