Please introduce yourself and tell us about your background as a writer.
My name is Lisa Kuznak and I’m a housewife and mother of two in Thunder Bay, Canada. I’m also a film school dropout, and former sewing teacher, but I've always loved books—I wanted to be an author when I was 6 years old, it just took me a while to go after it. Writing is something I’ve always been driven to do, even when I was keeping it to myself.

What are the most prominent influences on your writing? How do you incorporate those influences without being derivative?
Other books, of course! I always have at least two going at once. But other than that, anything and everything! I pull a lot from my own life though it isn’t always in an obvious way. The people I’ve known or experiences I’ve had. Music is a big influence too—I’m always listening as I write, all of my projects have soundtracks. 

Sometimes I’ll be watching a movie and think “Wow, now that’s a way to introduce a character” or something, or I’ll be reading a book and come across a wonderful passage and think “How did they do that?” and it’ll inspire me to experiment more with my own writing.

When it comes to ideas, they fly at me. Ideas are the easiest part. I once worried that I needed to be 100% original all the time but I’ve adopted “There’s nothing new under the sun” as a sort of mantra—ideas might be a dime a dozen but it’s the execution that makes them unique. Put ten people in a room and tell them to write from the same prompt, you’ll get ten completely different stories. We all have our own perspectives and experiences that’ll spark our inspiration in different ways, and we all have our own voice, I would have to try very hard to outright imitate another author. How I choose to string words together makes it mine. So, I don’t stress over being derivative—anyway, we all have our favourite tropes, but applying those tropes will always wind up turning them a little different.

I also write (and read) in different genres, otherwise I get “bored.” Fantasy, sci-fi, literary, poetry, whatever tickles my fancy that day. The different genres can sometimes bleed together, too.

With self-publishing easier than ever, there are tons of books being released every day. What makes your work stand out from the crowd? What can readers get out of your work that they can’t from anyone else?
I’d like to think of my writing voice like a sort of calling card, which is kind of funny because I used to worry about "sounding weird"—until it dawned on me how futile and silly that was. I am weird, so, I should own it. As I’ve matured in my confidence I’ve stopped suppressing the way words come naturally to me. Not everyone has to like the way I write, but my hope is that if they get me, they get me, and those are the readers I treasure. Going back to influences, especially life experiences, there are stories only I can tell, even if it’s in a made-up land or set in outer space. If people dig what I have to say through my fiction and if they enjoy my voice, they’ll keep reading what I put out there. That’s the hope, anyway.

Many authors say marketing is one of their biggest challenges. What tactics have you found to be most effective for getting your name out there?
To be honest, I agree with many authors here. I don’t have a huge social media following, but I’ve found my Substack has helped quite a lot with getting eyes on my work. I use it to post updates to my upcoming books, short pieces, and a serial—people can sample my writing, I can interact with my readers in the comments. I’ve really enjoyed building a readership there. Other than that, I use Instagram, but mostly post the books I read (not as frequently as I should, admittedly), memes and the like, which is also a cool way to interact with people.

I think these days it’s sort of become selling yourself more than selling the work, for better or worse. I’m a very introverted person so this is a big hurdle I’ve had to get over.

How much do your audience’s expectations factor in to what you write? Does this ever cause you to hold back from experimenting?
None, and if that sounds harsh, sorry! I’m always experimenting, everything I write is an experiment in one way or another. Often I put “controversial” themes in my work, consciously or subconsciously, which I’ve had readers get upset over. I’m a firm believer in “The author is not your babysitter.”

Of course, I expect and respect honest criticism, otherwise there’s no chance of growth—but if someone says “I don’t like ___” and it’s their purely subjective opinion on a choice I made, well, then they don’t like the choice. I write for myself first and foremost, and I enjoy the work of authors who also write this way. This is also a big reason I chose self-publishing!

Have you had any new stories published recently? Are you currently working on any?
I try to post a new short piece, either a short story or poem, every week on my Substack alongside my serial. With novels, I have Pallas, my debut sci-fi, releasing July 18th, and I’m about to start the final edits on a literary fantasy I hope to release late 2023/early 2024. I also have two other novels in the drafting stage, one sci-fi and one fantasy.

Name one newer and one older book you have read and enjoyed recently. (“Newer” meaning from the past year or so, and “older” meaning written before 1980.)
Just one? Nah, I can’t do it! A couple new releases I quite enjoyed were My Name is Yip by Paddy Crewe and Essex Dogs by Dan Jones.

Old books, I could go on and on forever. My favourite authors are Jack Vance, Gene Wolfe, Thomas Pynchon, Cormac McCarthy... Thinking of specific books I’ve read so far this year, I’d say Dying Inside by Robert Silverberg, Warlock by Oakley Hall, The Fifth Head of Cerberus by Gene Wolfe, The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson are, so far, my top four, no particular order.

One of my kids is already getting into sword and sorcery with my big collection of Conan and Solomon Kane stories, so I’m enjoying those again by proxy!

Any final words?
Thank you so much for the chance to talk about myself a little bit! My Instagram is @mechanical.pulp or my Substack is https://mechanicalpulp.substack.com, give it a subscribe if you like what you see, tell your friends (word of mouth is huge, especially for indie authors!) and to follow along with the release of Pallas, check out my stories and my serial Pull Me Under (portal fantasy with sword and sorcery elements) or for updates to my other novels in the works!

Cheers!