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SmokeLong Quarterly

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Smoking With Louise Jackson

(Read the Story) March 15, 2004

Louise Jackson

Art by Marty D. Ison

Your story “Tea and Biscuits” captures the inner dialogue of your character so well. Does that come easy for you?

Sometimes, if the character has a story s/he wants to tell. If I can’t get into the mind of the character and stay there for the duration then the story ends up on the unfinished pile. I have a very big unfinished pile.

Details are woven in with ease throughout your piece. Would you like to share a little of your writing process? For example, do those details show up right away, or do you add them as you revise?

My stories are character driven and usually emerge complete with far too much detail. It’s all about knowing when to shut up, but most of my characters don’t have that skill.

Who are some of your favorite characters you’ve come to know through other authors’ work as well as your own?

I fell in love with Heathcliff a long time ago.

We all have days when it’s difficult to maintain our identity as a writer. How do you carve out enough space and time to write?

Harry, our genius pet hamster, came up with an exceptionally good writing schedule for me. If I don’t produce, he starts eating my fingers. It works. Have you ever tried to type with two thumbs?

About the Author

Louise Jackson writes fiction and poetry, and is a submissions prereader for Cadenza. She lives in England with her two children and their genius pet hamster, Harry.

About the Artist

A native of Ohio, Marty D. Ison lives with his wife transplanted in the sands of the Gulf of Mexico. He studied fine arts at Saint Petersburg College. In addition to the visual arts, he writes poetry, short stories, and novels. See more of Ison’s work here.

This interview appeared in Issue Three of SmokeLong Quarterly.
SmokeLong Quarterly Issue Three
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