January 1, 2016
Over the past couple of days, I’ve been fitting my writing office in a closet to serve as both a writing space and sound booth. I did record some episodes of a previous podcast in that space, but the sound quality wasn’t the best. I wanted to do this better.
It’s taken a while to sort out the right equipment, but it was more than that. I needed a focus that expressed who I am while connecting with my readers and potential readers. I’m glad to say that the upcoming Literary Wayfarer podcast fits the bill. It stems from several of my defining passions: reading, writing, learning, and travel.
In the podcast, I’ll discuss settings, interesting details, and authors from the books I read. I’ll also give my perspective on the books, themselves. Once in a while, I’ll include a journal from my own literary travels, and on the rare occasion, I’ll discuss one of my own titles and perhaps share an excerpt.
I’m looking forward to re-entering the podcasting world. Being holed up in a closet while talking to myself (okay to a microphone) suits me perfectly. I’m not by nature outgoing, but you wouldn’t necessarily know that, should we meet. I’ve adapted well to our social-networking online world, but the truth is that, while I enjoy connecting with others, I’m an introverted soul. My closet writing office gives me the time alone I need to function best.
Yesterday, I had a long phone conversation with my literary agent, during which we covered my branding considerations, the three-book contract I just signed for the Montana Gold series, and a romantic suspense novel idea she’s trying to place for me. We also talked about how to approach the different genres I write. Handling a multi-genre author isn’t easy for an agent, since the powers that be in publishing would like to shoehorn every writer into a single pair of shoes, so to speak, for purely commercial reasons.
Writing is interesting in that it’s not just a business venture but also an art. I don’t know many writers who like the single-genre approach, but a lot of them put up with it because they believe they should. The idea is that if you write in more than one genre, you’ll confuse readers. Early on in my career, a well-known editor told me that “readers aren’t that stupid.” He did suggest to me that I should use different variations of my name for the main genres I write, to help readers keep them separate. That’s why my historical romances will come out under Janalyn Irene Voigt, but I’m Janalyn Voigt for epic fantasy and Janalyn I. Voigt for romantic mystery.
It does take a little more work and some scrambling to serve readers of three genres. This is why in 2016 I’ll be streamlining routine tasks and focusing on productivity.
But for the first day of the new year, I’m taking some time off with my family.
