Interview with historical fiction author Jo Sparkes

Historical fiction author Jo Sparkes helps me wrap up the first week of the new year by chatting about her new novel, The Honey Tree.

Bio:
From humor and interview articles and the Pro Football Writers Association to the Film School at SCC, Jo’s adventures in writing have run the gamut.

She’s worked on scripts for Children’s television, commercial work for corporate clients, feature writer on ReZoom.com, and humor articles and player interview pieces for Arizona Sports Fans Network, she got to write and game coverage. Jo was unofficially the first to interview Emmitt Smith when he arrived in Arizona to play for the Cardinals. She served as adjunct teacher at the Film School at Scottsdale Community College.

She’s garnered high praise for her book, Feedback How to Give It How to Get It , a guide to help her students — and indeed, all artists. Her original script, Frank Retrieval, won a Kay Snow award; her fantasy series, The Legend of the Gamesmen, has garnered three B.R.A.G. Medallions and a 2015 silver IPPY award for Ebook Juvenile/YA Fiction.

Welcome, Jo. Please tell us about your current release.
Maggie has always accepted life’s constraints: that is, until she witnesses a breathtaking moment of liberation as a butterfly breaks free from a spider’s web. And this small, defiant act sparks a fire within her soul.

That’s a dangerous thing for a field slave in 1850 Missouri.

As her daughter ascends to the coveted position of personal maid to the Mistress, Maggie’s family is thrust into the intricate dynamics of power and privilege within the House.

But in the shadows, a chance encounter between Maggie’s sons and Preacher, a burly, escaped slave, sets the stage for a risky alliance.

Meanwhile, Lucy, the Master’s lonely daughter, hungers for the warmth and kindness that Maggie effortlessly exudes. The boundaries that separate them are as rigid as the times they live in, but the desire for connection and understanding defies the odds.

Maggie, recognizing an opportunity for freedom, finds herself entwined in a perilous dance between liberation and the relentless pull of her current station.

Will she follow in the path of the butterfly?

What inspired you to write this book?
Maggie haunted me for years.

It’s not my normal genre, although I did enjoy historical research for The Wake of Sadico. But I had visions of this woman, events, people in her life. I tried ignoring them, but more thoughts kept coming. Then one day I realized I had a whole book in my head – and it flowed effortlessly out to the page. Maggie is more of a friend than a character to me.

Excerpt from The Honey Tree:
Rapping on the back door, Maggie waited on the doorstep. Bibby didn’t like field slaves entering her scrubbed kitchen.

Cook opened the door and shook her head. “Booker sent you for chicken, didn’t he. Master ain’t all that happy with him, Maggie. Tell him he better watch hisself.”

Maggie shrugged. She didn’t care if Booker got himself in a little trouble.

“We don’t wanna lose him.” Cook moved off to snatch up a fair hunk of chicken—the leg and thigh. “Master Hueron’s next overseer would be harsher, I promise you.” That was Cook’s way of looking at things. The woman was near as old as Squint, and near as smart. Maybe she knew the same stuff Squint knew.

Maggie wet her lips, glancing around to make sure they were alone. “You know anything about a man in town, supposed to help slaves…”

“Stop right there.” Cook gave her a long, hard stare. “You gotta take care who you ask things like that.” Cook turned, peering over her shoulder at the empty room. “Real care, Maggie.”

Maggie sighed.

Wiping her hands on the old apron, Cook stepped close. “Back of Sampson’s Store. After dark. You knock once.”

Maggie’s heart stopped pumping altogether.

“No matter who opens the door, tell ’em that old mule threw his shoe. If’n he tell you to come back tomorrow, say ‘yassir’ and get your ass gone. But if’n he says, ‘what mule,’ you say Inky.”

The world stilled. A faint puff of air tickled Maggie’s hair.

“Likely won’t help you,” Cook continued. “Heard tell old Murphy done up and disappeared, which makes things tough. And being a female don’t make them easier. Still, I ain’t one to stand in your way.” She set the chicken in Maggie’s hand. “You go on now. Take that to Booker.”

Maggie ran fast through the trees, her whole body feeling lighter than air.

What exciting project are you working on next?
I’ve got a few in my head.

One is about a Psychic, who runs a class on developing your own sixth sense abilities. The characters are reaching that point where they snatch the pen from my fingers to write it themselves.  

There’s also a story about three women in Europe. When her husband dies in Greece, a woman drags her siblings overseas in a frantic quest to find the mistress she’s sure he had for years.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Before I was six years old. I wrote my first book, The Witch of Lackey High, when I was fourteen. It had a very small fan base, and existed in a single spiral notebook.

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
We retired and moved to the UK, so I have more time to work. I write in the mornings, research in the afternoons, and get in a stroll by the sea before tea time. Tea time meaning dinner—it seems I’m learning a new language over here.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I interview my characters—actually ask questions and jot down the answers. I’d love to claim it’s this thought-out process I developed to flesh them out, but I suspect I’m merely becoming a true eccentric.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A writer was always my first choice—even when I wasn’t sure what it was. It took a bit to get here, but every job in between was research for my stories.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Thank you, sincerely. For reading and appreciating books.