Author Interview: David Blaze, author of the "My Fox . . ." Series

Like many of the authors featured in this interview series, David Blaze's books first came to my attention when I was setting up Amazon ads for my books. As I looked at the best-sellers in various middle-grade categories, his book My Fox Ate My Homework kept coming up. Later, I've gotten to know David and learn more about him as part of a middle-grade mastermind group started by Steven K. Smith. In addition to writing his own books, David also did a novelization of the movie Frozen II. However, like me, David publishes the rest of his books independently, which makes him my kind of guy. To learn more about David, visit his website.
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​Who were some of your early inspirations as an author? 
 I grew up with stories like Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White and The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams. Many years later, when I decided to write books for kids, I studied the one book that looked the most interesting to me – Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja by Marcus Emerson. His work made me feel inspired and confident I could write for kids. 
 
How did you get started as an author? Did you start by writing books or something else? 
 I started writing short stories for adults back in 2013. These were mostly horror and suspense. This was when I had one year of free time because I was disabled and had to stay home. I remembered how much I loved writing poems and stories when I was younger and for the first time in my adult life, I had a ton of time to write. 
 
What was your inspiration for the "My Fox . . ." series? 
 I’ve only ever seen a red fox once, on a nature trail when I was kid, and have always been intrigued by it. Much of the My Fox series is based on my childhood, sans the talking fox.  
 
What draws you to write for middle-grade readers? Do you plan to write for other audiences too? 
It’s funny you ask this question because I realized the reason only recently. My earliest memories start at age 9. I’ve done school presentations for preschool through the sixth grade. No matter how many books I write and for how many ages, the greatest response I get is always from third graders. They are the ones who contact me (well, their parents do) to say how much they love my books. Sure, I hear from other grades and ages, but they are by far the biggest fans. I’ve written books for early readers, middle grade, teens, and adults. As of now, I don’t have any intention of returning to any group but middle grade. 
 
What motivated you to publish independently rather than going the traditional route? 
 When I was a teenager and young adult, I submitted stories to magazines and book publishers. I always got back form rejection letters and sometimes short notes about how I didn’t have what they were looking for at the time. This discouraged me from writing stories and books until the year I was temporarily disabled. Some time later I read an article about Amazon Kindle and how to self-publish on it. I was intrigued by the idea of publishing directly online without anyone rejecting it. I published my short stories in a book collection the next day. 
 
At what point did you realize you could do this full time? What was the tipping point? 
 Less than six months after writing my first MG book, My Fox Ate My Homework, I was making as much money from it as I was working full time. I’m a realist and knew it might not last forever. However, in the following months, as I released more books in the series, I made more and more money. I set a goal of maintaining that income for a full year before I considered leaving my job. I also made sure I had a minimum amount in savings in case there were months when my sales declined (this turned out to an extremely smart decision!) I did it! 
 
What are some of the biggest benefits of being an independent author? 
 The biggest benefit to me is the time I get to spend with my son. If he’s ever sick, I’m here to stay home with home. School events? Spring break? Summer? I’m here for my son while my wife works. This works for her because she loves to work and can’t imagine staying home. I work by my own schedule. Sometimes I go weeks without writing (still working story details in my head). Sometimes I go months without coming up for air. I’ve never been a fan of being told what to do, so figuring out things for myself is awesome! 
 
What are some of the biggest challenges? 
 Time is the biggest challenge. I incorrectly believed I would have more time to write without a job. The same things I’m grateful for (time with my son) take a ton of time away. His ADHD requires constant attention and makes it impossible to write when we’re home together. I’ve also found it impossible to change my sleeping schedule. I’ve always been a late-night person (even as a teen), so that’s when I write. In the end, I have the same amount of time to write as I did when I was working full time (I wrote when I got home after midnight). 
 
What are you working on right now? 
 I’m working on an interactive superhero book (middle grade, of course!). I feel great writing for this age group again. My son was home most of last year because of COVID, so the little writing I got done wasn’t even for middle grade. But I’m back! 

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