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| Lori L. Lake: Jessie,
could you tell us a little bit about yourself and what
you write? |
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Jessie Chandler: I'm currently the store manager
of True Colors Bookstore, formerly Amazon Feminist
Co-op in Minneapolis, which is under different management
thanks to new owner Ruta Skujins. Before Ruta lured
me away with her big smile and lots of chocolate,
I was merchandising at Borders Books, where I worked
in various management positions for almost six years.
I'm thrilled to be out of Corporate America!
I've loved to read since I was old enough to hold
a book right-side-up, and I go nuts over mystery/thrillers,
and so of course, that's what I write. For now, anyway,
it's comic lesbian mysteries. I've dabbled in some
free-form poetry and have written one single, solitary
short story. Writing short stories freaks me out for
some reason, and I suppose one of my Loft teachers
will soon challenge me into tangling with another
one sometime soon.
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| LLL: How long have
you been writing? Have you always wanted to be a writer? |
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Jessie: At eleven or twelve, I decided I was going
to write a book. A Western, in fact, complete with
cowboys and horses and sand burrs and saddle-sores.
After writing nearly six pages in an old, ratty, spiral-bound
notebook, I decided writing was brain-numbingly boring.
I hung up my pencil in exchange for entertaining the
next-door-farm-neighbor's brand-new baby goat, riding
their just-about-ready-to-be-bacon hogs around the
pigpen (until the oinkers wised up, waddled over to
the electric fence, and zinged us right off their
backs--mark my words, pigs are not stupid), and waging
mud wars on unsuspecting neighborhood kids. Writing
was forgotten until I hit high school,when I had lots
of typical teenage angst and started writing poetry.
Oh, and my one short story.
Then about three years ago I picked up a copy of J.
M. Redmann's mystery, The Intersection of Law and
Desire. I finished it in about a day and a half.
For the next two months I hunted down copies of her
other three Micky Knight novels. I absolutely love
Redmann's writing. When I read the last word of Lost
Daughters and had no other Redmann titles left,
I was crushed for days. I mourned that I wouldn't
be able to spend more time with Micky and Cordelia
and Danny, that I wouldn't be involved in whatever
adventures they were embarking on next. So one day,
puttering dejectedly around the Net like a forlorn
soul, I somehow stumbled across the NaNoWriMo website--which
stands for National Novel Writing Month, held each
November. If you've never heard of NaNo, it's a yearly
challenge to anyone who has always dreamed of writing
to pen a novel of at least 50,000 words in the space
of one month.
I decided to try this writing business one more time.
Since then, I haven't looked back. I finished that
novel by the end of November, and have since done
NaNo twice more. The magic of writing has returned,
and I've had a ball. Although I'd love to be published
and one day soon hope to be, I have so much fun writing
that in the end it doesn't really matter.
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| LLL: Has what you
write changed much since you first started? Tell us
about some of the changes. |
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Jessie: Man, oh man. What I write now really has
changed and evolved, and it's totally evident through
the three mysteries I've written. The first two, intended
to be a series, were really more practice runs. You
can read all the books on writing you can get your
hands on, but until you practice the craft, you're
not going to improve. With the first two, I learned
a ton about character, plot, voice, all that. In this
third mystery, the beginning of a new series, I really
feel like I've found my comfort zone. Every day I'm
learning new things, and integrating that knowledge
into my writing.
Originally, I wanted to be witty like Janet Evanovich,
MaryJanice Davidson, Elizabeth Sims, Sandra Scoppettone,
and Ellen Hart. When I wrote my first two novels,
they were both rather hard-edged and not particularly
humorous. The darker tone of the books surprised me
when I was finished. As I look back, I think some
of what I was dealing in my life oozed onto the pages
and flavored the words. Channeling the emotion and
all that.
Apparently two manuscripts were what it took to get
that seriousness out of my system. The third and current
mystery I'm working on is lighter, will make you chuckle,
and actually feels a whole lot more like me.
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| LLL: When you were
a very young girl do you remember what you wanted to
be? What was your favorite book when you were a child? |
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Jessie: The first thing I wanted to be was a veterinarian,
until I witnessed the neutering of my puppy, Pokey.
Then I decided I wanted to be a helicopter pilot instead.
Ironically enough, nothing to do with writing!
Boy, my favorite book. I remember lying in bed with
my Grandma as she looked at her magazines before lights
out, and reading, or trying to read, actually, a worn-out
copy of a collection of Peanuts comics. It had a blue
cover, I recall that. I'd have to say that was my
favorite for a long time.
After that, when I could read more than three and
four letter words, I zinged through all of the Nancy
Drews, Hardy Boys, Encyclopedia Browns, The Three
Investigators, Black Stallions, and Louis L'Amour
westerns I could get my hands on.
