By Petra Henandez
I think about books a lot. I think about writing books a lot. I definitely write books less than I think about them. But I write a lot, too. You could call me book obsessive. I have five mostly finished novels in progress. I literally have TBR bookcases. And I almost can’t walk into a bookshop without buying at least one book. I love books!
And that’s why I’m excited to be part of hosting Write On The River’s October BookFest again. We’ll be featuring thirty regional authors Saturday, October 11, 9am-3pm at the LocalTel Event Center in Pybus Public Market in Wenatchee. If you also love books and supporting local creatives, you should absolutely stop by and see us! Say ‘hi’ to me, browse the books, and chat with the authors. We’d love to see you there!
Speaking of chatting with the authors, I thought it would be fun to ask a few attending BookFest authors a bit about their writing, the business of writing, and making the time to write:
What genre do you write and what drew you to it?
Becca Ryden (returning author): Fantasy romance! Like so many others, my obsession started with Hogwarts and Middle Earth. I mean, why stick to a world full of traffic, bills, and slow walkers when you can battle a grumpy ogre or defend a fortress from an orc army? Throw in a brooding Fae King, a glittering vampire, a protective werewolf, and a shadow daddy who says “good girl”—I’m in. Please and thank you, and feel free to lose the key.
Sue Pepper (new to BookFest): I write mystery. When I was a kid I was most drawn to detective stories. I now read widely, from romance to fantasy to sci fi and nonfiction, but whenever life feels overwhelming, I escape into a cozy mystery where justice is always served and the vibes are like a warm sweater. When I finally got serious about writing as a career in 2020, I’d just lost my mom and we were in the middle of a pandemic, so escaping into an imperfect world that I could make a little better through storytelling about murder but *cozy* made sense.
Shaina Krevat (new to BookFest): I would say I write second-world fantasy, and the sub-genre I’m currently writing is contemporary/urban fantasy, and then my current project is a murder mystery in that contemporary fantasy world! The draw to second world fantasy comes from my middle school love of Tamora Pierce’s Tortall and Garth Nix’s Abhorsen series, and for mysteries my even older fascination with Encyclopedia Brown and Nancy Drew. I think those genres just meld well with how my brain works, and once I learned enough about them I wanted to create my own stories within them!
V.R. Tapscott (returning author): I’ve read science fiction for most of my life, but I don’t really enjoy ‘hard’ science fiction much. The Jane books, and the Lacey books, both concentrate on the characters. The people in the story and their interactions. There are the trappings of space travel and alien miracles in the Jane series, and paranormal/ magic in the Lacey series, but it’s not really about those genres, it’s about they that populate those worlds, not about the worlds.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
Shaina: I don’t know if there was a singular moment I knew I wanted to be a writer, but what first inspired me was my best friend in middle school. She wrote an original book, and I got to read it chapter by chapter as each was completed. Just the idea of being able to come up with stories and share them with others was enthralling. I wrote my first “book” not long after, and have been writing ever since!
Becca: I knew I wanted to be a writer back in high school. I even focused my Senior Project on writing a novel—but honestly, I didn’t take my dream all that seriously at the time. After serving in the Army, though, that spark came back stronger than ever. I stopped just daydreaming about writing and started actually doing it. Turns out, putting your heart into the thing you love can be pretty powerful.
Sue: I have been writing since I learned to hold a pencil! I was an early and precocious reader that devoured books and regularly prowled the library stacks. In first grade, Bill Martin Jr (author of Brown Bear, Brown Bear and others) came to my small, rural school and talked about being an author, and I think that’s when it clicked that I could be an author, too. From that point on, I always wanted to write a book.
V.R.: I’m not sure I ever did really decide I wanted to be a writer. It’s just one of those things that happens. The first Jane started off as a potential collaboration project with my wife. That never came to pass, but I had the seeds of the first Jane and she just pulled me along. I wrote the one book, never even considering I’d write anything else. And then I got grabbed by a new character that basically created herself, and there wasn’t any way to not write that story as well. And ... it just snowballed from there. Trust me, I had no choice. She kept bugging me until I had to write her. :-)
Is writing your side gig or your main job?
