Monthly Archives: May 2025

Author Update 2025: Zachry Wheeler

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Zachry Wheeler is an award-winning science fiction author who has published over twenty books across four series. His newest release, Starship Eternity: A Sci-Fi Horror Short (January 2025), is the fifth addition to his Twisted Simulations series. Look for him on his website ZachryWheeler.com, his new YouTube channel, and his Amazon author page. For more about his writing, see his first interview for SouthWest Writers and his interview update.

Zachry, there’s a lot to catch up on in your world. You’ve taken a hiatus from writing to focus on photography. What lead up to that decision?
This is how I avoid burnout. I never shelve my creative drive, I just point it at something else until my batteries recharge. Photography has always served as a great counterweight, in that it scratches the creative itch while also forcing me to touch grass.

When you’re working on both writing and photography, do they share your time in equal measure?
Not at all. There is always a primary focus, otherwise the quality suffers. At the moment, I am delving deeper into photography while casually working on writing tasks. I still promote my books and develop new ideas, but without any goals or time pressure. For now, my brain is focused on what camera settings produce the best hummingbird photos.

As a creative, do you find one medium (writing or photography) more intimate than the other?
For me, writing is more intimate. I really enjoy the challenge of snapping good photos, but I’ve spent decades with my story characters and know them like family members.

What is the most rewarding aspect of both artistic endeavors?
In photography, it’s a perfect moment. You are constantly hunting for perfect weather, perfect lighting, and perfect timing. When you “get the shot,” it’s a fantastic feeling.

In writing, it’s a happy reader. When you put so much time and effort into creating, editing, and publishing a story, there is nothing more rewarding than a fan telling you why they loved it.

You’ve made big changes regarding your interaction with social media. According to your website, you’ve moved away from all platforms and you’re focusing more on your website, blog, and mailing list. You stated social media was “actively harming” your brand. Can you explain what you mean by “harming” and in what ways has changing focus helped your brand?
We all know that social media is catastrophic to mental health. In my opinion, trying to leverage it effectively is not worth the stress and reputational risk. Brands have done serious damage to themselves by posting the wrong things at the wrong times, no matter how innocent. It’s also a massive time sink that eats into valuable creative time.

In my own experience, I noticed that I was wasting too much effort chasing engagement. The resulting frustration would derail my process and cause me to rant in writing groups, which is never a good look. I realized that social media was more bane than boon, so I deleted all of my accounts and walked away. The resulting peace of mind was immeasurable. Many authors are waking up to the fact that you don’t need social media to be successful.

If I’m not mistaken, you spent some time as a script doctor. What was that experience like and are you still called upon from time to time to help?
I lucked into this role, which I found to be surreal yet enjoyable. Long story short, my novel Transient (Immortal Wake #1) got optioned for a feature film and landed in development for a time. That got my foot into the door and a few chance encounters resulted in some work as a script doctor. It’s different from writing the screenplay (which I have also done), in that you’re using your author skills to polish dialogue, fix structural errors, and find plot holes. It’s actually quite fun and engaging. I haven’t done much doctoring in recent years, but I’m always up for it when the producers need me.

What marketing techniques have been most helpful to you?
I spent many years in the marketing trenches, where I flushed piles of cash down the toilet. As with everything in advertising, some things work, most fail. I have found that the only surefire bet is BookBub. Their featured deals are very expensive and hard to get, but they offer the only guaranteed ROI in the game. It took me several years of patience and perseverance to get into their regular rotation. Now it’s the only service I use. I compiled my strategies into a marketing guide on my blog, which you can read here: https://zachrywheeler.com/an-authors-guide-to-marketing/

I’m seeing more and more authors put out short stories and novelettes in chapbook form. Has this been beneficial in gaining visibility for your work?
Very much so, and for many different reasons. First and foremost, it expands your readership net because the attention economy is a difficult nut to crack. People who read novels and people who read short stories are rarely the same. But, if they enjoy your writing and become fans, then they will cross over. In addition, shorts and novellas are much easier to produce and publish. It’s a great way to mitigate risk if you want to experiment with different styles or genres. Shorts are also great fodder for freebie promos and reader magnets.

