J.T. Ellison
Photo by: Kidtee Hello Photography.
J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 30 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of the literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes contemporary fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.
With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.
J.T. lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens, one of whom is a ghost, where she is hard at work on her next novel.
Instagram: @thrillerchick
Is there a work of art that you love. Why? Have you ever visited it in person?
As a matter of fact, yes. I am obsessed with Rothko and used the exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art in A VERY BAD THING, as well as giving my main character a Rothko that she purchased and hangs in a special spot in her brownstone. I’ve visited Gallery 403 a number of times, and spend a lot of time sitting, watching, experiencing the rage and hope in the color fields. I love most modern art—Pollack, Miro, Picasso. I also have a fondness for RC Gorman, and the Blue Dog paintings by George Rodrigue. I love how Tiffany’s eyes follow you around the room.
Do you collect anything? If so, what, why, and for how long?
I have a ridiculous amount of Swarovski crystal mini animals. It’s a Christmas tradition—I get one for my mother and she gets one for me. It’s always funny when we chose the same one! I’m especially fond of my Hedwig, who perches on a stack of books. Adorable! Also, books. If there is a zombie apocalypse, I know what my currency will be.
What’s the difference (at least for you!) between being a writer and an author? How do you shift gears between the two?
I guess the traditional view is a “writer” is simply an unpublished “author,” but I don’t really buy into that. Writers are writers, regardless of their level of success and where they are in their careers—just beginning or promoting their 30th book. We’re all doing the same hard work to take the stories in our heads and put them on the page. Some of us are just further down the road. But there’s also the performance aspect, of turning into the “author” when you have an event or are appearing online. Something that took me years to be comfortable doing, because at heart I will always just be a writer. Audiences aren’t something one takes into account when you’re typing away, trying to make a story come alive.
What piece of clothing tells the most interesting story about your life?
What a fun question! My instinct was to go with what I wear the most, but there is absolutely NOTHING interesting about yoga leggings with pockets on the side, except the theme of ease and convenience, which is my day-to-day raison d’être. I do have a pair of Louboutin Chelsea boots that are my pride and joy, a gift from my fabulous husband, and wearing them with a great pair of jeans and a black blazer makes me feel confident and capable. Boots and a blazer are always appropriate. It’s my uniform, and my armor. There’s something incredibly powerful about feeling good in your clothes.
Do you speak a second language? Do you think differently in that language? Does it influence your writing?
I speak French and Italian well enough to get around both countries and communicate with the locals, but I need to do reminder courses before I head over. I’m self-taught in Italian but took French for many years in school. They’re very different languages. French is so elegant and sleek, and Italian I find earthy and robust. It’s so much fun to go there and practice. The effect on my writing comes from being able to communicate with different people, in a totally different part of the world, in countries with histories so unlike our own. It broadens the mind and gives me a chance to give characters and settings a richness they don’t have otherwise.
