This past Sunday, we were honored to host a conversation with Pamela N. Harris and Kim Johnson in celebration of their recent releases—This Town is on Fire and Invisible Son, respectively.
We’ve grown to love our takeaway blog posts, but it was so hard picking only three! There truly is no substitute for listening to the full conversation, which is now live on our YouTube channel!
Please also consider supporting them—and WA—by purchasing their books through our Bookshop.org affiliate link. We will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you!
Takeaway #1: Your perspective will shift after releasing your debut.
Pam Harris said she “didn’t know what [she] didn’t know” throughout the process of writing her first release. The second book, however, was a whole different story. (Pun intended!) She wrote the second book in the middle of getting praise and nominations for first, which added pressure on top of the stress of meeting reader expectations and battling the internal editor. You struck gold once—can you do it again?
On the flipside, you also struck gold once! If you had it in you to write one book, you absolutely have it in you to write another. We believe in you!
Takeaway #2: Don’t be afraid to tackle social issues in your work.
Every story has a message, whether the author intended one or not. But it can be daunting to purposefully tackle the issues that boil your blood.
But, if you choose to remain true to what you believe, you can also find that passion to be incredibly inspiring—and not just for you, but for others! Both Pam and Kim write about social justice issues in their work, and according to Pam, “that’s when the deals came along”—when each of them chose to speak their truth.
Takeaway #3: Knowing how you write best is the ultimate advantage.
The first step to making the most of your writing time is knowing thyself and knowing thy schedule.
For example, Kim makes plans to take off work to get in longer writing sessions. However, she also said three hours is the maximum amount of time she can spend writing before her brain taps out. Then it’s break time!
Pam is the same in that a set amount of time is useful for keeping her head in the game, but she’s also learned throughout her writing journey that she works best under pressure.
But, of course, there’s no such thing as one size fits all. That’s why it’s important to think critically about not just the words you write during your writing sessions, but how those the variables within that session affected your writing. (And we’ll have blog posts on that topic in the near future, so keep your eyes peeled!)
About the Authors
PAMELA N. HARRIS was born and somewhat raised in Newport News, VA—also affectionately known as “Bad News.” A former school counselor by day, she received her BA in English and a Master’s in school counseling at Old Dominion University, her MFA in creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and a PhD in counselor education and supervision at William and Mary. When she isn’t writing, Pam is re-watching Leonardo DiCaprio movies, playing with her two kiddos, and pretending to enjoy exercising. When You Look Like Us, an Odyssey Award winner for Excellence in Audiobook Production for Young Adults, as well as a finalist for SCBWI’s Golden Kite Award for Young Adult Fiction, an NAACP Image Award nominee (2022) for Outstanding Literary Work: Youth/Teens, and a 2022 Edgar Award nominee for Best Young Adult novel, is Pamela’s debut novel. Pamela’s next young adult novel, This Town is on Fire, will be released on June 20, 2023. She lives in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Website: https://www.pamharriswrites.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/pamharriswrites
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pamharriswrites
KIM JOHNSON held leadership positions in social justice organizations as a teen and in college. She’s now a college administrator who maintains civic engagement throughout the community while also mentoring Black student activists and leaders. She is also the graduate advisor and member of an historically Black sorority. This Is My America is her debut novel and explores racial injustice against innocent Black men who are criminally sentenced and the families left behind to pick up the pieces. She holds degrees from the University of Oregon and the University of Maryland, College Park. This Is My America is her bestselling novel that explores racial injustice against innocent Black men who are criminally sentenced and the families left behind to pick up the pieces. She is an award-winning novelist, with 2021 accolades that include the Pacific Northwest Book Award and Malka Penn Human Rights Award for Children’s Literature. Her next novel, Invisible Son, is another thriller ripped from the headlines about a wrongly accused teen desperate to reclaim both his innocence and his first love in a bold story set in 2020.
Website: https://kcjohnsonwrites.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KCjohnsonwrites
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kcjohnsonwrites/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KCjohnsonwrites
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kcjohnsonwrites
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kcjohns0435/
