Center Stage with Veronica Coldiron

Welcome back! I'm here with another chat interview featuring creator, Veronica Coldiron. If you're new to the series, please let me take a quick moment to explain the vision.

My aim with each mini-interview is to give a small glimpse into what makes up these amazing creators through a fun and informative format. I've limited the interview method to direct messenger. I've also asked creators to come up with a few questions for themselves as this is to aim the spotlight on them.

My lovely guest in this ninth episode is no stranger to creativity. She has talent oozing from every pore as a published author, recording artist, visual artist and so much more. Her Vocal library alone includes over fifty works of fiction, poetry and personal narratives.

If you haven't had the chance to explore Veronica's works yet, you'll find her authentic writing style creates characters and worlds that feel incredibly relatable and real. She often pairs her own artwork or audio/video of her singing as an added bonus.

I'm always invested and thoroughly impressed with everything she produces, so don't hesitate to dive into her works.

I hope you enjoy this behind-the-scenes look into Veronica's mind as we explore how she approaches the writing process and life. Let's get started!

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H: Welcome!! I'm so excited to have you as a guest! Just a few housekeeping things, please know that I'll edit later for punctuation and grammar so don't worry too much about that. Also, if there's something you don't like, we can edit it out. Take your time, answer as much or as little as you want. I hope you have fun!!

V: Sounds great!

H: YAY! Okay, let's start things off with a standard question. I love hearing each creator's answer to this one. What does your writing process look like?

V: Complete chaos. LOL! I have to squeeze it in between work, kids, grandkids, volunteer work, etc. BUT, thanks to my new outlook, I'm actually making time for it. For a long time, I didn't. So now, I set time aside every day to work on something, even if it's just correspondence with friends, or reading someone else's work and commenting. Making time to build a community in writing, and writing on my own work has given me back my joy.

H: Oh that made me tear up a bit. I understand chaos, and I know how hard it is to make that time for yourself. I'm so happy for you that writing and engaging with others has done you so much good.

V: Me too! My therapist is pretty happy about it too, so... win-win.

H: Always gotta love a win-win!! So walk me through how you get an idea for a new project and where you go from there.

V: I find inspiration in lots of things in this world, so for me, it's about weeding out the stinkers and picking something that others will find value in. Sometimes it's as simple as a conversation with someone or the proverbial "What if?" and sometimes it's a memory or a feeling or sometimes all of the above.

I hear the idea in my head and usually try to scribble the idea onto paper for later review so that I don't forget it. If I don't have any paper, I message myself on Facebook and look at it later. Sometimes, I think I've found a gem and once I start fleshing it out it tends to write itself. And then other times, I re-read it and think..."It's a darn good thing I started therapy." Haha!

H: I appreciate that you try to write the ideas down or message yourself!! I really need to do that too. I love that you seem to catch ideas from everywhere. You've got a wonderfully creative brain!! And lol, yeah, there are times you look back and wonder what you were thinking?!! Great insights, thank you for sharing!

I'll move onto question 2 unless you have something you want to add (please do if you weren't finished). What genres do you gravitate towards? Are there ones you refuse to do?

V: I'm not a big genre person, I guess. For some reason, I have difficulty stepping into a "department." It was the same with my music. Because life cannot be considered one thing, my writing really can't either. It's unfortunate, really. A great deal of the difficulty I have had in getting proper publishing is due to the way I write.

I guess if I had to pick a genre, it would be "supernatural fiction," or "Existential Unreality." LOL! And I'm not sure those are even a thing. I like to believe that even the characters in my fantasy novels are real beings with hearts, souls, and decisions, no matter how magical their world, or how big the circumstance they find themselves in. I have tomes of poetry, supernatural novels, fantasy novels, non-fiction financial how-to books, a memoir, etc. It's a mess.

H: Oh, I love that answer!! It's brave and honest and greatly inspiring. I know it's not easy when you don't fit the mold the world (or in this case publishing industry) want you to. I am so very much like you in that regard.

And those are genres if you want them to be!! I like the terms. I've read quite a few of your works and can always tell how much heart you put into them. You keep doing you!!

V: Thank you! It's so much easier to write what I connect with. My mind is full with books, ideas, and screenplays that at times getting them down in a document somewhere is the only catharsis I know.

H: Wow, you are just brimming with creativity and a genuine love for the craft. This leads nicely into the next question if you're ready?

V: Yup!

H: YAY! Do you have any non-Vocal projects you're working on? If so, please share however much you're comfortable with.

V: I have to be honest. I actually paused my Vocal+ account for a while because it became stressful. With so many projects going at one time, it can be difficult to write for a prompt or assignment, or take time to read someone else's story, but I've discovered it's worth it.

Vocal is a wonderful platform! It has given me so many good new friends, and I have been learning a lot about writing from it. Having said that, I have a book out on Amazon right now that's floundering because I haven't marketed it like I should. I have a fantasy series being considered for publication and a demon novel I'm thinking about turning into a screenplay for a television series. (I don't know how to write screenplays so it's rather draining.)