What draws you to the dark side of literature?
I have always been a big horror fan, so it was only natural that it would creep into my writing. My first true horror title was The Bone Maiden, a prequel novella to the Immortal Wake book trilogy. I greatly enjoyed that writing process, which got me thinking about a new horror series. That became Twisted Simulations, a collection of short stories with sci-fi horror themes. This is another series that I have an abundance of ideas for, so I’m sure it will continue.

You have a tech noir series, Immortal Wake; a sci-fi comedy series, Max and the Multiverse; and a collection of chilling tales called Twisted Simulations, to name a few. All are diverse. Do you have a favorite?
I am proud of them all, but if I had to pick one, it would be Puki Horpocket Presents. This is a sci-fi comedy series that spun off from Max and the Multiverse. It’s about a famous journalist who profiles extraordinary beings in the cosmos. The stories are so much fun to write because I blend so many different styles. I use interview formats, first-person commentary, third-person narration, you name it. I definitely want to return to this series at some point because I have so many ideas for new tales.

What authors influenced your writing?
Douglas Adams has been my favorite author since childhood and his influence can be seen all over my works. Andy Weir is another big influence, as I greatly admire his ability to blend sharp humor with hard science. On the darker side, I have a wide range of influences, everyone from Max Brooks to George Orwell.

I always like to get an author’s take on critique groups: some can help, some can hinder. Do you work with a critique group or share your work with anyone prior to putting it out into the world?
Critique groups are double-edged swords. Good ones can elevate you to new heights. Bad ones can destroy your motivation or blind you to obvious issues. I have experienced both and it took a while to find what works best for me. I have a small group of trusted peers who serve as my beta team. The key is to find people who enjoy your work, but are willing to give you fair and honest feedback. Seems simple, but they are very hard to find. In my experience, most people are either pleasers (everything you do is great) or punishers (everything you do is crap). Sadly, fair is rare. And for the love of all that is good and holy, be receptive! A good critique group is worthless if you aren’t willing to heed the advice.

What’s on the horizon for you? Will you be adding to these series, or are there other series or standalones percolating that you can tell us about?
I honestly have no clue, but that’s only because I’m currently enjoying a hiatus. I have several new ideas and many works in progress, so who knows.

If you want to stay in the loop, the easiest way is to sign up for my newsletter. As a special gift, I will also send you a free limited edition eBook!

Su Lierz is a horror writer in the Land of Enchantment. Her short work can be found in anthologies and several publications including Grey Sparrow Journal and The Horror Zine. She lives in Corrales, New Mexico with her husband Dennis.



Author Update: Jack Woodville London

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Jack Woodville London is a historian, writing instructor, and speaker who has authored articles and short stories, a non-fiction book on the craft of writing, and five novels including the award-winning French Letters trilogy. Espionage, survival, and the fight for Texas independence come into play in his newest historical fiction release, Dangerous Latitudes (Stoney Creek Publishing Group, February 2025). Look for Jack on his website JWLBooks.com, on Facebook, and his Amazon author page. For more about his writing, see his 2019 interview with SouthWest Writers.

At its heart, what is Dangerous Latitudes about?
It is the question all of us face: “When do I take a stand?” It is a coming-of-age novel set in the cloak of a historical fiction story about a young man who is forced to become a spy — for both sides.

What do you find most interesting about the time period you set your book in?
It is set in 1841–1843, a period of extraordinary violence and danger in the American Southwest and about which very little is taught, known, or written, particularly in fiction.

Who is your main character and what do you like most about him? Who is your favorite historical character in the book?
My main character may not be a him. The story centers on two people, Alexandre, a naïve young man from Louisiana who comes to the Republic of Texas to make his fame and fortune and Noeme, a young Black woman who is revealed by degrees to be …. Well, that would be giving the story away. Suffice it to say, they meet early when she rescues him and he mistakes her for a runaway slave.

