Spotlight on: J.Q. Rose, author
Thank you for stopping by this week!
Just for my blog followers, J.Q. has extended her giveaways until Jan. 16, 2022.
Remember to post a comment so that she can notify you :-)
Connie: Why did you choose J. Q. Rose as your pen name?
J.Q.: J for Janet, Q for my maiden name, Rose, because roses are my favorite flower, and I was in the floral business.
Connie: What was the inspiration for Arranging a Dream: A Memoir?
J.Q.: The real inspiration for the story was planted in the 80s when a writer in my writer's group brought in a journal penned by her great, great, great grandfather, who was a minister in England in the late 1800s. She read his entries in the journal, taking us back to his times. I was so moved by his writing that I decided recording our lives and times for future generations was necessary.
I began teaching workshops on writing life stories in 2000 to encourage folks to record their lives. I wrote right along with the participants, so I had many stories about my life—vignettes over the years. I finally took the time to sit down and write about this first year we were in business.
A memoir is just a slice of life, not the entire story from birth to the present.
Connie: All novelists conduct extensive research, even when writing fiction. So, please tell us about your literary pilgrimages.
J.Q.: We made trips back to Atlanta, Illinois, my hometown, to help me remember locations and stir up memories. Atlanta is home to me, even if I have lived in a few different places. It will always feel like home because memories of my family, my childhood experiences will remain in my heart forever.
Connie: How long did it take you to complete this novel?
J.Q.: I thought about it for a long time, but I began writing in 2006. I wrote off and on during those years but really got serious in 2018. I set aside an appointment with myself to write every day after lunch.
The book was scheduled to be released in June 2020 by BWL Publishing. Still, when Covid hit in March 2020, my publisher, Jude Pittman, realized the effect the stress had upon authors trying to meet a deadline while overcoming the pressures of dealing with the pandemic. She asked if anyone needed more time to finish their books. I admitted I needed the time because I couldn’t focus on finishing up the manuscript.
Thus, the release date was moved to January 2021. I was relieved to have the extra time to get myself together, not just for writing, but for living through the upsetting and mind-blowing time when the first waves of the pandemic swept through.
Connie:: We can all certainly relate to those days.
Do you have a favorite paragraph/line of dialogue in this novel?
J.Q.: Arranging a Dream is a story about my husband, Ted, and me when we purchased a flower shop and greenhouse operation in 1975 in Michigan. We were at odds with the previous owner, Hattie, because we wanted to make changes. The following lines in the book always make me want to stand up and cheer for us!
***
Chapter 19, Sabotaging Easter, p. 94
As Hattie strolled through the showroom, she spotted a terrarium Ted had planted in a glass aquarium. Instead of fish, the container was partially filled with soil and plants. To make a cute scene, he added little figurines of woodland animals, blue rocks for a stream, rocks, and more natural pieces.
Hattie studied the beautiful creation then looked at the price tag. The price was $28.00, a high-ticket item in 1976. “Good luck selling that!” she snorted.
We sold it that afternoon.
NOTE: $28.00 in 2021 dollars is equal to $144.66!!!
