Justine Manzano Author M. Dalto and I met when she was on Team Justine during the very first Writer in Motion. I loved her work and got the wonderful opportunity to help her polish it. A large chunk of the initial Writer in Motion group stayed in touch after the event, and she and I became friends. Shortly thereafter, she co-founded Sword & Silk Books, and I loved everything about the idea behind the publishing company. Once it was open for submissions, I submitted Never Say Never to them. The rest is history. I was her editor, she is my publisher, we are buds and we run in the same writing circles. So we decided it would be fun to introduce her to my readers and get to pick her brain about a few things.
Justine: You’re on the verge ending a series! Tell us all about it!
M: Well, the Empire Saga series is the result of wanting to write a book for NaNoWriMo back in 2014 and realizing
only after I finished writing it that I wasn’t done telling these characters’ stories. I guess that can happen sometimes when you spend so much time creating an alternate fantasy world that you realize there’s more to it you want to explore. So in portal fantasy fashion, we took a trip back to the Empire again and again and again. So now after three novels and four novellas, the final installment, THE DARK QUEEN, releases in November! I hope that it has as much fantasy, romance, adventure and intrigue as the rest of the series, and it answers questions readers may have been looking to have answered throughout the other books.
Justine: How does that feel? It’s got to be crazy wrapping up this series after this long.
M: It’s a very bittersweet experience, really. After spending so much time writing, editing, marketing, and releasing these books, that we’re coming to the end of them is a very strange feeling. It’s a great accomplishment, to have been able to do what I have done, but it’s also a time of reflection that I know all authors have at one point in their career. Questions like if I went back, would I do it all over again? Did I do it right? What would I never want again? And I find myself reflecting on these last few years’ efforts coming to an end and it’s a very different mentality than when I first signed, anxious to publish my debut.
Justine: People don’t realize how battle-hardened publishing makes you. It’s filled with ups and downs and periods of transitions. It can be a really exhausting career, because you don’t just have a secure job for years. You’re constantly in flux. Speaking of which, what’s next on the agenda for you?
M: From a writing standpoint, that is the magic question, I think. I’ve just spent the last couple of years querying my next manuscript, but with the emotional ups and downs with that project it’s almost at the end of its run so I’m getting ready to put it aside if my last few options for it run themselves dry. I do have a couple of projects I’ve been working on that remain unfinished, so I may consider shifting gears and focus on them, if I’m going to work on any writing at all.
Justine: It’s always tempting to rush to say “NO, KEEP WRITING!!!” But I feel like if you find your way back it’s where you’re meant to go. No decision in this business is an easy one.
Transitioning away from the future and going back to some past accomplishments, I mentioned in the introduction how we know each other, and I want to ask you some questions geared in that direction. First of all, what are your thoughts on the Writer in Motion experience?
M: The Writer In Motion project was something I was brought into after it had just begun, but you all were welcoming and let me take part anyway, so thank you for that! The project itself was a lot of fun, allowing me to create a new piece based off of a simple picture prompt, all while breaking down the writing and editing process so that readers can begin to understand what exactly goes into such a project, even if it is a short piece of fiction. This work is actually something I’m still kicking around to expand into something larger, so if anyone is interested in seeing what I’ve done for it, you can find more information here: https://authormdalto.wordpress.com/category/writer-in-motion/.
Justine: *whispers* I read it, I loved it, I want more. 🙂 And now that’s I’ve gotten that out of my system, tell us about your publishing company, Sword & Silk Books.
M: Sword and Silk Books was the long-time-in-coming brainchild of me and my best friend Laynie Bynum. Both of us are published authors, and through our own experiences we’ve seen the good and the bad of the small/independent publishing world, and not only for ourselves, but for other authors, we wanted to provide an option with their best interests in mind, and do all we could to make sure they didn’t have to experience the same unexpected hardships as we did when we first started out. We wanted to create a publisher that promoted strong voices and encouraged authors to be involved with their publishing process while instilling a traditional publisher feel despite being a small press. We currently have signed on seven amazing authors, and our first author’s release—you might even know her! —is happening in June!
