Disappearing Through Windows and The Alchemy of Writing with Jilanne Hoffmann

Hi everyone! I am so grateful to all the authors who’ve reached out to me about being on “Getting to The Heart of Why We Write.” There have been so many that I’ve put scheduling new interviews on pause until the fall. You can see the details in my post here and don’t worry! Even if I haven’t interviewed you yet, I definitely want to! I just need a minute to catch up. 

Today on Why We Write we have an interview with Jilanne Hoffmann, author of A River of Dust illustrated by Eugenia Mello.

Favorite quotes:

• “We went out with our first manuscript, A River of Dust, to auction. I don’t recommend that to anybody! Afterward there was a long dry spell.”
• “I daydream and that can fill the [creative] well. I just look out the window and can disappear.’”
• “I love the challenge [of writing]. It’s making something from nothing. It’s like alchemy.”
• Our chat about the similarities between meditation and writing.
• How writing is like boot camp.
• “Everyone has their own voice and the world needs their stories.”
• “After you have a finished draft, think about it critically. Read your own writing critically as you would others.”

Links mentioned:

• The 12×12 Picture Book Challenge
• The Writing Barn
• Jilanne’s website
• A River of Dust: The Life-Giving Link Between North Africa and the Amazon illustrated by Eugenia Mello on Amazon, Bookshop, Barnes and Noble
• Jilanne’s other books
• Jilanne’s Linktr.ee
• Jilanne on Bluesky, Twitter, and Instagram

Stay tuned for next week’s interview with author Laura Roettiger! In the interim, catch up on past episodes like last week’s interview with Michelle Lee. 🙂