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| LLL: Who are the top
five authors who have influenced you the most, and why?
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Jessie: Wow. Good question.
I would definitely have to say Sandra Scoppetone and
her Lauren Laurano series made a huge impact on me.
I also got into Katherine V. Forrest's Kate Delafield
series at about the same time, and both of these trailblazing
women helped me realize there could be mysteries with
lesbians as the main stars of the show. Talk about validation.
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LLL: And it's so cool that you got to meet her!
That's a great picture of you and Katherine on the
Home page. Don't you feel that you've been lucky to
meet some really great teachers and mentors?
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Jessie: Oh, yeah. For instance, Ellen Hart
has been a great influence as well, both in her writing
and in her teaching. I've taken her mystery writing
class a couple of times and she's a wonderful resource
for help and support. In fact, it was her encouragement
that helped me believe that what I write might one
day actually be good enough to publish. For that,
among many things, I will always be grateful.
Of course, there's J. M. Redmann, as I mentioned before.
Both Clive Cussler and Patricia Cornwell influenced
the thriller side of my writing.
And last, but not least, and maybe honestly, the most
influential author is you, Ms. Lori L. Lake. I've
taken a number of excellent classes of yours, and
you've challenged me in my writing, helping me to
improve every time I tap a key. You've introduced
me to the Golden Crown Literary Society, to the GCLS
convention, to the national organization of Sisters
in Crime, and to your chocolate chip cookies. Aw,
I could blather on, but honestly, you've been a huge
influence, pushing me into being a better writer all
of the time. In fact, you've even dragged me kicking
and screaming into the 21st century by compelling
me to create a website.
Oops, I have more than five bodies of inspiration!
Um, can I have a cookie now?
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| LLL: You deserve cookies
for the hard work you've done, but you should take the
credit, Jessie. Ellen and I have encouraged you, but
you're the one taking the bull by the horns and making
something happen. Do you feel like your educational
background - other than Ellen's and my classes at The
Loft - has had an impact on your writing, either positive
or negative? Has it influenced what you write about? |
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Jessie: I graduated from St. Cloud State in Minnesota
with a major in television journalism and a minor
in criminal justice. Actually I was a criminal justice
major, and in my last year, I needed to take a statistics
class in order to do my final thesis. I found out
I would have to go into remedial arithmetic (four
classes in all) to be able to take that stats class.
Not one to mess around, I creatively changed my major
to something that did not require any math whatsoever,
thus TV journalism.
Hmm, what impact has that expensive education had
on my writing? Well, in the sense of mystery writing,
the criminal justice stuff has been pretty helpful.
The journalism stuff had me working with words in
a way I never had before, and that probably loosened
up some of my school-paper-structured brain cells.
I'd say that the general major/minor subjects, more
than anything specific, have influenced my writing,
both within the criminal justice arena and in journalism.
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| LLL: Have you always
aspired to be a published author? Not every writer actually
wants to be published, but if you do, can you tell us
something about where you would most seek publication? |
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Jessie: Actually, as I talked about a little bit
before, when I started I never aspired to be published.
I did think it would be cool, if gee, one day I might
have a book out, but no, I never went into it with that
frame of reference. I'm not sure if that makes me noble
or lazy. Now, however, I do want to be published, mostly
because I want to entertain people, and make them laugh
out loud every so often. I never would have gotten to
this point, to think I might actually stand a chance
of being published, without the belief of my two writing
groups, the Hartless Murderers and Queer Writers; Ellen
Hart, and you, Lori.
I think that for any unpublished author, a good place
to start might be with the small presses as opposed
to the gargantuan New York houses. I think chances for
publication are better. Of course, there are number
of tradeoffs. With the smaller presses I think a writer
tends to get more one-on-one editorial assistance and
may have a little more input and control on their book.
Downside - you're doing it for love of writing, not
to get rich. At the larger publishing houses in New
York, you might get more visibility, and there is the
chance of some ching, especially if you're the next
Dan Brown. But don't hold your breath. The small presses
tend to work directly with the author, while the NY
houses deal with an agent who represents the author.
Specifically for me, with what I am writing now, my
niche falls within the smaller lesbian presses: Bella,
Regal Crest, Bold Strokes, Blue Feather, Intaglio, to
name a few.
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| LLL: If you met a
young or new writer, is there any advice you would give
her? |
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Jessie: First of all, write what's in your heart.
Write what feels good. You can go through it all later
and adjust it, fix it, spruce it up, tone it down,
whatever. But you have to be passionate about what
you write, because if you're not, you'll stop cold
with a big bad case of nasty writer's block. Or worse,
you won't want to write anymore at all.
Secondly, read. Read what you want to write. Notice
how your favorite authors put their books together.
