Jessa Russo: Glamorous New Author

I have mentioned before that one of the greatest perks to this little blog is the exposure I have to authors. I am a notoriously curious creature, and as such the ability to poke and prod their brains with my brilliant questions amuses me. Okay, perhaps brilliant is a bit overstated. This week’s literary dissection  is with a masterful author, one who produced a beautiful first book that quickly earned its place on my bookshelf. When the author of Ever agreed to partake in my little brain prodding session, I was thrilled. Here was an author I enjoyed, one whose writing style is elegant, and immensely different from my own.

Please welcome my second literary dissection, Curiosity Quill’s author, and acquisitions editor, Jessa Russo. I hope you find her thoughts as interesting as I did!

1.       Have you always wanted to be a writer? (I know, I know. Lameness to the extreme but it’s necessary)

Hmm. I know that the appropriate answer should be yes. But that’s not the truth. I never knew I wanted to be a writer. I always wrote poetry, and was recognized in college for writing a pretty awesome report on FIGHT CLUB, but that was it. I wanted to be so many things – a vet when I was a kid, a marine biologist when I went through my dolphin-obsession phase, and mostly a psychologist who worked with autistic children, everything else came and went. But I always wanted to be a wife and a mom. Boring, I know. But that’s the truth. The writing bug bit me late in life. 2009 to be exact.

Kay’s Thoughts:

An epic report on Fight Club? I am intrigued! I wonder if it had anything to do with how sexy a crazy Brad Pitt can be. As for Jessa’s occupational goals, I see nothing wrong with any of those choices! And there is nothing boring about being a mom and a wife. I myself am a mom, and a new wife and I can say it is pretty time consuming, and eventful!

 2.       What was your inspiration for Ever? Was it the first, or did you dabble in other stories?

EVER is the first book I’ve finished, but not the first story I started writing. I began on an Adult suspense/mystery/who-knows-what called POSSESSION. It’s on the back burner, but will eventually be New Adult. And possibly more along the lines of paranormal horror – with love. Always love. I’m a sucker for romance. As for inspiration, Ack! That’s a tough question!

I don’t know if I can really pinpoint my inspiration for EVER. Ever as character had been in my head for a while. But she started out as a girl with a house full of ghosts, and I have no idea why, or where that came from. (CASPER! Loved that movie—Kay) Eventually, I killed off all my darlings and we were left with Frankie.

Kay’s Thoughts:

Possession eh? Sounds like something I may take an interest in. Paranormal horror with love? Works for me! As for being a sucker for romance, who isn’t? Those who say they despise romance confuse me. As human beings, our existence is defined by love. Having it in our written works is a necessity to make the characters more human, more relatable. Plus it makes you all ooey and gooey on the inside. Most of the time. Unless it’s the super “fluffy” stuff in which case I want to vomit. Luckily, Ever is a little more badass than that! Hence why I love it J

3.       So Ever and Frankie were your original inspiration. What about Tobias? Where did he come from? P.S. I seriously love the name Tobias… love love love love love!

Hmm. I have no idea. I knew I wanted someone to be Frankie’s opposite. The antagonist had to be a threat to Frankie, but what is a threat to someone who is already dead? Well, in Frankie’s case, he didn’t want to move on and leave Ever. So THAT would be his biggest threat: someone who would make him do so. And I adore that name too. I named him after someone I knew a long time ago. Also,  I didn’t want to have a huge religious focus on the book. For two reasons – One, I didn’t want to misrepresent angels and demons. And two, I have a lot of respect for religion, and didn’t feel comfortable spinning fiction about it, if that makes sense. So Toby’s roll became one that was serious and detrimental to Frankie, but not in a religious Heaven/Hell sense.

Kay’s Thoughts:

Antagonist? Calling Tobias an antagonist just makes him hotter. I don’t think he actually is the antagonist of this story, but I can definitely see how Frankie would think of him that way. After all, he is setting his sights on the girl Frankie loved so much he eluded death for.