Becca: Writing is my passion project. By day, I work in tech. By night, I blow off steam by crafting enemies-to-lovers tension, starting fictional wars, or, let’s be honest, diving into some spicy fun between characters. It’s way more satisfying than complaining about a broken server or chasing down a developer.
Sue: My main job is staying home with my kids, but my main side hustle is writing!
V.R.: Right now, it’s a side job. The plan right now is to retire next summer (‘26) and then up the writing to maybe four or even six books a year. We’ll see if those plans pan out.
Shaina: I’m in a strange situation where it’s kind of both? I left my day job from burnout and am on sabbatical while I recover. My main project right now is querying agents, which is writing adjacent but not quite writing; I’ve also been trying to build up my crochet commission business, and returning to my YouTube channel after a year away. I’m sure soon I’ll come to a crossroads, whether that’s getting representation and being able to 100% commit to writing or having to go back to software engineering to pay the bills again. But until then, I’m enjoying figuring out a balance.
How do you make time to write?
Becca: Making time to write is the real fantasy. I’ve got an amazing husband and three very demanding (but adorable) fur babies, so it’s all about balance. I make sure everyone gets love and attention—but I also carve out sacred “do not disturb” time for my writing. Outside of that window, it’s family time or tackling the ever-hungry work monster.
V.R.: I made the conscious decision that World of Warcraft had to go in order to give time to writing. Plus, of course, writing obsessively like I do, I’ll get into that mode and spend a couple hours a day for that month getting a book done, then drop back.
Shaina: I’m in the very unique position where I’m not working full time, and I don’t have kids or pets, so I’m able to set my own schedule. Back when I worked full time, I would carry a notebook around so whenever I got ideas, or was waiting for code to compile, I could write them down and make sure when I got home I could type them up, and take advantage of my weekends to do more serious writing.
Sue: I carve out time every morning, and if I’m really deep in a story, I’ll find pockets of time to write anywhere. Find me with my MacBook in carline, at swim lessons, gymnastics, kids aerial yoga… the list goes on, haha.
What is your favorite thing about being part of book fairs—and why?
Sue: I really love meeting readers and authors - I still devour books and am always adding to my to be read pile!
Shaina: This will be my very first book fair from the author’s point of view, and I’m so excited to get to experience it for the first time. I can’t wait to talk to other bookish folks about the stories that speak to them, share my books, and just bask in the community!
V.R.: Honestly, I sell lots of books on Amazon. But, seeing people with smiles, talking with people about my books, or other books in general, it’s something that simply selling books doesn’t match. I lose money every book show I do, since I have signs and banners and that sort of thing, along with the fees. But, selling the books on Amazon pays for the book fairs, and I actually enjoy the fairs. I’m in hopes that I’ll get better at interfacing with people and sell more books in person, at least enough to break even! Plus, I’ve bought the book stock, the signage, the banners, the ad materials, the tables and etc. Be a shame not to use them!
Becca: Meeting readers is hands-down the best part of any book fair. Readers are why writers exist. I love hearing about what they’re passionate about, what excites them, and what draws them to certain stories. That connection helps me not only pitch my current work but also shape future books with real reader insight in mind.
Why should people come check out October BookFest?
V.R.: BookFest shows off the best talent in the Northwest with many genres available. No matter what kind of books find their way into your life, you’ll dig up some real gems here. And where else will you find the possibility of actually asking an author why you should read their books!?
Thanks, V.R.! I couldn’t have said it better myself.
About Petra Hernandez: Petra is an author, WOTR board member, and has dreams of being widely read while remaining completely unrecognizable at restaurants.
Her website is petrahernandez.com.
BookFest | Saturday, Oct. 11 | Pybus Public Market | 9am-3pm
Free to the public