Meet Sharon Ledwith - Author

Meet Author Sharon Ledwith

I'd like to introduce you to author Sharon Ledwith-- friendly, funny & feisty just like her characters :)

I enjoyed her book Last Timekeepers and the Arch ofAtlantis and would like to encourage you to purchase a copy for your middle-grade or YA readers.

Below are a few questions to learn a little more about this awesome writer.

What are you working on now?

I’ve just finished the second round of edits for the prequel to The Last Timekeepers series entitled, Legend of the Timekeepers which will be out sometime this year (hopefully late spring), but I don’t have a release date yet. I also have a completed manuscript of the second book in the series entitled, The Last Timekeepers and the Dark Secret, but there’s the fun job of revising it into Jordan Jensen’s point of view. I’ve also signed on with literary agency, Walden House (Books & Stuff) this past December to take on another young adult series I’ve created about teens with psychic abilities with the first book called, Lost and Found: Mysterious Tales from Fairy Falls, so I’ll be one busy gal!

What process in writing is hardest for you?

Getting back into a work-in-progress after leaving it for awhile. I know that sounds odd, but I honestly have a hard time getting the momentum going again after I’ve been pulled away from writing a new story in order to do edits on an upcoming release, or a blog tour, or marketing and promoting the book I already have out. So to answer your question, I guess I have a hard time juggling projects back and forth, and know I must learn this skill if I want to survive in this new publishing paradigm. 

 

What process in writing is the most enjoyable for you?

The first draft—hands down! It’s the most creative part of writing, a chance to get down and dirty with all your characters, throw them against the wall a few times, see what they can take, then rinse them off  until they’re all clean and shiny at the end of the book.

Are you pantser or a plotter?

Sometimes I’m a pantser (writing by the seat of my pants), sometimes a plotter (outline entire storyline)—it all depends on the tone of the book and where my imagination directs me. I have many notebooks and pads and sticky notes at my disposal. I also have a file full of ideas. I guess I start with the characters and build the story around them. The characters, my characters, must carry the story to completion, give readers closure. It’s a must. In order to do this, I begin writing out character tracking sheets (stats on characters’ appearances, clothing, likes and dislikes, etc.) which have served me well throughout the writing process. Then the fun begins. Research, research, and more research. When you’re writing time travel, you’ve got to know your facts to create the fiction. I love this part of the journey too. Only when I have enough facts, and I feel my characters are fleshed out sufficiently, then I begin to start the novel.

How do you come up with your character names?

Sometimes I take names from my environment, sometimes names from my old National Geographic magazines (it’s a great resource for names, trust me!), but most times I go by the character’s personality, their likes and dislikes, and use The Writer’s Digest Character Naming Sourcebook by Sherrilyn Kenyon as my go-to bible for names. I have also named certain characters after real people I’ve known. For example, my character Amanda Sault in The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis was named after my Native American elder and teacher Bill Sault. 

When is your favorite time to write?

Early and late mornings, and all afternoon are best times to write for me. Evenings have never been kind to me. That’s my down-time, when I read, check emails, do some social media stuff, or watch television with hubby.

What is your favorite snack while writing?

Hmmm, I usually snack in the afternoon, so I’m going with herbal tea and a piece (or three) of Cadbury Fruit & Nut Dark chocolate bar. It just seems to soothe the savage author. Unless hubby has made a batch of his famous butter tarts, then I’ll indulge in one of those!

Sharon Ledwith is the author of the middle-grade/young adult time travel series, THE LAST TIMEKEEPERS, available through Musa Publishing. Her debut novel, The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis, is the first in the series. When not writing, researching, or revising, she enjoys reading, yoga, kayaking, time with family and friends, and single malt scotch. Sharon lives in the wilds of Muskoka in Central Ontario, Canada, with her hubby, a water-logged yellow Labrador and moody calico cat.

Blurb for The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis:

When 13-year-old Amanda Sault and her annoying classmates are caught in a food fight at school, they're given a choice: suspension or yard duty. The decision is a no-brainer. Their two-week crash course in landscaping leads to the discovery of a weathered stone arch in the overgrown back yard. The arch isn't a forgotten lawn ornament but an ancient time portal from the lost continent of Atlantis.

Chosen by an Atlantean Magus to be Timekeepers--legendary time travelers sworn to keep history safe from the evil Belial--Amanda and her classmates are sent on an adventure of a lifetime. Can they find the young Robin Hood and his merry band of teens? If they don't, then history itself may be turned upside down.

Connect with Sharon Ledwith:

Sharon’s Website

Sharon’s Blog

Sharon’s Facebook Page

The Last Timekeepers Series Facebook Page

Twitter

Goodreads

Buy Links:

Musa Publishing

Amazon

Smashwords

Barnes & Noble

Kobo