Throughout the life of any artist, there may be times when it feels like our creative spark has been extinguished forever, but this is not true. Jeana Jorgensen discusses just this and more in today's chat about her pages penned in pandemic.
What does the pandemic currently look like in your city?
Here in Indianapolis, many people are still going out unmasked and dining indoors. We have correspondingly high case rates. It's not pretty.
What are some favorite books you've read during quarantine?
The new graphic novel The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen was amazing. I also devoured fantasy and sci-fi novels like The Cruel Prince, Gideon the Ninth, Empress of Forever, The Bear and the Nightingale, Artificial Condition, and The Starless Sea. In terms of nonfiction, I devoured Dying of Whiteness and Angry White Men.
Have there been any movies, tv shows, podcasts, etc. that have helped keep you at ease the past few months?
Dark as it is, I've been enjoying Westworld these days.
How has the pandemic affected your writing?
I barely wrote for the first 3/4 of the year. I was just trying to make it through a semester where suddenly I had to learn to teach online. Then I was unemployed over the summer, and I managed to write (and publish!) a few personal essays. In the fall, some of my writing inspiration came back, and so I've been blogging more, and writing poetry, too.
Are there any projects you are excited to keep working on? If so, can you give us any details (no spoilers please!) about your project?
I might start doing some freelance writing and consulting work, so I'm excited to investigate those opportunities!
If you haven't been able to write, are there any projects you're hoping to work on next?
When I haven't been writing, I've been baking with my sourdough starter (I like to think I was doing it before it was cool) and trying to learn new dance styles online. I'm also a professional dancer, and while there haven't been as many performance opportunities, I've managed to do a few virtual shows with my troupe and as a soloist, which has been a neat change of pace.
If asked ten years from now what the past few months have taught you about being a writer, what would come to mind?
I've learned not to despair when it feels like the spark is gone and may never return.
Have there been any fellow writers or people in your life who have helped you stay connected during the pandemic?
Yes! I have writer friends on Twitter and Facebook, and we sometimes look over each other's work and send messages of inspiration. Feeling like I'm part of a community (a sorta weirdly knit grouping of fairy-tale scholars, fantasy writers, and other academics and misfits) have been hugely helpful.
Is there anything that excites you about the changes being incited in the publishing world in light of recent events?
I'm still finding my way into publishing, but I think it's amazing that we can connect online now more than ever; I've been able to attend some Zoom webinars with folks I might not have been able to hear speak otherwise.
Is there anything that worries you about the changes being incited in the publishing world in light of recent events?
Again, I'm new to a lot of this, though I've been publishing my academic work for years. I guess I worry that as more of us are working from home, the culture of capitalist overwork will continue to creep in and drain us all.
Are you a plotter, pantser, or somewhere in between? Has this changed during the pandemic?
In fiction I'm a plotter, which is why I haven't written much of it lately (I get stuck too easily in the overzealous attempt to plot EVERYTHING out in advance). In poetry I'm definitely a pantser.
Where is your favorite place to write? Has this changed during the pandemic?
I'll write anywhere! I miss writing in cafes, so while at home it's either at the dining room table or on the couch...either way, I can make a cup of tea while I write, which is nice.
Without too many spoilers, what is your favorite poem you've written since the pandemic began?
I love how, in one poem retelling a fairy tale, I have the image of birds transforming back into humans: "reverse origami."
ABOUT Jeana Jorgensen
Jeana Jorgensen has a PhD in folklore from Indiana University. She researches gender and sexuality in fairy tales and fairy-tale retellings, folk narrative more generally, body art, dance, sex education, and feminist/queer theory. While most of her time goes to teaching college courses and publishing research on the above, she has recently returned to writing fiction and poetry. Her poetry has appeared at Strange Horizons, Liminality, Stone Telling, Enchanted Conversation, and Mirror Dance among other venues. She blogs at Patheos and is constantly on Twitter.
To learn more, follow Jeana and her writing journey at her website and on Twitter and Instagram.
Thanks for chatting, Jeana!
