Ask the Author: Jennifer Archer
Answered Questions (6)
Jennifer Archer
My last published book, The Shadow Girl, was inspired by a legend held by the native Americans that lived in the Spanish Peaks of Colorado. The legend says that those that live in the shadow of the peaks never die. From that legend, the character of Iris was born.
Jennifer Archer
I find a story idea that intrigues me, about a character whose story I have to tell. Even then, some days inspiration eludes me. That's when I take a break from the page, take a walk, do something else, let the story percolate in the back of my mind for a bit.
Jennifer Archer
I am reworking some of my early novels and they will be reissued with new covers and titles. I am also in the early stages of planning a mainstream novel set in the 1920's and loosely based on the life of my great-aunt who was a "flapper" in NYC!
Jennifer Archer
Write, write, write. You learn and get better by doing. Read, read, read. You learn and get better by studying the work of other writers. Be open to constructive criticism, but only from people who are qualified to give it. Editors, literary agents, writers who are published -- preferably in the genre you are writing. Don't give up!
Jennifer Archer
I get to live many different lives through my characters!
Jennifer Archer
I find that the best way to break through writer's block is to write my way through it. I write down a line or two at the top of a piece of paper -- for instance, "How would my protagonist work out her problem," then I set a timer for 15 or 20 minutes and start writing. I call these "timed writings" and there are only 2 rules to follow: (1) I can't stop writing until the timer goes off. Can't even pause to think. Whatever goes through my mind goes onto the page. It may start out as, "I can't think of anything to write. I wish I'd never started this story. I can't do this...etc." All of that goes onto the page. Soon, something clicks and I'm writing, "What if...?" For instance, "What if Tansy got rid of Henry's journal? Or what if she just told her mother what she was experiencing? That might work. Or she could..." This practice inevitably helps me push through a block and find the right direction to take my story.
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