Meet Alice VL | Author, Speaker & Content Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alice VL and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alice, what role has risk played in your life or career?
When I was younger, taking risks was not an option I welcomed into my life. I was secure in living off of what was safe and routined. In 2018, an opportunity presented itself to me in the form of taking my writing to the next level by leaving everything behind in South Africa, and emigrating to the United States. It was a huge risk, and at my age it was awfully daunting. We have just celebrated our 4th year in the US and I can honestly say it was the greatest decision I had ever made. Taking such a life-changing risk could have gone either way, but it has opened up a new way of life, and opened a new world of writing I would never have had the privilege of experiencing had I decided to keep my life and career safe and routined.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a published author of 7 stand-alone fiction novels, 2 ongoing fiction series and 4 non-fiction books. My fictions works are contemporary romance, paranormal, fantasy and humor books. I am in the process of adding to the series, as well as another stand-alone novel and non-fiction book.

Achieving success today is much harder than it was before the self-publishing era hit. Institutions have now made it possible for anyone with a story to self-publish their works without imposing standards or quality on these books. As a result, you will find that money and marketing budgets are a huge influence when it comes to book sales, publicity and success.

There are many wonderful books written by authors who should keep writing, but unfortunately, their books are buried underneath awful books simply because finances are available and in place to promote authors of sub-standard work. Struggling authors who don’t have access to funds simply give up.

Readers have also reached a point where they are hesitant to give new or unknown authors a chance. They feel let down by authors with fabulous covers and access to top-notch marketing, only to discover the art of deception by poor story telling.

It is an uphill battle, but perseverance and consistency as well as putting out a high standard of work while remaining true to your craft will be what will land your work in front of your audience.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Obviously it depends on the season but in Winter, I would definitely spend a week in Vail, Colorado. We would snuggle up in a cabin overlooking the beautiful trees, frozen streams and snow slopes while cuddling up with a good book and hot chocolate. We would take hikes down to the streams and embrace nature which is at it’s best in Vail.

During summer, I would love to visit a little town called Carmel-By-The-Sea in California. It’s a beautiful storybook town with paved roads, beautiful storybook shops and the ocean. Nature is another huge advantage to visiting Carmel-By-The-Sea and I can just picture sidewalk cafe breakfasts, lunches and beach dinners.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Was it not for my publisher at the time, Words Matter Publishing, I would not have reached the point I am at in my personal life, or in my career. It was one of the hardest steps taken by the publishing house, but the CEO, Tammy Koelling believed in me as a person and author, and because of that, moved mountains to make our move to the USA possible. Over and above just handing us plane tickets, she welcomed us to a comfortable home where we needed for nothing. The same home we were able to buy 3 years later. My husband was sponsored for a Green Card through his Canadian employer, and as a result, he was appointed as Regional Ops Manager – USA Division. The employer was initially introduced to us by Tammy of Words Matter Publishing. My story would not have taken this drastic turn without Words Matter Publishing and for that, I will always be thankful.

Website: alicevlo.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vlalice/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AliceVLAuthor