I met Lanae Rivers-Woods in 2005 when I responded to her call for artists who worked collaboratively with other artists in their own families. She wanted to host such shows in her Seattle art gallery. My husband and I held a cross-genre duo show at La Familia last year, his art serving as visual representation of themes and metaphors I explored in my fiction. Rivers-Woods hosts her husband's photography in the gallery and her sister's singing troupe. She is also a prime example of cross-genre explorations herself, as a writer and artist in her own right. She self-published her first novel, Chasing Tales, this summer.

Lisa Albers: You're quite the renaissance woman: You paint, you write, you run an art gallery, you work for lawyers, and you travel. How is it that you picked up so many interests and vocations?

Lanae Rivers-Woods: It’s a combination of Attention Deficit Disorder and growing up in the Alaskan Bush. Back home you don’t do just one job, you do everything you can think of to make a living. There is not 9 to 5, there is just life, and you do what it takes to keep your cabin heated and food in the pantry.

When I arrived in Seattle, it was like walking into a candy store. I spent all day doing all sorts of wildly fun things that I never dreamed I would get to do. It is wonderful to be surrounded by so much opportunity, and I don’t want to waste a minute of it.

LA: Tell me about how you published Chasing Tales. Whatever possessed you to self-publish? Is that a harder route than traditional publishing, or an easier one? What's been your experience? Would you recommend self-publishing to others?

LRW: Publishing Chasing Tales has been a careful process. I want to learn as much as I can about both traditional and alternative routes. I consider Chasing Tales my “lamb to slaughter.” I can play with all sorts of tools for production, printing, and distribution. I’m not afraid to try new things and experiment. For example, Lulu.com has been an excellent avenue for testing the marketing and formatting. It shouldn’t be a final destination, but it’s a great tool that I highly recommend as a building block.