Justine: IT ME!!! I can’t tell you how excited I am, and how incredibly grateful to you and Laynie I am. This publishing company was everything I hoped it would be. 🙂 Is it super weird that I was your editor in WiM and now you’re my editor at S&S?
M: Not at all! Unless it’s weird for you- HAHA! I just look at it as we’re all doing different things at different times and we’re helping each other out in different ways as we travel down the road to publishing together!
Justine: Totally not weird for me. I just think it’s a fun story. It really does hang a lantern on the way we all have our hands in different pots and how we can all help each other. Speaking of hands in different pots, you are BIG on Wattpad publishing, and I have a huge knowledge gap where that’s concerned. Tell me about the work you’ve published there and why you’ve chosen it to present that work?
M: Wattpad will always be that safe space I return to whenever I feel like the publishing world is a big and scary place. It was my outlet when I was convinced I should never write again, and has been a huge source of support throughout my journey. I would never be where I am as a writer today if not for Wattpad, and that’s something I will never forget.
So it was not long after I finished the first NaNoWriMo draft of Two Thousand Years and I participated in a first-chapter swap on their forums. The person who I swapped with came back and pretty much told me my chapter was the worst they had ever read and I should never write again. I was devastated. A friend of mine, upon hearing of my negative critique experience, suggested I start posting my story up on Wattpad, which I had never heard of before then. She said that I’d be much better off sharing my story with thousands for a much broader array of feedback rather than just having one narrow-minded viewpoint ruin everything for me. So in February 2016 I posted my very first chapter of Two Thousand Years…
Later that year, that story won one of the site’s Watty Awards and thus began my journey down the path of publishing I never would have considered an option if I continued to listen to that one narrowminded individual. In the years since I have continued to post different drafts of various stories and have gained somewhat of a following in doing so. I’ve also been asked to write for their Paid Stories program and was invited to be a Wattpad Star.
If anyone’s on Wattpad, or has any other questions, or just wants to see what it’s all about, you can find my profile at https://www.wattpad.com/user/druidrose.
Justine: I love that you have a place like that. Mine was always fanfiction, which is also found on Wattpad, but I use Archive of Our Own. You and I share something else in common. We love to write romance. What are your favorite romance tropes?
M: My favorite trope will always be Enemies-to-Lovers, and if there’s some sort of love-shape involved, a
ll the better!
Justine: You have written a number of works with a co-author. I’ve always been fascinated with how that works. How do you share responsibility?
M: I feel as with all group projects, working with a co-author is all about communication. This is important throughout the whole process too, through writing and then querying and publishing, just to ensure you’re both going to be on the same page where expectations are involved. Neither wants to shoulder the brunt of the responsibilities, so you need to make sure both can contribute something to the project a
t each point along the process. Every project is different, too- one may have a character they prefer to write and will take on those chapters, or you may want to work together throughout the whole manuscript, but again- either way, you need to make sure you and your co-author are in agreement with the process, otherwise you’re going to have more of a headache than it’s worth.
Justine: That makes sense. My husband and I have been saying we’re going to write something together forever. Maybe, one day…
Okay, last question, and this one is a bit crazy. You’re a coffee person just like me, so how do you take your coffee?
M: There’s nothing crazy about a coffee question! And it all depends on where I am and my current mood. If I’m home and making a pot, it’s usually milk and Splenda. At Dunkin Donuts I’m getting a medium iced coconut with skim and 2 Splenda. Starbucks? We’re looking at a skinny vanilla latte or a venti iced caramel macchiato. But if we want to get really crazy, there’s a local coffee chain near me called MaryLou’s and at least once a week I’ll get an iced Almond Joy. And now I may need to go get one…
Justine: Almond Joy coffee?! They make that? I may need to go visit you just to get one! Get me an author visit in your neck of the woods so I have an excuse! HA!
M. Dalto is a bestselling New Adult author of adventurous romantic fantasy stories, having won a Watty award for excellence in digital storytelling for her debut novel, Two Thousand Years, in 2016. She spends her days as a full-time residential real estate paralegal, using her evenings to pursue her literary agenda, and when she’s not writing, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, playing video games, and drinking coffee. She currently lives in Massachusetts with her husband, their daughter, and their corgi named Loki.