I had the pleasure of meeting Jocelyn
Green at a writer's workshop in Cedar Falls, Iowa. She is definitely
a writer I look up to, as she has already successfully written
non-fiction amidst the duties of motherhood, and now has released her
debut fiction novel, Wedded To War. I just received my copy of it a
few weeks ago, and just the first few pages will keep you wanting
more!
Welcome to the Writer's Alley,
Jocelyn! Tell us a little about yourself and your writing journey.
My husband Rob and I have two active
kiddos- Elsa is 6, and just started first grade, and Ethan is 3, and
going to preschool. We live in Cedar Falls, Iowa. People sometimes
ask me what I do in my free time, and I usually give them a blank
stare. I don’t really have free time, between my family, basic
homemaking, and writing. But if I did, I would like to scrapbook
again and play the piano again and cook more.
I always knew I wanted to be a writer,
even as a child, so I majored in English at Taylor University, and
minored in mass communications and public relations. My first job out
of college was writing public relations materials for my alma mater,
then I moved to Washington, D.C., to be the editor and writer for the
Council for Christian Colleges & Universities. After serving in
that role for two and a half years, I married my husband, who was a
Coast Guard officer at the time, which meant quitting my job and
moving six thousand miles to a small town called Homer, Alaska.
This seemed like a good time to give
freelance magazine article writing a try. So I pursued that, and was
able to freelance full-time for a few years. It was also during this
time I was inspired to write my first book: Faith Deployed: Daily
Encouragement for Military Wives. But it took my agent three
years to find a contract, and by that time I had a one-year-old
(Elsa) and had assumed my writing days were over. Then I got that
first golden book contract, thankfully, and Faith Deployed was
published by Moody in 2008. Since then I’ve written/co-authored
three more nonfiction books, and written a novel. So if any of you
mommies think being published must wait until your kids are grown,
think again!
How did you decide to switch from
writing non-fiction to writing fiction?
I never thought I would write fiction
because I think the competition is so fierce. I wasn’t convinced I
had the slightest chance of making it beyond the slush pile. But I
think the real hesitation was that I hadn’t yet come up with (or
discovered) a fictional story that really cried out to be written.
And then I did. I visited the Adams
County Historical Society in Gettysburg, PA, in the fall of 2010 to
do some research for a nonfiction book that also just released this
summer: Stories of Faith and Courage from the Home Front. My research
there led me to read diaries, letters, and newspaper articles written
by women civilians who were thrust into the drama of war, rose to the
occasion beyond anyone expectations, and affected the course of
history. Reading their words on a rainy day in Gettysburg, the
stories really came to life for me. I kept thinking, “This would
make a great novel! Somebody really ought to write this story!”
Then, a week later, my editor from
Moody called me and said they were looking for more fiction to
publish. So I put my doubts aside and worked feverishly on a book
proposal for a four-book series on unsung heroines of the Civil War.
They liked it, and now we have the Heroines Behind the Lines series!
Wedded to War is Book One.
What are the differences in the
writing process for each?
They are very different. Before I wrote
fiction, I mostly wrote magazine articles and devotions. Those were
all short, between 400 words and 2500 words. And usually, I didn’t
create the story, I just followed it, and then told it. Now with a
novel, I’m writing 100,000 words, and creating not just the story,
but the characters too, plus weaving different subplots together.
Setting up the story world was also a
new experience for me. For instance, I wrote almost 200 short stories
of women and their contributions to various American wars, but they
were very focused just on what the women did and said. When I began
writing Wedded to War, I couldn’t’ stop there. I had to
find out what the women wore, ate, did for fun, what kind of plumbing
they had, etc. I had to know how they would have gotten from one part
of town to another, and how long a train ride from New York to
Washington would have taken (including the stops in Baltimore and
Philadelphia). What newspaper did they read? How much did it cost?
What colors were most popular for formal ball gowns, and how on earth
did they get dressed with all those layers? The story world has to be
accurate and vivid if the reader is going to be immersed in the
novel, so it’s not something we can skimp on.
What I did find useful from my
journalism background, though, was that I knew how to research, and I
knew how to interview people. So before I write my novels, I
interview the characters pretty thoroughly. And I will admit it’s
nice to be able to put words in their mouths. Sometimes I wished I
could do that for my magazine articles!
Just from your descriptive detail
in the first chapter, I can tell you put in a lot of research hours.
How long did you research before you started the first draft?
I spent nine months researching before
I started writing (not including the first 50 pages of the book
proposal). That left me with about two months to write the book,
which was really hard. I told myself I wouldn’t do that ever again,
but here I am on the second novel, and it’s déjà vu!
Do you have any advice for writers
who have a passion for both non-fiction and fiction writing?
Study the conventions and rules for
both genres, because they are quite different, but also look for ways
they can complement each other. For instance, there are some fiction
techniques that can make nonfiction more gripping emotionally, and
there are nonfiction techniques that can strengthen fiction, too.
If you could give one piece of
advice to someone starting out on this journey, what would it be?
Just one piece?
Learn the craft. Now to expand on that: There are no shortcuts in
becoming a good writer. Read books on how to do it. Subscribe to
Writer’s Digest magazine, or something similar. Go to as many
writers conferences as you can afford to go to. Join associations
like American Christian Fiction Writers to get some great networking
and professional development. Also, the most fun piece of advice:
read! Read what you want to write. If you want to write inspirational
romance, read really good inspirational romance. If you like mystery,
read really good mystery. Some things about writing are taught, and
some are caught. (For more specific advice, see
http://www.jocelyngreen.com/on-writing/)
Great tips, Jocelyn! Thank you so much for visiting today. I
can't wait to read the rest of Wedded to War. We hope you will come
visit the Alley again soon!
Thank you! I’d love to come back!
***************************************************************************
Angie
Dicken first began writing fiction as a creative outlet during the
monotonous days of diapers and temper tantrums. She is passionate to
impress God's love on women regardless of their background or belief.
This desire serves as a catalyst for Angie's fiction, which weaves
salvation and grace themes across cultures. She is an ACFW member and
CEO of a family of six.
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