A conversation with Wilnona and Jade
Q: How do you two know each other and how did you end up collaborating?
Wilnona: We always say that Jade was born and we became friends. Jade was my best friend from four years old.
Jade: We have been best friends forever.
Q: Tell us a bit about your books and the inspiration behind them.
Wilnona: We write literary life guides with pop poetry. We found that we were not fully prepared for life, so we wrote with women from 25-72 about life. We meant to have only one book, but the series grew into the And I Thought Series and The Miss-Fit Guides.
Jade: We are inspired by life. Sometimes, we meet people while traveling who have such interesting stories or engaging conversations that we feel impelled to write about them.
Wilnona: Jade wrote a poem about an unusually aggressive seventy-plus-year-old man. I wrote about an extremely rude young man. We have good poems about people also.
Q: You seem to have a foot in everything: nonfiction, poetry, podcasts, your TV channel, social media. What gives you the most joy our of all those pursuits?
Jade: We are always expanding our brand. Wilnona and I constantly are on the lookout for another way to introduce people to our books. I like writing the books and designing the merchandise. I also love putting together the 25 Hottest Indie Authors magazine. It’s an enormous undertaking every year.
Wilnona: My slogan for the continuous expansion is that our fans should be able to interact with our brand however best suits them. As for my personal favorite pursuit, glamour-wise, it was the reality TV show, or documentary. The clothing line is another favorite.
Q: Why did you choose self-publishing over traditional publishing?
Wilnona: Most literary agents don’t take poetry submissions. We are relegated to small presses and literary magazines. I’m never happy with the status quo. I wanted a career similar to genre authors, so we went the indie route with a clear path and destination for our career. I want a movie to be made of our poetry book.
Jade: Our books are unusual. We have a story as chapters/sections, cocktail recipes, a resume, or directions to a honeymoon spot. In between these we have our poetry. We have chatted with many agents and they all say, you had to self-publish those books because no one would have taken a chance on them.
Q: Who are you when you are not writing, interviewing and editing?
Together: Still Wilnona & Jade but without the fancy clothes and make up.
Wilnona: I mostly just work on the next book, the movies, the next big idea, which is an album by the way. We are working with a producer to do an EP.
Jade: I’m a cat lover, so I am normally reading, doing household chores, and hanging out with my cat.
Together: I fear we live the stereotypical writer’s life when it’s all said and done. Oh yeah, you can always catch us at the community beach.
Q: What advice would you give struggling writers based on your own experiences?
WIlnona: I was published for the first time at ten years of age and I haven’t had the career I dreamed of until now. It wasn’t in the way I wanted it to happen, or the genre I hoped for but I’m here now. I said that to say keep pursuing your dream of writing. Also, be flexible with your creative path.
Jade: Sometimes you have to make your own way and hope others join you on the path. If no one does, at least you did it.
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