My favorite historical character is a toss-up between two. One is Sam Houston, not the honorable gentleman who gallantly led Texians to victory over Mexico so much as the drunken short-tempered Sam Houston who manipulated people in a never-ending struggle to keep Mexico at bay. The other historical character is his opposite, Mexican General Antonio Canales, a scoundrel in the mold of Santa Anna who was a bit of a preening George Custer type soldier.

Tell us how Dangerous Latitudes came together.
In some ways it took longer to write than it took to earn my bachelor’s degree. I do a lot of research not only of events but of the actual historical figures who will appear. As a rule, I only invent a few fictitious characters, whose lives are tossed about by the things the actual historical figures do.

My personal editing cycle is to write a chapter, revise it, write a following chapter and revise it, write a third chapter, then revise all three together, then continue in three-chapter cycles to assure that the story has continuity. This helps me to see where I go astray in telling a story or sub-plot or have written off into the desert with something that is not essential, the nasty challenge of editing out the things that no one reads. It helps me keep track of whether a story is losing its way, or where characters are not fleshed out, or where subplots need work. By the time I finish a novel, each chapter has been edited on the order of twenty-five to thirty times and the entire manuscript at least ten times.

I am blessed to have a fine literary agent and a great relationship with a publicist from my earlier work. They arranged and negotiated with the eventual publisher, Stoney Creek Publishing.

What makes this novel unique in the historical fiction market?
It is set in a time and place where, to the best of my knowledge, only one other work of historical fiction has been written. I’m confident that there are more, but they sure don’t seem to surface when you look for them. So, it is a story that involves historic cross-border clashes (and violence) about which almost nothing is written, larger than life figures such as Sam Houston but with their warts and all on full display, race relations and challenging gender assumptions, all in the middle of events that actually happened. It mirrors a lot of what is happening today but set almost two hundred years ago.

Any “Oh, wow!” moments while doing research for the book?
The discovery on original maps of things that I knew little or nothing about. For example, while Texas claimed its boundary to be the Rio Grande River all the way into present-day Colorado, official Texas maps of the period show the boundary to be the Nueces River about halfway between San Antonio and the Rio Grande. There was nothing in Texas, nothing, between Austin-San Antonio and present-day El Paso (which did not exist) except large bold letters that said, “Range of the Comanche.”

What was your favorite part of putting this project together?
Devising a story that would bring together people, both from 1840s Mexico and Texas, to a land that was so desolate that neither side could control it, and place them into events that actually happened. It forces the question that all novelists must ask and answer repeatedly: “Why would they do that?”

Why did you choose Dangerous Latitudes as the book’s title?
It connotes several things. The main man character is a surveyor who is deceived to come to Texas to map a boundary that Texas doesn’t control — the Rio Grande. His map-quest, if you will, leads him into more and more dangerous geographical latitudes. But the word ‘latitudes’ also may apply to the circumstances in which the characters are forced to choose whether to do the safe thing or to go well outside anyone’s comfort zone to do something that they do not want to do or even believe they can do. I like titles that are plays on words.

What sort of decisions did you make about portraying historical figures or events in order for your book to work?
None. I wrote them as best I could as history (not Disney or Wikipedia) reveals them to have been. That made the choices easy, because in almost every case what made them historical figures at all was that in every good person there is a little bit of evil and in every bad person there is some good. I just looked for it and applied it.

What do you consider the most essential elements of a well-written historical novel?
I think every reader decides whether to read a book (or buy it) based on her/his assessment of 1) what it’s about, 2) who is in it, and 3) where the reader comes in.

So, as a writer, be honest about writing in a way that makes readers see themselves as one of the characters or, at the least, makes them feel they’re in the room where it happened. Give one or more main character an experience of undeserved misfortune, especially if it can be experienced at the hands of the antagonist who causes it or who tries to take advantage of it. Another essential element is an opening sentence or paragraph that, to say what I learned from Joe Badal, grabs the reader by the throat. My way to say that is write an opening sentence or paragraph that is so good it lives up to the book that follows it. Write the book first.

