Writer Wellness: An Interview with Author Joy E. Held

 

An Interview with Author Joy E. Held

Welcome Joy E. Held, an award-winning author who offers “everyone information and ideas for how to create and sustain a writing career.” She enables novice writers to begin, and engages seasoned writers to succeed. Joy promotes a “customizable approach for any writer of any genre at any stage of development designed to cultivate a healthy lifestyle and a satisfying writing career.”

GM: What is the premise for your new book?

JH: The premise of my current nonfiction book is an interactive workbook of activities for creative folks. There are exercises and journal pages in the areas of journaling, fitness, relaxation, nutrition, and creative play. The book is titled Writer Wellness Workbook: A guided workbook and journal to accompany Writer Wellness: A Writer's Path to Health and Creativity. It came out in July 2023.

GM: Who is your target audience/niche market?

JH: The target audience and niche market is anyone in the creative arts with a desire to create and maintain a healthy life in a few minutes a day. Especially writers.

GM: What would you like readers to take away from your book?

JH: Writer Wellness Workbook is a safe place to spell out, experiment with, and practice your crazy, juicy ideas about journaling, fitness, relaxation, nutrition, and creative play. As a companion piece to the book Writer Wellness: A Writer's Path to Health and Creativity, it is designed to be a container for a set of actionable techniques that will contribute to your coping skills, organization tactics, and outlook on life as a creator. All you have to do is follow the guidance in this workbook to reflect, collect, select, and connect with your inner wisdom. When you do, the world of creativity isn't as scary because you recognize your strengths and how to best use them to benefit everyone; especially you.

GM: Describe your creative space and where you like to write...

JH: I write in an all purple office surrounded by bookshelves loaded with my favorite fiction and tons of writing craft books as well as books about teaching writing. I have taught creative writing and led writer wellness workshops online for twenty years.

GM: What are you currently reading?

JH: The Sparrows of Montenegro: A Novel, BJ Mayo

GM: What are you currently writing?

JH: I'm on the final round of edits for a young adult historical fantasy novel based on a legend about a mermaid in Charleston, South Carolina during Reconstruction. I'm also writing book two in a historical romance series set in Marietta, Ohio in 1800.

GM: Do you have advice for novice writers?

JH: My advice for novice writers is to keep a journal like your life depends on it. The life of a writer depends on writing so why not spend a few minutes a day jotting down your dreams, plans, upsets, anything really.

GM: List 10 things your fans may not know about you...

JH: 

1.I love St. Bernard dogs.

2.Purple, any shade, is my favorite color.

3.I love doing headstands in yoga.

4.I'm a cancer survivor.

5.I will eat pizza seven days a week.

6.I love cosplay.

7.I have a subscription box business just for writers and readers.

8.I became a writer after a career in ballet and choreography.

9.I've been teaching yoga for 46 years.

10.I love washi tape.

Connect with Joy…

https://www.joyeheld.com

https://www.joyeheld.substack.com

Bio:

Joy E. Held is a college educator and award-winning published author who knew at age ten she was going to be a writer. She has published a non-fiction book for writers, Writer Wellness: A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity (Headline Books, Inc. 2020,) a historical romance novel (The Wild Rose Press, 2010)  and almost 1000 articles in magazines, newspapers, and poetry journals in 25+ years as a professional writer. Her latest release is another historical romance novel from Boroughs Publishing Group. She is particularly charmed by the new world of “art journaling” and the old-but-new-again world of steampunk fiction. Her book reviews can be found in Foreword Magazine, Yoga Journal, Book Report Network, and other publications. She has published multiple articles as a contributing editor for Dancer Magazine and Dance Teacher Now Magazine. Her work can be found in Yoga Journal, Woman Engineer, and Romance Writers Report as well as local and regional publications in West Virginia. She has presented writing workshops for over ten years for Central Ohio Fiction Writers, West Virginia Writers, Inc., Kentucky, Ohio, & WV Romance Writers, Ohio Valley Literary Group, WV Developmental Education Association, Wood County Reading Association, and the West Virginia Writing Project among others. Before writing, however, her world revolves around two daughters, a fab husband, a wonderful son-in-love, an awesome grandson, and their pets. She is also a devoted student of meditation and hatha yoga. Her hobbies include herb gardening and learning to bake with spelt flour.

Getting an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA was one of the best decisions she ever made.