Interview With Marilynn Griffith
1) Introduce yourself to us. Name, info on your family, number of books authored, etc...
My name is Marilynn Griffith. I have a great husband and seven children. I've written five books. Four them will be published in 2006.
2) Tell us a little bit about your road to publication.
Nothing too interesting. The same as everyone else's path. Reading. Writing. Revising. Writing. Revising. Rejection. More rejection. More rejection…Heartbreak. Story Idea. Start over… You get the idea.
3) Do you write full time? If yes, can you give us a glimpse into your daily writing life? If not, what is your day job?
I'd like to think that I'm a wife and mom full-time and that I write as much as I can in the time that's left after taking care of my large and busy family. In truth though, a writer is always writing, even when she's looking out the window. The stories are always there. I do try and put my family first. During deadline months, though, they often fend for themselves.
4) What was your biggest obstacle in regard to writing and/or getting published? How did you overcome it?
I think the biggest obstacle is finding your own voice and believing in what you're doing. Writing is very subjective and there are people at every turn to tell you how to write and what to write. At some point you've got to find a story you can love in love with. Someone else might fall in love with it too, but you've got to be the first, I think.
5) What has been the highest moment of your writing/publishing career?
I'm so new that I don't think I've reached that yet. Ask me again in about ten years and I hope to have a great answer. Some great things have happened so far and my books are just coming out, so I'm very hopeful.
6) Who/What is your greatest inspiration to write? Where do your story ideas come from?
My husband is probably my best inspiration. He's a really steady guy who goes to work as long as he can walk. He does what needs to be done. I admire that. My ideas come from everywhere. Sometimes it seems as if they've always been there, waiting for me to find them.
7) Are you a seat-of-the-pants writer, or do you plot extensively before your fingers hit the keyboard?
Both, as strange as it sounds. I do have to do a proposal for my editors, but new characters or situations often emerge as I'm typing. Sometimes I'm leaning so far forward I'm almost kissing the monitor. I like being surprised as much as the readers do.
8) I'm notorious for *snacking* while I write! Do you have any favorite munchies you wouldn't mind us knowing about?
Let's see. Fruit Naturals Blueberry nuggets. Baked Lays. Jelly Bellies. Anything that won't totally kill me or my keyboard.
9) How do you strike an agreeable "balance" between your writing time and other responsibilities?
I don't. I just take each day as it comes and pray for the grace to do my best. After years of trying to balance everything out, I realized that sometimes balance is overrated. Some seasons are busier, some more quiet. I try to enjoy them all.
10) Who is your favorite character in your books, and how did you come up with that character?
That's hard! I really love all my characters. Raya's grandmother from PINK is a favorite along with Dana's boyfriend Adrian in MADE OF HONOR. My favorite character though, would have to be Brian Mayfield, the hero of the first book I wrote. It hasn't sold yet.
11) How do you deal with publisher rejections? Crawl in bed under the covers for an entire day? Indulge in double-fudge chocolate? Or just brush it off?
Sometimes I brush it off. If it's on the tail of several other rejections (which happens) I might snuggle up with husband and mumble incomprehensibly for 24 hours. Chocolate and kid hugs definitely help. I try to remind myself that rejection means I'm working.
12) Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
I have no clue except that I want to be there with Christ and with my family. And being a few pounds thinner would be nice too. Basically I just want to keep telling stories that people want to read.
13) These have been fairly standard questions. What is one thing you'd like to share with up-and-coming writers that they may not even know to ask yet?
Write. Write stories for your kids, articles for the paper, poems for your friends, posts for your blog, journals for yourself, prayers to God… Just write. Don't kill the joy of it by waiting until you're published to consider yourself a writer. Whether or not you're an author is up to God. Whether or not you're a writer is up to you. Writers write.
14) You have a new title coming out, right? Tell us about it.
I have twins actually. (In real life and in publishing). MADE OF HONOR (Steeple Hill Café, 1/06) is a fun tale about girlfriends, guys, God and all the giggles (and some of the tears) in between. My February 2006 release PINK, is actually the novel that was contracted first and tells the tale of four wedding designers working on a million dollar wedding dress. They find faith, hope and even a little love in the seams.
