Finnian Burnett

Welcome to the 5 Minutes Series. Each week, I’ll ask five questions of some of my favorite authors, editors, publishers, and other industry professionals. This week, I got to talk to one of my favorite humans on the planet, Kris Bryant.

Talk to me about Patreon. It’s rocking. What inspired you to start it and how did you grow followers?

I started a Patreon account as a way to stay in front of readers during the pandemic. I also wanted to help animal shelters because they were really suffering when Covid struck. Some of the things that were happening in zoos and shelters worldwide (because of the pandemic) were awful. We won’t go into details, but I wanted to help in any way I could.

When I first started, I decided 100% of my pledges would go to help shelters around the Kansas City area. I mean, I was only expecting a few readers to pledge. But then, people from all over the world signed up for this cause. Because so many signed up, I decided to give the pledge money to a different patron every month so they could pick a shelter close to them. We’d go over the shelter’s wish list and have the food and supplies delivered directly to the patron. They set up a time with the shelter to drop off everything. It’s the best feeling when you deliver a carload of food knowing you’ve helped animals for at least a week, a month, or even several months. The patron shares photos with the group and we all oooh and aaaaah knowing we’ve done something good. We’ve donated worldwide now. We helped the Humane Society in Ukraine when the war broke out, we’ve helped a dog rescue in Estonia, organizations who worked with reuniting owners and pets after Hurricane Ida, and we’ve done several shelters across the United States.

My Patreon has grown because our readers love animals. We want them to have a fair shake in this world. I do my best to give special content. Since nobody could do anything publicly for the first year of the pandemic, I started recording videos with prominent writers, famous musicians, and awesome people with incredibly interesting jobs. I interviewed an infectious disease specialist to explain Covid at the beginning of the pandemic when information was scarce. I talked with an employee of the Humane Society. I chatted with a reader who has thousands of real, tangible books and tons of tattoos of names and scenes from sapphic books. I interviewed award-winning authors and even shared a video with the world (not just with my patrons) because a writer I interviewed read the most incredible story. Perhaps you’ve heard of Finnian Burnett and their character Arthur? It was a smashing hit. I couldn’t keep that video to just my Patreon.

There was a dip in my membership when my mother passed away because creating content during that time was impossible. I have some die-hard friends and patrons who not only stuck with me but offered more money. Content is nice, but it’s really all about helping animals and I love everyone who hung in there with me.

Coming up, I have videos of readings (me of my own books), more interviews with up-and-coming authors, and a super famous singer who not only had several songs on Billboard’s Top 100 but has a beautiful soul and loves this idea of helping shelters. As long as people continue to pledge, I will continue to find interesting content for them. We have group zooms where they can ask me questions about anything, we participate in Secret Santas every year, and they get to help me pick book covers and character names. I love my Patreon because I’ve met some incredible people doing two things I love – pets and talking about books!

One of my favorite books of yours is Tinsel and not just because of the sweet kitty. Do you feature pets in any of your other books?

Pets are such a large part of our lives. We miss them when we’re not home, we hope everything is fine while we are away from them, and we snuggle with them every chance they’ll let us. They are our fur babies. Almost all my books feature pets. I even have a secret chapter with the dog’s POV in one of my books. How can somebody write a book that doesn’t have an animal in it somewhere? I’m positive all of mine have animals. Watch somebody prove me wrong. Who doesn’t love Wally? Or Clio? Or Maddox?

You’ve written 20 books, 4 novellas, and 4 collections. How do you keep your writing inspiration alive?

Life is inspiration. Every day I learn something new about myself, so to have the ability and imagination to create people I want to never gets boring. I think about characters and situations all the time. People are complex. We react differently to situations. When I first started writing, I created perfect characters. Now I realize that it’s more fun to write the sticky, messy characters who aren’t perfect but who really want to fall on the good side of life. Sure, they make mistakes, but don’t we all?

I write books about people and personal growth. The storyline is secondary. I will always have stories to write. They might not all be good, but this has been my dream since I was 10. We all hit the wall at some point. Maybe it’s burnout, maybe it’s writer’s block, but the wall is there and then we have to ask – how do we get around it? I trust myself to find the finish line. I’ve done this for ten years and I know that as impossible as it seems, I’ll get there. Trusting yourself is the one thing most people don’t talk about. They talk about the bad – writer’s block, burnout, inspiration fizzle. But as a writer, you have to have trust. Believe in your words. You’ve done this before and you’ll do it again. That’s the good. That’s what we need to focus on – self-trust, not self-doubt.  

If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?

Oh, teleportation. I have so many friends all over the world and I want to see them as much as I can. Finn and August want to do brunch today? I’ll be right over. Milena wants to have tea on Saturday? Be there at four. Jordan Clark wants to watch March Madness? I’ll bring the pizza. Georgia needs help moving? Bad connection. Can’t make it. Chris in Greece wants to show me Rome? I’ll be there in a flash. Lynn and Cheryl have another black bear in their backyard? I’m grabbing my camera and a bag of marshmallows. Let’s go! How amazing would that be to see your friends in the snap of your fingers? I would love that ability.

What is the one piece of advice you wish someone had given you before you started publishing?

It was a different world when I started publishing my books. I don’t know if I missed any advice, but I am more than happy to pass some along. SUBMIT YOUR MANUSCRIPT (if you are thinking of going with a traditional publisher). Edit it and then submit it. It will never be finished. You will always want to change things about it. I know somebody who has been editing their book for two years. Enough already. If you are serious about publishing your book, submit it. True story – and we all still joke about it now. My first book – Jolt – was the hottest of messes in the hottest of messes ever. It was written in first person present, first person past, and third person. I knew ZERO about POV and consistency, but my publishing company saw that I could write, but that I needed serious editing. If they feel your passion for writing and you have solid bones of a good story, they will send you a contract. So many new writers want to turn in the perfect manuscript. That’s impossible to do. Every day changes you and your thoughts. Here’s where that trust comes in. Trust yourself. You know yourself better than anyone. Trust when to let go. Trust your words. (Ed. Note. Kris Bryant’s first novel, Jolt, was a Lammy finalist.

Bonus question. Have you ever taken a picture of a weird bird?

I have so much to say about this question! But ultimately, no. I’ve taken some incredible photos of incredible birds though. 

Kris Bryant can be found on the web here. Sign up for her newsletter here.