{"id":98,"date":"2023-05-06T09:45:25","date_gmt":"2023-05-06T09:45:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/?p=98"},"modified":"2023-05-06T09:45:25","modified_gmt":"2023-05-06T09:45:25","slug":"lone-star-listens-jodi-thomas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/?p=98","title":{"rendered":"Lone Star Listens: Jodi Thomas"},"content":{"rendered":"
Jodi Thomas<\/strong>\u2014or Jodi Koumalats to those who knew her back when she and husband Tom Koumalats both taught school in Amarillo\u2014is a fifth-generation Texan, whose grandmother was born in Texas in a covered wagon. In writing her romance novels, she draws on every ounce of that heritage to craft characters, settings, and situations readers love. The last book in Jodi’s Harmony series, One True Heart,<\/a> is due out this week, and she’ll be on the road reading and signing all month. We’re grateful this multiple RITA award winner and New York Times best-selling author took a few minutes out of her jam-packed schedule to talk about the ways writing has changed her life.<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/div>\n
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LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE:<\/span> Jodi, you\u2019ve published dozens of novels in the past quarter-century-plus. How did your first break come about?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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JODI THOMAS:<\/strong> <\/span>I\u2019ve published over forty<\/span> books now with Kensington, Berkley, Penguin, Putnam and HQN and HarperCollins. Most of the time I was standing still and the publishing world was buying out one another.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I thought selling a book would be easy. It took me two years to write the first book, and I was surprised when no one wanted it. I remember my husband saying when I got the first rejection letter, \u2018you didn\u2019t think it would be that easy, did you?\u2019<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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By then I\u2019d taken every class I could on writing, read every book I could find on writing, and wrote every night. That\u2019s when I figured it out—writing is about a hundred times harder than people think it is.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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After that first rejection I waited a week and started the next book. A year later I went to a national writing conference in Dallas and pitched it to an editor. I didn\u2019t know it at the time, but she was looking for a Texas voice, and I\u2019m about as Texas as they come. I didn\u2019t know how to write deep characters then, so I had to keep killing off characters and bringing in new ones.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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What was the turning point when you determined you could write full-time?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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My third book went up for bids. The Tender Texan \u2014 sappy title but everyone loved the book about the founding of Fredericksburg, Texas. Romance Writers of America named it the Best Historical Romance that year \u2014 my first RITA [Editor\u2019s note: that\u2019s RWA\u2019s annual award for romance fiction, for you newcomers]. I got a two-book contract. So, I went wild. I quit teaching, took out my retirement to live on until I got royalties, bought a new computer and five jogging suits to work in, and went to work. I almost starved that year, but I learned how to work. It\u2019s really simple: a writer writes. Looking back, it was the best move I ever made.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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How has the writing life changed since you started? Did you start out on a computer\/word processor\/typewriter, for instance?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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I wrote my first book on a typewriter. When I moved to a computer my output tripled.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The publishing world in constantly changing. Self-published has rocked the foundation, but when it\u2019s all said, \u2018A writer writes for the reader.\u2019 Some nights I write an hour longer because I know a reader is out there waiting for the next book.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Below: Jodi Thomas’s writing spaces, on campus (left) and at home (right)<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

