- an emerging writer and college professor with more superstitions than an old-world wise woman.
Readers, thanks for checking out another Author Spotlight Interview. Let’s give a good, hearty welcome to this week’s guest!
Jorie Rao is a debut author and college professor with a Masters in Writing. Her obsession with all things preternatural makes her a wildly paranoid person, but she takes that paranoia and turns it into art.
When she isn’t writing, she can be found on a road trip with her husband in search for cryptids and ghosts and the perfect burger.
Jorie, thanks for agreeing to be here today. Most author spotlight interviews start off with the boring stuff, but I know what readers REALLY want to know.
If you could have any pet (real/fantasy/no-allergies/no worries about feeding it) what would it be?
Shooting for the moon, I’d love to have a little flame demon like Calcifer in Howl’s Moving Castle. I love the sass. Also, how convenient would it be to always have a little fire burning?
Oooh! A flame demon? Who wouldn’t want a friendly little Calcifer?
What do you write? And how did you get started?
I write mostly supernatural-leaning stories. My love of “hidden things” and superstitions passed on to me from my dad (things like dropping a fork means to expect company) fascinated me to the point of obsessive researching. That paired with books like The Outsiders and Harry Potter made it so I constantly wanted to create my own characters, my own “hidden supernatural” worlds.
What a great space to explore.
What do you like to read?
Mostly, fiction. Specifically, Urban Fantasy, but lately I’m hyper-focused on consuming everything Thriller/Horror that I can get my hands on.
You’re speaking my jam.
Do you snack when you write/edit? What are your favorites?
Not anymore. I used to munch on cheez-itz, but that never helped and it always distracted me, so I stopped the writing snacks; however, coffee is always a must when I write.
I know both sides of the distraction complaint, but for me, if I’m super stuck, snacking often can help me start to make progress. Not the healthiest choice, but usually the tastier one.
Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice that doesn’t work for you
Write every day.
That advice, however well-intentioned, made me feel like a failure whenever I couldn’t get myself to sit at the
computer and write. Now, I focus more on the idea of “creating” every day instead. A lot less pressure, and a lot more creating!
So true! While making your writing a priority, and a regular habit, making it daily sets most of us up for failure.
Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice they can pry out of your cold, dead hands
The first draft is the story you tell yourself
Paraphrased Terry Pratchett
I saw this advice and thought: now THAT is exactly what I needed to hear. It’s my favorite way to look at my first draft because it quiets the inner-editor long enough to get the story on paper.
Definitely true for me! I don’t even start numbering until AFTER my rough draft. No one sees that hot mess.
What do you drink when you write/edit?
Coffee, coffee, coffee. Occasionally, water.
While I’m not a coffee drinker myself, I hear you on the water!
Shameless Self-Promotion time!
In the System Paradoxa series, Jorie Rao has written the latest novella:
Out For Blood
Prudence Ann Wells grew up believing the things that went bump in the night were just fairy tales. Until the night a slathering beast with all-to-intelligent eyes breaks down their door.
She freezes as the creature rushes her and her mother, convinced it can’t be real, as she and her sister, Justice, had always been told.
Only they had been raised on lies.
Prue survives the attack; her mother does not.
Driven by guilt and revenge, she and Justice set out to stop the beast, but can Prue end the nightmare without becoming a monster herself?
Paranormal Incorporated: The Offices of Supernatural Being
A fun and supernatural collection of original fantasy and humor from big names and talented newcomers!
Do you find yourself wondering if your coworkers are more than they seem? Fourteen talented authors have come together to tell the tales of ghosts, demons, witches, goblins, vampires, shifters, and spirits living the corporate life. Those TPS reports may be due, and you hate working weekends, but it’s sort of hard to concentrate when the werespider in the next cubicle over is typing SO LOUDLY.
Punch the clock and settle in for a collection where situational comedy meets paranormal horror. The Offices of Supernatural Being is the first offering in the Paranormal Incorporated series.
With contributions from debut and award-winning authors, these standalone short stories offer dark magic, workplace romance, action, revenge, secrets, ancient curses, chills, thrills, and more!
WRITING TIPS & WRITERLY MUSINGS 
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