LaToya: Hi Rose, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Rose: I am the Chief Executive Officer of Priority Books Publications. I grew up in East St.
Louis, Illinois and received my Bachelor and Master degrees from Illinois State and Southern
Illinois Universities. I love working with teens and have received many awards and recognition
for my work with youth empowerment and publishing. I love writing and worked as a freelance
writer for A-Magazine, a St. Louis Publication, The Spanish Lake Word Newspaper, and as an
Opinion Shaper for the North County Journal Newspaper. I have been married for 32 years to Cedric, and we have one daughter, Adeesha. I have authored nine books and published over 100 books for 30 authors.
LaToya: What are your ambitions for your writing career?
Rose: I would like to spend my life writing solely as a living. I would love to travel across the country, meeting many readers who enjoy my books.
LaToya: Which writers inspire you?
Rose: I am inspired by writers who are not afraid to share their experiences and are transparent; writers such as (name a few known writers and their books. I am also inspired by first-time authors who are determined to complete their book, become published, and are successful.
LaToya: What are you working on at the minute?
Rose: I’m in the process of completing two Christian Romance fiction books entitled Broken Spirit and Waiting on Love. In addition, I plan to release a self-help book entitled, Finding the Right Man based on what I learned from my dad.
LaToya: What genre are your books and why?
Rose: I’m proud to say I write in all genres. I love writing Teen fiction because I
encourage them through stories of situations they are facing. I love Christian Romance.
It’s something beautiful about writing love stories. I enjoy writing inspirational content because readers are searching for a higher spiritual connection.
LaToya: In 10 words or less can you create a quote that describes you and your writing?
Rose: “Rose represents sweet smelling savor.”
LaToya: Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your
most recent book?
Rose: I would love for Angela Basset to play the lead character of my book entitled A Sinner’s Cry.
LaToya: When did you decide to become a writer?
Rose: I decided to become a writer at the age of nine. I was telling stories and writing letters
to everyone.
LaToya: Do you write full-time or part-time?
Rose: I wrote full-time for two years then decided to return to the work force.
LaToya: Do you have a special time to write or how is your day structured?
Rose: No, I do not have a special writing hour. I write throughout each day. I may write 3,000 words over lunch. Then after dinner, I spend time with my family and write another 3,000 words before retiring for the evening.
LaToya: Do you aim for a set amount of words/pages per day?
Rose: No, I do not aim for a set amount of words. I write when the characters enter my head and began speaking.
LaToya: Where do your ideas come from?
Rose: My ideas come from my occupation, my family, and stories I hear from the news.
LaToya: Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer just see where an idea takes
you?
Rose: No, I feel restricted if I tried to write to an outline. I flow better letting the words come
out naturally.
LaToya: How do you think you’ve evolved creatively?
Rose: I write better. I also have learned what my readers like and I try to give them stories I
feel they will enjoy and find strength in resolving similar issues in their own lives.
LaToya: What is the hardest thing about writing?
Rose: The hardest thing about writing is editing your work and finishing the story because it is
easy to keep going on, but at some point you have to close it out.
LaToya: What was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?
Rose: The hardest thing about writing my latest book was writing in third person. I loved the flow I had in first person better so I changed it back to first person.
LaToya: What is the easiest thing about writing?
Rose: The easiest thing about writing is creating stories. My family is large and there’s much to write about.
LaToya: How long on average does it take you to write a book?
Rose: It takes me about a month to write a novella. It takes about three months to write a full story.
LaToya: Where can you see yourself in 5 years’ time?
Rose: I see myself as a successful well-known writer in 5 years’ time.
LaToya: What advice would you give to your younger self?
Rose: Though I’ve done much of what I had planned to do as a child, I would advise the younger me to journal daily about what I’ve done, why it was done, how I felt about what was done and the time of day it was done rather than journaling the months and days only.
LaToya: Which famous person, living or dead would you like to meet and why?
Rose: I would like to meet President Obama and Oprah. I think the president handled himself
very well given the hate that surrounded him. He spent eight years fighting a battle of White men who hated that a black man was running the country and doing a good job. Also, he
implemented the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare for everyone to receive healthcare.
As far as Oprah, she suffered much adversity and still is one of the most
successful women in the world.
LaToya: If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been
and why?
Rose: If I could have authored any book, it would have been the Bible. It is one of the most interesting stories ever and everything from love to drama resides in the pages. Almost every home has a Bible or know about it. The words heal, help, and encourage, I want my stories to do the same.
LaToya: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Rose: I would advise an aspiring author to just do it. We all have stories to tell, but the author did the one thing most folk don’t do; they finished writing it.
Connect with Rose:
Website: www.rosejacksonbeavers.com
Blog: www.prioritybooks.blogspot.com and www.rosebooks.blogspot.com
Twitter: @ROSBEAV
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rosbeav03/
Purchase Links:
Thank you for this opportunity LaToya. It was my pleasure.
ReplyDeleteYou are Most welcome anytime Rose
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