Q&A with J.H. Trumble
(Read the complete interview at Book Chic Club)
What is your writing process like? Do you have any rituals that you have to do to get in the mood, or do you just sit down and write?
I don’t like a lot of clutter when I write—it clutters my brain—so I tend to clean first. Beyond that, it’s all about word count. I’m a stickler for getting work down when I’m working on a novel. Even if I go over my goal one day, I don’t give myself any slack the next. Five days a week until I’m done. I’ll jot down the word count where I need to end my day, and I work until I’m done. I do take breaks when I need to think. Sometimes I clean something or take a walk, but I’m working through what’s coming next when I do. It helps to leave myself a few notes at the end of a work day about where I want to go next. Sometimes it’s whole paragraphs or dialog. After a while, I find myself thinking three or four scenes ahead and the notes that go with those thoughts.
What are you currently working on now? Can you tell us anything about it?
I just finished the big edits on a novel titled Where You Are. It’s scheduled for a 2012 release (probably December). I wrote it this summer, and I’ve been tweaking it since. It’s about a 24-year-old teacher who falls for one of his senior calculus students, a young man who is dealing with his conflicted feelings about his dad’s death. The story is told in alternating viewpoints. I’m very excited about this one.
What is your favorite Jelly Belly jelly bean flavor (or flavors, if you're so inclined)?
I love jelly beans! Definitely NOT popcorn or licorice. Beyond that, I haven’t met a Jelly Belly I didn’t love. My favorite, though, is probably pineapple. I love the tropical fruits. Everyone, feel free to send me jelly beans!
[T]ell us 3 interesting/random things about yourself?
I’ll give you five things.
- I still have the baton I twirled with in high school, and every now and then I take it out for a spin or two.
- I used to be a teacher, and once I wrote an article about leaving the profession. To my surprise it was published as the lead article in the Diversions section of the Houston Chronicle and almost cost me my job a few months early.
- I always take the lead on group projects (I’m bossy like that!), and once wrote a reader’s theater on Charlotte’s Web, which included songs to the tune of the Gilligan’s Island theme and the song the mice sing on Babe. It was awesome, though my group didn’t quite get it and the performance was somewhat lacking. I also choreographed a dance for my school’s annual chili cook-off. I shanghaied some colleagues and we put on a performance to The Village People’s “Macho Man.” It was quite a show ;)
- My daughter is gay and out. That’s pretty current news. I’m very proud of her and her brother, who took it all in stride.
- I have a piano, and my biggest regret in life is that I didn’t stick with piano lessons when I was younger (or older). It takes me forever to learn a piece, and then I play it ad nauseum. I used to be really good at “The Entertainer,” “Fur Elise,” and Chicago’s “I Don’t Wanna Live Without Your Love.”
Please feel free to email me at jhtrumble@gmail.com or you can use the form in the sidebar.
You may also wish to contact my agent or publisher:
Stephen Fraser
The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency
254 Park Avenue SouthSuite 2L
New York, NY 10010
StephenAFraser@Verizon.net
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018