Exclusive Interview with
Jacie Floyd
When did you start writing?
In high school, I wrote some poetry and short stories and began taking writing classes, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that I began to get serious about crafting full length novels.
What makes writing your passion?
How long have you been writing?
Writing seriously with the intent to publish? About 25 years.
Playing around and writing for fun? Most of my life.
The words have always been there, in my head, just bursting to get out.
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
Holding that first book in my hand was one of the proudest moments of my life. So much gratification that I had accomplished a lifelong dream, one that I feared for many years would never come true.
What’s the story behind your choice of characters?
I can never write any story that doesn’t have a strong heroine, a bold hero, and a large cast of friends and relatives. I love the sense of community and the feeling that no matter how bad things get, someone will always have your back.
What annoys you the most in pursuing a writing career?
The need for nearly endless promotion. It’s not my strong suit and takes away too much time from my writing.
How do you get over the “writer’s block”?
We all know the writer’s path is never easy, what makes you keep going? What advice would you give to new authors?
I love creating my characters and their challenges and communities. I will always sit down to bring their stories to life, whatever issues I might have on my writer’s path. The actual writing is a joy and creative release. As long as i have that, I can figure out the rest of it when the manuscript is complete. Writing can be a lonely pursuit. My best advice would be to create a core writing group to stay in contact with, to encourage and advise one another when the going gets tough.
If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?
Stay focused, write more, write as much as you can, as often as you can, you can do it.
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with the bad ones?
I occasionally read them. I like to see if they have a valid complaint about the character or plot. That tells me where I have to do better the next time. If they’re complaining about something that’s just a personal preference for them, not much I can do about that. Not everybody will like what I write. They get to have their say and I have to live with that.
What is the feeling when you get a good review?
There’s really nothing better than knowing I did what I set out to do, told the story I wanted to tell, and brought someone reading pleasure. A really great review can leave me smiling for days.
Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?
Oh, sure. Something that was meaningful or humorous or thought-provoking in some way. I never use someone else’s actual story, I wouldn’t want to invade their privacy that way, but incorporating it in someway into my fictional tale is just a reflection of real life.
Which of your characters you can compare yourself with? Did you base that character on you?
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What do you think, the book cover is as important as the story?
It’s often a gateway factor in a reader making a purchase, but if the story isn’t good, the reader won’t remember it fondly or come back for the next book, no matter how great the cover is.
Do you connect with your readers? Do you mind having a chat with them or you prefer to express yourself through your writing?
I love to hear from my readers, especially on Facebook or Instagram, if they want to talk about books, or reading or writing.
How do you feel when people appreciate your work or recognize you in public?
I’m all for it!
Who is your favorite author? Why?
Oh, my. There are too many favorites to pick just one, too many genres, too many decades of reading enjoyment.
What’s the dream? Whom would you like to be as big as?
Would you rewrite any of your books? Why?
I generally would like to rewrite all of them. The perfect book has never been written. When I’ve finished writing a book, it’s the best I could do at that time. Hopefully, an author’s writing improves as their career progresses and each one will be better than the last. But I have too many stories in my head to go back rewrite my previous work.
If you could switch places with any author – who would that be?
What would you say to the “trolls” on the internet? We all know them – people who like to write awful reviews to books they’ve never read or didn’t like that much, just to annoy the author.
I don’t give them much thought. I prefer to live my life in a positive way, so I feel sorry for anyone who lives their life just to cause trouble for someone they don’t even know.
What would you say to your readers?
Thank you! I’m honored that you’ve chosen to read my stories.
Share a bit about yourself – where do you live, are you married, do you have kids?
I am married and I have two really wonderful grown children. I’m originally from Southern Indiana and moved around all over the Midwest during my adult life. I recently relocated to Louisville, Kentucky to be near family.
What is your day job if you have one?
What are your hobbies? What do you do in your free time?
Did you have a happy childhood?
Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?
Do you have unpublished books? What are they about?
What do you think should be improved in the education of our children? What do we lack?
If you were allowed 3 wishes – what would they be?
What is your favorite music?
Share a secret with us 🙂