How did you become a writer?

I started writing stories as soon as I learned to write letters and sentences. From early on, there was an innate desire in me to write, as well as an instinct for storytelling, and though it took me years to master the latter, I always knew I was a writer. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a movie star and went to a special high school to study acting; I even went to college as a first-year theater student. But I soon realized I didn’t love acting as much as I love writing. Writing was part of my nature – a huge, and probably the most significant part – and I couldn’t stop doing it, even decades later when I still wasn’t making a career out of it.

In the beginning, I simply wrote. My second year of college, I changed majors to writing and journalism, and later enrolled in an MFA program. So, yes, I studied, not only in academic settings, but also by reading the greats and trying to decipher how they did what they did with language, plot, character, what have you. Though I’ve hit the thrilling moment when my first book is in the world, I don’t think this means my studies are over. I’m still studying novels and reading craft essays to improve my skills.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

I grew up in Ohio and while the state will always have a place in my heart, I felt kind of bored there, as if I believed there was a more exciting world to be explored. So, once I got to high school and started reading more literary novels, I gravitated toward authors who were living adventurous lives, especially as expats: Henry Miller, James Baldwin. I learned about and came to admire Josephine Baker, both as a performer and personality, but as an activist. I also discovered Toni Morrison, my favorite writer, and was transformed by her brilliance with language and abstraction. While I never attempted to “be” those writers or entertainers, I do feel them with me in a way because there’s always a search for freedom and the desire to self-actualize in my stories, and an attention to language in the prose itself.

Funny enough, the only teachers who believed in me growing up were my English teachers. I was one of those kids who fell through the cracks; I was even put into a remedial program in middle and high school. The issue was that I wasn’t challenged and I had a creative mind that went unstimulated. My English teachers got it though; they saw I could write creatively and analyze literature, so they always encouraged me. I’m grateful to them.

When and where do you write? 

I’m an adjunct professor, which means my schedule changes every semester. Moreover, depending on the week, I may have hundreds of papers to grade, so this means I have to manage my time despite the fact that my schedule constantly shifts. Each week, I make myself a schedule blocking out at least two hours every day to write, and fitting the rest of my daily tasks around it, including the activities I don’t want to miss but aren’t “required,” like yoga. For the most part, I stick to it. I also try to get the writing in first; this helps me psychologically because it confirms my commitment to the work and I’m also more apt to get it done.

I’d like to be exciting and write in cafés or other sexy spots, but no. I just sit at my kitchen table. Firstly, I get very distracted by other people; I wonder who they are and listen in on their conversations. I can’t help it – people interest me. Secondly, I’m often pressed for time so it’s easy to just sit down and do it at home. I’ve recently moved apartments and thought I’d set up a little writing nook in the new place but I’m still writing at the kitchen table.

What are you working on now? 

I’m working on my next novel, which is about a love triangle. I’m afraid to say more about it because I’m at that delicate moment when I realize I’m trying to construct a plot and perhaps even convey an idea that might be tough to pull off. If I can’t do it, I wouldn’t want people to have expectations. I’m loving it though and putting in the work. I hope I can achieve what I’m envisioning.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? 

I’ve never really been blocked though there have been times when I just couldn’t fit the writing in, and I’ll admit, I’ve highly resented those moments. I try to sit down and do as much as I can, even if it’s for twenty minutes, even if it’s just doing research on character or some aspect of the world I’m building.

I do have a tip for writer’s block. Whenever I feel momentarily stuck, I go to my bookshelf and grab a book, sometimes a book of poetry, and page through looking for lines that stir something in me. Often, I’ll find a line that starts my engine running so I can sit back down and keep going.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

Just write. But to me, this doesn’t simply mean, “write the next thing” or “keep going.” What this means to me is keep working on craft. Read others’ books, read poetry, listen to music, learn about the art of fiction itself, watch movies and television shows to understand different approaches to storytelling. This also means listening when people are giving you feedback, and in fact, reaching out to people for feedback. Devote yourself to improving your craft, which will not only help you get published, but will also help make the process of writing easier and more enjoyable.

What’s your advice to new writers?

My advice is similar to the advice I’ve been given in the question above. What I also might add is to understand that publishing is a business as well as a place to appreciate art and ideas. So, if the market doesn’t embrace your work or aspects of your work immediately, this isn’t necessarily an indication of its quality. Keep working at it. Don’t give up.

Laura Warrell is a graduate of the Creative Writing Program at the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She has attended residencies at the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference and the Tin House Writer's Workshop, and she has taught Creative Writing and Literature through the Emerging Voices program at PEN America Los Angeles, at Writing Workshops Los Angeles, and at academic institutions in Los Angeles and Boston. She currently writes and teaches in Los Angeles. Her writing has been published in the Los Angeles Review of Books, Huffington Post, The Rumpus, The Writer, and Post Road Magazine. Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm is her first novel.