KaylieAnn Brown

Interview Project: Part 1

Communication 1010
9/13/2016
Turnitin Receipt # 710823592

Background Information
My Interviewee:
I have decided to interview Crystal Memmott. She has a career as an elementary school
teacher, but also has a side job as a freelance author. She publishes her books on Wattpad, hoping
to get enough publicity to have an agent publish her works. I decided to interview her because of
her trials in becoming an author, and only deciding to be an author a handful of years ago. I
admire her determination in becoming an author, and decided to learn more about her career.
Career Research:
I didnt find myself enjoying the art of writing, until the summer after my 8th grade. I
started my route to being an author, by pursuing creative writing classes in my 10th grade year. I
found myself drawn into stories that I would write. I really enjoyed sitting down at a computer
writing a story unfold.
Authors main job is to provide a book which is enjoyed by a specified age group. They
seek to entertain the reader with a story containing fresh ideas. This would relate best to me,
because of my extreme interest in telling stories that people love to listen to, or read. I enjoy
sparking the inspiration in others to express their creative ideas.
When people think of authors, they believe that there isnt any schooling required to write
as a career. In the Online Occupational Handbook, it states that the average level of education
most authors and writers have is a Bachelors degree. It is true that a handful of authors dont
have extensive education when working in the field, but most have had a few classes at least.
This makes me excited because I wish to go to college in other fields as well as writing.
Along with interviewing an author, I want to be a freelance author. Freelance authors are
different from other authors because they publish books themselves. Scott Edelstein states in his
book, 100 Things Every Writer Needs to Know, Freelance writers have far more flexivility,
independence, and self-determination than either of the other two groups (salaried writers and
contract writers). (Page 123) This interests me because of the lack of restrictions involved with
writing.
Every author says they have a different goal set when they become an author. Alison
Nastasi quotes Stephen Kings On Writing that in the end all writing is about enriching the
lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. This basically

describes what I wish to get from being an author, so hearing another author say this gives me
confidence that I am writing for the right reason.

Interview Schedule
Opening:
Hi Crystal. Thank you for agreeing to an interview. Sorry it was last minute, but
hopefully it will be short. I was very inspired by your recent Facebook post about your book.
When I called you, I asked if I can specifically ask you questions about being an author. I
also wanted to expound on being a freelance author and how you planned to become an author in
the first place. I needed to do this assignment for a college class, COMM 1010, but I also think it
will be beneficial for me as an author to receive advice from a fellow author.
Because it is an assignment, I may jot down notes about what you say. Please know I
want to reference back to what you said, so please do not take it as lack of attention. I will also
be recording this interview to draw information off of.

Body
Topic 1: History, Present and Future
I wanted to start with questions about your previous relations to writing and their effects on
today.
1. How did you come to enjoy writing books and stories? (Primary, Open)
a. Who helped you enjoy the arts of writing books and stories? (Secondary, Open)
2. In High School, did you ever publish anything into the yearbook, literary magazines, or
newspaper? (Primary, Bipolar)
If yes:
a. What did you learn from the publishing? (Secondary, Open)
If no:
b. Do you wish you had published things in High School? (Secondary, Closed)
3. What other jobs have you had along your road to be a freelance author? (Primary, Open)
a. What did you learn from these experiences? (Secondary, Open)
b. Would you ever trade that for a job as a business writer? (Secondary, Closed)
4. Have you had setbacks in the publishing field. (Primary, Bipolar)
If yes:
a. What are those setbacks? (Secondary, Open)
b. What have they taught you? (Secondary, Open)
c. Would you go through them again if given the choice? (Secondary, Closed)
If no:
d. Would you have tried to publish something, even if the odds were against you?
(Secondary, Bipolar)
e. Do you know other authors that have had setbacks? What have you learned from
his or her setback? (Secondary, Bipolar)

f. Do you think you would have given up if you had a major setback? (Secondary,
Closed)
5. Have you taken college-level classes for creative writing? (Primary, Bipolar)
If yes:
a. Where did you take those classes? (Secondary, Open)
b. What did you learn from those classes? (Secondary, Open)
c. Are there any suggestions on colleges for writers to go to? (Secondary, Bipolar)
If no:
d. Do you learn from experiences while on the job? (Secondary, Closed)
e. What would you suggest for someone who isnt certain on a college? (Secondary,
Open)

Topic 2: Writing, Inside and Out

My next selections of questions are about details of what works you have written and how you
did so.
1. What genres of books do you write? (Primary, Open)
a. Why do you write those genres? (Secondary, Open)
2. How did you come up with the plots for your books and stories? (Primary, Open)
a. Do you use plot graphs and/ or outlines to organize your books and stories?
(Secondary, Closed)
3. What is your first work? (Primary, open)
a. What writing techniques do you use in that book or story? (Secondary, Open)
4. How much time do you spend each day writing your books and stories? (Primary, Open)
5. Are there any places you cant write in? (Primary, Bipolar)
a. What makes those areas bad to write in? (Secondary, Open)
b. Have you set up a place just for you to write in? (Secondary, Open)

