Tessa’s Heart: A Texas Story was the winner in the WOMEN’S ISSUES category of the 2024 IndieReader Discovery Awards, where undiscovered talent meets people with the power to make a difference.
Following find an interview with author Jackie Lewis.
I’m grateful to IRDA. Thank you. Hilarious and heartbreaking, Tessa’s Heart: A Texas Story is a coming of age story about a girl seeking her place in the world. It’s 1952, and in the small town of Yoakum, Texas, Tessa Louise Carter, a quirky, sassy, back-talking nine-year-old is torn between her religious but foul-mouthed grandmother, and her beautiful bed-hopping mother. Tessa talks to the ghost of her dead great-grandmother, which really upsets her mother and grandmother. Tessa wants a father figure, but the men her mother brings home are completely uninterested in her. When her mother becomes pregnant by the pastor, he flees, and she marries an unsuitable man. When Tessa finds a human skeleton, buried in the mud outside her grandmother’s home, the family’s ghastly secret is revealed. Tessa becomes haunted by the spirit of her bossy great-grandfather, who won’t leave her alone, but her nightmare is just beginning… My website: https://jackielewisauthor.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Tessa’s Heart: A Texas Story – Published January 21, 2021.
What’s the book’s first line?
In the spring of 1952, Mom and I drove out by Big Bushy Creek, where she spread out a blanket under an oak tree. We had tuna fish and Miracle Whip sandwiches.
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
It’s 1952, and in the small town of Yoakum, Texas, Tessa Louise Carter is a quirky, sassy, and back-talking nine-year-old. She finds herself torn between her deeply religious but foul-mouthed Grandmother and her beautiful bed-hopping mother. Hilarious and heartbreaking, Tessa’s Heart is a coming of age story about a young girl trying to find her place in the world.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
This is a fictional novel but I draw upon my experiences of having had four stepfathers while growing up and watching my mother go from man to man. There was a difficult relationship between my mother and her mother and I also draw upon that experience. I have lived in many places and my father’s family lived in Texas, so I take from my experiences there.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
Tessa is perceptive beyond her years and develops her own beliefs about her mother’s relationships. She has her own humorous viewpoints about the religion her grandmother is pushing on her. She sees and speaks to her dead Great-grandmother and great-aunt, but she refuses to stop even with her grandmother’s severe punishment. She learns to stand up for herself. I don’t have any character that Tessa reminds me of.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
My novel is humorous and heartbreaking. A unique coming-of-age story about a young girl trying to find her place while dealing with a dysfunctional family, and religion being forced upon her. She displays courage in difficult situations. My characters are well developed and portrayed with empathy and insight. I explore mother daughter relationships, women’s issues, and their stereotypes often with humor and insight.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I decided to become an author my early forties and I joined a writing group that had amazing people that were inspiring.
Is this the first you’ve written?
I was writing plays and short stories before I started my novel. I’ve had three plays produced in little theaters in Los Angeles: Birds of a Feather Stuck Together, Two Nowhere Men, and Sitting on the Edge of the Chair.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
As much as I can during the week but I set aside every Sunday for four to five hours at one time.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
One of the hardest parts in the beginning is finding someone who will do the formatting and setting up the accounts for a reasonable price. It’s also difficult to find marketing. The best part is that the author has control of the text and the final product.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
I’d love for a traditional publisher to pick up Tessa’s Heart. A traditional publisher could do marketing and would know ways to promote my novel that I don’t know.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
I love to express myself creatively and emotionally and to communicate with people which gives me a wonderful feeling.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
One of the authors I most admire is Phillip Roth because of his honesty and ability to go against conventions.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
Phillip Roth’s: Portnoy’s Complaint. I love the sexuality, and psychological portraits of his characters. For entirely different reasons, I love The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.