Interviewed by Alice Benavides
Where did you grow up, and where do you live now?
I grew up in a small town just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and now I live in Tulsa proper. I’ve been reluctant to leave Tulsa even as an adult. It’s a really friendly, laid-back city with a small but flourishing arts scene. Plus, there’s a coffee shop on just about every corner, which is great in case my Internet goes down.
Tell us about your family life.
I have a younger brother who wants to be a screenwriter and an older sister who is probably the best writer I personally know. Both of them live within driving distance, which is good. I share my house with a roommate and my two crazy dogs, a mother-and-daughter pair of Pomeranians who make my workdays happier—and sometimes noisier.
What are your hobbies and interests beyond your workplace?
Outside of the business of words, I like to run, watch movies, cook, and listen to music.
Are you an avid reader? What do you read?
I write some fiction reviews, so I usually have a novel on my reading plate. But when I read purely for fun, I especially enjoy short stories and good essays and reporting. The Best American series usually has some great stuff—I don’t even read science writing, but I’ll happily pick up The Best American Science Writing from pretty much any year.
I also like reading socially: I like to read things I’ll have a chance to talk about with someone. This is why I need to get around to reading The Life of Pi and The Shack.
You confess to being a “word nerd.” Tell us a little more.
Well, I’m a bit of a nerd in general, really. The wordiness is just icing. I’ve been known to use words like superfluous in casual conversation, instead of extra or excessive or ostensibly where someone else might say “on the surface” or “supposedly.” I’m not always so good at English when talking rather than writing or editing—I definitely say things like, “There’s lots of clutter on the counter.” (Don’t worry—I would never let that slide in text.) But I do use four-syllable words even when I’m just talking.
What do you write? What genres interest you? And tell us about your published works.
I’ll take just about any writing project I can get. Most of my published works have been work-for-hire projects. Over the past three or four years, I’ve snagged a few opportunities to write text for books like 101 Things Jesus Has Done for You, a book called Cinderella that included a CD single from Steven Curtis Chapman, and most recently, a book of photography called In the Footsteps of Paul. (The Chapman book came out just before a tragic accident took one of their daughters, which made the project bittersweet in retrospect.)
I think a lot of writers have their paycheck writing and their own writing on the side (or not on the side, if they’re lucky, I guess). But I’m not actively pursuing a lot of my own stuff right now. Sometimes I think about doing a book, but I think some of my experiences might need to gel a little bit if I’m going to share them in a way that’s helpful to readers. So I’m just trying to read good writing and listen for wisdom, and every now and then I’ll do a personal-experience essay just for fun (because those don’t really bring in the big bucks).
Lately I’ve had my eye on some other copywriting jobs. Grant writing looks especially interesting to me right now. I know a lot of people hate grant writing because it’s no fun to ask for money. But I think it might be nice to write directly for a cause. Besides, a nine-to-five is looking mighty appealing in this economy.
How did you break into the editing field? What influenced you to become an editor?
I graduated from college unsure about what sort of job I should get. My Sunday school teacher, who happened to be a book packager named Mark Gilroy, needed a little help in his office, so I started doing some work for him. At some point—and I don’t know exactly what led him to make this decision—he decided to give me a shot at editing some short pieces. After that, I did a few books for him. So when he took a job with Integrity (which was subsequently bought by Thomas Nelson), I was able to work with his group of editors.
I think what I like about editing is that it’s so detail-oriented. And there’s that great sense of satisfaction when a job is done. I work with a lot of gift books, which are very graphic with a lot of rich packaging, and I always enjoy seeing the final typeset—holding the book in hand is even better.
Tell us about the writing and editing services that you offer.
I’ve worked on several compilations, and I offer copyediting services. I just finished doing a copyedit of a novel and really enjoyed it. I also offer proofreading and I write backliner and catalog copy.
What is your most productive time-management tool?