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You’ve indicated that your forthcoming Ransom Canyon<\/span> is the start of a new series that you’ve been eager to write and publish. Tell us more!<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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The first Ransom Canyon title will be out August 25, 2015. HarperCollins, under the HQN line, will be bringing out six books and two short stories in the next two years. It\u2019s a grand series about ranching and living in a little town. All my characters and the town are fictional. I\u2019m almost finished with the second one and so I feel like I\u2019m living in Ransom Canyon. My characters have very much come alive.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I\u2019ve been spending a great deal of time in Palo Duro Canyon and on ranches. Every time I pass through Lubbock, I stop and drive through Ransom Canyon. Though my stories are fiction, I want to write a series about the people \u2014 ranching and farming \u2014 living with the weather and the seasons. I\u2019ve spent days walking the land with ranches trying to capture the way they feel about the land. From the beginning I knew this story could be set nowhere but the canyons of Texas and it had to be told in a series.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I chose HarperCollins and HQN as the publisher because in August it will be printed in twenty-three languages all across the world. I can\u2019t wait to see how \u2018riding for the brand\u2019 is going to be explained.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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(I\u2019ve turned the little house out back of my 100-year-old house into my book. Sending picture. My Ransom canyon is on the walls of a little room, but my imagination is racing the wind along the edge of the canyon.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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How do feel about the changes in publishing in the age of Amazon, e-books, and indie\/hybrid\/self-publishing?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Mixed feelings. More books, that is great.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I worry about future: I think some new writers jump into publishing too soon—before they\u2019ve polished or found their voice—they get discouraged and give up writing before growing into a great writing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Who are some of your favorite Texas authors and books?<\/strong> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I have hundreds.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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As the writer-in-residence at West Texas A&M, what\u2019s a typical day like for you?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Well, about a hundred e-mails a day come in. So I start my day answering them. Editors, agents, publisher, all with questions. People wanting me to talk (I love that!) and new writers with questions. I also keep up with several writing loops.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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After e-mail I usually have a group of students come in on Tuesday and Thursday. I have several groups who meet once a week. A few times a week I meet with groups in Amarillo or Canyon and we talk writing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Afternoons I work with an intern, or student employee. We\u2019re planning all social network actions \u2014 blog and the like. Sometimes we meet about the Writing Academy I founded five years ago: one week in June new writers come to West Texas A&M and live in the dorm, and we study writing all day.  The West Texas A&M Writing Academy has launched many writers into careers in writing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I usually make it home about five or six. We have dinner then about seven or eight, and I go to my study and work until ten or eleven. On weekends I work off and on all day. I never take a \u2018day off\u2019 unless there is something that keeps me from writing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The perennial question of \u201cCan writing be taught?\u201d has resurfaced again with recent opinion pieces in creative writing circles. What is your take on that question?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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A small part of writing is art, most is craft. I\u2019ve seen so many talented writers never published because they don\u2019t work. Learning the craft takes years. We can teach most of that.  But the art! That spark inside of people who say \u201cWhat if?\u201d\u2014that has to be nurtured, not taught.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Side note: English was my worst subject in school. I still can\u2019t spell, and I think commas were dropped off by aliens just to bug mankind. One day I said I was sorry to my editor for the creative spelling. This senior editor, at the biggest publishing house in the world, said to me, \u201cJodi, if I could write like you, I\u2019d be a writer and not an editor. You write—I\u2019ll watch for the spelling.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The question I fear in interviews is \u201cWhere do your ideas come from?\u201d Sometimes I can say where, but most of the time I\u2019m not sure. I don\u2019t make characters up. They come to me, sit down in front of my desk in my mind, and tell me their stories.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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What advice would you offer aspiring writers?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Creativity is not a bucket, it\u2019s a river. The more you use it the more creative you become. Writing is hard work. You carry your job with you everywhere.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Writing isn\u2019t just a job you do, it\u2019s who you are.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I couldn’t agree more! Now, I just have to ask: What is your favorite Texas meal?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Chicken fried steak, of course.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

* * * * *<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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About ONE TRUE HEART<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Millanie McAllen is always logical. But after returning to her childhood home, she learns that some things are beyond explanation\u2014like her undeniable passion for Drew Cunningham\u2026<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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After finding success as a singer on the road, Beau Yates returns to Harmony to make peace with his dying father\u2014only to find the woman he\u2019s been dreaming of for years. But the secrets they discover might be too much for him to bear\u2026<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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When Johnny Wheeler is charged with his wife\u2019s murder, he turns to the only person who believes he\u2019s innocent. Fortune teller Kare Cunningham\u2019s life has always danced around reality\u2014but Johnny is able to ground her like no other\u2026<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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As their paths cross in new, captivating directions, the townspeople of Harmony need to learn to love and let go in order to live together in their little slice of heaven.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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More on Jodi Thomas’s books <\/span><\/span>can be found on the author’s website at www.jodithomas.com<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

Historical:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Beneath the Texas Sky<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Northern Star<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Tender Texan<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Prairie Song<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Cherish the Dream<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Texan and the Lady<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

To Tame a Texan\u2019s Heart<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Forever in Texas<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Texas Love Song<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Two Texas Hearts<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Wife Lottery Series:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Texan\u2019s Wager<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

When a Texan Gambles<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

A Texan\u2019s Luck<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Texan\u2019s Reward<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The McLain Series:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Texan\u2019s Touch<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

To Kiss a Texan<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

To Wed in Texas<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Twilight in Texas<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Texan\u2019s Dream<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Whispering Mountain Series:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Texas Rain<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Texas Princess<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Tall, Dark, and Texan<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Lone Texan<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Texas Blue<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Contemporary Fiction:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Widows of Wichita County<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Finding Mary Blaine<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Secrets of Rosa Lee<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Twisted Creek<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Rewriting Monday<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Harmony Series:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Welcome to Harmony<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Somewhere Along the Way<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Comforts of Home<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Anthologies:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sweet Hearts<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

A Country Christmas<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Loving Hearts<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Stardust<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

How to Lasso a Cowboy<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Give Me a Texan<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Give Me a Cowboy<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Give Me a Texas Ranger<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Give Me a Texas Outlaw<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

A Texas Christmas<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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