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First I want to say thank you to Shannon for inviting me to her blogosphere and bringing some attention to children authors and publishers.
JAM: The idea of writing children?s books came to me during a time when my daughter started growing out of watching Sesame Street and Blues Clues. I started looking for fantasy adventure stories with characters that look like her and quickly realized that I couldn?t find any. At first, I thought I wasn?t looking in the right places but the more I looked the more I realized that they weren?t out there. It was during that time that the first story concept started to develop. It was vague with very little detail but I wrote it down on paper. At the time I was working on producing and directing my first short film and didn?t give writing much thought.
The short film came out good and I started turning the story concept into a TV series. It was when I got to the third episode that I realized that it wasn?t what I wanted to do. I realized that I would rather create children fantasy adventures.?
RHP: How do you create characters for the books??
JAM: Characters come to me in different ways. A name will pop in my head with a personality and from that I create a world. If a world comes to mind first I will work on populating it with characters. It really depends on the inspiration.?
For example, the planet Gala, in the book Talee and the Fallen Object came to me before the main character Talee did. She was created to fit into the world and her voice and personality didn?t really start to develop until I started working on the first draft of the book.
RHP: I have a job where reading level of documents is important since they are often being provided to children. How do you ensure that the content you're writing isn't too advanced for your audience??
JAM:The reading level of my books is important to me because I write for children. Once I finish my final draft of a story, I send it off for editing. It's during that time that the reading level is looked at. I currently just went through that process with my up and coming book, Talee and the Fallen Object, which is for children 4-8. The main focus of the editing was to make sure the language was appropriate for the age group.
RHP: You have your own publishing company. Are you actively searching for authors?
RHP: Do you find running a publishing company as enjoyable as writing children's stories? How do you divide your time between the two??
JAM: I do enjoy running/building my company. I do most of the work myself so I see it grow inch by inch. When I published Labyrinth?s Door ? Anyia ?Dream of a Warrior? last year I would tell people I finally got my toe and the floor. Now I tell people I have my feet on the floor and I?m starting to walk. It?s a lot to learn and do, but because of having to do everything step by step I?m becoming a better storyteller, which is one of my main goals. Right now I don't write as much as I do other things but I think it's a good balance for me for the moment.
RHP: What advice would you give to other women who aspire to be entrepreneurs?
JAM: I wouldn't be publishing books if I didn't love being a storyteller. It's hard work to get people to give you a chance. There are a lot of obstacles and a lot of do-it-yourself projects. But because I love what I do it doesn?t bother me so much. So I would tell anyone looking to become an entrepreneur that they should love what ever they decide to do and then figure out how to make it a business and go for it. There is nothing like waking up and doing what you love to do as your job. Just remember, there are going to be bad days. There will be tough times and decisions. And there are going to be days when nothing goes your way and you feel like it's you against the world, but if you love what you are doing that's not going to stop you. You will find a way to make it work and keep on going. And in the end it will all be worth it.?
One of my favorite quotes to read when I started was:
People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive. (Joseph Campbell)
Another one was:
It is sometimes necessary in life to do something extraordinary. (Sagalevitch)
So I say, find what you love to do and do something extraordinary.?? ? ?
RHP: Can you identify any challenges while becoming an author and entrepreneur that you felt were the result of being a minority and/or a woman? How did/do you overcome them?
JAM: I'm not sure if my challenges are due directly to me being a minority or a woman, but I do think that I have struggles because my books are children fantasy adventure stories with strong black female protagonist. It's not an easy market and customers don?t leave reviews on the book, which really does help upcoming authors and publishers.
I also know that when I was working on my short film, a drama, I had a lot more people interested in helping me get it started. I didn't find that when I decided to write children fantasy adventure stories. Which is okay. The genre isn't for everyone. And I?m overcoming those challenges because I stay focused on my goals. I don't look at the challenges of being author and an entrepreneur as much as I look at the progress I am making. I'm just reaching for my dreams and because of that I look at the challenges as part of my journey.
RHP: What else would you like for us to know about you here at Reading Has Purpose???
My latest book, Talee and the Fallen Object, will be available on May 27, 2011. Girls 4?8 will love it. It's a fun read. It will be available on Kindle and Nook as well as on GoodReads.com for $1.99 and the coloring book adventure will be available on my site, WorldsToDiscover.com for $3.99.If you are looking for a book in the age range of 9-12 please stop by and check out Labyrinth?s Door ? Anyia ?Dream of a Warrior?. The paperback book is available for $6.99 on Amazon and at WorldsToDiscover.com. The ebook is available for $1.99 on the Kindle and Nook as well as at GoodReads.com.Source: http://readinghaspurpose.blogspot.com/2011/05/interview-jacquitta-mcmanus-author-of.html
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