An interview with

JANET KAY

Author of

Waters of the Dancing Sky

I understand that this is your debut novel?

Yes, it is. For me, this is a dream come true. I’ve been writing most of my life but have previously focused on feature articles, short stories, poetry, memoir, and technical writing. I’ve been published in a number of magazines and anthologies.  But my lifelong dream has been to publish a novel.

When did you begin your writing career?

When I was eight years old. I was an avid reader and soon fell in love with writing. I spent hours writing short stories and documenting my life in the pages of my locked diaries. I wrote and published a neighborhood newspaper at the age of ten. I always planned to become an author when I grew up. Then, life got in the way of my lofty dreams– good things, bad things. While supporting my family, I still managed to find little blocks of time to study the art of writing. I scribbled my stories while the children napped and later, went off to school.

Good things? Bad things?

Life is a mixed bag, isn’t it? The best things in my life have been my children and grandchildren. I am so proud of them all! My marriage didn’t work out – let’s leave it at that. I will say, however, that you learn from the bad. You become a stronger person. Like most writers, I draw on the past to create my characters and the dilemmas that they face in life. If you’ve “been there,” it’s easier to empathize and to portray the difficult aspects of life and relationships. Can you imagine how boring life – and novels – would be without conflict and suspense?

So, is your novel  based on real people, places, and events?

 I would say that I’ve used bits and pieces of real people I’ve known as I develop my characters. Then, I mix them up and let my imagination take over. The plot and events are entirely fiction. As for place, this is real.

Tell me about the place where your novel is set. Rainy Lake?

Rainy Lake is a huge wilderness lake that encompasses parts of northern Minnesota and Ontario, Canada. It’s an incredibly beautiful place, remote, full of islands, and home to Voyageur’s National Park. I fell in love with the area and have done extensive research there. You could say that I’m a “place writer.”  Once I have an idea for a story, I find a unique place to set it. It’s important to me to provide an authentic setting for my novel, a place that my readers will want to visit someday. I also enjoy doing local historical research, some of which I integrate into my work. We all have histories, stories from our ancestors. Our pasts help to shape us into the characters that we are.

My novel begins in Chicago, Illinois and includes a stop in Solon Springs, Wisconsin. Again, I’ve integrated real places to make my settings more authentic.

What inspired you to write this particular book?

My muse, I guess! Seriously, it was about ten years ago that I woke in the middle of the night with a plot and characters coming to life and demanding to be set to paper. I grabbed my bedside notebook and began making notes as fast as I could, trying to keep up with the thoughts that were racing through my mind.

You’ve spent ten years writing this book?

No. At that time in my life, I was busy working in a high-pressure, all –consuming career. My notes were tucked away, hibernating in the recesses of my mind, until I retired and was finally able to write the story. Of course, the plot had thickened by then.

How would you describe your writing style?

I’ve been told by others that my writing is descriptive, powerful, emotional, inspirational, with a good dose of suspense. Several reviewers commented that they were “unable to put my novel down.”  I’ve integrated an appreciation of nature and of the local Ojibwe culture into this novel, along with interesting tidbits of local history and literary quotations. Above all, I like to explore some of the bigger themes of life within my work.

Such as?

Such as the amazing ability of the human spirit to triumph, to survive. Forgiveness. Death. Life and “relationships” beyond death. Thornton Wilder once wrote, “There is a land of the living and a land of the dead, and the bridge is love – the only survival, the only meaning.”  I believe that sometimes you must tiptoe across that bridge linking this world with the next. Sometimes, it is the only way to put the twisted pieces of one’s life back together again.

Do you have a specific message in your book that you would like to leave your readers with?

It is my hope that each of my readers will take away some little thing that will help them in their own lives and relationships. Perhaps, it will help somebody out there, in some little way, to broaden his or her perspective on life, thereby finding hope for the future.  I think it’s important for readers to find their own meaning. Isn’t that why we read?

Can you describe your writing process, how you completed this novel?

First, I developed my characters, filling in an extensive questionnaire for each of them. I wanted to know their greatest fears, conflicts, desires as well as their history, occupation, education, etc. Next, I created a very brief plot outline (which continually changed as I wrote). Then, I sat at my computer and wrote, revising as I went. Sometimes, my characters themselves woke me up at night, demanding that I change a scene or justify their behavior! After completing my first draft, I sent ten review copies out to solicit advice. I also brought chapters in to my writing groups (one in Solon Springs, WI and one in Seeley Lake, MT). I compiled all the excellent feedback that I received and began the revision process.  I hired a personal editor and completed three revisions before I was satisfied.

Do you have plans to write more novels in the future?

Absolutely! I’m currently writing my memoirs (something that I urge everyone to do). But I’m also doing research for my next novel. It is tentatively titled “Amelia’s Revenge” and will take place primarily in the old western ghost town of Virginia City, Montana. The plot crosses back and forth in time between  the 1860’s gold rush days in Virginia City and 2012.

Will this book be in the same genre as Waters of the Dancing Sky?

It’s difficult for me to fit either “Waters” or my next novel within any specific genre. I’d describe my work as a blend of romance, suspense, spiritual, historical, with a bit of mystery thrown in.  Does that spell “mainstream?”

Why do you write?

I write because I cannot “not write!”  It is one of my greatest passions in life. I love creating fictional worlds, plots and characters. Perhaps it’s a way to explore and work through the complexities of life. I also write to try to help other people.

Any final words for your readers?

Yes. I hope to hear from you. Drop me an email. Let me know what you liked (or disliked) about my novel. I value your feedback.  Thank you for purchasing and reading my book. I hope you enjoy it.