JULIE L. BROWN WITH WENDY HINMAN
/Please describe your early influences and how you developed your skills as a writer.
My mother put the first book in my hand when I was three years old; I have been holding one ever since. In my early years, I devoured mysteries and thrillers—Patricia Cornwell, David Morrell, Scott Turow, Robert Ludlum, and Richard North Patterson—but also historical fiction and literature—Pat Conroy, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Laura Van Wormer, Herman Wouk, and Leo Tolstoy—and one of my favorite writers bridged both genres, Ken Follett. I imagine the spy novelist wrote a historical fiction against the advice of many people. Pillars of the Earth became one of the best-selling novels of all time.
I was a “math person” growing up and came to writing later in life. Fourteen years ago, my wife told me since I always critiqued books I read, I should become a writer. I responded, “I’m a reader, not a writer.” That night, however, I dreamed of the plot for a book. The next morning, I googled “how to write a novel,” read many writing books, attended writing conferences, and five years later published, Don’t Speak, the same book I’d dreamed about. Two years ago, I attained my MFA.
How did you go from finished manuscript to published novel? How long did it take? How has your publishing journey changed since your first published book?
No One Will Save Us began as my thesis in my two-year MFA program, then I worked on it for another year after graduation. My first book took me five years; there was a lot of trial and error involved. The other books in the Jade Harrington series take me a year to write.
Can you describe your writing process?
I am a plotter and outline the novel prior to beginning, but give myself creative license to deviate from the plan when needed. I am a Stephen King “butt in seat” kind of writer and approach it like a job. When I’m in the throes of a manuscript, I wake up early and write for two hours before my day job, two hours after work, and four to sixteen hours on the weekend.
You have written political thrillers and historical fiction with a hint of fantasy. How is your writing affected by the type of story you are telling?
This is a great question. Different genres require different conventions, and I have read a lot of books in both. No One Will Save Us required a significant amount of research. In historical fiction, appropriate details for the time period, such as setting, clothing, and speech, are important. Another difference is that my Jade Harrington series has many of the same characters and settings from book to book. I know them. With No One Will Save Us I started from scratch, but if Ken Follett could make the transition, I could, too.
How do you determine the approach you’ll take to narrating a story? Can you give us a specific example from your work?
With the Jade books, I originally told the story from five points of view (POV). My editor said there were too many, and I narrowed it down to two, FBI Agent Jade Harrington and Senator Whitney Fairchild. With No One Will Save Us, I began with third-person POV of the three girls: Chi, Efe, and Fatimata, but it wasn’t working, so I narrowed it down to Chi. One day, a faculty member at my MFA program asked me, “Why aren’t you telling this story in the first person?” I couldn’t give him a good reason. I rewrote the first chapter in first person, and realized he was right. I revised the entire manuscript.
6. What techniques do you use to bring settings alive? Can you give us a specific example from your work?
I try to see what my characters see, and as I mentioned, I do a significant amount of research to ensure my facts are as accurate as possible. I also like to provide a detail only an expert or someone who is familiar with that environment would know. In NOWSU, Chi arrives in America, and I tried to write about this foreign land, the people, and the clothing as if I had seen it for the first time, although I have lived here for decades.
Who inspires your characters? What techniques do you use to make them believable? Can you give us a specific example from your work?
Many characters come from my imagination, but some could be based on a real person or an amalgamation of several people. Sometimes, I envision an actor playing the character in a movie, such as the formidable Angela Bassett as Queen Adebola. I create detailed profiles for each character, but putting characters together and seeing how they interact brings out more characterization.
Where do you look for inspiration? Can you describe a setback you’ve experienced and how you worked past it?
I read a lot, and I love studying how writers do certain things—a turn of phrase, a surprise, how they have held my attention. I also keep an inspiration bulletin board over my desk with quotes or compliments and words of encouragement from readers, faculty, and other writers.
My biggest setback is time. I want more of it to write.
What has been the most valuable lesson you’ve learned as a writer? What did you learn that you wish you’d known sooner?
The writing life is challenging. In this business, perseverance is key. I try to focus on entertaining my readers and spending time doing something I love. The rest is lagniappe.
What key advice would you give an aspiring writer?
Read, read, read writers within and outside your genre. Write, write, write. As with any endeavor, you can only become better by practicing. The 10,000-hour rule is real. Find your tribe. A writing community will make you a better writer and support you so that you do not have to face this writing life alone. And don’t give up. Julie L. Brown