#WriterWednesday with Jonni Jordyn

I’d like to welcome author Jonni Jordyn to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

Things you need for your writing sessions:

I work in peace and quiet. I know some writers like music in the background, but it’s too distracting for me, possibly because I am a musician. I have not yet learned the discipline of turning off my ringer.

Things that hamper your writing:

Interruptions, whether the phone, or my granddaughter, or worse, my addiction to TikTok can really break my thought process.

Hardest thing about being a writer:

Getting it into people's hands. That’s why I finally hired a promotional team to help me get my books out there. I’ve always had good reviews, but just not enough readers.

Easiest thing about being a writer:

For me, writing is actually easy. I like to twist multiple sub plots around the main plot, giving readers many avenues to guess the outcome with the full belief that I’ll completely surprise most of them (and some reviews have confirmed that).

Favorite foods:

Most anything Asian, but especially Thai.

Things that make you want to gag:

I don’t know if I’ll ever get over my mental block that prevents me from trying escargo.

Something you’re really good at:

Playing Jazz and Latin piano. It’s one of my gifts. (Actually, creativity and artistry in general, which is why I was able to leave music to write.)

Something you’re really bad at:

Reading music. I played naturally by ear and nobody ever knew it. That’s also why, when the horn player's music stands fell over like dominoes, I was able to cover their parts.

Things you’d walk a mile for:

I actually walked a mile to an urgent care facility because a large blood blister was under my now disconnected toe nail. They refused to take my insurance, and I walked back.

Things that make you want to run screaming from the room:

I’m autistic and have auditory processing disorder. I struggle to stay composed if there are a lot of conversations going on at the same time. I also struggle to hear any conversation with music in the background.

Things to say to an author:

I loved your book! Please tell me there will be a sequel!

Things to say to an author if you want to be fictionally killed off in their next book:

I’m a writer too, well maybe not like you, of course, but I have a book. Here’s where you can find it on Amazon. Apologies and exceptions to actual authors. I even offer slack to fellow autistic persons who maybe can’t help it, but when I’m sitting at a table selling or signing books, that’s where the focus belongs.

Favorite places you’ve been:

Tahoe, California. I love that lake for camping, bicycling, and in the winter, skiing. I have taken part in a ride all the way around the lake twice.

Places you never want to go to again:

I don’t want to get into any trouble with my readers there, but I won’t be returning to Florida until their government finds their humanity again. Sorry for getting political, but they started it.

Favorite books (or genre):

If I look at my library, I have mostly science fiction, and a lot of really old stuff too, like Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Bradbury and, on the top of my list, Aurthur Clarke.

Books you wouldn’t buy:

I will not be purchasing any more books or merchandise related to Jo Rowling.

Best thing you’ve ever done:

Living my best life. The process of rebranding my entire catalog afforded me the opportunity to re-edit all of my books, and in doing so, I have re-confirmed that I have made the correct decision.

Biggest mistake:

Marrying the wrong person for the wrong reason and getting trapped in a nightmare at the hands of a narcissist.

The coolest person you’ve ever met:

I did an open air concert in Los Angeles. We went on before the Blues Brothers, and I have to say that Jim Belushi was an absolute blast. We sat back stage enjoying the catering and laughed and laughed.

The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video:

I did a show that was mostly Motown stars from the past. The Marvelettes were there, and they were classy ladies around us, but it had been at least four decades since their album covers were printed, so it’s not their fault that time and age had changed them.

Besides writing, what’s the most creative thing you’ve done:

I was a professional musician. I played keyboards in a popular Latin band. We did tours with names like “Legends of Latin” and we usually headlined the shows.

A project that didn’t quite turn out the way you planned it:

I did a show with Santana’s late brother and gave the venue the backline (the equipment I required) so I only had to bring backup diskettes to load my sounds into the keyboards. One of my diskettes was bad, and the diskette reader on the other keyboard was broken. I had to reprogram them while the rest of the band was doing our sound check. I definitely compromised some of my sounds.

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books:

I wrote my baby brother into one of my books. He was a musician, and I included his act in a scene where the antagonists ran though the theater trying to escape. He’s also the only person to get two dedications.

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not:

OMG. My therapist read one of my books and kept saying that she saw me in about half a dozen of the characters. If I was in them, it wasn’t intentional, but may have been subconsciously placed there.

About Jonni:

Jonni Jordyn, born in Oakland, Ca, started out playing music at age two, and moved on to singing and acting in grade school. High School introduced writing and film making followed by drawing and photography in college. In other words, she had a VERY LIBERAL arts education.

Jonni published some poetry and some india ink drawings in literary magazines while in college, won critical acclaim for her acting in a cabaret theater, but was faced with a decision to pick out the arts she wanted to pursue.

Of all the available opportunities, music and song writing won the first round when she found herself performing with legendary stars of the sixties and seventies.

Round two began years later, after leaving California for Arizona. It all started with a blank piece of paper and the question, "how can I possibly write more than eleven thousand words for a single story?" A valid question which was followed up a year later with, "How did I ever write 160,000 words?"

Now, the writing comes much easier, but still there are questions like, "How will I ever get all these ideas written down?" followed closely by, "How many times can I edit the same book?"

Jonni currently lives in Colorado with her bird.