“I took hold of that scourge -filled ship and crushed it between my limbs, hurtling it into the second sun, the red one that gave me strength. But I was too late." Terraformer
FEATURING GUEST Jessica Khoury
Life as an Author: The Best and Worst List
Welcome to the tenth session of
THE MODERN INK SOCIETY!
Introducing the talented
Jessica Khoury
People read your book! It’s terrifying. Which is why when someone says to me, “Oh, by the way, I started reading Vitro!” I usually laugh nervously and change the subject. A psychiatrist named Donald Winnicott once said, “Artists are people driven by the tension between the desire to communicate and the desire to hide.” I think that’s pretty dead on the money.
The book you write will always surprise you. Even if it’s not exactly what I pictured in the beginning, my story has evolved through the writing process. It has deepened and taking surprising turns, and usually it’s taught me something about myself along the way. Though the general points remain the same from beginning to end—the main characters, the setting, the core conflict—the thing that changes most is usually the theme—the thing the book is truly about. This quote from Flannery O’Connor sums it up perfectly: “I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” So at the end of each book, I discover that yeah, maybe it’s not exactly what I thought it would be… but it’s what it’s supposed to be, and that’s even better.
In the end, though, I think the #1, absolute best part of writing is the people. It’s a pretty solitary job at times—you know, just you and the blank page, hashing it out—but all those lonely hours are spent with the primary purpose of connecting with readers, and hands down the most rewarding part of writing for me is making those connections. The readers, authors, and industry professionals I’ve met in the past few years are my most valuable and cherished part of being an author. Without them—without you—none of this would be worth it. So do I ever wish I did something else for a living like, say, train dolphins or sell real estate? No way. Even at its harder moments, writing is filled with inspiration, surprises, and wonderful, amazing people who continually put a smile on my face. At the end of the day, I can’t see myself anywhere but here. I guess you could say, in light of all the Bests in this list, the Worsts are really nothing at all.“
Don’t forget the live chat for Colleen Houck’s book club coming up at the end of this month!
For fun there will be a GIVEAWAY with a copy of the novels Origin, Vitro and Tiger’s Curse during the live chat! You won’t want to miss this one!
A big thanks to Jessica for sharing some insight into the life of a writer! It always surprises me that despite the hurdles and roadblocks, they each work through those challenges with determination and persistence. They never give up! Their story gives me courage that maybe I too one day can write my story.
~Till next time,
Linda Louise Lotti
This entry was posted in Featuring Authors, The Modern Ink Society.
I’m Linda Louise, one of the bloggers on this website and Colleen’s little sister. I’m just a girl in her mid-thirties who feels thirteen when I play outside with my boys, fifteen when I sing my heart out listening to tunes while driving by myself, and sixty five when I go out past ten at night. I have a thing for junior mints, Mt. Dew, shrimp and kale (though not all at once) and I have a crush on Superman. I still get girlish butterflies when I read Twilight, cry when I read These is My Words, and smile from ear to ear when I read Anne of Green Gables. I have nightmares about aliens on a regular basis and I have a bad habit of midnight snacking. I love everything sports, except golf (although can that honestly be considered a sport??), and I hate anything that slithers, hisses, or stings. I have a problem with giggling at inappropriate moments and I sometimes wish life was a musical. I love science, hate math, love Dr. Seuss, and hate olives. My family is my world and my joys come from their happiness. I’ve learned I don’t know much about anything and I live for a good adventure, naps, cuddles, stories, exceptional food and The Shire.