My best time-management tool is the simple to-do list. I like to look at the whole week at once, and the best way I’ve found to do that is to start a Word document with a list of tasks for each day of the week. When I get something done, I strike it through. If I don’t get something done by the end of the day, I move it to the next day’s list. I’m sure there’s some software or program that will do this better, but I don’t like change.
I think it’s also helpful to write down the times I spent working on each task. If I have a gap between 4:00 to 4:15, for example, I know I didn’t really do anything during that time besides maybe eat chips or goof off on Facebook. It’s extra accountability. (Yes, breaks are necessary and helpful, but I’ve found that the best breaks involve getting up and moving around.)
What are your “secrets” for keeping all components of your work flowing properly?
Keeping a list really helps. It’s so easy to focus on my biggest (and highest-paying) projects and lose track of my progress on smaller projects I’ve committed to finish. So in addition to making weekly task lists, I try to plot tasks a month or so at a time as well. I’ve also tried a binder system—keeping all my papers for each project grouped together in a binder with a list of tasks. It seemed like a good idea, but I had trouble executing it.
I’m still very much a learner when it comes to building a business and keeping it going. I have a long way to go when it comes to marketing my services and diversifying.
There’s a prayer that I’ve found helpful in starting each day’s work:
Almighty God, our Help and Refuge, Fountain of wisdom and Tower of strength, who knowest that I can do nothing without Thy guidance and help; assist me, I pray Thee, and direct me to divine wisdom and power, that I may accomplish this task, and whatever I may undertake to do, faithfully and diligently, according to Thy will, so that it may be profitable to myself and others, and to the glory of Thy Holy Name. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
I may have shared that on the list before—I just really like it. I think the “I can do nothing without Thy guidance and help” part is incredibly helpful to remember. When I’ve prayed for success for a project, I haven’t felt that prayer to be quite right, and it hasn’t turned out very fruitful. But when I start a project by telling God—and forcing myself to remember, as much as it stings my pride—that I need help and can’t do it without Him, I end up really happy with how the text turns out.
What advice do you have for new editors?
I think reading is important. Just because something is published doesn’t mean it’s correct, obviously, but reading is a great way to get a handle on punctuation and style. Buy the reference books—The Chicago Manual of Style and Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. If at all possible, get your hands on a publishing house’s style guide and take some time to read it all the way through.
How do you balance work with home life?
That can be a little tricky. Since I’m single and don’t have the same responsibilities as someone with kids, every now and then I’m asked to do a project in very short order, forsaking all else but work until it’s done. I once heard an acquisitions editor say about one of his freelancers, “He’s single, so he doesn’t do anything but work. I can give the project to him tonight, and he’ll have it to me tomorrow.”
But that doesn’t happen to me terribly often, and I can’t complain about having work to do. Even when things are busy, it’s not too hard to take a little time to interact with fellow humans who don’t live in my computer screen. One of my good friends lives just a couple of blocks away, so a few times a week we take a walk around the neighborhood or go over to each other’s houses for lunch or tea. She has a nine-month-old, so she appreciates a little break in the day as much as I do. As a bonus, I get to play with the baby—and then I get to give her back.
How has God blessed you in your writing and editing?
God has really provided for me through editing. I can’t take much credit for having the work that I do. Editing has also given me a chance to meet some great people, and I’ve been able to work with some material that has stretched and challenged me.
How has God used you to bless others in your writing and editing?
I’m usually detached from the end user, so I don’t always get to hear how the work affected people. But it is nice to feel like I took a little burden off a harried senior editor. I’ve written some things for the Web. Writing for the Web isn’t at all prestigious, and it doesn’t usually pay, but I’ve received e-mail responses like, “Thank you so much. I’m going through the same thing, and this helped me.” That absolutely makes my year.
You say that you enjoy “good food.” What kinds of food do you enjoy?
I really like having people over for dinner. My most food-loving friends are vegans (I’m a fairly consistent vegetarian), so we cook a lot of veg food together. A couple of weeks ago, we rolled our own vegan sushi with mango and tempura asparagus and spicy tempeh. It was the most fun thing ever.
Visit Jessica on the Web.
