A Visit with Jodi Lea Stewart

Jodi Lea Stewart was born in Texas and grew up in Apache County on a cattle ranch near Concho, Arizona. She left the University of Arizona in Tucson to move to San Francisco, where she learned about peace, love, and exactly what she didn’t want to do with her life. Since then, Jodi graduated summa cum laude with a BS in Business Management from Letourneau University, raised two children, worked as an electro-mechanical drafter, penned humor columns for a college periodical, wrote regional western articles and served as managing editor of a Fortune 500 company newsletter. She currently lives in Texas and Arizona with her husband, Mark, three standard poodles, two rescue cats and numerous gigantic, bossy houseplants. Silki, the Girl of Many Scarves: SUMMER OF THE ANCIENT is her first novel.

Jodi, tell us about Silki, the Girl of Many Scarves?

Silki lives in the modern-day Navajo Nation, where her mother is a professor at one of the eight colleges, her dad is a silversmith and her traditional grandparents live nearby. Silki is a precocious young girl with an over-the-top imagination, a knack for getting into predicaments, and an addiction to scarves. She is madly in love with her black and white paint horse, Smiles, and loves everything about her world.

She thought she’d made up Wol-la-chee, an Ancient Ant Man, on one of her horseback rides with her best friend Birdie. When Wol-la-chee shrieks into her life one summer day on Concho Mountain, Silki’s world turns upside down. Since Birdie has already accused Silki of mixing up her real and unreal, will she believe her now? As her family pushes her toward more responsibility and respect for her Navajo culture, Silki finds herself catapulting into a mystery in which nothing is as it seems to be.

How did you go about researching the book and how long did the project take from start to finish?

Most of my research for this three-book series came from my own childhood adventures. I grew up in the Arizona high country on a large cattle ranch wedged between the mysteriously gorgeous Navajo Nation and the stunning beauty of the White Mountain Apache Tribe Reservation. My friends were Native American and Hispanic, with a few Anglos thrown in for good measure. Those experiences are permanently embedded in my psyche. Like Silki, I rode horses, climbed giant petroglyph-etched boulders and galloped the winds of my imagination.

Of course, I do normal research via books (millions of them!) and online. A lot of my research for the Silki series was done in the library in Window Rock, the capitol of the Navajo Nation.

When did you start writing and what prompted you to do so?

I’ve always written. My college roommate called me “Jodi the Apostle,” because I couldn’t write anything less than several pages, whether it was a letter or notes in class. My path to publication began when I returned to college when my children were still in school. I happened to take a news-reporting class and became hooked on journalism. I started writing a humor column for several college campuses, and a regional magazine noticed it and hired me to freelance write a few western articles on branding, spurs, early historical pieces, etc. A few years later, I challenged myself to take a magazine writing fiction course. That’s when I fell totally in love with creating my own world through fiction. Silki showed up about then. After several short stories featuring this protagonist, my instructor suggested I write a novel. I did.

Which writer inspired you most with his/her work and why?

Mark Twain. I love his work because it’s sharply rooted in the culture of his day, believable and timeless. I agree with Ernest Hemingway that Huckleberry Finn is the best book ever written.

Who’s your favorite Western writer and which book/novel do you enjoy most?

I’m still a Zane Grey fan. I know they’re simply written, but I find that refreshing. Nowadays, I’m getting hooked on Dale Jackson’s writing. He’s also a friend of mine on Facebook and Twitter. He writes about the old West with a deeply sensitive maturity.

What’s your writing schedule like and do you outline your books or wing it?

When I wrote Summer of the Ancient, I had other obligations by day, which caused me to do most of my writing at night. I was sleepy a lot! I also had a larger learning curve in the beginning and attended many seminars, conferences and webinars. I incessantly read books about the craft of novel writing, and visited the Navajo Nation for first-hand research. So, I guess from the first chapter to its debut in December 2011 took nearly four years. Fortunately, I laid the groundwork for the other two books in this series at the same time.

Nowadays, I’m working diligently to create a routine allowing me to research, write novels, blog, do my social media interaction and still be present for my family and friends. It’s a challenge, no doubt. Right now, I’m taking an online course given by Kristen Lamb, a social media expert and author of two best-selling books on that subject. Ms. Lamb seems to have mastered the new writer’s lifestyle in which authors write and market their writing while baking pies and taking intricate exercise classes at the same time. I want to be just like her when I grow up!

I am a firm believer in a detailed chapter summary system. For me, it’s the most difficult phase, but it’s so worth it! I create my basic plot, subplots, theme, the characters, and literally, what will (mostly) happen next. After that, I allow myself tons of creative license, but I always have my “map” to return to if I become lost. It keeps me focused.

What’s the most difficult aspect of writing for you and the most enjoyable?

The most difficult aspect of writing is finding the time to do it. Seriously, everything else about writing is enjoyable to me. I’m not very happy unless I get to write something every day.

How do you promote your work?

I’m a firm believer in platform building. The best way to do that is by having a professional website, blogging on a regular basis and building your brand on Twitter and Facebook. Of course, in-person author activities are crucial as well.

Advice to unpublished writers?

Persevere. Just don’t give up! If you have the dream of writing in your soul, it’s there for a purpose. Give yourself the best chance you can by never letting anything diminish that burning desire to be a writer. Never stop learning. Read everything, including books about writing, grammar, style, plot and characterization. Attend conferences. Become affiliated with writing organizations. My special ones are Women Writing the West (WWW), Western Writers of America (WWA), and the Society of Childrens' Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

Thanks, Jodi. You can visit Jodi Lea Stewart at her website: www.JodiLeaStewart.com
on Facebook: facebook.com/jodi.lea.stewart
and Twitter: twitter.com/JodiLeaStewart