Topic 3: Inspiration, From Where It Comes

My final topic I wish to discuss is the inspiration that you get when writing a book.
1. How do you get motivation when it seems hard to write anything? (Primary, Open)
a. Do you believe in writers blocks? (Secondary, Closed)
2. Who is your favorite author? (Primary, Closed)
a. How have they helped you gain a love of writing? (Secondary, Open)
b. Do you ever copy their ideas, but switch them to blend it into your writing?
(Secondary, Bipolar)
3. How do you get ideas for your books? (Primary, Open)
a. Do you have dreams you use in your books and stories? (Secondary, Closed)
b. Do you use experiences in your books? (Secondary, Closed)
4. How do you picture your settings? (Primary, Open)
a. Do you take pictures of places? (Secondary, Closed)
b. Do you draw out maps of the places? (Secondary, Closed)

c. Have you conducted research to discover cool settings of your books? (Secondary,
Bipolar)
5. Do you relate your characters to yourself? (Primary, Bipolar)
If yes:
a. How do you include it into your writing? (Secondary, Open)
If no:
b. Why do you choose not to include it with your writing? (Secondary, Open)
6. Are you a part of any writing groups? (Primary, Bipolar)
If yes:
a. What groups are you in? (Secondary, Open)
b. What benefits come from those groups? (Secondary, Open)
c. Would you suggest any groups to other authors? (Secondary, Open)
If no:
d. Why do you not participate in groups? (Secondary, Open)
e. What would you do if someone were to suggest a group to you? (Secondary,
Bipolar)

Clearing house question: The interviewees turn

1. Is there anything else about being a freelance author you wish to share with me?
(Primary, Open)
2. Is there any advice you would like to give me beyond what we have discussed today?
(Primary, Open)

Closing
I think that is everything. I wanted to thank you again for helping me with this
assignment. I learned so much more about the life as a freelance author.
I will be looking forward to seeing your books be published in the future. I hope that I
can be a successful. This interview helped me gain more motivation to write my own books. You
helped me also see that this isnt the only job I can have, and that it is a part time job.
As part of the assignment, I need you to fill out this evaluation sheet. It basically asks you
to explain the good things and bad things I did during this interview. I know you are very busy,
so I understand that it may take a few days to turn in. I do ask that you turn it in within these next
few days. If you mail it, you make it out to Copper Hills High, and specify it goes to Stephen
Haslam. If mail doesnt work for you, you can email him at stephen.haslam@jordandistrict.org.
It was nice to interview you. Thank you again, I cant express how awesome it has been
to learn more about you. (Handshake) Good bye.

Bibliography
Nastasi, Alison. 15 Famous Authors on Why They Write. Flavorwire, 26 June 2012,
http://flavorwire.com/303590/15-famous-authors-on-why-they-write/6.
Summary. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 17 Dec.
2015, http://www.bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/writers-and-authors.htm.
Edelstein, Scott. Understand the Difference Between a Salaried Writer, a Contract
Writer, and a Freelancer. 100 Things Every Writer Needs to Know, Perigee Books,
New York, NY, 1999, pp. 123124.

KaylieAnn Brown
Interview Project: Part 2
Communication 1010
9/19/2016
Turnitin Receipt # 710823592
Interview Analysis Memo
DATE: September 15, 2016
TO: Mr. Haslam
SUBJECT: Interview Analysis Memo, COMM 1010

On Thursday, September 15th, I was able to interview freelance author Crystal Memmott
from West Jordan, Utah. She is one of the most inspirational authors in my neighborhood. I was
able to message her on Facebook about interviewing her.
I have a goal to become a freelance author myself. That is when I realized I know one
who lives houses away from me. She is in my church, but I never have talked to her much. I
know her daughter, who was the sterling scholar at Copper Hills last year. I wanted to learn more
about her experiences of being an author, and learn from her things I will avoid in the future.
This next section will explain all the advice and information Crystal Memmott gave me,
and the stuff I would consider most important.

Summary of Lessons Learned

History, Present and Future
I started with the questions about her previous experience of an author. I found it
intriguing that she only decided to be an author a few years ago. She got interested in the writing
world from the elementary school author signings. There were authors that would have parents of
kids buy the book and then sign them. She was excited because she works as a reading assistant
at the elementary school. She would be heavily involved, and was in awe at the authors fame,
and wanted to be like the authors.
I was also astonished that she would be so heavily involved when she had no background
of being an author. It baffles me that she didnt go to school, nor got involved in the high school
writing programs. Her only publications before her book was an essay she won a contest of in
elementary. She was on the newspaper, and was happy with being in the spotlight. This made her
realize her joy when she is given acknowledgement.
When she decided to be a freelance author, she did it because of some problems with
publishing companies. She tried to publish her book with LDS publishers, primarily Deseret
Book, Covenant, as well as Shadow Mountain Publishing. She was disappointed because