At one time my memoirs, "Lifestyles of the Grits and Tameless" came out through traditional publishing. I recently got the rights back and I'm working on doing a second printing, taking out some stories, tweaking and adding in a few. I always have something going outside of Vocal. It's keeping up with my love for Vocal that's the actual challenge.

H: You certainly keep yourself busy! So much going on. I'm glad you've gotten the rights back to your memoir. What a brave thing to write. I'm not sure I could do that. And writing screenplay sounds daunting.

I can't wait to pick your brain when it comes time to publish something! (Also, do you mind if I put the link to your novel in the final draft?)

V: No that would be awesome!

H: Great! Have you ever taken a Vocal creation and expanded it to something more?

V: I do share some of the work I submit to challenges with my Facebook friends. You can usually hear crickets when I do that, but occasionally I get the off compliment. LOL!

H: Yeah, sometimes I hear crickets too...hahaha.

There are so many of your Vocal works that I love and have thought about long afterward like your gypsy short story and so many of your poems.

V: Oh wow! Thank you for that. I have found that I write from my experiences probably better than anything...hence the memoir. I'm thinking about putting together 2 more memoirs later. One for my musical life and one for my romantic life.

It seems once you get past a half a century, your memories come back to you, and you have a lot to share with people.

H: You are so welcome. And I can absolutely see that for you...I can feel your passion when you write.

Wow, do you feel any reservations for putting all of those personal stories out there?

V: I used to. Then I thought about how the stories of others have encouraged me and shed light onto things that I might not otherwise have known. It seems incredibly selfish not to share if there's a chance that something in my life may enrich someone else's.

H: I knew I admired you before this interview, but that's really an amazing attitude to have. I love that so much!!

V: Thank you so much!

H: You're welcome. Ok, want to do a fun one?

V: Absolutely.

H: If you could have anything you wanted to eat right now what would it be? And I mean anything, lol.

V: Cheesecake.

H: Oooo, that would make one of my son's very happy. He loves cheesecake! Now, would this be Italian? New York Style? Fruit on top? Something else?

V: Plain old New York style cheesecake. I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes two years ago, and my love affair with cheesecake had to take a hiatus. I still get it now and again but not often.

H: Ah, I'm sorry to hear that. But if you were able to cheat just a little every once in awhile, cheesecake is a very good choice. I just had some divine ricotta style back in April when I was in Florida. Yum!

V: Oh I bet that WAS good! I sometimes like the Dulce De Leche from the Cheesecake Factory, but we fortunately don't have one here in Savannah, or I'd be in a diabetic coma for sure. LOL!

H: That sounds so tasty!! And I agree, better to not have that good stuff in the path of temptation!! Now I'm thinking of cheesecake...hahaha.

Alright, I'll try to think of questions instead!

Do you feel being a singer/song writer has helped you become a stronger writer? Or do they feel like disconnected things?

V: Actually, all I ever wanted to be was a writer. I've been writing ever since I can remember. I won my first poetry prize at age 10. I don't think I've won much since then, but it certainly made me want to write even more. I used to love the Mary Tyler Moore show, and one time there was an author on there. I didn't know there was a name for writing before that show, but I was working on my writing every day after that.

Most of my songs are shorter versions of my stories and poems. The song "Gypsy Glory" came long before the Vocal story I wrote about the gypsies, but before that, it was a poem called "Storyteller." The music didn't come to me until I was an adult and even then, it was a means to provide food and shelter more than anything else. I love music and it is a working movement of my very soul, but deep down...I want to be an author.

H: And you are one!! That's so special that it's been a part of you your whole life in one way or another. I love that singing was an extension of that which allowed you to keep going. I'm so exited to keep following your writing journey.

V: And I am excited about following yours.

H: Aww, thank you for that!!

V: <---- is giggling. I'm still waiting for a sequel to the story about the girl with the ninja skills. Her aunt was a real badass.

H: LOL, I have so many ideas started but I always hesitate to keep going because it's not the novel I'm working on. Maybe it should be, who knows? Not me...haha.

V: Sometimes, our gifts are not our calling. Had to learn that the hard way.

H: Nope, very true statement. I tell that to my kids all the time. Do you have time for a few more?

V: Sure!

H: Yay! Okay, next question. What does success look like to you?

V: It looks like me at the beach with the imaginary friend on my laptop, not having to hold down a job, but just making a living writing. LOL! All kidding aside, I wanted to be published in long form before I reached 30 so that I could just write. It wasn't in the cards I'm afraid. Life happened and that's okay. I think it made me a much stronger writer and a little less altruistic, which also helps. I really do want to write books full time. I could easily crank out five or six books a year if all this work wasn't getting in the way. 🤣

H: You painted such a perfect picture. Sigh. And I get life happening. All you can do is move forward sometimes. But seriously, I love that for you. I hope it becomes reality. And those pesky day jobs, geesh!!

