I am so excited about this interview for a couple of reasons. First, at the end of this interview, you (the reader) get the chance to win a copy of the book Kingdom of Ash and Soot by Author C.S. Johnson. Read more about this incredible book on GoodReads!
Nicole: You are an incredibly successful author with several publications under your belt! What is your secret to keeping up with all that you do?
C.S.: Thank you for your kind words. I enjoy writing a lot, and I am always happy when my work is favorably received by my readers and critics alike.
I am pretty sure the reason I am so prolific with my writing is because my push for my own standards is high; so, in other words, it is rooted in insanity and insecurity. Having a story stew inside of me makes me think of demons needing to be exorcised. I like to think of my writing as a gift, but I also know that the best things in life are the things we have to work for (whether we like the work or not.)
I also really enjoy it, and I enjoy getting to bless people with my work. I have met a lot of really great people who have been touched by my work, and that desire to help others has never gone away.
I am publishing a book on college and student loan debt in March that I am going to use the proceeds for to give a monthly repayment to new college grads. It’s a charity idea I am working on developing, and I am so happy I will be able to help people that way (especially with my own mental health sadness that came with my student loan debt.) I am also hoping to do more to help others in need, but I know I will be in a better position if the work comes first; this makes sense – I need the books to be written before I can do things with them!
Nicole: I love how you are turning your writing into doing something good for others! You seem to really enjoy writing young adult fiction, what draws you to writing for this audience of readers?
C.S.: I think it’s a great field for me to write in because I don’t feel qualified as an adult to write adult fiction. I have to laugh when I admit that, but it’s so true. I like to read more adult fiction now – now that I’m finally in my 30s – but for a long time I didn’t understand why anyone would want to read it. Adult fiction can be dark and heavy-handed, and I prefer more of the fluffy-funness that YA and now NA can offer; I also like that aspect of it because I can hide a lot of heavier topics inside of my writing, and I find that allowing the reader some wiggle room to decide on how dark they want to make the story is much more inviting than making it all either shallow-candy-bar-book sweetness or angsty-three-course-meal-level-fullness. One of my goals as a writer is to read books that will stay with the reader after he or she is finished reading, and then I like to write books that, if you read them again, you will find something new.
Nicole: Oh I’d love to write that type of book – the ones that stay with you. So, what are you working on at the moment?
C.S.: I am working on the third book in The Order of the Crystal Daggers series, Heart of Hope and Fear. The book series has been an interesting one for me to write, and I’m hoping the final book in the series will give it a proper sending off. I have also joined up with a team of authors to write an anthology we will be publishing in January next year, and I am very pleased with my short story (The Ones Who See) is coming along for that one.
Nicole: That sounds amazing! What advice do you have for writers who can’t seem to put their (virtual) pen to paper?
C.S.: Read the most absolutely asinine, stupidest book you can think of that’s made it big (WE ALL KNOW AT LEAST ONE!). If sheer anger that such a crap book was popular enough to sell big is not enough to drive you to your keyboard and go full-blooded monkey madness on it, you don’t want to be a writer; you want to have written something, and that’s not the same thing as wanting to be a writer.
C.S.: The typical day honestly varies; one of the best things I like about being a writer is that it’s like dancing with the most irresistible, infuriating date of your life in the dark. Sometimes you take over the lead; sometimes he insists you follow. Sometimes you fall, and sometimes he catches you. Sometimes you move so fast, you wonder that you’re able to keep your typing intact; other times you slow down so much you wonder if you’re moving at all.
Sometimes, of course, I take a break and interact with the other people around us. I like talking with my readers over email, and I like it even more when they talk back.
Nicole: Sounds amazing to me! What was the best writing advice you heard? What was the worst?
C.S. The best writing advice is just to read a lot. I learned a lot of my own social skills from reading, and not just from facts and flirtatious turn-of-phrases. Reading good writing, and a good variety, can really help you understand the world and other people better.
The worst advice I’ve ever heard is just to read the books you want to write. My favorite books to read are different from what I like to write, but I love what I like to write, too.
Nicole: Reading is so key! What books did you enjoy reading when you grew up?
C.S. I really enjoyed historical fiction. I have a collection of “Dear America” diaries and “Royal Princess Diaries” that I will be giving my own daughter. I also enjoyed a lot of the Star Wars expanded universe, and I still have a soft spot for what I call “smart romance.”
Nicole: And what books are you reading now?
C.S. I just recently finished reading Till We Have Faces again. I try to read it every year. I love Lewis’ work, and each year I find myself identifying with different characters. This year, I found myself in more of Revidal, Oraul’s first sister. It is never an easy move to be the first love, and then become the second, and her life seems to have that trend no matter how much she was loved by her sister, and then her husband, and then her children. It’s very sad to realize that our first loves might not live up to all of our hopes.
Other than that, I am looking forward to getting my pre-ordered copy of Another Kingdom, and I have begun to read a “cattlepunk” book from R. J. Conte called Artificial Love. Since both are based in fantasy revisionism, I already know I will love getting to analyze them (I’m a literary nerd for style as much as story and substance).
C. S. Johnson is the award-winning, genre-hopping author of several novels, including young adult sci-fi and fantasy adventures such as the Starlight Chronicles series, the Once Upon a Princess saga, and the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. With a gift for sarcasm and an apologetic heart, she currently lives in Atlanta with her family. Find out more at http://www.csjohnson.me.
Now for the giveaway part! Enter to win a copy of the book Kingdom of Ash and Soot by C.S. Johnson via Rafflecopter below. US only. Giveaway ends 3/24.
I like your answers!
My question is where do you get your ideas for your stories, other than reading other authors books.
It sounds like a good read.
This book looks very interesting. Thanks for sharing!