We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dominique Weaver a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Dominique thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

Getting the Lady of Fire & Lord of Ash from an idea to a fully written story was the easy part for me. Going through the process of self-publishing on my own for the first time was the hard part. I grew up loving stories like “The Princess Bride” and “Lord of the Rings”, but I had rarely seen fantasy that brought people that looked like me to the forefront. As a feminist and someone who was earning an M.A. in Women and Gender Studies at the time of writing this story, it was even more important to me to showcase varying intersectional identities. The story was fun and exciting, full of everything I wanted in a fantasy. Then came rounds of querying and rejections. I still get insecure about my writing with rejections on my current novel, Quest Skyward. However, I decided not to drown in that sorrow. I decided why not give self-publishing a chance? I was a broke college student working two jobs just starting her master’s program, but I put what little money I had into this project because it meant so much to me. It was grueling work to read and re-read my manuscript over twenty times for errors and make changes. I couldn’t afford a professional editor at the time and had to rely on my skills. I hoped having a journalism degree would be enough to catch the majority of errors. I knew that without a beautiful cover, no one would look twice at my book no matter how well written it was. Through hours of research, I was able to find a site that connects authors to professionals who could help with different steps. That is where I connected with my artist, Gabrielle Ragusi, who did a stunning job of bringing my characters to life. Learning to self-publish when you don’t have access to vast resources, taught me a lot. I made a lot of mistakes, such as I almost didn’t get my book copyrighted before launching. It took me three different sites and almost a full day to format my manuscript to be uploaded. But, once I was able to get through all of the ups and downs, Lady of Fire & Lord of Ash was brought into the world. There was nothing more elating than the feeling of holding that book in my hands. I remember crying as I held my book for the first time. I think overall the process taught me much about myself and I learned how to make Quest Skyward’s debut much simpler. I learned that I don’t have to rush it because self-publishing is a major money and time investment that you may not see a return on. I do it because I love my stories and am passionate about them.

Dominique, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

The first time I realized I enjoyed crafting stories was in 2nd or 3rd grade. We did creative writing assignments and I absolutely loved them. I was a reader from a young age and always enjoyed works of fiction, but it wasn’t until around the age of 12 or 13 that I knew I wanted to be an author. It started, like most, with fanfic and original stories on Wattpad before I wrote my first completed manuscript at age 16. It was called Iron Cage, about a human princess and Fae King trying to restore magic to the world. I would love to revisit and rewrite it someday. All my stories feature women who learn to lean into their strengths and be who they are, not what their fantasy society dictates of them–such as breaking away from royal duties or wanting to be seen as more than a priestess. Every heroine I write is also a woman of color and plus-sized, which is just as important to me as showcasing various sexual identities. For example, in my latest work, we encounter a bi-sexual prince, and the main characters are also introduced to a non-binary trans demon. My stories are brimming with magic and adventure, but also sweeping crashing romance. But I’m not afraid to weave in difficult topics such as grief and what it means to discover who you are.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I think something that non-creatives struggle to understand is just how much of yourself goes into your work. The story lives inside my head at all hours of the day. Writing my characters, I fall in love with them and they leave a mark. When authors say it feels as if their characters are real, it’s because they are. They guide the story, not you, you just give them a voice. There have been times when I was writing and my main characters decided they no longer wanted to do what I had originally planned in the middle of typing. Even when it doesn’t take long to write the story, those characters live on with you. I see it as this idea came to me for a reason. The stories we tell, even though it might be a fantasy story filled with Fae and dragons, the characters are still run by the author’s real-world experiences. My stories are full of pieces of me. Of the love I wish I could/have experienced to the deep pain I’ve felt. These emotions and experiences are what make the characters relatable. It’s what makes them human at their core.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had known about several. Reedsy is one of the big ones. It helps connect authors to editors, artists, and those who can help with formatting and marketing. Another one is Atticus because it helped me format my manuscript on my own. Other resources would be websites such as Squarespace so I would be able to safely sell on my own when I’m out at signings and author events.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author_dominiquew/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominique-weaver-361a761b7/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/authorDomW

Image Credits
For the artwork, the artist is Coralie Renards. However, Gabrielle Rugusi designed my cover.