Author Q&A: Emily Walker

Author Emily Walker’s bio declares her love for creating worlds and stumbling around in them.

It’s fortunate that she can enter and exit them at will, however — while her real life includes a daughter, a dog, a significant other, and gorgeous views of the mountains, her fictional worlds can be quite frightening.

Walker writes horror and science fiction (though with plenty of humor in the latter) under her own name and has dabbled in paranormal romance.

She’s been writing since middle school, though being published under her own name is a newer development, as she worked for several years as a ghostwriter.

Here’s more about Walker, in her own words.

SADYE: What’s the first story you remember writing as a youngster?

EMILY: The first story I remember writing as a youngster was a card I made for my parents. 

My baby brother had been born so I was around eight, but my sister and I had chicken pox so we couldn't go home. 

I wrote a story about driving in the car with them. It was mostly pictures, but that would be the first. 

SADYE: What led you to pursue ghostwriting at first versus telling your own stories?

EMILY: Money was the first thing that had me take up ghostwriting. 

It paid well and was something I could do in addition to waitressing and going to school. 

I still wrote my own stories, I just didn't publish them. 

SADYE: Can you tell us one interesting story from your ghostwriting days?

EMILY: I think the most interesting story I wrote was for a well-known author who was stuck. 

It felt good to be able to help them become unstuck and enhance their story. 

SADYE: What was the most challenging part about going from ghostwriting to publishing your own work? 

EMILY: People know you wrote it. You can't hide behind a non-disclosure agreement when you're writing your own stories. 

You definitely have to have tough skin when you put yourself out there. You cannot write a story that will please everyone.

SADYE: What has been the most rewarding moment or theme of your writing career?

EMILY: The friends I've made have been the most rewarding part of this career.

I have met the coolest, most creative, supportive friends through this process, and we talk daily. 

They help talk me off the edge and let me bounce ideas off of them anytime. 

SADYE: Where do you find your inspiration?

EMILY: My inspiration comes from everything. 

My Spacetress series, coming out this year, is inspired by Douglas Adams, (the movie) Waiting, Robert Heinlein (my favorite), and my own experience as a waitress. 

The stories under my pen name are created from thoughts in the shower, inspiration from the news or something I read, and just my crazy ever-racing mind. 

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Learn more about Emily Walker on her Amazon page and follow her on Twitter. 

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