While writing Into the Fishpond, a novel-length fan fiction story set in the “Fire Emblem: Three Houses” universe (FE3H), I built a growth model for tracking my readers’ engagement. The story is long: forty-seven chapters, and over 200,000 words. When I finished the initial story in August 2024, I copied my model and populated it with a […]
The first time I read Liz Gilbert’s Big Magic, I was finishing Chaos Calling’s first draft (which turned out to be a skeletal draft of the whole Xenthian Cycle). I’d seen Gilbert’s Tedx talks about creativity and working through her phenomenal writing success after Eat, Pray, Love. When I learned she was publishing a non-fiction […]
Chaotic loss gets baked into the bones of many creative projects. My writing projects are no exception. From the outset of a new manuscript, I begin with a vision for what I want to achieve. Inevitably, as the draft gets longer, my ideas about what I’m doing shift. Sometimes, it’s because: That’s part of the […]
Conny Lee, host of the How Did I Not Know That? podcast, invited me on her show to talk about being a self-published author, why people choose to self publish and the process of getting a book released. Her episode aired on November 4, 2024. Here’s where you can listen: On the How Did I […]
Once upon a time, I thought fan fiction was terrible. In 2024, I wrote a whole novel based on Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Live long enough, and you may outlive your past self’s Internet bullshit.
And it’s a triple lift if you’re an indie author Writing a book series no one asked for may be one of the most massive creative commitments on Earth. And that’s especially true for indie authors. Collaborative art projects—film, television, theatre, etc.—strike me as equally bonkers in terms of their ambition. You get a lot […]
It’s official. I’ve got a Kirkus profile! Their digital site has published a piece on me and the writing of Chaos Calling: Book I of The Xenthian Cycle. It’s part of a campaign I’m running to celebrate the novel’s wider release. You can read the full article, “E. M. Williams Invests in Herself to Write […]
Creative working in 2023? You may be overdue for serious renewal The first signal from the Velvet Ditch is subtle. As usual, I misread it. Gradually, I notice my morning writing is bogged down in tedium. I’m not progressing at my usual pace. Checklist items remain unchecked. The growing list fills me with dread instead […]
Lindsey Lerner, host of the Learning with Lerner Podcast, invited me on her show to talk about being a self-published author and marketing consultant. Since this show involves both work me and writing me, the interview is attributed to my full name. We will pretend it’s E. M. Williams as usual. My pseudonym is more […]
Katie Woodruff, host of the Abundantly Aware Podcast, invited me on her show to talk about being a self-published author and working with creativity as an artist. We recorded the episode in February 2022 and it aired on March 9, 2023. Here’s where you can listen: On the Abundantly Aware podcast, Katie Woodruff explores how […]