Q&A With Jo Szewczyk

Mickey Mikkelson connected me with author Jo Szewczyk, the author of Talion. Scarlet Shadows is his recent one. In the past Jo once wrote for a Las Vegas fashion magazine under a woman’s name and was never once caught!

Q: Welcome to Book Notions Jo! Would you please give a brief description of your novel Scarlet Shadows? Where did the idea for the novel come from?

A: Thank you for having me! Scarlet Shadows starts out like an old joke set up: A blind doctor, a busted-up fighter, and a friendly giant walk into a mystery… The idea for the characters came from my memoir, Surviving Gen X. Scarlet was a character in that book, but her chapters were cut in final edit. I guess that didn’t sit right with her and I plotted out a book series.

Q: How long did it take you to write Scarlet Shadows, & what messages and emotions do you hope readers takeaway from the novel?

A: It took eight months to write it from first draft to final cut. That doesn’t include editors and cover/interior design, though. If my readers cheer, even a little bit, for the characters in the book then my mission is accomplished. If they can identify with one, then that’s just the icing on the cake. 

Q: Which character from Scarlet Shadows are you most similar to in your opinion and why?

A: There is a spoiler and a non-spoiler way of answering this question. The short answer is: Ask me again in about ‘4’ books. The longer answer is Scarlet. Scarlet, historically, is a pure composite character that was based on people I knew but also myself. In fact, her chapters in Surviving Gen X were rewritten as interior monologue for the narrator of that book. For those keeping score at home, yes, a narrator of a memoir is the author.

Q: Will your next novel be a sequel to Scarlet Shadows? Or will your next novel be a standalone with a new story and characters?

A: The next published novel is book two of the Scarlet Mysteries, which is a direct sequel to Scarlet Shadows. The tentative title is Scarlet Spike.

Q: Jo, what was it like writing a piece for a Las Vegas fashion magazine? That must have been so cool! 

A: At that time, I was inching back into journalism. The last time I had done anything journalistic was probably a school paper. Fast forward a decade and there I was, sitting poolside at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas with my toes in the sand and a drink in my hand—the whole Van Halen bit—writing into a yellow legal pad. You see, that’s what we wrote on before laptops became all the rage. I’ve been in or around fashion in some form or another for years, so that part was more natural. Little did I know that by writing for this magazine, basically as a laugh, I was putting down the tracks for what would turn into a career years later. I’m quite thankful for my time at that magazine, even though cashing my check made out to my pen name was a bit challenging. 

Q: Jo would you provide your social media links, so readers of the blog and I follow you and your work?

A: Sure! If you want to catch me on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/szewczyk.jo/ Also, I am semi-on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/czykmate/ But if you love podcasts, you can check out my interview show What’s Kraken on my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@empty_hell And if you really want to check out my books but are allergic to “The ‘Zon” then  www.czykmate.com is your friend.
Thank you for the interview and I hope you have a wonderful day ☺