Notice how dialogue is written. What captures you
in a novel? What makes you not want to shut the light
off at 3:00 a.m.?
I remember when I first started NaNo, and there was
a question posed...something to the effect of what
in my eyes makes a good novel. For me, it's first
person narration, a good mystery with some thrill,
quirky characters, feisty old people, animals, happy
endings, etc.
Then you were supposed to jot down what bores you,
depresses you, or generally makes you unhappy. For
me, that was books that are literary, pretentious,
dark, that have too much description and not enough
dialogue, and employ sad endings, among other things.
It was a good exercise for me, because it helped me
focus on what made me happy, and isn't it all about
making one happy? Remember, write because you love
it. Get the bones down now and you can plaster them
with flesh, sinew, tendons, and skin later.
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| LLL: Was there a moment
in your life when you knew for certain that writing
was exactly what you wanted to do? If so, was it some
pivotal person or event that caused it? |
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Jessie: The moment in my life when I knew I needed,
wanted, just had to be a writer, a real
writer, was when I shared my first manuscript with
my partner Betty, and periodically I heard her giggle
out loud. I loved that. I loved the charge I got out
of feeling like I shifted something in someone that
allowed her to forget reality for a little while and
get lost in a story that made her laugh, maybe made
her cry, made her wonder and ultimately want more.
For me, the process of writing, of creating characters
that turn into friends and worlds that become places
I want to inhabit, is addicting. It's certainly a
way for me to escape to another dimension, to one
I'm completely in control of. Or, one I'd like to
think I'm in control of. Sometimes those characters
and places and events have a way of going off on their
own, happily dragging you along for the ride. That's
probably the best of the best experiences of writing.
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| LLL: Have there been
people in your life who challenged or altered the way
you view(ed) yourself? Your work? Your world? If so,
please tell us about some of them. |
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Jessie: Both Ellen Hart, and you, Lori, have been
instrumental in the way I view myself as both a person
and a writer. I have taken a lot of strength from
both of you, and it's helped me to believe in myself.
My first writer's group, the Hartless Murderers (created
after the first class I took with Ellen) includes
TJ Roth, Brian Landon, Joan Murphy Pride, and Kirstin
Thomas. If I hadn't been encouraged by Ellen in class,
I would never have believed I was worthy enough of
being part of a writing group. Now we've been together
for almost three years, and we have each all but finished
novels and are working on revisions and rewrites.
The belief these silly people have in me is tremendous,
and without them I do believe I would have quit long
ago.
The 9-11 disaster isn't a person, but that event changed
my outlook on just about everything in my life. It's
so important to do what you enjoy, and stop doing
what you don't. Life is too short, and things can
change in less than the blink of an eye, so you better
grab the bull by both horns and really live.
Most recently, I would have to say that my mom, who
recently passed away, reinforced to me the fact that
life is very short, and you need to make the most
of it while you are here on earth, living and breathing.
Especially toward the end, she really began to understand
and share with me her feelings that you only get one
chance, and you need to do what is right for you.
I'm trying really hard to live that truth.
Geez, that got a little deep!
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| LLL: When do you think
your book will be ready to submit for publication? |
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Jessie: I am setting a goal for having my book
ready for submission by the end of November 2008.
That's the end of the NaNo event, and I think I'll
use that as the kick in the butt to "get 'er
done."
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| LLL: Is there a fictional
book that changed your life? How about a non-fiction
book? |
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Jessie: A fictional book that changed my life
. . . it would probably have to be the books in J.
M. Redmann's Micky Knight series. I'm sounding like
a broken record here. But honestly, I was touched
in a way I can't explain, and ultimately I believe
it was the catalyst that led me where I am today.
As far as non-fiction goes, I would have to say SARK's
Make Your Creative Dreams Real. I read the entire
book in one night, and it's amazing! Great advice,
creatively done. It really reached into my soul and
spoke to me. Best of all, it was just plain fun!
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| LLL: Are there books
you like to read over and over? Can you think of any
books you wish you could read again for the first time? |
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Jessie: Boy, I used to read anything by Clive
Cussler over and over again. And of course the Micky
Knight books. I usually don't read sci fi, but there
was a series by EE Doc Smith that dealt with the Family
d'Alembert that I read and reread.
If I could read anything again for the first time
it would have to be Julie Ann Peters Keeping You a
Secret. That was a terrific young adult novel, and
actually made me think about doing something in the
YA arena.
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| LLL: What else should
people know about you? |
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Jessie: Geez...well, I'm fun loving and I like
to eat. A lot. Especially good chocolate and cookie
dough.
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| LLL: Well, I guess
we've gone on and on long enough, ay? Anything else
we ought to cover? |
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Jessie: Nope. That about does it for now. Thanks,
Lori!
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| ©
2008 Jessie Chandler |
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