Do you hope to do traditional publishing, self-publishing or something else (lol)?

(I meant going forward.)

V: I'm hoping to do a little of both, actually. The fantasy series, "Four Queens of the Apocalypse" is being considered for publication by a large publishing house, so I have halted anything with it until they're finished evaluating. If they pass on it, I'll be self-publishing, even though I feel it deserves better. I started it almost twenty years ago, and I'd like to see it in print.

H: I am super exited about that series!!

V: Meee TOO!! I have self-published my supernatural suspense, Nightworld Shadows and will likely republish my own memoirs.

H: And I am a proud owner (thanks to your generosity) of the supernatural suspense novel!!

V: My poetry book, "Poems and Prose to Keep by Your Casket...A Coffin Table Book," did well through a traditional publisher, and I may re-release a second edition on my own. Not sure.

H: I freaking love that title!!!

V: LOL!

H: I hope you re-release it.

V: <----cackling

H: I am too just imagining what you've put in there!!

V: Heck I think probably two-thirds of the spooky poems in that book are on Vocal. I posted them for the dream challenge.

H: Oooo, you have some sublime poems for that challenge!!!

V: Another writing tick of mine...wake up, write poems about dreams. LOL! My dream journal would probably send Stephen King over the edge.

H: The only dreams I remember are nightmares, and I'd rather not write about them.

V: I spent two hours talking myself out of signing a contract with the devil last night.

H: Oh damn!

V: CRAZY dreams! It's funny too because people meet me and I seem like this nice lady, so proper and fun loving. My ex-husband used to say I was all sunshine rainbows and lollipops until someone handed me a pen. I think Dharrsheena and I share that.

H: LOL!! That's a fun saying! But I know what you mean, things can turn dark quick.

V: I guess sometimes we write what we are, and sometimes we write to get rid of what we don't want to be.

H: That just floored me. I've never thought of it as being a way to get rid of want we don't want to be.

V: That's kind of me in a nutshell.

H: Aww, that was a really cool thing to share. Thank you for that.

Are you up for one more fun one before we go to the last one?

V: Yes ma'am! This is fun actually.

H: YAY! I'm glad you're enjoying. I know I am. What do you like to do for fun (other than writing)?

V: I gave up on traditional means of fun after Covid and my diabetes diagnosis. So now I just take pleasure in little things. I love walking at the beach from time-to-time, sitting on the couch covered by my Pomeranian-Chihuahua family. I enjoy just sitting in the shade in one of the historic squares in Savannah, or strolling down Riverstreet.

I have been enjoying graphic arts and AI art, which is a change for me. I love to paint, oil or acrylic on canvas, but haven't been able to in a long time. I have some lovely pictures of the art that you can see in the "artwork" album on my Facebook page. Most of it is artwork for my books, but there's an occasional piece there that was done for pleasure or for someone else.

H: Those sound like wonderful ways to spend your time. I love the simple things in life.

V: Me too! Also, I don't know if I told you, but I'm still working on that author site. Here's the link. I kind of stopped adding things until I hear back from the publisher.

H: I'm looking forward to checking out all of these!! I don't think you told me about the site.

V: Weird. I thought I had asked your opinion. LOL! I AM getting old!

H: Wait, was that it? Hmmm, let me peek quick. Oh I did read this!! I think I did it on my phone though.

V: Good to know. I thought I was slippin' or trippin or something.

H: No, that was me slippin' and trippin' hahaha. Are you good if I include some/all of these links?

V: Oh heck yeah!

H: Perfect! Well I've had an absolutely delightful time with you. Thank you for sharing with me.

I'd like to finish with one more question. What would you like readers to know about you as an author?

V: I am unashamed to tell any story. What readers see is what they get. A good story relies on honesty. Even in fiction, it is important for the most bizarre circumstance to feel believable, so I rely on honesty too in my story telling. If I don't believe it, I wouldn't expect anyone else to believe it. And if you're a writer, my best advice is to be yourself. Let the characters be themselves too.

H: That is some really great advice and I wholeheartedly agree!! I watched a MasterClass with Neil Gaiman, and he said something so very similar.

V: That's great to know. Maybe I'll figure this writing thing out after all. HAHAHA!

H: Woohoo!!! I have every confidence you will. Your passion, humility, transparency and drive all speak for themselves.

V: I'm gonna have to soak my head after this to bring the swelling down. LOL!

H: Aww, soak it all up! I feel sometimes we get told or see so much negativity that you've got to embrace the good stuff.

V: Lord, ain't it the truth!

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I hope you enjoyed this brief look into Veronica's writing life. I highly encourage everyone to check out her work and subscribe. I couldn't decide what to share this time, so I'm highlighting two Vocal pieces of hers, a captivating short story and a gorgeous poem.

Chat interview conducted via instagram messaging on June 13, 2023.

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Read the latest in the series!