 4.       Did you write Ever with the hopes of publishing it?

Yes and no. I wrote with a goal to finish. I am not a plotter, in my writing, or in my life. I guess I just kind of sit down to do something and hope for the best. And that’s what I did with EVER. I mean, yeah, obviously I eventually wanted my book published – anyone who says differently is lying – but I didn’t have a goal of publishing in the sense that I was trying to write for a niche or trend or anything like that. Like I said, I really just wanted to finish EVER. Especially since I’d already set aside my first writing attempt. I didn’t want to be someone who just started a bunch of projects and never finished them. That’s how my crafting is, and I didn’t want that for my writing. But I am a firm believer that if you want something badly enough, you will finish it.

Kay’s Thoughts:

Yikes! Totally chastised here! See that remark about starting projects and never finishing them? Yeah, that’s me! Well in truth many of my attempts at novels are finished. It’s just once they are done I figuratively lock them into my secret vault (USB drive) and hide them away from the world! Oh Jessa, how you wound me!

5.       How did you get Ever published? Did you attempt the “traditional” way?

Yes, I attempted the traditional way. Though I am looking forward to the day when there is no traditional vs. non, or us vs. them. I queried almost 100 agents. That is a LOT of rejection. Almost all of them were form rejections too. My writing wasn’t even good enough to muster a critique for! But yes, I tried traditional. And then, right before I was about to shelve EVER,

I started looking into smaller publishing houses. I queried a few and then entered a contest. And Krystal Wade was the judge. (Oh really! Now this is fascinating! – Kay) I didn’t even win. I was a runner-up. I was stoked, but didn’t expect anything to come of it because I hadn’t been her “winner.” As a prize, I was to send her my first three chapters for some editorial critique. Within hours she’d requested the full. Within a week I had a contract offer. (I would have died- Kay) It was amazing. And totally unexpected. What’s funny is that I had received an offer by another small pub house that same week. So I went from thinking my writing was total crap, to having to DECIDE!

Kay’s Thoughts:

Jealous? Why yes I am. Two publishing houses wanting to publish your book? That is pretty stellar. No matter how difficult the road, you achieved your goal. You are a success! This was an awesome response, as well as an inspirational one. Keep hacking away at the walls separating you from your goals, and you will eventually break through. Great job Jessa!

6.       What made you chose Curiosity Quills Press over the other publishing house that accepted your manuscript?

Krystal. And the logo.  🙂 Krystal was really awesome. She didn’t just tell me she loved my book, she also sent me a huge email about how much work I needed to put into it before it would be ready to publish. I found that to be a major selling point for me. Maybe I’m a glutton for punishment, but I liked that she already knew what she wanted me to do. I liked that she sent me a 13-page style guide (a secret weapon for CQers) even BEFORE she’d signed me. So she was willing to invest in my writing whether or not she acquired EVER. That said a lot about her as a person. (I bet Krystal is preening right now. I can see it! – Kay)

 

Kay’s Thoughts:

The logo is pretty sick. See it? Isn’t that cool? I think I enjoy the name of the publishing company as well; Curiosity Quills. It appeals to the impatient, curious side of me that renders me a twitching mess when I am forced to wait for answers to my overwhelming curiosity.  *cough* like when having to wait for the next book in a serious *cough*

Krystal is pretty awesome though. So she is allowed to preen.

7.       Your book has a lot of heavy elements, mainly focusing on death and the inability to let go of our loved ones. Did you pull some of these elements from life experiences?

Well, I think the unwillingness to let go is more of a love thing for me. I am a strong believer in love, and I think that love can survive all else. (I’m against divorce, etc.) So Frankie’s inability to move on is based on his undying love for Ever, and Ever’s undying love for him. Though they are young, and their love is young, to them it is all encompassing, if that makes sense. Though it was also a secret hidden from each other, obviously. So it is their love that keeps them from moving on, not anything dark.

