Welcome to the Dangers Untold author/editor roundtable interview week! I asked Jennifer Brozek, the editor of Dangers Untold, along with several of the authors, some questions about their writing and editing, and we’ll be posting some of the answers from Monday until Saturday. If you’re just now joining, you can catch up on the rest at the Alliteration Ink blog.

On with today’s questions!

What are the most important attributes to remaining sane as a writer or editor?

Jennifer Brozek: Take care of yourself. Seriously. Get away from the computer. Go for a walk. Nap. Realized when you are becoming burned out. Know when to shift jobs. Have a good support system in place. If I didn’t have my husband to vent to, I don’t know what I’d do.

David Price: I don’t know any sane writers or editors.

Erik Gustafson:I don’t think writers are sane to start out with. Tortured minds harvest creative tales. Just keep writing. Never stop.

Erik Scott de Bie: Lots of things. Incredibly thick skin. A wealthy sugar daddy/mama. A steady supply of liquor or at least basic groceries. A comfy bed. But the most important thing you need to be a writer or an editor is a strong belief in your value and ability. Believe in yourself and just never give up. This career will throw everything it can at you, but you have to stand strong and keep pushing.

Marty Young: Writing keeps me sane, but at the same time, this business sure as shit is a frustrating one. You write a short story and submit it, then have to wait months to hear back. Then more months before it’s published. Novels are even worse and can take years from submission to actual publication-provided all of the stars have aligned along the way. So I think all writers need to have a great deal of patience just in this aspect alone. Fortunately, us horror writers can vent in our stories and mutilate people any which way we please. That’s always good relaxation.

What is the most demeaning thing said about you as a writer?

David Price:I’m not sure anyone’s really noticed me enough to demean me yet. Some people have said they’d like me to be more descriptive, but other readers have complimented me on my faster pace. You can’t please everyone.

Erik Scott de Bie: One reviewer said I write women like I’ve never met one. I found it hilarious.

Erik Gustafson: I am humble, so I can dig this type of question. I pounded out my first novel in about 30 days, read it over once, had two people read it, and then I through it up on Amazon. I got a review that said something like this: forget this guys doesn’t know about what tense of a verb to use, so what if he doesn’t understand sentence structure or bothered with basic edited, I loved the story. Yeah I deserved that, I rushed it out and I think I committed ever newbie writer error possible. I learn the hard way.

What do you think of your own writing and editing work?

Erik Scott de Bie: Like I said above, I have absolute faith in my own work. That doesn’t mean I’m not wracked with doubt and anxiety and fears all the time, but I have a powerful core that just will not give up, will not give in, and will keep pushing. I know my work is quality, and I know it’s always getting better. If I ever believed that it wasn’t either of those things, I would stop. I just wouldn’t be able to keep writing.

David Price: It’s always improving. I have some fans, so I consider that a blessing.

Dangers Untold is available from Alliteration Ink and multiple online outlets (all linked to from this page.)

You can find Jennifer Brozek at her website, www.jenniferbrozek.com

You can find Erik Gustafson at his blog, Apparitions of Terror, or and find his novel Fall Leaves and the Black Dragon, at his Amazon Author page.

You can find David Price at http://www.authorwebpage.com/davidprice/index.html

You can find Erik Scott de Bie at his website, erikscottdebie.com

Marty Young is found at his website, martyyoung.com

Be sure to follow @alliterationink on Twitter to get the updates as they come through, or join our mailing list by sending an e-mail to news-join [at] alliterationink.com to make sure you don’t miss out on giveaways, contests, new releases, and open calls for submissions.

Several questions cribbed and modified from “Questions that authors are never asked” from the Guardian.