Thanks for having me!
My name is Marilynn Griffith. I have a great husband and seven children. I've written five books. Four them will be published in 2006.
2) Tell us a little bit about your road to publication.
Nothing too interesting. The same as everyone else's path. Reading. Writing. Revising. Writing. Revising. Rejection. More rejection. More rejection…Heartbreak. Story Idea. Start over… You get the idea.
3) Do you write full time? If yes, can you give us a glimpse into your daily writing life? If not, what is your day job?
I'd like to think that I'm a wife and mom full-time and that I write as much as I can in the time that's left after taking care of my large and busy family. In truth though, a writer is always writing, even when she's looking out the window. The stories are always there. I do try and put my family first. During deadline months, though, they often fend for themselves.
4) What was your biggest obstacle in regard to writing and/or getting published? How did you overcome it?
I think the biggest obstacle is finding your own voice and believing in what you're doing. Writing is very subjective and there are people at every turn to tell you how to write and what to write. At some point you've got to find a story you can love in love with. Someone else might fall in love with it too, but you've got to be the first, I think.
5) What has been the highest moment of your writing/publishing career?
I'm so new that I don't think I've reached that yet. Ask me again in about ten years and I hope to have a great answer. Some great things have happened so far and my books are just coming out, so I'm very hopeful.
6) Who/What is your greatest inspiration to write? Where do your story ideas come from?
My husband is probably my best inspiration. He's a really steady guy who goes to work as long as he can walk. He does what needs to be done. I admire that. My ideas come from everywhere. Sometimes it seems as if they've always been there, waiting for me to find them.
7) Are you a seat-of-the-pants writer, or do you plot extensively before your fingers hit the keyboard?
Both, as strange as it sounds. I do have to do a proposal for my editors, but new characters or situations often emerge as I'm typing. Sometimes I'm leaning so far forward I'm almost kissing the monitor. I like being surprised as much as the readers do.
8) I'm notorious for *snacking* while I write! Do you have any favorite munchies you wouldn't mind us knowing about?
Let's see. Fruit Naturals Blueberry nuggets. Baked Lays. Jelly Bellies. Anything that won't totally kill me or my keyboard.
9) How do you strike an agreeable "balance" between your writing time and other responsibilities?
I don't. I just take each day as it comes and pray for the grace to do my best. After years of trying to balance everything out, I realized that sometimes balance is overrated. Some seasons are busier, some more quiet. I try to enjoy them all.
10) Who is your favorite character in your books, and how did you come up with that character?
That's hard! I really love all my characters. Raya's grandmother from PINK is a favorite along with Dana's boyfriend Adrian in MADE OF HONOR. My favorite character though, would have to be Brian Mayfield, the hero of the first book I wrote. It hasn't sold yet.
11) How do you deal with publisher rejections? Crawl in bed under the covers for an entire day? Indulge in double-fudge chocolate? Or just brush it off?
Sometimes I brush it off. If it's on the tail of several other rejections (which happens) I might snuggle up with husband and mumble incomprehensibly for 24 hours. Chocolate and kid hugs definitely help. I try to remind myself that rejection means I'm working.
12) Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
I have no clue except that I want to be there with Christ and with my family. And being a few pounds thinner would be nice too. Basically I just want to keep telling stories that people want to read.
13) These have been fairly standard questions. What is one thing you'd like to share with up-and-coming writers that they may not even know to ask yet?
Write. Write stories for your kids, articles for the paper, poems for your friends, posts for your blog, journals for yourself, prayers to God… Just write. Don't kill the joy of it by waiting until you're published to consider yourself a writer. Whether or not you're an author is up to God. Whether or not you're a writer is up to you. Writers write.
14) You have a new title coming out, right? Tell us about it.
I have twins actually. (In real life and in publishing). MADE OF HONOR (Steeple Hill Café, 1/06) is a fun tale about girlfriends, guys, God and all the giggles (and some of the tears) in between. My February 2006 release PINK, is actually the novel that was contracted first and tells the tale of four wedding designers working on a million dollar wedding dress. They find faith, hope and even a little love in the seams.
Thanks for having me!
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