Covenant, which is the only publisher that wanted her manuscripts, told her that she needed to
continue to work on it. This is when she decided she needed to make a name for herself. She
started with Wattpad, and she hopes to gain enough followers to find an agent.
Writing, Inside and Out
Crystal Memmott writes romance novels, with mysteries inside them. Her current book,
Windows of Heaven: The Manor is about a second-grade teacher named Julie Cardon who is
trying to help consultant David Granacci find a man who is trying to solve a mystery behind a
poisoned garden. She explained that her book was inspired by a childhood mystery series: Trixie
Belden and the romance series: Twilight. I found it interesting because my book was also inspired
by certain books and movies.
Crystal doesnt have a set schedule that she uses for writing. Most of the time she uses
the time she can take to write down dialogues. She even stated, If I am driving and I get an idea,
I have to pull over and write it down because I will just forget it and I wont remember it again.
I discovered that it does help to keep at least sticky notes by my bed so I can write my ideas
down so I wont forget them. Crystal then goes home and would type it into a computer and adds
it to her book.
When it comes to her story lines, she came up with them from her own experiences. Not
only does she use her experiences as a school teacher, but she also uses her trip to Italy to know
the setting. When she took her trip to Italy, she used her time exploring different monuments. She
also used some of it to sit down and write her book directly. It inspires me that going someplace
would help spark ideas.
Inspiration, From Where It Comes
When I asked Crystal what inspires her, she didnt give a lot of information. Instead, she
stated the reasons she is writing mystery and romance. She says that her main inspiration is book
signings that happened at elementary schools. She loved how the authors would meet with the
kids who had their books. She wants to be like them, and she keeps that dream in her head as she
writes. I find it neat because I never remembered author signings at my elementary school.
Her motivation comes from her favorite authors: Stephanie Meyer, Brandon Mull, and J.
K. Rowling. She finds the stories of Twilight, Fablehaven, and Harry Potter helping her see what
her potential could be.
Stated earlier, Crystal uses her own life to create a story. She uses her own emotions in
her characters. She also finds her inspiration in dreams, or visions of dialogue. She uses
notebooks to jot down her ideas when they come. I seek likewise; however I need to keep a
notebook with me at all times.
She finds that being in writing groups would help her find her own writing style. She
meets other people like her that want to be an author as well. These groups help improve each
others works. It helps her, and I have heard likewise from other authors. I need to find myself a
group as well, especially when I am almost done with my first book.
Interview Analysis

This interview was very beneficial. I didnt think it would help me, but not only did I learn more
about the steps of becoming an author, but I also learned good traits of an interview.
Analysis of Freelance Author as my Career Choice
The most beneficial information I got out of this interview was relating to the road heading to
becoming an author. I found it was harder to become an author than I thought it would be. It is
difficult to create a name for yourself, that I knew before; however, I didnt think it would take
more than one round of editing to get people to even consider your book for publication.
I did find comfort when Crystal stated that she didnt have any classes in college. It makes me
realize that authors go off experiences. Knowing this, I will continue to write. I will also consider
all her suggestions.
Analysis of my Interviewing Process
I get highly anxious when I must do something outside of my comfort zone. I have never
interviewed anyone, and I only have been interviewed once before taking this course. I was very
uncomfortable when starting the interview, because I have never talked to Crystal before.
It was good for me to experience what strategies in receiving information. I found that many of
the positive habits from Crystal was constant eye contact. I also found she didnt seem nervous at
all during the interview. I admired that because I was trying not to repeat many of the bad habits
I had during my mock interview in class. As for myself, I discovered that I was much more
relaxed talking to Crystal. I also found I had something to focus on other than myself. I didnt
fear that one minute of me tapping my fingers together would result in an immediate F.
I will be doing more interviews with other authors. I already have some contacts that I hope to
learn more about the roles of being an author. I would change a lot more about my next
interviews. I would start with more detailed research, not only about the author, but also more
about the career. I wish next time to have more detailed questions, and can control the length
each of those answers.
The ending was short, basically having apologies from both Crystal and me. I had helped drag
the interview too long, while Crystal was late for the interview. I remembered everything I had
hoped to remember, which helped me feel more confident about the interview. I wish the ending
wasnt so casual, because it felt like we were talking like we were long-time buddies. Instead of
standing and a formal handshake, we shook hands and continued to talk about our own lives. I
will be better at not making it causal when I do my next interviews.
I need to thank Mr. Haslam, for this project. I really enjoyed it, even if I didnt like the idea at
first. It was cool to talk to a fellow author who had more experience than me. I will be continuing
these, and hope to continue to learn new things with each interview.

Ms. Crystal Memmott

4864 Mountain Laurel Ln
West Jordan, Utah 84081
9/25/2016

Dear Crystal,
I cant thank you enough for your willingness to complete an interview with me. I have learned
so much from our interview, and I was very intrigued by the answers you provided.
Your passion towards writing really inspires me to become a better author myself. I love the
background you shared with me. I know some of the subjects were touchy and I am sorry if I
made you uncomfortable. I also need to apologize for the long interview. I wasnt expecting the
interview to be an hour and a half.
I did learn so much from your suggestions. I am going to start now, writing on my free time and
read more books. I am also going to get a name for myself on Wattpad, so I can start practicing.
I just want to express my gratitude. I loved being able to talk about the life of an author. I learned
so much from you, and I will use it to my advantage.

Sincerely,
KaylieAnn Brown