Interview with author Jennifer Erin Valent

Jennifer Erin Valent is the author of Fireflies in December, winner of the Christian Writers Guild's 2007 Operation First Novel contest. The novel follows thirteen year-old Jessilyn Lassiter and her family in the depression-era south. When Jessilyn’s father decides to care for a black girl after her parents die, the Lassiters, who are white, are targeted by the local Ku Klux Klan. Against this frightening backdrop Jessilyn comes to grip with the realities of life and growing up.
I recently had the pleasure of asking Ms. Valent some questions about her novel and the upcoming sequel Cottonwood Whispers.

 A childhood memory of a KKK billboard inspired you to write Fireflies in December. Were there any other factors that contributed to the book?

The billboard was really something that inspired the feel of the novel more than the actual plot. Neither my parents nor I can remember exactly where the billboard was, but what I distinctly remember was how strange I felt seeing it. It was the first time I really realized that what I knew about racism went beyond my history books. That’s something Jessilyn faces in Fireflies In December. She never had first-hand experience with prejudice, but now she’s seeing it come alive in her own front yard. It’s a terrifying fact to face and makes her grow up quickly.

As for other sources of inspiration, I had, over the years, seen some documentaries about racial prejudice that affected me profoundly. I was particularly inspired by the story of Morris Dees, co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, who took an active, and often unpopular, stand against racial prejudice beginning in the late 1960’s. It’s stories like his that have helped me write about a family that is determined to stand for something even when almost everyone else is against them.

Are any of the characters based on real people? For instance is Jessilyn based on you or someone you know?

Jessilyn probably really does have some of me in her. In fact, after my father read it he commented that she reminded him of me. I’ve always had some of that same boldness when I feel someone is doing something irrational and hateful. It makes me mad enough that I don’t always stop to think whether or not it would be wise to act.

Aside from Jessilyn, other characters aren’t exactly based on people I know, but rather made up of different little pieces of people. For example, the way Jessilyn’s mother wields a firm authoritative hand comes from my mother, and the way she prays aloud at the drop of a hat comes from my Aunt Jan. Many of my characters come from taking different character or personality traits from people I know and combining them in my imagination to come up with a new person.

The book deals with some heavy issues, notably racism. The most extreme scenes are very intense and incorporate very strong racist language. Were those portions of the book difficult to write?

There are some parts that are as difficult to write as they are to read. But I come at it from the perspective that I have to do it in order to keep the quality of the story intact, so it doesn’t feel too extreme while I’m writing. The emotions usually don’t come out until I reread the scene after I’m done working. That’s when I can detach from the writing and just watch what unfolds.

Did you interview anyone affiliated with the Klan in doing your research?

Personally, no. I was, thankfully, able to benefit from other people’s work in that respect. There are plenty of great non-fiction books, internet articles and documentaries out there that gave me a great deal of frightening insight into the world of the Ku Klux Klan. Watching the documentaries, in particular, really was quite difficult to do. It’s stunning to see what went on, and, in some ways, what still goes on today in racist organizations. To be honest, the story I wrote was actually a somewhat lighter version of some of the things that really happened at the height of prejudicial violence. The historical accounts I read and viewed were much more frightening than the story I ended up telling.

The sequel to Fireflies in December is due out later this year, can you reveal anything about it yet?

Cottonwood Whispers revisits Jessilyn and Gemma in more peaceful times. Four years after the Lassiters took Gemma in, the town of Calloway has essentially turned a blind eye to the white family taking in the black girl. But that doesn’t mean prejudice is gone altogether, and in this new novel, a minor character from Fireflies In December faces a different sort of prejudice than Jessilyn and Gemma did. When a young girl is involved in an accident, this character, a dear friend of Jessilyn’s, is falsely accused. Jessilyn and Gemma are the only one’s who can prove his innocence, but outside threats make it difficult for them to speak out.

The novel also continues the relationship of Jessilyn and Luke which is now complicated by the fact that Jessilyn is no longer a young girl but a seventeen-year-old coming into womanhood.

There's also a third book coming, do you plan to write a fourth or fifth?

Catching Moondrops, the third book in the Calloway Summers series, is due out in the Fall of 2010. The novel will take place three years after Cottonwood Whispers, when Jessilyn is twenty-years-old. As of now, I don’t have plans to continue the series past that point. But anything can happen!

Fireflies was not the first book you wrote. Are there any plans to publish your previous novels?

The first three books I wrote were all comedies about the nutty inhabitants of a little bayside town. I based them on the old screwball comedies of the 30’s and 40’s. Think “The Awful Truth” or “Bringing Up Baby.” I’ve always loved the smart, snappy dialogue of those films, so my goal for the novels was to take that sort of feel and bring it into the twenty-first century. I love writing those books! I haven’t sold them yet, but I would love to see them out there someday soon. I think we need more books that make us laugh without making us blush.

What other genres do you like to write in?

I really do love writing comedy. But I’ve also written children’s stories and have a young adult novel in progress that’s had to take a backseat to the Calloway books. I’ve written some non-fiction articles, but my first love really is fiction.

What authors/genres do you personally like to read?

There are a few authors that I’ve read everything from, like Victoria Holt, Helen Macinnes and Phyllis Whitney. I really like those suspense novels that get me all involved but don’t leave me feeling too scared to sleep. Plus, I’m very particular about content, and these authors don’t use explicit scenes or language.

I also enjoy Ted Dekker (But not at night! Too scary!) and Tom Pawlik, both very good at suspense. I suppose I like reading suspense novels because they are like a complete vacation from the mundane. They take you to another world where a good imagination comes in very handy. And I’ve got that in spades!

What author(s) inspired you most?

Victoria Holt was the one author that I started reading as an older teenager and kept reading until I’d run through her entire catalog. She just has that way of taking me to another time and place, fueling my imagination, and that’s what I love about writing – that I can use my overactive imagination in a positive, productive way.

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?

A great way to get a feel for what the publishing world is all about is attending a good writer’s conference. There are always courses there about what it takes to make it, and it’s a good idea to look at this undertaking realistically before investing a lot of time, money and heart into trying to get published.
Breaking into this business is HARD! It can be very disappointing and discouraging, and it can lead to a lot of doubts. But if you truly feel the Lord means for you to minister through writing, keep at it and keep your chin up. If you decide maybe getting published isn’t for you but you still enjoy it, keep writing! Your work doesn’t have to be published in order to have merit. You can use your writing to entertain family and friends, to encourage groups at church, whatever you feel called to do.