As far as death goes, I used my own experiences with death to define the feeling. My dad died when I was sixteen. It was sudden and unexpected, and he was on a business trip in New York, so the day we discovered his death was a terrible day filled with watching my mom handle phone calls from multiple people in NY – none of whom would tell her the truth. Apparently they had to find someone in CA to notify her because laws state that they couldn’t tell her over the phone. Who knows what THAT was all about, or if it is even still an issue, but that was a crazy experience. My feelings revolving around death stem from that day, and sort of wrote itself into the book. Not only how Ever felt about death, but also the people around her.

Kay’s Thoughts:

Losing loved ones is never easy, whether they are your best friend, your grandparents, or in Jessa’s case a parent. Loss is never easy. Letting go of those you lose is even harder. Driven from love, Frankie’s refusal to leave Ever really touched me. And the story development centering around death is beautifully depicted, and yet still gave the reader the impression of severity in the circumstance. You could feel the characters emotions because of Jessa’s elegant words, and it really gave the story a sense of power. Her own tragic experiences gave her story the realistic nature that truly made it come alive. Despite the sadness of the circumstances, Jessa made me proud by casting a realistic eye on how we deal with tragedy.

 8.       If there was one thing you wish for your readers to take away from Ever, what would it be?

Ooh. That’s a good one. Um … Well, I can’t say I was trying to teach any morals or life lessons in my book. I wasn’t. I wanted to write a paranormal romance, and I feel that I did. BUT I do want people to believe in love. I want people to hope for love. Oh man, I’m cheesy. But I also want people to learn something from me. That it’s never too late to chase something you want. I didn’t go to school to get a Masters in literature or creative writing. I didn’t spend the last 32 years honing my trade. I found a passion to write, so I did. I went after it. I found a dream I never knew I had and I chased it. So people should take that away from this book. Or from this interview. 😉 Seriously – I’m a 32 year old housewife. I’m a stay-at-home mom. If you want something, GO FOR IT.

Kay’s Thoughts:

Bring on the cheese! I love that response. I agree completely. Besides, a little cheese every now and then is perfectly acceptable!

9.       When the heck does book two come out? My impatience is even more notorious than my curiosity!

Oh I knew you’d be asking me about that! I should have logged off! Okay, well. I would LIKE to have the books released 6 months apart. That is my goal. BUT right now I am really swamped with my acquisitions position at CQ, and really enjoying that. So I haven’t been writing as much. But once I get some of these manuscripts read, I will get back to the book. I am the YA/NA Acquisitions Editor for CQ now. It’s fairly new, a couple months, and I love it. (Except for when I have to send a rejection. I hate that part. I know how it feels.)

Kay’s Thoughts:

It would seem Curiosity Quills is making a habit of bringing their author’s into the fold. I really enjoy this. You don’t generally see that. What better way than to really build a community by giving the authors a place in an incredible community? I would imagine it not only increases their participation in the publishing house, but also builds their confidence as a writer. Confident writers will sell more books than meek ones who hide in the shadows.

10.   How do you manage? Stay at home mom (not an easy job in the slightest bit), being a wife, writing a book, and being an acquisitions editor? Holy cow!

Well, the house is a disaster, and the book is on hold. For now. And my husband complains a lot that I’m always on the computer or reading. 😉 And I LOVE reading submissions. So I’m doing my best to juggle everything. If I don’t get it all figured out soon though, I’ll have to set the CQ stuff aside to focus on the books.

I don’t want anyone to break down my door looking for book two. (This is where I whistle innocently… – Kay)

Kay’s Thoughts:

Now that is one busy lady! I suppose I will stop hounding you for book two… Sorry that’s a lie. I won’t stop. I can’t. Remember that whole wicked impatient thing about me? Yeah it wins out. Get to work on book 2. Household chores are not that important right? Right? Maybe?

I want to thank Jessa for taking the time to accommodate this interview. It was a great opportunity to connect with an author I admired. She is a great example to determination, and conviction. She knew what she wanted, and she went out and made it happen.

Jessa Russo is the author of Ever, which is a three book series. She hopes to continue her career by focusing on a paranormal horror Possession which will be released under the New Adult genre. Make sure to check out Jessa’s blog to check out the details.