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

Alright, Staci thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

The most meaningful project I worked on was my novel Falling through Stars. I grew up in Alaska and had a very unique childhood there. My parents adopted four Alaska native siblings, and there was a lot of controversy surrounding the adoption because of differing race and religion. I felt compelled to tell a story that would express my love for my adopted siblings, their culture, and their family. The setting, characters, and themes of the book expose so much of my soul and how I feel about family, community, and nature. Choosing a favorite book I’ve written seems as taboo as picking a favorite child, but I can’t help liking Falling through Stars the most.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Growing up, I always wanted to be an author. That’s the goal I pursued through all my schooling and during the first years of marriage and motherhood. Back in 2016, I pitched my novel Defender of Dragons to an agent at a writing conference. When it was rejected, I chose to self-publish, but the connection I made with that agent led to a publishing job sort of falling into my lap. I started out working as an acquisitions editor for Immortal Works in 2018. Six months later, they promoted me to Production Manager. It’s a dream job that I never realized I should be dreaming about. I have worked for them for almost six years now. Falling through Stars was my second self-published novel, and I’ve traditionally published a handful of short stories. Over the years, I have started doing freelance editing and formatting in addition to my continued employment with Immortal Works. Working for a traditional press while self-publishing my own novels has given me a unique perspective of the publishing industry, and I am able to mentor authors in choosing which path is best for them. As an editor and formatter, I help authors produce a book they can be proud of. For an up-to-date list of books I’ve worked on, you can look me up on Goodreads.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Back in 2016, I was pregnant with my fourth son and feeling very discouraged about achieving my goals as an author. While attending the LTUE writing conference, I had the opportunity to ask a panel of prominent authors, one who was also a mom of several children, how to maintain creativity while living in reality. As a single adult, stories had poured out of my brain, but as a busy wife and mother, I felt drained of time and brain space. I didn’t have any story ideas let alone time to write. The panel agreed that sometimes you have to put your dreams on the back burner while you take care of more immediate needs. And they were right. But the truth made me feel even more hopeless. Very soon after that, I received a rejection for my manuscript that, for a variety of reasons, hurt more than other rejections ever had. I took a walk and cried and considered giving up on writing altogether. It just felt impossible to continue. But as a wife and mother, I had already given up a lot of my hobbies and interests over the years in order to dedicate my attention to my family. Writing was my favorite interest, the last thing I clung to. Giving up on it would have felt like failure, like I would no longer be myself. I felt that if I gave up on writing, I would lose my entire identity. So on that walk, I made a promise to myself. I promised that I would always put my family first. If I was writing and dinner needed to be cooked, then I would put writing aside to cook. If I was writing and someone needed a ride or a hug or a talk, then I would stop writing to take care of them. But I promised myself I would NEVER stop writing. There is no back burner for me. I sneak writing into small moments in between family busyness. I write during sleepless nights. I write during swimming and dance lessons. 2016 was a very dark moment in my journey as a creative person, but it’s also the same year that my success began.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

My very favorite thing as an author is when words I wrote are so compelling to someone that it drives them to be creative too. I love art that has been inspired by my books. It makes me extraordinarily happy.

Contact Info:

• Website: staciolsen.com
• Instagram: @authorstaciolsen
• Facebook: @staci.olsen.7
• Twitter: @StaciOlsen12

Image Credits
Staci Olsen, Katie Blanco Raven necklace hand-carved by @jlfwoodcraft