Aug. 5, 2007 Today, after much hesitation and trepidation, I become a blogger. I've wondered what in the world I could talk about that would interest people I know and hope to know. I always have more on my mind about everything than I can possibly say so you may see anything in this space.
As I love reading and writing so much, a good deal of what you see here will be about writing, books, and stuff like that. To begin, I'd like to introduce some of my fellow writers from Echelon Press. Today the focus is on Jenny Turner with an interview of Jenny.
Interview with Jenny (J. R.) Turner
Grace: Welcome, Jenny! Tell us about yourself.
Jenny: Gosh, where to begin? I will turn 36 this fall and I'm still surprised when I think about it. I'm the same Jenny I've always been. Certainly I'm wiser and more skilled every year, at least I hope so, but overall, I'm still me. All my life I've been drawn to the romantic arts. I think this had a lot to do with some of the more harrowing experiences I had when I was very young. I longed for the time when we girls were treasured, cherished and protected—totally "unfeminist" of me, I know. From that longing, I spent a lot of time teaching myself tatting, embroidery, crochet, knitting, painting, sewing, doll making, soap making, paper making, and the list goes on and on. When I discovered a craft I hadn't tried, I would be overcome with excitement to give it a whirl. Eventually, I ended up teaching crafts for the Milwaukee Public School System. This was during my decade-long stint as a contract artist.
Reading and writing, the art of literature, however, was always a passion. No matter what craft I was engaging in, there was always a book beside me, a story percolating in my mind, a love of words and language flowing through my veins. When I finally decided to try my hand at writing, I did it like I do most things—fully and wholly, committing myself to the process. The only caution my husband had for me was that he worried I might get bored with it, as he described my constantly changing the type of handiwork I conquered.
Grace: Wow! Jenny you've been as busy as an ant getting ready for winter. If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
Jenny: I would be a cat. They're independent, and I like being on my own. But I also like to "colonize" the way cats do. They can be excellent mothers, and that's at the top of my priorities. It would be awesome to see in the dark, and to be so agile that I can leap tall sofas and refrigerators in a single bound. Cats can be extremely loving as well, and purring would be really awesome.
Grace: When did you begin writing and what prompted you to write?
Jenny: About 1998 or 99 I had run out of new books to read by my favorite authors. I took a few risks, bought some books based mostly on their covers, and was so disgusted by what bad reads they were that I decided to write the epic adventure I'd been playing in my head for the last few years. My husband, a truck driver, said I could co-drive with him, and I chose the night shift. When you're in the middle of nowhere, there's not a lot to listen to on the radio so I started playing with a historical romance in my head, altering and changing each "movie scene" as I added more to the story. By the time I sat down to write, I knew every nuance of the story. My father gave me his old computer late in the summer of '99 and I started typing the story on this gigantic IBM model. Shortly after, I upgraded to regular PC with internet so I could research to my heart's content. By 2003, I had my first completed manuscript and began querying. I wrote five books before I finally sold my third manuscript, Stark Knight, in 2005 to Echelon Press.
Grace: You certainly seem more dedicated to the craft of writing than to the other crafts you tried earlier. Can you tell us which writer or writers you most admire and why?
Jenny: Oh gosh, this is like asking me which of my relatives I love most and why. Excellent authors are like family to me—each has merits, each has flaws, but each has a place in my heart just for them. Most influential would be Julie Garwood. When I first began writing, I was heart-deep in her novels and wanted to have that same flavor—with my own voice and style, of course. I admire her work so very much because her heroines and heroes are excellently shown to have every spectrum of humanity—love, jealousy, bravery, courage, fear, frustration, weakness, strength. You name it; her characters have it all. I think what I most love though, is the sense of humor she brings to the page. I can't think of any of her books where I didn't laugh out loud at something. Dean Koontz—I admire his use of language. He just blows me away. Stephen King—not just his horror, but his adventures and dramas as well (Shawshank, Redemption, Dark Tower series, etc.) King's imagination is inspiring. He's fearless when being as weird as he wants to be. Michael Crichton—his brand of sci-fi and adventure is right up my alley. He takes the mundane and makes it fantastic. And I have to say J. K. Rowling. It's a rare person who can capture the imagination of an entire world. That's freaking admirable!
Grace: What is the hardest thing about being a writer?
Jenny: Letting the world know you exist. I love what I write, I love the stories, the characters, the plots, playing with the language, having fun coming up with new twists and exciting action. I love everything about writing, but the toughest part is this sense that I'm a little fish in a very big ocean and as much as I wildly wave my tail fin to let the passersby know "I'm here! I'm here!" I'm just not making a big enough wave to get their attention. It can be a bit frustrating and lonely at times. Especially when you run out of people to tell about your latest book, your work in progress, or your future plans. I can't say how many times my husband has looked at me and said, "Yeah, I know. You told me that last week." Poor guy!
Grace: I know just what you mean. Now let's wind this up with something about your writing—published and in progress.
Jenny: Right now I'm finalizing the manuscript for Good Knight, the third and final book in my Knight Inc. series. The first, Stark Knight, was my attempt to write a character-driven novel and I fell in love with the form. Sara Stark is a memorable character. She's so flawed, but so honorable, that the complexities of her personality have made her difficult to write at times—yet highly enjoyable and satisfying. In Silent Knight, when she confronts a notable person from her past for the first time, I really felt for her. She's struggled to overcome so much that this sort of shattered a lot of her defenses. In Good Knight though, she comes back tougher than ever. My Biker Bodyguard is my latest release. This was the first book I drew on past, personal experiences to write. Jess Owen is a tattoo artist living with a family of bikers. She more resembles me (in my early 20's) than any of my other characters—aside from the gun-toting Mustang-driving scenes, that is. Mitch Conner, the hero in the story, is my vision of Mr. Hunk-o-Rama. Strong men in leather really get me where I live!
For works-in-progress, I'm revising a thriller I wrote a few years ago and starting work on a new series of young adult adventure novels that I'm especially excited about. The series focuses on two groups who have "inherited" special powers after a series of natural disasters destroys the planet and most of the population. Each group sort of gravitates toward one another based on personality, the powers they inherit, and their vision for the future. Tons of action, tons of adventure, some exceptionally fun and unique characters, plus a strong paranormal element will drive the series.
Grace: That sounds exciting! Thank you for telling us about it. And thanks for being with us today.
Jenny: Thanks so much, Grace, for spending this time with me!
Grace: Check out Jenny's website at http://www.jennifer-turner.com/ to learn more about her and her books.
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