Jean Hackensmith

CarolCastellanos: What genres would you like to write?

Jean: I would like to attempt a futuristic romance someday and, in fact, have had a plot rolling around in my head for years!

CarolCastellanos: Where do you get your ideas?

Jean: Hmmm...that's a tough one. I don't know. They just kind of come to me. I do have a co-author - Kathe Birch - who does a lot of my research and also helps with plotting. (Though I still do all of the actual writing) When we are together, the inspiration flows. Strangely, a lot of my ideas come to me at night, when I can't sleep, and my imagination works overtime.

CarolCastellanos: Do you pattern your characters after any real people?

Jean: Sometimes. All of my "comical" male characters are patterned after my son, Jason. He has the best sense of humor I have ever witnessed in a person. He always has a perfect and immediate "comeback" for any comment -- a trait I envy, because I never can think of an appropriate comeback until two days later! In my most recent contemporary manuscript, "Tender Persuasion," of course, all of the characters are patterned after real people, because the story is true.

CarolCastellanos: What authors do you admire?

Jean: My favorite romance author is Kathleen Woodwiss, though, admittedly, I haven't read anything of hers, or anyone else's, in years. I have simply become too caught up in my own writing to take the time to enjoy others -- except for my authors, of course. I own a small publishing company and am in the process of editing three books, with another five waiting for my red pen!

CarolCastellanos: What authors do you read?

Jean: Kathleen Woodwiss, Dana Fuller Ross and Dean Koontz, to name a few.

CarolCastellanos: What genres do you read?

Jean: Mostly romance, but I also enjoy a good mystery or sci fi, but, again, it has been years.

CarolCastellanos: What other genres do you see yourself writing?

Jean: I could see myself writing a good mystery, but don't know that I ever will. I tried my hand at science fiction once, and was told by most avid fan (my sister) to stick with romance!

CarolCastellanos: What do you see yourself doing in 10 years?

Jean: Hopefully, I will still be writing, but more important to me at this point is getting my publishing company off the ground. I now have nine contracted authors, and I owe it to them to put all of my time and energy into building the company. Port Town Publishing prides itself in working with previously unpublished authors -- authors whose work is extremely promising, but simply needs a little "expertise" to polish the work and make it the best it can be. Our small company has the time to devote to editing our manuscripts, which the larger publishers don't.

CarolCastellanos: Do you see yourself ever not writing?

Jean: No. I will write until the day I die, and may even haunt my children with story ideas after that!

CarolCastellanos: How did you get started writing?

Jean: Actually, I was talking to my mother on the phone over 20 years ago and, being a "doodler," I was making chicken scratches on a piece of scrap paper and the first sentence of my first novel came out on the page. It was "Jenny McCall awoke with a scream on her lips." It went from there, and I have been hooked ever since.

CarolCastellanos: What books do you have planned in the near future?

Jean: "Doomed Passage," the final book in the "Passage" time travel trilogy. This book promises to be 1000 pages in manuscript form, so I haven't thought beyond that.

CarolCastellanos: What age were you when you started to write?

Jean: I began to write seriously at about 20 years of age, but I did write several short stories for a creative writing class in high school before that. At first, I wrote only for myself and for the enjoyment of my family and friends. As the work progressed though, and got better, I tried my hand at getting my manuscripts published. I papered my walls with rejection slips for the first twenty years...literally. My first manuscripts will probably never be published, (in fact, I know they won't be, unless I rewrite them, since my first husband destroyed them after I left) but they served their purpose. I "honed my talent" with them, and it eventually paid off.

CarolCastellanos: When is your next book due?

Jean: "Destined Passage," the 2nd novel in the "Passage" time travel trilogy, is due for release May 1, 2001. The third book, "Doomed Passage," is due for release in May of 2002.

CarolCastellanos: Was there any author or authors that helped you get your in start writing, or helped you break into the field?

Jean: No, though I did have an agent way back when who was a tremendous help in teaching me the "fundamentals." She took my first manuscript of 1200 pages and pared it down to just over 500 -- I tended to be a little wordy back then. (Oh, did I save a LITTLE?)

CarolCastellanos: What made you choose the genres you write?

Jean: Time travel adds a certain twist to the romance genre, which just makes it more fun to write. There is something about taking a modern heroine (or hero) and dropping them in a time period that is totally alien, where they have no choice but to adjust if they are to survive. Of course, the heros in "the past" are always virile, sexy and mouth-watering. How could my heroines NOT fall in love with them?

CarolCastellanos: Do you have a special subgenre?

