Two Ends of the Pen: Interview with Sophia Menesini, THE VEILED THREAT

Can you give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?

The Veiled Threat is the first book in a nine-book series called The Veiled Duchess Series. It’s about a young elven woman who after completing her adoptive father’s dying wish, she comes across a mysterious offer halting her retirement of Captain of The Veiled Duchess, the most fearsome pirate ship in all of Nereid. In exchange for kidnapping and marooning the crown princess of Arethusa, the northern queendom on Nereid, on an island at the world’s end. She will be given the information she needs to take down the elven slave trade and destroy her arch-nemesis, the Empress of Lycos, the southern empire on Nereid.

She takes the offer from a mysterious man in Arethusa and kidnaps the princess the following midnight. On her quest to drop the princess off, she finds her self slowly falling for her highness much to her dismay. When she’s betrayed by her employer, she changes sides and helps the woman she’s fallen in love with to take back her queendom from veiled usurpers. Shea has to survive taking back Arethusa for her princess from a threat more lethal than Jo, or she knows because something larger is brewing on the horizon, something that plays a more significant part in who Shea is and where she comes from. And Nereid will need her to stop it.

Have you ever had a minor character evolve into a major one? Did that change the direction of the novel at all?

The most significant minor character change would probably be James, the sixteen-year-old helmsman. He started out as a whole other character but as I was developing the next couple of books and Aster’s storyline as well he became a love interest for Shea’s fourteen, fifteen when they begin their relationship, cabin boy. I wouldn’t say it necessarily changed the direction of the novel but it definitely evolved Aster’s character. While writing the sequel, I’ve had tears from watching my baby character grow up, become a man, and fall in love. It’s been a satisfying character development and I think everyone will be thrilled to read it in the sequel next year.

What factors influenced your decision to self-publish your book(s)?

I knew I wanted to self publish because of my writing style. I write in the third person, present tense, and basically, all of my English professors were like you will never be published. I ignored them and also became a history major to help with my historical fiction. But I submitted the book a few times, and I had one company write back and say, “the reason we can’t publish you is the tense is incorrect, fix it and resubmit.” And I didn’t want to do that, so I decided to self publish. I decided to tell my story the way I wanted to tell it, and that included third person, present tense. I’ve thought about resubmitting, but I feel comfortable with what I’ve done and what I’ve accomplished, and I’ve got nine books to the series, so maybe down the line, we’ll see.

If you used a graphic designer/publisher’s designer, how involved were you during the creative process for your cover?

I used a fantastic graphic designer by the name of Despina Loupeti. This is her website: http://deegraphicdesign.com/ and if any self-publishing author is looking for an incredible designer, she is the best! She definitely came up with the design but my one request for every cover for all nine books, the cover features The Veiled Duchess ship in many different conditions. A little foreshadowing on my part for what awaits in each book but Despina is absolutely the creative mind behind the beautiful covers.

Do you outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?

Both. I outline the plot and then I create chapter maps but I’ll add a chapter or turn one chapter into two depending on where the muse takes me.

Did you hire an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?

No, I didn’t. For one, I’m a student author, a newlywed, and I’m broke, so a two thousand dollar editor for my 300+ page manuscript was not going to happen. Instead, I hired one of my good friends who is an English major and wanted to be a book editor and she edited my book for free. She did an incredible job and I learned a lot about the process and she definitely caught more things than I could have on my own. I finally saved up enough to hire a professional editor for the first and my second book coming out next July and she’s editing The Veiled Threat now for re-release.

What kinds of marketing [twitter, facebook, blog, forums] are you involved with for promoting your book(s)?

Absolutely. I’m a self-published indie author with no ties to the entertainment industry so I’ve had to do everything on my own. I have Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter accounts and my website with a blog attached to it which I post, hopefully regularly, if my class schedule isn’t too heavy. I’d love to become more consistent with my blog posts though it’s an excellent way to stay in touch with readers and vent new ideas.

Do you find it difficult to juggle your time between marketing your current book and writing your next book?

Not necessarily, it’s less the marketing and more the rest of my life that likes to get in the way of my writing schedule. I’m in college, hoping to transfer soon with a full-time course load. But I love my book series and nothing can get in my way from finishing it. My education is important to me but this is my dream and my job, forever and always. So I try my best to keep up with my writing schedule even if that means sacrificing 3 followers a day on some form of social media.

What advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing arena?

It’s not easy, but it’s not impossible. It’s okay to feel overwhelmed and even intimidated, but I promise everyone else who has self-published has started where you are right now. We are a community of authors if you have questions reach out. If you’re wondering about how something needs to be done, find other indie authors on social media and their websites, and I promise you 99% of the time they will reach back to you. It’s hard work, and there’s going to be days when a social media post gets one like or your book has been out for months, and you feel like maybe this isn’t what you’re supposed to do. I guarantee there will be those times, but those are the times that you remind yourself that you don’t write for other people; you write for yourself. You are telling your story not only to the audience but so that you can be heard as well. Persevere, it will be worth it. Do the work, because no one will do it for you. Love your work, because not everyone will and if you love it the ones who don’t won’t matter.

Some fun facts about you, which do you prefer – dogs or cats? Chocolate or vanilla? Coffee or Tea? Talk or Text? Day or Night?

Dogs, even though I love my kitten Bowie, my chihuahuas are my life. Chocolate, I worked for Godiva when I was a teen but milk or dark, I prefer dark, only, I can’t stand white chocolate. Tea, I have cabinets and cabinets filled with tea and my awesome mother in law always restocks them at Christmas, I never run out. I prefer to talk because I talk so much and I feel bad sending paragraphs. Day, I love the night time because it’s beautiful but I always feel like I’m running out of time once the sun sets to finish something, anything. In the morning, I’ve got the whole day to begin.

The Veiled Threat
Sophia Menesini
(The Veiled Duchess #1)
Publication date: June 30th 2019
Genres: Fantasy, LGBTQ+, New Adult, Romance

Captain Shea Lara is the current leader of The Veiled Duchess. The most feared pirate ship in all of Neried. And now, after completing her former mentor’s final score, she’s retiring. Everything seems to be coming to an end…

Until a mysterious stranger drags her back into the fold with an offer for a score she can’t refuse. All she has to do is kidnap the crowned princess of the northern Queendom, Princess Joana of Arethusa. The prize is just within reach. But sparks fly as the two women collide. And an obscured threat that could upturn Shea’s entire world storms on the horizon. She’ll face it alone unless she can allow herself the support she needs from old and new allies alike. Something’s coming and Shea is at the center of it.

Goodreads / Amazon

Author Bio:
Sophia Menesini lives in Martinez, CA with her husband, and their two small Chihuahuas, Ziggy and Zeppelin. The Veiled Threat is her first novel and the first book in The Veiled Duchess Series. Sophia is an avid tea connoisseur and lover of Scotland with an unconventional memory for obscure Disney and Broadway song lyrics.