THE WRITE PATH - Kathryn E. Jones

In this series, guest bloggers tell us about fighting their way through the writing landscape, from their early beginnings to where they are now. My guest today is Kathryn E. Jones, author of Conquering Your Goliaths, Marketing Your Book on a Budget, and book one of the Susan Cramer Mystery Series, with book two out in September.

So let me hand over my mic. The next voice you’ll hear will be Kathryn’s.

1. What made you want to be a writer?

When I first became serious about being a writer, I was pregnant with my first daughter. Before that, I’d taken creative writing classes but never felt like I was really that great at writing. I never had a teacher that said, “You have a future in writing,” or anything like that, and so when the thought first came to me that I’d like to try writing, there wasn’t really any previous slaps on the back to get me going. To be honest, I had morning, afternoon and evening sickness and was just trying to fill in the long hours of being sick on the couch. When it occurred to me that I might write, it was merely an idea to do something fun and perhaps, fill in a bit of the daily gaps.

After writing my first story, “Weebles Wobble” (which is pretty terrifying, I can tell you), I decided that I liked writing and would one day be a success. It took 8 long years following that first story to break into print.

2. What is the toughest part about writing?

The toughest part about writing is getting up and doing it. Getting started. I always have excuses, but I’ve learned through the years to ignore them and get to work; because writing IS work.

And yes, I have weaknesses in writing. I think we all do. In the beginning, I struggled big time with voice and basic sentence structure; now I push myself to add more setting to an otherwise empty world. I love dialogue and do well at it. Coming up with a captivating setting is another story. But I continue to work on it.

3. Have you experienced an aha moment, a piece of advice or a moment where something fell into place?

Years ago, when I was writing a short story entitled, “The Awakening of George Mahooney,” I suddenly realized the story was coming to me as if I was merely the transcriber of something very real. It was like George was standing next to me telling his story. It was incredible then and still is. I still get goose bumps every time I think or talk about it. I have had many of these experiences since that first story, and every time it’s as if I am merely listening and writing down what I hear. At times like these, when I’m not correcting every line as I go, or looking at the paragraph I’ve just written; when I’m truly listening, the writing comes the easiest.

4. Whose style do you admire, or is there a line you wish you’d come up with?

My favorite line from Galaxy Quest: “Never give up, never surrender.” I love this, because as a writer giving up is never an option, even when you don’t feel like writing. Writing is a job, but it’s more than a job; it’s a career.

It’s something I do daily, something that keeps me breathing and moving forward in life. If this sounds sappy, so be it. I don’t know who I’d be if I could not write.

5. Describe your ideal reader.

My ideal reader is someone who is open to new ideas; someone who wants to improve his/her life and isn’t afraid to act on their belief that they can do so. I primarily write Christian fiction, but I have also written Christian and Business nonfiction (for writers). I am currently working on my second cozy mystery, so, even in this, I find that open readers are the best readers.

I try to reflect the positivity I share in the Christian works I write. It isn’t enough to write a book to help others, it’s important to me that I live what I have written. And that means that I am out there when it comes to book signings, blogging about writing, and so forth. It isn’t enough for me to be a great writer, I want to be there for those who are trying to be more in their own life.