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Jen Ponce lives in the Panhandle of NE with her three boys, her cats, and her goldfish named Reggie. She loves to read, watch, and write fantasy and horror. Her passion for writing comes from her desire to see more stories with strong, complex female characters. There weren’t enough books with women she could root for, so she had to write her own.
Jen Ponce: Writer of kickass women and oogy monsters.
Time to chat with Jen!
What is your latest book?
My latest book is Burning the Devil, a psychological horror story about relationships, hope, and evil. The idea for the book came from a dream, one of those unusual dreams with a clearly defined beginning, middle, and end and a plot arc that intrigued me. I tried many times to write the story as I saw it in my head to no avail. I finally figured out the theme of the book and what I wanted to say with it. After that, pinning the story to paper came easier.
Is your recent book part of a series?
No. This is a stand-alone horror novel. I do have a dark fantasy series. I’m currently working on book five. The series starts with The Bazaar. I was lucky enough to win a free cover design for that book. I’m super stoked about it.
What are the special challenges in writing a series?
Keeping everything straight! You’d never think you’d forget your character’s height or eye color or what they were wearing when they come into their power … but you do. My best advice for anyone who wants to write a series is keep a story bible. Keep detailed notes. Re-read the stories before you starting writing the next one. Trust me.
How did you choose the genre you write in? Or did it choose you?
I write fantasy and horror because those are the genres I love to read most. I was an avid romance fan in my high school years and I’ve written a few romances, but I really love a good fantasy or horror novel. There’s something about diving into a book with magic and monsters that just thrills me.
What else have you written?
I have two novels with deliciously bloody vampires, a horror novel about bugs and zombie fungus, two romances, a serialized novel about a bisexual demon hunter, and my Devany Miller series.
What part of writing a novel do you enjoy the most? The least?
My favorite part is seeing what happens next. I’m a pantser, which means I don’t plot out my stories. I like to see where the idea takes me. Sure, sometimes I have an ending in mind, but it’s a nebulous thing. I tell stories to myself as I write, which keeps everything fresh and fun.
That being said, I always hate the middle part of my novel. For me, I start wishing I could write a new story when I get to the end of the first third of the book. Everything feels awful, all the words I’ve written seem pointless … it’s just a nightmare. I really have to stay focused and disciplined to push my way through that point. Once I get by it, I’m good to go again and writing, once more, is fun.
Some authors, like me, always write scenes in order. But I know some people write scenes out of order. How about you?
I have tried writing a book out of order and it’s still a mess. I love the story, but I dearly wish I’d never attempted to assemble it from the middle. Ugh.
Is it important for you to know the ending of a book before you write it? The title?
I have to know the title—as best I can, anyway—before I can start writing. I don’t have to know the end; in fact, I’d rather not know so it can be a surprise to me, too. But I can’t get started without a title.
Burning the Devil didn’t have that title when it started. It’s one of the rare books I’ve written that ended up with a completely different title at the end.
How important is the choosing of character names to you? Have you ever decided on a name and then changed it because it wasn’t right for the character?
Character names are important, but I’ve never really had trouble with names. Titles, yes, names, no. I’ve changed very few names, and when I changed the name, the character changed too. So, I guess I changed the character’s name only after the character themselves changed.
If you were to write a non-fiction book, what might it be about?
I would write a book about dangerous relationships and what to look out for when dating, aka dating red flags. I work as an advocate for sexual and domestic violence victims and I am passionate about promoting healthy relationships, healthy boundaries, and healthy sexuality. I’m also passionate about educating people on relationship red flags. Did you know that ‘love at first sight’ can be a red flag? An abusive person likes to get you emotionally invested in themselves as quickly as possible. If more people knew what to look for and everyone was taught about healthy relationships, healthy boundaries, and healthy sexuality from the time they were tiny, it would transform the world.
How would you define your style of writing?
My writing is spare and colorful. I hate long, droning paragraphs full of description. I am an impatient reader. I want to see the story. I want to see the action and I don’t want to dwell overlong on things that don’t matter to the story. I know some people love leisurely books full of details. I rarely do. Sometimes I have to slow myself down and remind myself that not everyone is like me. I don’t want people to turn away from my work because it’s so sparse on details that they can’t see what’s happening. I just want to cut out the boring bits.
Where do you live now? If you had to move to another city/state/country, where might that be?
I live in the Panhandle of Nebraska. If I had to move, I’d consider Colorado. There’s a college with an ASL (American Sign Language) interpreter program. I’m currently taking ASL classes and I’d love to become an interpreter.
Trains, planes, automobiles, or boats?
Trains. There’s something lovely and romantic about trains.
If you could duplicate the knowledge from any single person’s head and have it magically put into your own brain, whose knowledge would you like to have? And why.
I’d take my friend Jim’s knowledge. He was the funniest guy I knew, smartest too. I’d love to have all those jokes at my fingertips and I’d never lose at Scrabble. (Because he never did.)
Care to brag about your family?
I have three awesome boys: Emilio, Luc, and Miguel. They are kind and funny and intelligent. I learn something new from them all the time and I’m so glad I’ve been lucky enough to have them in my life.
What music soothes your soul?
Hip hop. Weird but true.
What are three things you think we can all do to make the world a better place?
Have healthy boundaries. Respect others. And be kinder.
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