Jessie Janowitz: Give Your Narrator a Secret
KidLit Craft is back with another Snack-Sized Author Interview. In this series, we ask authors five quick questions that give us insight into their craft and process. Today we’re talking with author Jessie Janowitz.
I first met Jessie during my MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her writing is sharp and engaging, and she fully embodies the energy of her narrators. She is generous as well, with both craft advice and industry insights. Jessie is the author of the middle grade novels The Doughnut Fix its sequel, The Doughnut King, and, most recently, All the Ways to Go.
Welcome, Jessie!
Question 1: What's your writing superpower?
Interweaving emotional arc and action arc. What does that mean exactly? Well, to me, it means that any action or event that happens in my story has an important impact on my character’s emotional development, whether it forces him or her to confront a fear to whether it offers my character an opportunity to learn something they don’t understand about themselves.
Question 2: What’s an element of craft you explored in your latest project and what tips can you share with other authors for growing in their use of that particular element?
First person narrators! I’ve explored this perspective in all my published books, and I continue to learn new ways to make it feel more authentic and leverage it to create a unique bond between reader and narrator. A few things I’ve learned along the way:
Understanding your main character’s backstory is essential to the first-person voice. We filter the world through our unique personal experiences, which means when we’re describing something, we refer to places we’ve been, people we’ve met, food we’ve eaten, etc. If we don’t know our narrator’s history, we can’t begin to know the language they’d use to describe it.
Consider the power of letting your first-person narrator reveal a secret to the reader that the other characters in the book don’t know. One effective way to create a connection between the reader and the narrator is for the narrator to confess a secret. This is particularly effective in kidlit where readers are puzzling out what secrets to reveal about their evolving selves.
Question 3: If you could travel back in time, what advice would you give yourself as a new author?
Stop polishing. Keep moving forward. Don’t lose momentum.
Question 4: What inspires you as a writer in your career?
Emails from readers, especially the readers who say they are not readers but loved my book anyway.
Question 5: What’s one book you think every kidlit author should read?
The Magic Words by Cheryl B. Klein. [Editor’s Note: KLC fully endorses this recommendation! Written by storied editor Cheryl B. Klein, The Magic Words covers every element of children’s lit a new (or experienced) writer needs to know, in a clear and engaging format.]
Bonus Question: What can fans look forward to next?
My next middle grade! Tentatively titled: SNAFU.
Jessie Janowitz’s debut middle grade novel The Doughnut Fix was a 2018 Cybils finalist, a Spring 2018 Junior Library Guild Selection, an Amazon Best Book of the Month (Apr 2018), and received a starred review from The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books. The sequel, The Doughnut King, was also a Junior Library Guild Selection. Her latest middle grade novel, All the Ways to Go, was released in September 2024. Jessie grew up in New York City and still lives there with her family.
You can find Jessie on Facebook @jessiejanowitzauthor, Instagram @janowitzjessie, and YouTube @jessiejanowitzauthor. Visit her website to find all the latest news.
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