Christopher A. Jos is a teacher currently living in Alberta, Canada, and is a self-professed fantasy and science-fiction junkie going back to his early teenage years. His speculative fiction has appeared in publications such as The Arcanist, The Colored Lens, and the Story Seed Vault. When not writing or working, Christopher usually unwinds by playing his acoustic guitar or spending time in the great outdoors photographing wildlife.
How long have you been writing and what got you started?
I’ve been writing on and off since my early teens. Back then, I used to read a lot of high fantasy (The Lord of the Rings, The Wheel of Time, Dragonlance, the Shannara series, etc.) which kind of got me hooked on the fantasy genre. I guess my love of writing first stemmed from wanting to write epic tales like those (even though I eventually took my writing in a slightly different direction).
What is the best piece of advice you have for new writers?
Read. A lot. More specifically, I’d focus on reading the genres you’d also like to write. As for the writing side, I’d also try dabbling in short fiction (flash fiction, short stories, novelettes, novellas, etc.) first before jumping into writing something larger, like a novel. Talking from personal experience, I think you can learn a lot about the elements that make a good story this way, and most of the lessons learned from writing short fiction can easily be applied to writing a novel later on.
Are there any writing resources, such as books or websites, you’d like to recommend?
There’s so many great resources out there! Personally, I recommend anything from Writer’s Digest (https://www.writersdigest.com/). They have some great books and articles that contain fantastic tips on writing.
What is your favorite type of fiction and who are your favorite authors?
I definitely lean toward writing speculative fiction, mainly fantasy. Several of my favorite authors in the genre include Guy Gavriel Kay and Brandon Sanderson. A more off the board pick relating to this list would be Stuart McLean, whose folksy “slice of life” contemporary short stories I also really enjoy.
How do you measure success when it comes to your writing?
For me, I rate my success in different stages. The first stage is obviously completing an outline/first draft of a given story. Once that’s out of the way, I consider my second stage of success being satisfied with how a revised/polished draft (usually many drafts removed from the first) reads. After that, I’d consider the third stage of success as getting generally positive feedback on my story after submitting it to my writing group (this can also sometimes involve doing multiple revisions). My final stage of success would obviously be getting an acceptance for publication from whatever magazine/publisher I submit a given story to. Of course, not all of my stories successfully make it through all of these stages, and they can sometimes get stuck somewhere along the way! But I find it easier to measure my writing success using this process rather than basing it strictly on “my story got published or it didn’t.”
What tips do you have for finding time to write?
I usually try to set a minimum daily (sometimes weekly) word count quota and track my progress that way. I’ve found doing this is helpful in keeping myself motivated to write, especially with so many other obligations to keep on top of (work, leisure, family, friends, hobbies, etc.).
Are you an outliner or discovery writer? Or somewhere in between?
I used to be a strict discovery writer, but in recent years, I started moving away from that to become more of an outliner. I’ve found that outlining helps me to get more stories written from start to finish, and gives me a road map to follow in regard to where I want to take the story. I still like to leave some room for discovery though, and I don’t hesitate to change or revise my outline if I come up with something more interesting during the draft process.
How do you deal with rejections?
I took my first few rejections pretty hard, but I’ve become somewhat desensitized toward them as I’ve gotten more (although the occasional one can still get to me). Two other things have also helped me to deal with rejection letters. The first is that I usually submit the rejected story to another magazine or publisher not long after the initial rejection (and may tweak a few things based on an editor’s feedback, if it’s a personal rejection) because I believe in its quality. The second is to keep writing. I’ve found it helpful to keep busy (writing wise) rather than just mulling over any given rejection letter.
Do you participate in any online or in-person critique or writing groups?
I certainly do. I’ve been a member of Scribophile (https://www.scribophile.com) for the past three years or so. It’s been a great place to get some feedback on, and reactions to, my work, as well as getting some exposure to a large sample size of other peoples’ writing. Scrutinizing other peoples’ work (specifically focusing on aspects they do well and/or need to continue building upon in comparison to my own) has also been helpful in further honing my writing skills.
What book(s) are you reading right now?
I’m currently going through the Nebula Awards Showcase series. It’s been interesting to read such a wide variety of author writing styles, story lengths, and speculative fiction genres/subgenres in those award-winning and nominated story collections. I highly recommend them!
