Author Interview with Joanne Giacomini

1. What’s the difference between a chapbook and a short story? What genres lend themselves to the format?

A chapbook is a smaller book that contains a collection of poetry, shorter anecdotes, quotes. There are no stories in it. It could also contain religious texts. A short story recounts something true or fictional and has a beginning, a middle and an end to it.

2. Are there subtle difference between YA, and adult stories, regardless of the genre–or are the differences more pronounced? Which do you prefer to write, YA or adult? Why?

I find there are only subtle differences in YA and adult stories whether they be romance, fantasy or suspense. For YA, the sexual content and language is often more toned down, particularly for the younger teen set as well as the graphic violence. For adult content, it is no holds barred depending on the writer too, of course. I can’t say I prefer to write either adult or YA. I have a YA Fantasy/Paranormal Romance Series out on Amazon and may write another. So far, other than that male teen character that came to me over eight years ago, the characters that speak to me are in their twenties and older. I just happen to be channeling these kinds of age groups and stories. I would have to say writing a YA series and now several adult series are fun to do. I can still remember back to my teens and as the characters in most of my books are younger than me, I remember those days too.

3. Where do you find inspiration for your books?

The characters will usually start talking to me out of the blue. I have noticed that spending a lot of time in nature (I do regular nature walks in parks or woods near my home), as well as the writing workshops I have done in the past with prompts, have taught my brain to look for inspiration all around me. I could be in a store, in the shower, hear a song, and a character or story idea comes to me now. I also have been inspired by news articles, song lyrics and phrases family, friends or work colleagues will utter. It’ll often spark a story.

4. Tell us what a typical day is like for you.

I get up between 6:00-6:30 a.m. and eat breakfast. After my son and husband leave for school and work at 7:30 a.m. I meditate and write in my gratitude journal. Afterwards I make my lunch, shower and get ready to go to work at my day job. I work as an Integration Aide at a local elementary school 10 minutes away. I love it. It’s the first day job I’ve ever loved since I graduated. Working with neuro diverse children like my son has helped me find a great purpose in life as well as help my creativity flourish like never before. I’ve learned to channel my own inner child as I never could in the past.

When I am able to, I write at lunchtime for 20 minutes. When I come home, I have a snack and will also squeeze in some writing or social media time to promote my latest story or series. After my son comes home, we talk for an hour, then I do yoga, cook dinner and after the dinner routine is complete, I go downstairs to squeeze in another hour of editing before my son comes down for our evening chat. Some days I just get in one hour of writing, but most of the time I can find small pockets of time Monday-Friday like the 20 minutes at lunch or 20 or 30 minutes before my son comes home to write. As time is limited for writing due to working a day job and having a family, I am always writing one story and editing another to try and get my books finished and released faster. Weekends are different. I usually reserve Saturday afternoons 2-5 to write and I write 1 hour in the morning, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., and an hour at night, 8:30-9:30 p.m., in between my son’s extra-curricular activities, housework, and visiting family.

5. Any WIP you’d like to share? New releases, or an in-print book of yours you’d like to see get more attention?

Yes. I am in the process of editing the last book in my Paranormal Thriller/Romance Series, “The See-Ers,” called “The Experiment.” It will be released on Amazon in the Spring of 2023. Books 1-3 of this series are available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited now. It is about two psychic FBI agents who fall for one another in a government organization. They are trying to keep the world safe from a mad man psychic/FBI agent at a rival organization who has discovered Roswell is real and that humans with special abilities as well as alien DNA can be powerful enough to take over the world. Some of the other characters also have paranormal abilities. It’s a dark story, but like all my stories, love wins in the end.

In keeping with editing one story for release and writing another one, I am also currently writing a Paranormal Romance series called “The Demon Stone Series.” I got inspired by an article that a friend shared on Facebook about a year ago. An ancient Japanese War Stone had been shattered into pieces. The folklore said that now all the demon warrior spirits have been released into the world. I read the article and immediately saw my three characters, the Guardians of the Demon Stone, who were to protect it from getting opened, but of course they fail and must defeat the evil that ensues. Two of the Guardians fall for one another though that relationship is forbidden due to an ancient magical lore that no one understands. I wasn’t sure when I began writing it if it would be only one book, but it has already progressed into four books. I’ve outlined three more that need to be written before the series is done. I’ve having a blast writing it, particularly when a new character came in during the last book and changed the entire arc of the series with a love triangle. It’s part of the fun of listening to the characters when they speak, and he was hot to boot 😉