Today, we’re traveling way down south in Dixie to my home state of Alabama where we’ve caught up with the Resurrected Writer. Please give a warm Southern welcome to Jase Rosenburg.

Jim: Give us your bio, Jase.

Jase: I am a 36-year-old man. I have been married almost 16 years now. I have 3 wonderful kids ages 14, 12, and 11. My passion is writing, I can’t imagine not writing. I have loved it since I was a kid. After high school, I started college and was going to go places with my writing. I dropped out. I buried my love for writing. Even with it buried I would still find myself with pen/pencil in hand staring at a blank sheet of paper or I’d be staring at a blank Word document. I couldn’t get away from the desire to create through words. Now, I’m finding my love of writing all over again. I am resurrecting it from dead and bringing it back full force.

Jim: Can you tell us a little about yourself?

Jase: Well, I’m 36 and I’ve been married for almost 16 years. We have three children that we adopted last year.  I currently live in Alabama and have been for the last 20 years.  I’m doing my best to resurrect my writing.  I went through a long bout of depression that caused me, for the most part, to give up on writing.  I had times when I would pick up pen and paper and start writing poems and such, but for the most part I went about 15 years without writing anything of much worth. I’m back now, trying to learn things all over again.  Doing my best to fulfill my dream!

Jim: What do you do when you aren’t writing?

Jase: I like to travel. As a matter of fact we are leaving for Alaska at the end of the month, for our second trip this year.  We love doing things together as a family.  I also LOVE to cook!  I enjoy experimenting in the kitchen.

Jim: Do you have a day job?

Jase: I don’t have one at this time.  I did factory work after I quit college several years ago. When the company I worked for went shut down our plant I went back to school and took accounting.  I was employed as an accounting assistant up until the financial meltdown. Now, I’m looking for work again.

Jim: When did you start writing, and when did you finish your first book?

Jase: I started writing my first book last November.  It’s not complete yet.  I finished the first round of edits at the end of May.  Then, I started my second novel in June so I could take a break from the first.  I’m getting ready to do another round of edits on the first one! I’ve set October 1 as the date to be finished with all of my edits.

Jim: From where do the ideas for your stories come?

Jase: They come from everywhere. I was in the drug store one day and overheard a conversation. I made a nice little story out of that.  You know how we are in the south.  We talk about everyone and feel good about it because we say, “bless their heart” at the end. 

I get ideas from dreams, songs, things I see, conversations, and real life experiences.  I have trouble writing them down when I have them and then losing them!

Jim: Do you ever experience writer’s block?

Jase: I do have it at times.  My problem seems to be consistency though.

Jim: Do you outline or write “by the seat of your pants”?

Jase: I do both. I like to have an outline if I’m writing anything with a lot of substance to it though. If it’s a flash fiction piece, it’s always by the seat of the pants.

Jim: What author or book influenced you most in your writing?

Jase: There are two writers that I LOVE to read.  Ted Dekker and C.S. Lewis.  Both have had influences on me.  My first book was leaning more towards the Dekker style and my second is more like Lewis.

Jim: What challenges did you face in getting your book published?

Jase: I haven’t been published yet. I did have a poem published back when I was 16. As for my books, I’m thinking of going the self-publishing route. 

Jim: If you had to go back and do it again, is there any aspect of your novel or getting it published you’d do differently?

Jase: Ask me again next year…maybe I can tell you then. LOL

Jim: How do you market your work? What works best for you?

Jase: I’ve been using Twitter for almost a year now.  I use it as a tool to meet other writers and promote myself.  I started a blog for two main reasons. I can practice my writing and it gives me a place to promote myself.  I’ve recently started using Facebook as well.  I’m trying to build a base before I get my first book out.

Jim: What was your favorite part of this story to write?

Jase: I enjoyed every minute of it! I’ve put my passion aside for so long thinking that I couldn’t do it. Once I started writing, I just soaked in every part of it!  I enjoy stirring emotions when I write. So, if I succeed I will stir all sorts of emotions with this book. That makes me very happy.

Jim: Do your characters lead you on merry chases, creating new plots or do you have to pull it out of them?

Jase: Haha! This is one of my favorite things about writing. My characters often lead me into their plots. I mentioned earlier that I like to write with an outline and I do, but I many times the characters surprise me. I can’t get enough of it! I love it when they develop right before my eyes.

Jim: What’s the most amusing thing that happened during the writing of this book?

Jase: I think the most amusing thing was a certain scene I was writing.  The main character has gone off the deep end. He grabs a candy bar puts it in his pocket and holds up the convenience store…with a Snickers bar! LOL  Yeah, I’m not sure that’s going to make it through the edits LOL

Jim: Why this story? What was your inspiration?

Jase: I had a good friend of mine give me a prompt to write a flash fiction piece.  I got such great response about it from those who read it.  Many people felt sorry for the main character and wanted to know his story. So he told me and I wrote it down. The flash fiction is on my blog.  I think it was titled “The Lobby”.

Jim: Tell us about your writing environment. Is it messy or neat? Is there a cat on the desk or a dog at your feet? Do you use pen and paper, laptop?

Jase: I like to go to my bedroom. Sit on the bed and turn the lights out.  Then I write.  In total darkness.  I seem to concentrate much easier.

Jim: What about your process? Do you produce consistent daily or weekly word counts or do the words rush out all at once and leave you with a dry spell?

Jase: I tend to have moments of purging. I sit down and write a massive amount, then I go through a dry spell. I’m desperately trying to change it to daily word counts.  I’m trying to build a long-term thing here and I’m working toward daily totals.

Jim: What project are you working on now?

Jase: I’m working on the editing of my first novel.  I’m putting the second one aside for now. I needed the break from the first one.

Jim: What was the toughest criticism you received as an author? What was the best compliment?

Jase: I haven’t had a lot of criticism, but the worst was when someone basically said my writing was the most awful thing they had ever read.  Can’t get much worse than that.  I’ve had so many great compliments. It’s hard to pinpoint one.

Jim: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

Jase: Yes. Don’t stop! Never stop writing! If you love it, continue with it.  I don’t care what circumstances arise, keep going.  Don’t let lack of education stop you. Don’t let negative people poison you with their words and kill your dream.  Just keep writing!

Jim: Is there anything you would like to say to your readers and fans?

Jase: First, it’s weird to think I would have fans or readers. LOL  But, to all of those people who have supported me and given me great advice, THANK YOU!  I can’t do it without you.  I can’t tell you how great it is when someone new reads my blog or comments on it. Each Twitter follower, each blog viewer is very much appreciated!

Jim: Where can we find you on the web?

Jase: You can find me on Twitter @JaseR75

You can find me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Resurrected-Writer/400449516660126

You can find my blog at http://resurrectedwriter.wordpress.com/

Thank you so much Jim for this opportunity! It’s been great getting to know you!

Thanks so much for coming by to chat, Jase. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s anxious to grab your first book from the shelves, so get back to work!