Jean: Again, time travel romance.

CarolCastellanos: What do you feel makes your books unique or stand out from others in your genre?

Jean: The action. All of my novels have a lot of action interwoven into the plots. There are always at least one or two sub-plots lurking just under the surface also, which keeps my hero and heroine busy, but they do still manage to find time to fall in love. Several reviewers have also commented on the continuous action in my novels. They are fast-paced and virtually every chapter ends with a "hook" that keeps the reader turning pages.

CarolCastellanos: Do you have a favorite place you like to write?

Jean: On the beach, on a warm, quiet afternoon or early evening (when it's still light enough to see) or simply "outside" in general.

CarolCastellanos: In what order do you write? For example starting beginning to end, combining parts, in random order or in development cycle?

Jean: Generally, I know the beginning and ending to my books, then fill in the middle. I always start at the beginning and plow my way through to the end. At one time, I wrote chapter by chapter outlines of each new work before I started the actual writing, but found that I never stuck to the outlines. When an author really gets "into" their story, it kind of writes itself and takes on a spirit all its own.

CarolCastellanos: Do you feel that the e-books afford authors a bit more freedom of expression in their books?

Jean: My company does offer downloadable e-book formats of all of our titles, but personally, I think the hard or soft cover, bound format will stay the norm. It's hard to curl up and "read a good book" when you have loose pages falling all over the place or if you're glued to computer screen. As for "freedom of expression," I honestly don't know what you're getting at. I think an author can express himself in any form of writing, be it e-book or traditional publishing. A good story is a good story, no matter how you look at it.

CarolCastellanos: What do you feel is, or isn't being done to promote authors?

Jean: Speaking as a publisher, I feel I owe it to all the unpublished authors out there to say that there are MANY excellent writers who are not being recognized simply because their manuscripts need a little work. The larger publishing companies have to quit looking at "dollar signs," and start looking for talent and potential in the authors they contract. The beauty of working with previously unpublished authors is that they are so willing to learn! I cannot describe the pride that swells within me when I see an author "bloom" during the editorial process and know that I had a small hand in making it happen. Also, I feel that the romance genre as a whole has been given a "raw deal." There are many excellent authors out there who can spin a gripping tale of history, action, mystery and romance, but they are not given the credit they deserve because they write "bodice rippers."

CarolCastellanos: Do you feel that the marketing departments have their finger on the pulse of readers?

Jean: They do if they listen to what their readers are telling them. Admittedly, my small publishing company does not yet have the resources to market our titles as our authors deserve, and those same authors know they have to be very active in the promotion of their novels. As time goes on though, and the company grows, this will change and our marketing department will listen to the reader and we will produce what the reader wants, and not what the publisher THINKS will sell. In truth though, if a publisher produces high quality fiction and their readers know that they can count on that particular publisher to produce a riveting book, they will purchase their titles based on that publisher's reputation.

CarolCastellanos: How do you feel about review rating systems?

Jean: I feel they are fair, for the most part. Reviewers do need to look at individual author talent though, and not compare one work to another. In short, they need to look at the whole picture...the author's publishing history, the accuracy of historical fact and even where the author resides. Different levels of experience and even geography, background and environment can influence how an author will handle a certain topic.

CarolCastellanos: Through what venues do you feel most of your books are being sold?

Jean: The Internet, hands down. More and more readers are discovering my publisher website every day, and the convenience of on-line ordering is the wave of the future.

CarolCastellanos: What do you feel is the best part of the publishing industry?

Jean: In my case, the relationship that develops between an author and their editor/publisher. If you have a cooperative and truly interested and concerned publisher, you have a happy and productive author.

CarolCastellanos: What do you feel needs to be changed about the industry?

Jean: Again, publisher's need to quit treating authors as "revenue-making machines," and look at them as people, with feelings, problems and dreams.

CarolCastellanos: Do you think small press and e-books will be the wave of the future?

Jean: I hope so! Large presses simply cannot have the relationships with their authors that the smaller presses can. Granted, small press titles may be a little more expensive, because they cannot afford to mass produce titles as the larger publishers can, but the quality of the writing and the workmanship is unsurpassed. A little bit of love and a lot of pride goes into every small press title produced, and that is lost in the world of main stream publishing. I still think e-books will always take a back seat to traditional publishing though. The general public still prefers that bound, soft cover book.

Novels in print and scheduled for publication. All of which are available through Port Town Publishing. "Wagons To The Past," "Charmed Passage," Review to be posted soon "Destined Passage." "Tender Persuasion "

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