Karen Simmonds has always tried to shoehorn writing into a busy schedule which currently includes homeschooling the youngest of her three daughters, running a wedding business with the eldest, and preparing to be a grandmother (in three weeks time!) All of this provides endless fodder and, as a result, thoughts of what she will write about next are rare. The great thing about writing is that you can usually do it until a ripe old age, which she plans to do. Karen has been involved with a writers’ group for nearly thirteen years. She has found that having deadlines, even self-imposed ones, helps keep forward momentum. She is also happy to have found a place like WOW
! that fosters that final step in the process for every writer: sending out your work. She is glad to have had the opportunity to participate.
Find out more about Karen by visiting her website:
http://www.westminsterhallandchapel.com/.
interview by Marcia PetersonWOW: Congratulations on placing in the Top 10 with two stories, an amazing accomplishment! What inspired you to enter the contest?Karen: Thanks so much! A friend of mine in my writer's group, more fearless than I, told me about the contest and that I should enter. In addition, I was annoyed with myself for hardly ever sending out my work, always thinking it could be better, etc. So what if it can be better--how much better? I have seen stories that are overworked and that flowed better on the second draft than the fourth or fifth. Sometimes the inner critic needs to be bound and gagged.
WOW: Both of your entries were fantastic. Can you tell us what encouraged the ideas behind your stories, 1974 and Vessel? Karen: "Vessel" was inspired by my twenty-seven yr. old pregnant daughter. Seeing her with her hand on her belly, the devotion already there, made me wonder what kind of person could perpetrate fraud on unsuspecting couples and fail to form such an attachment themselves. It occurred to me that there could be something more going on there, something altruistic. It was an interesting character study, to be sure. Human motivation is such an amazing thing.
"1974" was reminiscent of my childhood years. I was more like the tom-boy character but had a little of the social awkwardness as well. I really wanted to explore those fleeting friendships we all had when we were young and had trouble truly defining. How and why do they start and, even more inexplicably, how and why do they end? It's such a joyful time of life, but also painful and confusing. Whoever says being a kid is easy may have forgotten a few things along the way.
WOW: Have you always enjoyed the genre, and how did you learn to write great flash fiction?Karen: I've always been drawn to the challenge of making the most of my words. Flash Fiction is defini
Karen always knew she wanted to write. Once, at a slumber party, she trapped a group of 11-year-old girls in a dark room and read her scary stories to them. She knew she had a captive audience!
Although she hasn't had any run-ins with a bridezilla...yet, Karen imagines when she does, she'll end up writing about it.
This is Karen's first published flash fiction story. More sit patiently in a desk drawer, awaiting their turn in the publishing world.
If you haven't had a chance to read Karen's piece,
Fly Girl, head over to
WOW! and check it out. Then, grab a cuppa your favorite beverage and settle in with Karen as she talks all things writing with The Muffin.
WOW: Karen, congratulations on your double victory in WOW!'s Spring 2010 Flash Fiction Contest. Not only did you nab Runner-Up honors for Fly Girl, you also earned an Honorable Mention for another of your stories, The Costume Party. That's simply awesome! Based on your experience, what advice would you offer to writers who are considering entering a writing contest?
Karen: Take that step! I kept my writing under wraps for years. It can be tough to know when something is ready, but sometimes you just have to let go and not work a piece to death. Sending your story out into the world can be very exciting. Keep challenging yourself, learn as you go, but don't hide it away.
WOW: Sage advice! I want to talk about the concept for Fly Girl. While reading it, I had such an "I've-been-there" feeling. Why do you believe everyday situations make such a connection with readers?
Karen: I think readers can identify with the character and her situation because we've all had disillusionment with regard to work, relationships, and life in general. It's nice to be reminded that we're not alone. I tried to offset the negativity by showing her feelings of protectiveness toward the young woman. We'd all like to think we can retain our empathy even when we're having difficulties.
WOW: I agree. Having empathy in the midst of tragedy or even a minor problem proves to be difficult at times. What caught my attention are the humorous undertones in Fly Girl. How do you balance humor within a piece?
Karen: I do try to let the humor in. Life's certainly not fair, but the idea of karmic justice can be a way to resolve some of that. I definitely attempted to explore that in this story. I don't think about it much when I'm writing, but it's always interes
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