Vanessa Sperling interview

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

A little introduction:

My name is Vanessa Sperling. I'm a technical writer professionally. I live in Northwest Arkansas, USA now, but I've lived in various places in the Midwestern United States and Canada, including Kansas, Nebraska, and the province of Alberta.

When did your love of books begin?

I feel like I was born with a love of books. My father was a book collector and sold out-of-print books. He was a published poet and was very interested in studying writing. My mother was -- and still is -- an avid reader of many genres. Books of many different kinds and sizes and designs and genres were everywhere in the house. 

When did you start to have the wish to become an author?

When I was around four years old, I decided it was time for me to start writing books. It didn't matter to me that I didn't even know how to read yet! My mother was a very patient scribe. I would tell her the story, and she would write it down for me in little notebooks that I carried around with me to prove I was an author. From that point on, I assumed that being a writer was the only thing I would ever be any good at.

How have you found the process for becoming an author?

After starting my life with such conviction that being a writer was all I could ever be, I gave up on the concept when I entered high school. I think I was influenced by those around me who saw writing professionally as a childhood dream that wasn't practical. I never stopped writing for my own enjoyment, but I never seriously considered working toward becoming a published author. I'd still be in that same place today if it wasn't for the new possibilities in self-publishing. I wrote my latest book partly as an experiment to learn how self-publishing works. As I've been learning along the way, I've started looking at my writing completely differently and can't wait to see what the next project might be.

What would you say to those wanting to become an author?

Don't define your identity by a job description, such as an author or illustrator or poet. Define yourself as a Lebenskünstler. That's a German word that means "life artist." It describes a person who sees everything they do as a creative adventure and their life itself as a constantly evolving work of art. It has nothing to do with whether or not the person works as an artist professionally. If you define yourself as a creative work that you have been personally commissioned to design, build, and share with others using your unique gifts and perspective, other creative works, such as poetry, drawings, stories, etc., will happen naturally and authentically. This identity will make it easier to cope with imposter syndrome or other challenges that might discourage you from embracing and expressing your unique and multifaceted creativity.

Tell us about your book/books:

Merryman is a story about Jess Picaro, a sixteen-year-old boy living in 1890. He's had a difficult life and has been making poor choices for a long time. As the story opens, he has made one particular decision that has led him to believe that he must run away from home and start his life over in a new place. In his new home, Jess tries to cover up his past, but he also starts to build relationships with people who challenge him to see himself differently than he has before. When his past catches up to him and he is forced to think more deeply about who he really is, he understands how much he has been changed by his new life and the impact he has had on the people who have come to care about him. He has to make a very difficult choice which he knows may end in tragedy.

What do you love about the writing/reading community?

I'm new to using social media as a way of connecting with writers and readers, so I'm still learning. But I have particularly enjoyed connecting with other self-published authors who, like me, would never have considered putting their work out in the world if traditional publishing was the only viable option. Learning from them has been a wonderful experience.

If you could say anything to your readers what would it be?

First, thank you. There are millions of amazing stories in the world, and it honors and humbles me that you chose my story out of all of them to take up this little space of time you make for reading. I sincerely hope that my book turned out to be a good choice for you.

Second, my greatest hope is that my story moves something inside you that makes you want to write or keep writing stories of your own. My favorite books and films are those that make me feel inspired to use what I learn from them to make something new that is uniquely mine. There are amazing stories that I love, but, sadly, also make me feel very inadequate and small when I stand next to them. I want to write stories that make readers feel like they're standing next to a good friend who believes in them and wants to hear their stories too.

Where can people connect with you?

I use a Twitter account at @merryman1890 to document my journey as I've written this story. I really love connecting with readers and writers that way.