A Conversation with Joyce Moyer Hostetter
I read and loved Joyce Moyer Hostetter’s historical story Blue, which has become a classic, become required reading for many schools, and has even inspired a play. On her website, she says that she writes about tough topics because she is trying to understand the world’s sorrows. I so admire the way she addresses these tough topics in such an authentic and straightforward way. For this month’s blogpost, I’m honored to have the opportunity to ask her some questions about her excellent and thought-provoking new book, Equal, which is the final book in her popular Baker’s Mountain series.
Jackie Honeycutt, your main character in Equal, is an appealing and earnest young man who wants to do the right thing. Tell me a little about how you developed his character. Was he in any of the previous Baker’s Mountain books?
Jackie shows up at the end of Comfort but the reader doesn’t know much about him until they read Drive, the 4th book in the series. As the youngest member of the Honeycutt family, he had to wait his turn to be the main character. Once the series was underway, Equal, the 5th book was always going to be Jackie’s story.
You did not make Jackie’s efforts at befriending Thomas, the young African-American boy he meets while fishing, pay off right away. Thomas is not easily won over. This feels very authentic. Tell me about making this decision.
First of all, Thomas had good reason to be suspicious of Jackie. But, if an earlier incident between them hadn’t created that mistrust, I suspect he would have been leery of a white boy showing up and suddenly wanting to be his friend. His world hadn’t groomed him to be immediately trusting of whites.
You drop Jackie, your fictional hero, into a real protest march in Greensboro in 1960. That must have been a fun scene to write. Tell me a little about the evolution of that scene.
Ha! It was a necessary decision but my first draft didn’t include it. Since Jackie doesn’t live in Greensboro, I assumed he’d be reporting on the movement as seen through the eyes of his activist sister. But, of course, that doesn’t work! The protagonist has to get in on the action. So, I dug a little deeper and found a way to get him to Greensboro at a critical moment in history. In the end, it all worked well and yes, it was fun to write! Because, as you know, conflict creates the story.
In an author’s note at the end of your book, you write about some characters who are real and have been influential in your life, like Mrs. Cunningham. I’d love to know a little more about her.
Oh, my word, it’s hard to talk about Mrs. Cunningham without getting teary. She was my language arts teacher in both 7th and 8th grades. She loved us all, no matter our issues, and she looked to affirm that one special something in each of us that would set us on a good path! For me, it was writing. When Bakers Mountain Stories reached the point where I’d be writing about Mtn. View School during the time frame Mrs. Cunningham actually worked there, I knew she’d be a character. I am still in touch with her so she read my manuscript and tutored me on her teaching philosophy so that I got the scenes right. She even suggested some of her dialogue. I felt like I was a 7th grader again, being nurtured (and corrected) by one of my favorite people in the world!
Equal by Joyce Moyer Hostetter
You’ve said this is the final book in the Bakers Mountain series. Many readers will be sad to hear this. What project is next for you?
I’m writing another North Carolina story set during WWI when several thousand German “enemy aliens” were interned in the small town of Hot Springs. In more ways than one it is a “friendship with the enemy” story. I am so psyched about this and am close to submitting my editor’s requested revisions. Maybe I’ll blog about that soon at www.joycemoyerhostetter.blogspot.com.
Thanks so much for hosting me, Lisa!
It was really fun chatting with you, Joyce! I am eagerly looking forward to your next book.
For more information about Joyce’s work, or to book a school visit, please go to her website .