ReadtoThink (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} almafullerton) wrote,@ 2007-09-18 16:54:00 |
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INTERVIEW WITH KRISTEN COLLIER
Q What inspired you to be a writer?
A. Well, five years ago this September I was at the library waiting to take a test for a job. I’d heard that if you wrote your goals down you were more likely to achieve them, so I took out the only piece of paper in my purse—an envelope—and wrote on the back of it my goals. The next day the story for my novel “King of Glory” came to mind. And now, five years later, I finally have a publisher, not for my novel, but for a picture book called “Joy the Jellyfish.”
Q. Can you tell us a little about your road to publication?
A. The first draft of “King of Glory” took me a month to write. I started sending out queries that Christmas and didn’t get the best response. “Are you sure you should be doing this?” one lady in a critique group said. Well, let’s just say that I took the time to learn to write, with the help of some great books from the library (most notable, “The First Five Pages,” by Noah Lukeman, and “Dare to be a Great Writer: 365 Ways to Improve your Writing”). So I spent about two years doing re-writes on “King of Glory.” Then I wrote my first picture book, “The Day Jarod Met Jesus,” the story of the Second Coming as told through a child’s eyes.
Then I started writing books with Kevin (my husband), and that helped a lot. We have a bout 6 or 7 manuscripts that our agent is shopping around, so there’s a lot of available material. “Joy the Jellyfish” is my first real book, with a real publisher.
Q. What prompted you to write your books? Are they based on true life or are they completely fiction?
A. “King of Glory” is fiction, but the protagonist is a single mom, like I was for nine years. And “The Day Jarod Met Jesus” is based on real conversations I had with Jarod when he was about three. All of the books have bits of real life in them, though, including Joy, a story about a little jellyfish that swims the Great Barrier Reef in search of friends.
Q. Can you tell us about your latest book release?
A. Joy is a little jellyfish that wants to make friends but is too shy to speak to anyone. Being nearly transparent, no one sees her, so she goes unnoticed. She swims to the arctic north where she meets a white Beluga whale who teaches her that a true friend is one who sees from the inside out.
Q. Would you take us through your typical writing day?
A. I don’t have a typical writing day, ha ha! It’s more like spurts. When Kevin and I were writing the bulk of our YA manuscripts, I’d spend hours a night writing, after working all day and then spending time with Jarod after work. I did that with “King of Glory” also. But now there’s such a backlog of stuff I’m just taking it easy now, and writing only when time demands. I developed shoulder problems from using the computer too much, so I’m careful with overdoing it now. I also am a feature writer for “The Chronicle of the Horse” ( HYPERLINK "http://www.chronofhorse.com" http://www.chronofhorse.com), which I enjoy, so I’m writing articles when they assign me one.
Q. Do you think about your readers when you write a book?
A. Of course. You have to write for your audience. So I think about what they would like to read, what would appeal to them. And for the Joy series (the publisher wants a sequel and there are some online stories in various magazines), I am focusing on issues that children face today: overcoming shyness, being overscheduled, etc. A couple of stories are going to speak to the child whose parent is putting them in every activity under the sun. The main story is for children who are too shy to make friends. So they’re all little stories that can help a young reader in some way. They’re not just entertainment.
Q. Many writers speak about writer’s block. Do you ever have that, and if so, what are some things you do to get over it?
A. I’m too busy to have writer’s block. Working and being a mom, you get very little free time. So when the time comes to write, there are a million stories, just not enough time to write them all. I think if you know your purpose, ie., if you’re writing to convey a message, to encourage, etc., then you already have your story. You may have to figure out some of the details, but in the times when you’re not sure what to say I just forge ahead. I find that if I’m not sure where to go I just start typing and let what’s in my mind come out. The story often becomes something different than what I envisioned.
For example, I’m writing a story called, so far, “The Fairy Princess.” What was going to be a picture book is now becoming a YA chapter book, and I like it much better. It’s a deliberately transparent allegory for prayer and living a life of faith. What I had in mind, a short picture book with little depth, is now becoming something that young ladies might read that would encourage them to bravely face the world. So by just typing away and letting what was inside me come out, instead of just trying to stick to what I wanted it to be, it’s becoming a more influential piece. That’s the goal—the entertain and edify.
Q. What sort of things do you do when you’re not writing?
A. I’m currently working in retail and work nights. When I’m not working I spend time with my guys, Kevin and Jarod. We go to the beach a lot. We also bike a lot. I just got a mountain bike this summer, I got a purple one, which I love, so that’s a lot of fun. I just love being with my family, so we do everything together.
Q. When it comes to writing what’s next for you?
A. I have an online story for “Joy the Jellyfish” that I have to do and then I have to write the sequel. My main goal is finding a day job, so the writing’s just a nice aside for now. I like writing for “The Chronicle of the Horse” and so I’d like to do more of that.
I’m also re-vamping “King of Glory” but as that’s a novel, that’s just something I kind of play with whenever I feel like it. But it doesn’t have a publisher, so that’s just something I do on occasion. I’d like to find a publisher for all the YA manuscripts that our agent is sitting on. That would be nice. I also will one day get back to “The Fairy Princess” and I have a novel that I’ve only written a few chapters of, called “Crop,” that I’d like to get to. It’s a sci-fi novel about crop circles. I like that one a lot, but as there’s such a backlog, there’s no need to keep on working on new books until the others get placed.
Q. What are some of your favorite things?
A. Jesus. Kevin. Jarod. Horses. Milk Duds. That about sums it up J
Q. What are some of your favorite books?
A. 1.) The Bible
2.) “Blessed Child,” by Bill Bright and Ted Dekker
3.) “The Secret of Little Pine,” by my husband. Doesn’t have a publisher yet, but it’s
one of those magical books that you can’t pin down. Ephemeral. It reminds me of
those classic children’s movies like “The Sandlot.”
4.) “Heaven Quest,” a book Kevy and I wrote, not yet published. It’s a YA book about
an alien that comes to earth to try to find out about heaven. It was a riot to write.
5.) The Guardian,” by Shane Johnson, a great Christian sci-fi book
6.) Any good Christian sci-fi
Q. If you could say one thing to the children reading your books, what would that be?
A. That Jesus loves you more than you could ever imagine!
Q. If you could say one thing to a new writer, what would it be?
A. Read and internalize Noah Lukeman’s “The First Five Pages.” Incredible book on writing. He says that if you don’t grab them in the first five pages you never will. Gives tips on how to not only do that, but improve your writing so that you can keep them.
Q. Are you available for signings, school visits and writing workshops?
A. Yep J I live in West Michigan, so would be happy to visit area schools. I’m from the Cleveland suburbs, so would be available there as well.
LINKS:
Author Kristen Collier
http://kristenlcollier.blogspot.com
Illustrator Kevin Collier
Joy the Jellyfish Homepage
http://joythejellyfish.blogspot.com
Joy the Jellyfish is Licensed by Dragonfly Publishing
