GREETINGS, BOOKWORMS! I’m Aisha Kandisha, Head Librarian at Kandisha Press. Join me in the dusty stacks of the library I will never leave again as I chat with some of my favorite Women in Horror. Today we feature author Sharon Frame Gay!
Award winning author Sharon Frame Gay grew up a child of the highway, playing by the side of the road. She has been internationally published in anthologies and literary magazines, including Chicken Soup For The Soul, Typehouse, Fiction on the Web, Lowestoft Chronicle, Thrice Fiction, Crannog, Saddlebag Dispatches, Owl Hollow Press, 5-Star Publishing, and others. Her work has won awards at Women on Writing, Rope and Wire Magazine, Pen 2 Paper, and The Writing District. Sharon is a 2021 recipient of the Will Rogers Award for excellence in Western Writing. She has been nominated several times for the Pushcart Prize, as well as nominations for the Peacemaker Award, Washington Science Fiction Association Award, and Best of the Net.
Her collections of short stories, “Song of the Highway,” “The Nomad Diner”, and “The Wrong End Of A Bullet” are available on Amazon
Sharon Frame Gay’s author page on Amazon @ https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B01HN5AGXK Facebook: Sharon Frame Gay-Writer.
Twitter: @sharonframegay
What made you want to become an author? Did you have an “Aha!” moment when you knew you were born to write? Or perhaps a beloved book inspired you?
I believe I’ve been a poet and short story writer all my life. I remember making up stories in my head from the time I was a small child. However, my interests turned to singing in my teen years. From that point on, I saw myself as a musician first. The day came when I sustained a vocal cord injury and was no longer able to sing. At that point, I turned back to writing. I have since realized that music and writing are part of the same craft, which is an emotional interpretation of words and notes, and a way to integrate with readers and listeners that resonates with them.
What do you believe are your strengths in writing? And when you feel you need to improve on a particular writing skill, how do you go about it?
I like to think that my strength in writing is the ability to touch others emotionally. When a reader tells me they were moved to tears or burst out laughing after reading one of my pieces, or that the story conjured up a memory for them, it’s the greatest compliment I can receive. When I want to improve on a skill, I get inspiration from reading the work of an author I admire. I have also taken online courses in certain subjects, such as dialogue.
What are your thoughts on the book industry today, or more importantly, about the book community? Do you feel it is getting harder or easier to make it as an independent author these days?
Hmm…you have touched on a subject that I am currently struggling with. I feel that it is somewhat harder these days to publish short stories, Westerns in particular. There seems to be a much more lucrative market for novels than there is for short stories. This surprises me somewhat, as I would think in our fast-moving, busy world, more people would prefer to read a short story, rather than engage in a longer piece.
Also, with the advent of more and more indie publishers creating anthologies and literary magazines, there is less of an inspiration for them to pay for someone’s work. When I write a short story, I often put in between twenty to thirty hours editing, grooming and fine tuning the piece. To be paid nothing for those efforts can be frustrating. Even a nominal amount is greatly appreciated. I also think that the introduction of AI into writing is an artificial tool that, at times, can truly bleach out the true art of writing, and I won’t use it at all.
Tell us about your work. What story are you most proud of?
In 2023, I wrote my first novel, a Western, due to come out in 2025. The title is “As The Crow Flies”. I’m proud that I actually finished it and got it off to the publishers! I also write historical fiction, horror and contemporary pieces as well as poetry and non-fiction essays. I am proud of several of my short stories. “Old Women”, “Copperhead”, “The Journey to Autumn” and “The Nomad Diner” stand out in my mind as favorite pieces. “Old Women”, “The Journey To Autumn”, “Spark Of Life”, “Song of the Highway” and “Kindness” have all been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. One of my favorite stories, “North Star” has been awarded the Will Rogers Medallion for excellence in Western writing. “The Man Under The Bed” and “Killing Frost” are two horror/thriller type short stories that I enjoyed writing, and they have been well received by readers.
What are your upcoming works and plans for the future?
“As The Crow Flies”, a novel, will be published by Roan & Weatherford in 2025. I am also working on a book of poetry and prose entitled “Whistling Up The Moon”, and I am thinking of turning a short story I have into a novella or novel. I have three short story collections, by Clarendon House Publishing, available on Amazon: “Song Of The Highway”, “The Nomad Diner”, and “The Wrong End Of A Bullet”. Besides my writing, I fill my days with music. I am blessed to have found my singing voice again after twenty years, so I have recorded and posted over sixty songs on You Tube under “Sharon Frame Gay”.
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