Who are your favorite authors, and what do you admire most about their writing?
Evelyn Waugh: His prose is very efficient and makes me generate my own images from his words of the people, the places, the situations he writes about. Hilary Mantel: Her historical fiction is the gold standard for translating research into the creation of characters who act as they do, who make the decisions they make. Rick Atkinson, in non-fiction: His trilogy of the Second World War in Europe is a master class in threading the needle between developing the characters of individuals, most of them ordinary soldiers or sailors who were caught up in a war over which they had little control, and yet threading them into the stories of the major events of the war, such as the American invasion of North Africa, Sicily, and Italy. He somehow succeeds in making units into characters rather than a numbing series of unit numbers. I could go on but won’t.

What advice do you have for beginning or discouraged writers?
Ask yourself, and remind yourself, how many times did the Beatles play in Hamburg and in the Cavern Club before they were discovered and got a recording deal? Be a Beatle.

What writing projects are you working on now?
Editing a non-fiction academic work I have written that has been bought by the University of Oklahoma Press. It addresses a very great deal of the history of the Rio Grande River through New Mexico and Colorado between 1599 and 1846.

KLWagoner150_2KL Wagoner loves creating worlds of fantasy and science fiction. Her current work in progress is The Last Bonekeeper fantasy trilogy and short stories in the same universe. A member of SouthWest Writers since 2006, Kat has worked as the organization’s secretary, newsletter editor, website manager, and author interview coordinator. Kat is also a veteran, a martial art student, and a grandmother. Visit her at klwagoner.com.



An Interview with Author Lisa C. Taylor

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Lisa C. Taylor is an award-winning author of long and short fiction, as well as poetry. She is also a teacher and speaker, an editor and mentor, and co-director of the Mesa Verde Writers Conference and Literary Festival. Her debut novel, The Shape of What Remains (Liminal Books, February 2025), has been called “thoughtful, funny at times, with a richly realized and sympathetic main character” that reveals “the transformation of grief and the subtle strength required to redefine yourself and your purpose.” Look for Lisa on her website LisaCTaylor.com, on Facebook and Instagram, and her Amazon author page.

What do you hope readers will take away from The Shape of What Remains?
I hope they’ll agree that grief is not linear. People grieve in their own way and there is no fixed timetable. Even many years later, there are triggers that bring back the loss. It is one reason why it’s important to stick by your friends and family when they are grieving. Teresa’s journey is, in a sense, the journey of anyone who is grieving. Loss is part of life and even though her loss is shocking and wholly unexpected, it resonates for anyone who has had a sudden death in their family or friend circle.

What unique challenges did this work pose for you?
I did a fair amount of research for this book and I learned along the way. For example, her “assignments” with her therapist are based on my research and my own experience from my counseling career many years ago. Because this was my first novel, it posed some unique challenges in keeping track of the passage of time and the characters. I kept a lot of notes nearby when I was writing. I also read about and researched Compassionate Friends, the group that provides support to parents who have lost children.

Who are your main characters and why will readers connect to them? Will those who know you recognize you in any of your characters?
I do not believe my characters are ever based on me. Teresa has her own unique voice and she’s snarky, self-deprecating, and also sharply intelligent. I have never taken a Chaucer class though I certainly studied Shakespeare. She’s a millennial and I think millennial readers will connect with the pressures she’s under with her grief as well as trying to figure out whether her previous career as a professor will ever be viable again. Teresa’s voice came to me and I hope I was true to that voice in telling the story.

How did you go about getting into the mind of your character who is dealing with grief after the tragic loss of her young daughter? Was this an emotional journey for you as well?
The short answer is yes. I hear the voices of my characters and that is my writing process. Because she was so paralyzed in the beginning of the novel, I felt her despondence. I also knew she had the intelligence and resilience to eventually come back to life. All of my writing is an emotional journey for me. I immerse myself in the life of my characters. I also do this when I read a book that transports me.

