EP 249 - Epic Kids Adventures with D.E. Cunningham

<p>Mark interviews D. E. Cunningham, a middle-grade fantasy author, about his life as a storyteller and his new novel Marco Swift and the Mirror of Souls.</p> <p>Prior to the main content, Mark shares a recent comment, a personal update, and a word about this episode's sponsor.</p> <p><strong><img alt="" height="159" src="https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/110600/FindawayVoicesLogo.png" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="318" /></strong>You can learn more about how you can get your work distributed to retailers and library systems around the world at starkreflections.ca/Findaway.</p> <p>During their chat, Mark and David talk about:</p> <ul> <li>The inspiration behind writing Marco Swift and the Mirror of Souls</li> <li>Writing a musical comedy for stage when in college, and making short VHS movies, improv and parodies with his friends when he was in high school</li> <li>Being able to bang out 1000 words an hour, but without proper structure and plotting</li> <li>Discovering Brandon Sanderson's DIY writing class on YouTube</li> <li>How dramatically different the later drafts of the novel became after David learned more about the craft</li> <li>David's desire to make the heart of the Marco Swift story about children facing trauma and learning to not blame themselves</li> <li>Inspiration from Mister Roger's and his own passion for ensuring that every child knew they were loved and they are capable of loving</li> <li>Going through depression and being semi-suicidal when he was younger</li> <li>Writing this first novel while working on his MFA for Film Production</li> <li>Hiring an editor through Reedsy</li> <li>Work David had done writing a couple of episodes and outlines for a few different television shows as well as voicing the main character for one series</li> <li>Spending a year and a half querying 122 agents</li> <li>The one agent who asked to read the book who told David it was "good not great"</li> <li>Hiring a second editor to address the feedback this agent had offered to David</li> <li>Trading skills with an artist/designer to get a professional looking cover for his self-published book</li> <li>The 99% Perspiration/1% Inspiration principal</li> <li>Realities of television and movie adaptations</li> <li>The coolest things about self-publishing a book</li> <li>David deciding to do the audiobook himself because he already had voice-acting experience</li> <li>Advice David would offer to his younger self</li> <li>And more...</li> </ul> <p>After the interview Mark reflects on David's life-long passion for storytelling, being cognizant of his target audience, and his determination and persistence as a writer.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Links of Interest:</strong></p> <ul> <li><a href="https://marcoswift.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Marco Swift Website</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DECunninghamAuthor/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">D. E. Cunningham Facebook Page</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/d.e.cunninghamauthor/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">D. E. Cunningham Instagram</a></li> <li><a href="https://starkreflections.ca/findaway">Findaway Voices</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-world-of-publishing-by-mark-leslie-lefebvre-tickets-299883227807" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The World of Publishing (Victoria, BC & Virtual) - May 14, 2022</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/markleslie" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Buy Mark a Coffee</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Patreon for Stark Reflections</a></li> <li><a href="https://books2read.com/accountingforauthors" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Accounting for Authors</a></li> <li><a href="https://books2read.com/relaxedauthor/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Relaxed Author</a> <ul> <li><a href="https://payhip.com/b/w7Gg1" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Buy eBook Direct</a></li> <li><a href="https://payhip.com/b/QK4ks" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Buy Audiobook Direct</a></li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="https://books2read.com/b/publishingpitfalls" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Publishing Pitfalls for Authors</a></li> <li><a href="https://books2read.com/b/workingwithlibrariesandbookstores" rel="noopener" target="_blank">An Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & Bookstores</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Wide for the Win</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books</a> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">This Time Around (Short Story)</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">A Canadian Werewolf in New York</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Stowe Away (Novella)</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Fear and Longing in Los Angeles</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.panoramaproject.org" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Fright Nights, Big City</a></li> <li><a href="https://books2read.com/loversmoon" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Lover's Moon</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><strong>D. E. Cunningham</strong> is a middle-grade fantasy author who currently resides in Virginia Beach with his wonderful wife and three fun-loving boys. His search for truth, goodness, and beauty have driven him to write larger-than-life adventures for a new generation of readers. When not writing, he can be found voicing cartoon characters, producing animated children's shows, and exploring the wilderness with his family.</p> <p> </p> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-dark-gray-background-color has-dark-gray-color" /> <p><em>The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of <a href="https://incompetech.com/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">www.incompetech.com</a></em> <em>and is Licensed under</em> Creative Commons: By <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Attribution 3.0</a> </p> <p> </p>