Day Twenty - All About Jessica Spotswood ( Born Wicked)

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Debutante Profile

Name - Jessica Spotswood

Debut - Born Wicked

Genre - Historical Fantasy

Website - HERE

Blog - HERE

Twitter - HERE

Jessica Spotswood is the author of BORN WICKED, the first book in the Cahill Witch Chronicles, coming Feb. 7, 2012 from Putnam. She likes reading stories about independent girls who still get in a fair amount of swoony kissing, so that's what she tries to write. She lives in Washington, DC with her playwright husband and a cuddly cat named Monkey.

Dream Debutante Dress - GORGEOUS Jessica! You sure know who to pick them!

Notes from a YA Debutante

Author Journey

When I went to college, I knew that I wanted to be a writer. I had always wanted to be a writer. I wrote three sprawling historical fiction romances in high school; I was the darling of my English teachers, The Writer of my high school class. But in college, there were oodles of other writers, wordsmiths who wrote stunning poetry and piercingly funny plays and gorgeous, thoughtful literary fiction. In comparison, I felt like my romances were stupid and girly and childish. Instead of feeling proud of my writing, I started to feel sort of ashamed. I still took creative writing classes, but the magic had gone out of it; I was always thinking about potential readers and their potentially snarky critiques. 

Then I fell in love with theatre, especially dramaturgy--analyzing scripts, researching past productions and historical details.That's what I went to grad school for. I loved working with playwrights on new plays, finding the places of greatest potential in them and trying to help draw that out. I loved the creative collaboration. Working in the background felt safe--but eventually I also started to feel invisible. I was always on the outside, looking in, not quite part of the cast. Actors were not always terribly interested in or grateful for the research I lovingly compiled. Directors weren't sure how to use me. I questioned my place in the rehearsal room all the time. And I missed creating something of my own. By the end of grad school, I was miserable and depressed. I couldn't find a job in theatre. More than that--in my heart of hearts, I didn't want to. But admitting that, after spending three years in grad school--that was hard.

I coped by rereading my favorite books: Anne of Green Gables. Emily of New Moon. Little Women. Christopher Pike and Lois Duncan. Jane Austen. Then I started reading current YA. Vampire Academy. Wicked Lovely. And yes, Twilight. I remember writing a scene, an argument between two girls, at work one afternoon, and emailing it to my best friend, asking if she thought it was interesting, if it made her want to read more. 

Thank God, she wrote back an enthusiastic yes. 

I wrote a few chapters. I took a month off to dramaturg a friend's play. It took me awhile to admit that writing was what I wanted to do, maybe had always wanted to do, in a deep-down terrifying kind of way. It was scary in the way that things you really, really love are scary.  I accepted that--and accepted that, yeah, I wanted to write about finding yourself and falling in love and kissing. 

And you know what? I don't give a flying eff if it's girly. 

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Bookie's Note: We're down to our last three debutantes! Boo, the event is nearly over :( Everyone, welcome our tenth 2012 Debutante, Jessica Spotswood. I can't think of anyone who doesn't know who she is! It's must be a hard journey, like you said so many other aspiring writers out there! Even I want to be a writer, tough but you made it ;) And to everyone else, come back tomorrow!

Badass Bookie xx