Author Interview - Janet Kay Jensen on Life, Writing, and Reading

by Tristi Pinkston | More from this Blogger

25 Jul 2008 02:14 PM

Yesterday we were joined by Janet Kay Jensen, author of "The Booklover's Cookbook" and "Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys." If you missed our first installment, click here to get caught up.

Janet, yesterday we talked about your first fiction book, "Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys," which has received numerous awards. Now let's talk about life as a writer. What is your writing schedule like? Not as disciplined as it should be. I'll be "stuck" somewhere and rather than tackling the problem or working on another segment until I can figure out a solution, I'll just procrastinate. I'm amazed at writers who can publish several books in a year. I don't know if I could ever do that. I also do a lot of editing as I write, so instead of just "getting the story down" I'm looking at language and dialogue and issues I really don't need to address at that point. I will answer the phone and check email rather than focus. Do you write longhand and then type it, or do you do the whole thing on a computer? I depend on my computer. I have terrible handwriting. How long did it take you to write "Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys?"

About 4-5 years, including events which interfered with my writing. And then it took quite a while to find a publisher. It's your first work of fiction, is it not? Do you have plans to write other fiction novels? This is my first work of fiction. A sequel is underway, (tentatively titled "Gabriel's Daughters"), and I have plans for several other works, aimed at the national audience. The first is about adult illiteracy and the profound effect it has on individuals. What are your favorite books to read? You strike me as a Mitford kind of girl. Am I right, or way off base? I do like the Mitford series very much, and I'm really pleased that authors such as Jan Karon and Alexander McCall Smith have had great success without reverting to offensive elements in their books. They have reminded the publishers that a good section of the reading public is hungry for books like these. I'm also a fan of Anne Tyler, Alice Hoffman, Barbara Kingsolver, Jodi Picoult, and Anna Quindlen. I like to pick up classics as well; I've just gone through a Daphne du Maurier phase, followed by Edith Wharton, and I can feel another Dickens attack coming on. If I want to be depressed I'll read Faulkner. Then I have to counterbalance it with something strong and uplifting. And I've been reading works by my colleagues in the regional market, too, to appreciate what my friends are writing and to learn writing and marketing strategies from them. I just introduced my daughter-in-law to the Poldark series, and I may just have to read the whole thing again, for the pleasure of it. Winston Graham is a master storyteller. Another favorite is Neville Shute, the Australian writer who wrote "A Town Like Alice." I recently read "Bel Canto" by Ann Patchett and what a wonderful writer she is. "To Kill a Mockingbird," "Ethan Frome," the abridged "Les Miserables" (yes, abridged!) and "A Separate Peace" remain perennial favorites. I belong to two book clubs so I'm introduced to new books and authors every year.

Wow - you've just listed some of my favorite books of all time. I knew we had a lot in common! I'm going to have to drill you on some of your other favorite things. I'll do that in tomorrow's concluding installment.

Thanks for joining us for our chat with author Janet Kay Jensen. If you'd like to learn more about Janet and her books, you can click here.

Other Author Interviews:

Michele Paige Holmes

James Dashner

Barbara Salsbury

Learn more about Tristi Pinkston

I've been a blogger for Families.com since August of 2006.

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