Today we’d like to introduce you to H. E. Reynolds.
Hi H. E., so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve been making up stories for as long as I can remember. Plastic tubs and shelves full of notebooks attest to the innumerable stories I’ve started – and a much smaller number that I’ve finished. As a child and teenager, I wrote primarily for my own enjoyment; only my immediate family and a handful of close friends were privy to my imaginary worlds. In college, I gathered enough courage to enroll in a creative writing course and to submit some of my work to our student literary magazine. A few of my poems and prose pieces were selected, and one of my short stories won an award. Since then, I’ve had two short stories published in local anthologies.
My dream job was – and still is! – being a full-time fiction author, and while I haven’t arrived yet, the career path I’m on has provided me with the chance to explore my writing while also gaining experience and perspective that has made its mark on my writing. Being an English teacher gave me the opportunity to share my love of writing – especially creatively – with my students. Working now as a content writer for a marketing company allows me to use my wordsmithing skills in new ways while also providing more time to devote to my own writing.
I have published one classic, cozy mystery novel, Death Comes to Greenwood, on Kindle. I’m currently working on a sequel to Death Comes to Greenwood and on my debut fantasy novel. I also blog and share poetry and fiction at my website hereynolds.com, and on my Instagram account @h.e.reynolds.writer.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Honestly, I think the biggest obstacle to overcome has been self-doubt. It’s easy to wonder if what you’re doing matters, if it’s good enough if it’s making a difference. That’s why surrounding yourself with people who will encourage you is so valuable – they can help to remind you of your why and cheer you on. That’s also why taking small steps is so important. With each small step – submitting a poem or a short story to a publication or competition, sharing your work on a blog or social media, etc. – you are proving to yourself that you can do what you’ve set out to do, and it builds your confidence moving forward.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a writer. I post devotional content, poetry, and fiction excerpts on my website, and I write mysteries, historical fiction, and fantasy. My biggest writing accomplishment so far is the publication of my mystery novel Death Comes to Greenwood via Kindle Direct Publishing. The initial manuscript was a semi-finalist in the 2017 Athanatos Christian novel writing contest. During Covid, I reworked and edited the manuscript. Launching this novel into the world was a little scary but also a fun process, and I’m so glad I took the leap. If you are a fan of Agatha Christie and like cozy mysteries with compelling characters, amateur sleuths, unsolved murders, and no gore, you will love Death Comes to Greenwood.
Whatever the genre, I seek to unite aspects of my favorite authors: the character depth and sweet romance of Jane Austen, the meticulous plotting and surprising twists of Agatha Christie, and the sweeping descriptions of J.R.R. Tolkien.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success is accomplishing the goal you’ve set. When it comes to writing, for me, success looks like telling the story that I set out to tell, the story that I promise to deliver to my readers. Each story is unique, and each genre creates different expectations in the reader, but the main goal is delighting a reader with a story that tells the truth about reality, the world, and the human condition, whatever the genre. If I can delight my readers by satisfying their expectations while still surprising them, I’m happy. After a reader puts down one of my stories, I want him or her to say, “I didn’t see that coming, but I can’t imagine it happening any other way.”
Pricing:
- Death Comes to Greenwood on Amazon Kindle: $4.99
Contact Info:
- Website: hereynolds.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/h.e.reynolds.writer/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hereynoldswriter
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/Death-Comes-Greenwood-H-Reynolds-ebook/dp/B0B14DQ626/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XUST80NNGFLC&keywords=death+comes+to+greenwood&qid=1686431287&sprefix=death+comes+to+gree%2Caps%2C343&sr=8-1
