We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Julie Kusma. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Julie below.

Julie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Being a lifelong learner, I have always found metaphysics and cosmology fascinating. And, I find an even greater fascination in how, as humans, we cope with this uncertainty— how we interact and the defense mechanism developed by each of us during our lifetimes, thus psychology plays a role in my writings as well. This is seen in my novels, The Crooked Crone, We Three: Search for Source, Authentically Dead, The Many Worlds of Mr. A. Skouandy, and Stuck That Way and Other Quandaries. Each of these touch on the Jungian shadow, perspective, and empowerment. They also contain supernatural, paranormal, and the use of irony to deliver the meaning in each story. Yet, I have several books, collaborations with Derek R. King, that focus on self-healing and removing psychological layers holding us back from living our most authentic lives. These include Honey: Words to Heal and Mend, with love the Universe, Buddha’s Garden, Holoi ‘ikepili, Nectar: Words of Self-Love and Care, Tranquil Seas: Still Yourself and Be, Even Only Besides, and (K)no(w)where: Manifestation Made Easy. These books draw on ancient knowledge such at kintsugi, ho’oponopono, zen philosophy, and 18th and 19th century spiritual teachings.

Julie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I suppose my career as a writer started off a bit different than most. I wasn’t read to as a child. I didn’t love reading growing up, and being an author wasn’t an occupation I’d even considered. In fact, my ambition was to be a graphic designer. I began pursuing my chosen field after graduating high school but I didn’t complete my first degree until I was fifty, and, it wasn’t in graphic design.

I began, for the third time, my effort to complete my first degree. Unfortunately, or as it turned out, perhaps fortunately,
I broken both bones in my right lower leg and was bedridden for three months. Why is this important? Because the graphic design program I was attending would give me a leave- I had to withdraw completely. This triggered a change in direction for me. As I struggled to regain functionality, I became fascinated with the mind and how we perceive the events we experience. I enrolled in a bachelor program in Health and Wellness. This program focused on alternative medicines. As I healed myself, and by this I mean overcoming the mental attachment to my injury as a part of who I was, I uncovered my path. Soon I began my Maters in Health Education. I was so driven and focused, I graduated with a 4.0 and felt proud of my knowledge and accomplishments in higher education.

What came next was a desire to share this knowledge with others— a need to help others detach from the layers of misconceived ideas and meanings assigned to their life experiences because that’s the part that holds us back from achieving our dreams. I knew I wanted to share stories that could show this knowledge to the reader as they experienced character grappling with their lives. I enrolled in a Master of English, Creative Writing, Fiction degree and never looked back. I graduated with a 4.0 and use all my acquired knowledge and life experiences to help others.

Why does this sets me apart? Because I have an uncanny understanding of human nature and a talent for writing stories that truly make the reader think, like my collaboration with Derek R. King, Alpha, The Lighter Half, Volume 3, the reader ponders existence and our origin through a series of themed poems.

Through my solo projects: children’s concept books and speculative fiction novels, and my collaborations: including children’s concept books and storybooks, as well as inspirational books, educational books, and poetry collections, readers can expect to be entertained while they learn something new, and always, always presented in a unique manner unlike other books on the market. At least I aim for that to be true.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an author is when readers share how much they love my books and share the impact on their lives with me. Several readers have share the depth they were touched by, for example, Honey: Words to Heal and Mend and that they keep their copy of this book on their nightstands. Or when a reader reached out to me through social media and asked if they understood what (K)no(w)where: Manifestation Made Easy meant— did they correctly comprehend the message. Brilliant! That truly is beautiful knowing even one person was moved.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Building an audience is definitely a challenge. What I can tell you is if you’ve branded yourself, changing that brand will make it even more challenging. For example, when I started my social media accounts, I was writing speculative fiction: horror and was soon dubbed the “Queen of Horror” by a peer in the writing community and it stuck. I branded myself around that persona and away I went. However, as a collaboration opportunity entered my life, and I shared some of the information I had acquired about self-healing through the concept of kintsugi and the philosophy of Wabi Sabi, my soon-to-be writing partner agreed we should write a book about using kintsugi to heal the self and Honey: Words to Heal and Mend was born. My writing partner is Derek R. King and, by the way, is now my husband too. This inspirational healing book was in no way branded with my psychological horror stories but it was in alignment with my mission as a writer. I continue to revamp my branding around the magical and mystical as a multi genre author. The moral of this story— don’t rebrand. Okay, that’s not going to always be possible or practical. Just know, branding works and if you did it once, you can do it again.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://julie-kusma.com
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/juliekusma
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-kusma/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/JulieKusma
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/JulieKusmaAuthor/
• Other: Pinterest http://Pinterest.com/juliekusma Author site https://author.to/JulieKusma