We were lucky to catch up with C.K. Sorens recently and have shared our conversation below.

C.K., thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

Just the very question “are you happy as an artist or creative” makes me happy. I have a job where someone gets to ask me that question, and it’s a thrill to be able to say: Yes! Mostly.

Being a creative is hard. It’s a difficult career, no matter what your medium. Despite the fact that art has an emotional value for many people, the work that goes into its creation doesn’t inherently cause others to believe it is worth spending money on. It’s interesting because white collar intellectual and creative work doesn’t have the same stigma as our intellectual creative art, which does lead me to wonder what it would be like to have another job.

I have had office jobs before, and where I enjoyed the work for the most part, it wasn’t what I would call joy-filled. Unfortunately, my chronic illness made it incredibly difficult to hold a job because I needed so many sick days, and trying to have a “normal” work life ended up causing my flare ups to come more often and last longer.

Now I’m in a place where I don’t have to struggle with the 9-5. I set my own hours and my own productivity, always mapped around where my health is at that time. And I get to do something I’ve dreamed of all my life – write books that people read!

Writing brings me joy and allows me to express myself. Being an independent author gives me the freedom to be myself. I am incredibly blessed to live a life where this is what I do. My chronic illness might have shaped how I became a writer, but even without it, I believe I would have found myself here, doing what I love.

C.K., love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Carrie, and I publish under the pen name C.K. Sorens. When I was ten, I had a poem published, and definitely got the bug to do more. In High School, I had amazing teachers who pushed me beyond simple creativity and into thinking about craft – character development, voice, structure, and so on. With their guidance, I won the National Council of English Teachers award for one of my short stories. I’ve since published that short story along with others in my collection Vision of Misfortune.

I didn’t start thinking about publishing a novel until 2018. I’d gotten through college, and was now a stay at home parent of three boys, all of whom were old enough to leave Mommy alone for a few hours at a time. I dug through all the notes and partial stories I’d collected over the years, and started writing what would become my debut novel, Trimarked, which published in November of 2020.

That book launched me into the world of indie publishing, and I’ve never looked back. I found my niche in the urban fantasy / speculative fiction genre. If you’re not familiar with those terms, that means I like writing about magic that takes place in our own world, or some place very similar. My themes center around facing societal segregation and finding your own power within it. I also like to write about the idea of fate, and how much we can control versus accept.

I currently have three novels and one short story collection published.

Trimarked and Afflicted are the first two books in a series that follows Ember Lee. A malfunction of magic forced Witches and Fae into the human realm, and created an impenetrable barrier around the town of Trifecta. Though the races have their differences, they all agree that Ember Lee cannot be trusted. Born with a power they can’t understand, they have bound her from magic, and keep a wary eye on her at all times. But as Ember’s powers are more than they expected, and may prove to be the key to Trifecta’s freedom.

Eighteen Wishes is an urban fantasy romance that takes place in Las Vegas. Isra Almasi was born to hunt djinn, until she was cursed to be one of them. Trapped as a genie, she believes her only escape is through death. She’s ready to follow this honorable path until she meets her newest master, Jacoa Wicker. He wants to give her the one thing she’s never had – a choice.

Vision of Misfortune was a fun project. Part short story collection, part memoir, I collected and lightly edited my old short stories to show my journey as a writer. We start with a sappy sweet fantasy and end with a flash fiction urban fantasy piece, all interspersed with my thoughts on what each piece means to me.

Though this journey, I’ve also found my way to an amazing writer’s group, Quill and Cup, co-founded by Ania Ray (CEO) and her husband, Cody Ray. A lot of my novel writing was self taught in my adult years, and I’m really excited to be part of this group where I can share what I learned and be taught in return. We like to call ourselves “I don’t know babes,” and say that individually, we don’t know everything, but together we know a lot.

Ania asked me to become a writing coach for the group, and I jumped at the chance. I facilitate our book club and choose books that range from craft to mindfulness, whatever it feels we need to help get us in the chair to write, or help us craft what’s already on the page. I also host meetings where we talk about all things writerly, from craft, to social media, to publishing options. Quill and Cup has become a second home. The women there are phenomenal, all dedicated to continued learning, and all excited for everyone else’s work. I’ve honestly never been in another writing environment like it, and I am so excited to be part of the amazing team that keeps the culture in tact.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

There are many ways to support artists and creatives, and some of them are even free. Share their social media. Only buy licensed products. Don’t download from pirating sites. And all of that is helpful, but there is something far more important.

Honestly, the best way to support artists and creatives is to accept they provide an amazing value, and pay them a reflection of that. The absolute truth is that there is absolutely no way you could pay an artist – even at minimum wage – a direct compensation for the hours and investment they put in to each piece.

For creatives like me who can mass produce my work in the form of ebooks and physical books, there is a chance that over time I may be fully compensated, but I’m not holding my breath. I see my career for the gamble that it is, and most artists do. We recognize our products may never be traded for their full value, but because we love the art, all we ask is that you pay the heavily discounted price we have put on it.

I believe that society loves art. Music is a constant in many of the places we frequent. In the same sense, artwork decorates walls and shelves of our favorite spaces. Book collecting is a hobby aside from reading.

I can break down the costs of time, education, materials, software, hardware, tools, outside contractors or teachers that we hire to help hone our skills and polish our products for your eyes to glaze over, but it comes down to this.

Support artists and creatives by accepting the value they place on their work.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I love being asked what I love most about writing books. After my mini rant on compensating creatives, I think it’s clear I’m not expecting my books to be a ‘get rich quick’ event. Haha.

There are other ways I could supplement my income within this industry. I could become a coach for hire. I could beta read, or run manuscript analysis. But none of that excites me, and it would be like going back to one of my office jobs.

So coming back to the question of what’s most rewarding… Honestly, it’s the feeling of having done it. Of doing it. Of making something. I can literally create worlds in a day. I build words up until there’s suddenly a character so real, readers will reach out to me, begging me to let them know that the character will be all right in the end. I set up big constructs of family dynamics, societal disfunction, personal growth and more, and then I get to reorganize it all into a different form – hopefully a better one.

Writing books is dang hard work. It takes knowing and believing in yourself. It’s pushing through hours of self doubt, imposter syndrome, and an endless ocean of work that somehow leads you to a distant shore you can haul your exhausted self onto. And all of that is easier than changing our world.

But. All of that means I might change someone’s perspective of this world. Possibly many someones.

And all of that is wrapped up in the feeling of having done it. Of doing it. Of making something.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.cksorens.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/ck_sorens
• Facebook: facebook.com/cksorens
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@cksorens4811