Tell us how the book came together.
This book was originally a short story called Monuments. It was published in my short story collection, Growing a New Tail (Arlen House, 2016). I knew when I wrote it that Teresa’s story was not complete. I just didn’t have the time to write a novel at that point. When I went back to it, I worked on it sporadically. I had a book of poetry published in 2022 so I was also working on that plus I teach online and co-direct a writers conference. It took me eight years to get a good draft. I had four early readers plus my two writing groups and I edited it for over a year. I sent out 25 queries to both agents and publishers and got two offers. It was edited again with the editor from the press.

When did you know you had taken the manuscript as far as it could go, that it was ready for publishing?
I knew in summer of 2023 that it was mostly done. I’d taken in the comments from my readers and gone over it many times. The ending finally came together for me after many misses. Endings are really important and both my writing groups felt I finally hit the right note. I have two online writing groups that have been meeting for years.

What was the most rewarding aspect of putting this project together?
I always wanted to write and publish a novel since I’m such an avid novel reader. I read about a book a week. Getting a publisher and working with a professional editor was rewarding. The best part was seeing it in print and reading from it. The amazing stories I am getting from readers all over the country makes me realize that this was an important book to write. It has touched a lot of readers, many of whom have suffered the loss of a child or the unexpected loss of someone dear. Not all grief is about the loss of a loved one and I am hearing those stories as well. I look forward to my national book tour because I’m sure I’ll hear even more stories from my readers. I treasure these stories.

Amazon categorizes your novel as Death, Grief & Spirituality and as Inspirational Spiritual Fiction. If you didn’t have the limitations of Amazon categories, how would you characterize the book?
I agree with Death and Grief and I do think it is inspirational, or at least that is what many readers have told me. It does not mention anything religious so I don’t understand the spiritual, though it’s possible that just goes along with inspirational according to Amazon. Death is universal. We all need stories to help us cope with life’s most difficult moments. It is my hope that The Shape of What Remains is such a book and it will continue to inspire and bring comfort to my readers.

What writing projects are you working on now?
I have another completed novel. It is told in two voices (male and female) and it is an entirely different type of story. I am currently in the early stages of looking for a publisher. I have a third novel started and that one is unlike anything I’ve previously written. I like the challenge! Although I write literary fiction, the third novel I started begins with a crime so that is a new kind of writing for me. I still think it will be a character-driven story but I’m early in the process.

Is there anything else you’d like readers to know?
Persistence is probably the most important quality for a writer. I know many excellent writers who give up on publishing because it is so competitive and all of us receive rejections along the way. Just because your work isn’t a good fit for one publisher does not mean you won’t find a publisher who loves it. Keep trying!

KLWagoner150_2KL Wagoner loves creating worlds of fantasy and science fiction. Her current work in progress is The Last Bonekeeper fantasy trilogy and short stories in the same universe. A member of SouthWest Writers since 2006, Kat has worked as the organization’s secretary, newsletter editor, website manager, and author interview coordinator. Kat is also a veteran, a martial art student, and a grandmother. Visit her at klwagoner.com.



SWW’s 2025 Writing Contest Opens June 1

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The annual SouthWest Writers (SWW) writing competition opens for submissions on June 1, 2025.

The contest is open to new and experienced writers. Contestants don’t have to be members of SWW or live in the Southwest to enter. Winners have the opportunity to publish their entries in this year’s contest anthology.

The 2025 competition offers seven main contest categories divided into a total of eighteen subcategories for unpublished fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. New this year is a category for Short Screenplay. Main categories also include flash fiction, short fiction and nonfiction, opening chapter of a novel, and opening chapter of a nonfiction book.

All entries that meet the rules for submission will be judged by a panel of experienced writers and/or experts in the specific genre. First, second, and third monetary prizes will be awarded in each category that receives enough entries for judging.

For details about the categories and a complete list of rules, please see the Contest Page.

SouthWest Writers is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization devoted to helping both published and unpublished writers improve their craft and further their careers. In 2024, SWW celebrated forty years dedicated to this goal.



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