Today I welcome Justine Johnston Hemmestad to the blog to answer questions
for Author Interview³.
1) Tell us 3 fun facts about your writing history
1 I began writing to recover from a severe Traumatic Brain Injury and PTSD.
2 I began by writing science fiction because I didn’t have access to a library for research and I felt I could make everything up (before the internet was common), but nothing of that early writing survives.
3 I kept writing to learn more about the historical figures I admired and because I could feel how much writing was helping me to recover from my TBI.
2) Describe your writing style in 3 words
1 Emotional
2 Seeking
3 Introspective
3) Name 3 of your literary influences
1 Emily Bronte
2 Rumi
3 The Bible
4) Share your 3 favourite books
1 The Bible, especially Song of Solomon
2 Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte
3 The Works of Shakespeare
5) What are your 3 essential writing tools?
1 paper and pen
2 memory (emotional or educational), which I can cypher into my writing.
3 research materials and inspirational artwork
6) Where are your 3 favourite places to write?
1 I love to write ANYWHERE I can, but my dream spots are…the Egyptian pyramids;
2 Travel back into time to write in the Egyptian Old Kingdom;
3 Any historic cemetery at dusk
7) Name 3 items on your writing wish list
1 My wish is for other people with severe TBI to be inspired through my personal recovery story.
2 To be a professor of Literature.
3 To have a reputable, consistant publisher.
8) What are your top 3 tips for aspiring writers?
1 Keep learning, it sparks creativity and thought processes.
2 Keep an open mind, be willing to cleave to your character’s POV and leave yourself out of it.
3 Put pen to paper and write, even if you don’t know where you’re going with it.
9) Tell us 3 of your writing plans for the year ahead
1 Continue to work on my Master’s Degree in English Literature
2 Continue researching
3 Continue writing
10) Tell us about your latest release
Justine Johnston Hemmestad
PG-13
448 pages
Historical fantasy
Visions of a Dream focuses on the spiritual fire that ignites Alexander the Great’s actions as he learns from the other cultures he comes into contact with. His closest relationships vie for his love but they also provide the steel he needs to be sharpened spiritually and emotionally, for before he conquers the world he must first conquer his own mind. Alexander’s relationships with his fellow man have no restrictions, nor does his love of the sublime.
Justine Johnston Hemmestad’s TBI recovery story is in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injuries, and she truly hopes it can help others going through similar medical trauma. She and her husband have seven kids, three of them grown, and she is currently working on a Master’s Degree in Literature through Northern Arizona University. She hopes to teach creative writing and literature in the future, as well as continue to write.
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