When did you start writing and what inspired you to start?
I began writing before I could spell. I remember trying to make letters followed by a jumble of words I would eventually turn into nonsensical sentences. And, I was the only human being on the planet who could read what I wrote. However, when my mother discovered I’d been scribbling all over her stenographer’s pad, rather than get angry, she guided me to tell her what I had written, and wanting to please, I revealed the secret meanings of my nonsensical sentences. Mother pretended she could read what I’d written (yes, she worked some as a secretary before finishing her education degree.) The older I get, the more appreciative I become. If Mother had scolded me I might not be writing today. Interesting to me, when she passed in 1999, I found that steno pad in one of her boxes of keepsakes. Naturally I have that pad today. Now and again I try to remember what the nonsensical sentences had meant. But I can only decipher four words: i lv moMy.
As I grew older and learned how to write, my father’s acting career inspired me (yes, I was still writing on steno pads.) My father acted in lots of plays when we lived in California, and I listened to him rehearsing his lines. By the time I was in the fifth grade I wrote, directed and forced my little brothers to play parts, I played the third part. We performed in the made-over stage in the family room. By my sixth grade year, my teacher, Mrs. Pearl, and with the aid of other teachers, got permission for all the sixth grade classes at my elementary school in Odessa, Texas to perform one of the many plays in my playbook (I’d written several by now.) This play was based on George Washington and the American Revolution that all sixth graders had actually been studying. The play was about a sixth grade girl who yawned at studying American history, especially the Revolutionary War. Worse, she struggles with memorizing all the dates, names and facts. Then one night, and before the girl flunks her history exam, she has a dream that America’s first president visits her, and this dream occurs three nights in a row, a spin on a famous story: The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Naturally she discovers the importance, and fun of history and the fun that can come from studying about the American Revolution. Even better, she likes the idea of getting an A+ on her history quiz. She also gains a new respect and admiration for George Washington. I bet you’re thinking that I cast myself in the lead role of the girl who dreams but you’d be wrong. As a side note: not only was I the writer, I chose the cast, stage crew, directed and acted. Bet you can’t guess which part I wanted. You can find out the answer on my website blog at: www.jlchalfant.com
Talk about Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power
Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power is a Native American tale about a young Comanche woman and the consequences of her quest for Spirit Power. Set in the spring of 1860 within the Llano Estacado Pohoi’s story weaves themes of tradition, forgiveness, tolerance and harmony into a unique historical that opens a doorway into the captivating culture of the Kwahadi (Antelope Eaters) Comanche, showing how far one young woman will go to save her people and her family—and the lessons learned when she realizes her true battle may be where she least expected.
Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power is on the market now, having been released in April of 2013, and can be purchased through your favorite book retailer or online store: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iUniverse bookstore, and many other online sites.
The inspiration for the story happens to come from my genealogical research into the Native American culture on my father’s side of the family. Genealogy is one of my hobbies; however, the indigenous cultures in my distant, and sometimes, recent ancestral line interest me most. As I develop story-ideas for the novels I write, I first examine then research the culture, focusing the overall themes around their spirituality and how that belief system might or might not affect daily and life decision-making. Afterwards, if I can link my story-idea to interesting, even controversial and true events from the past that are relevant to today, I’ll frame the story inside the event, as in this present book where I built a story around true events occurring in 1860, mainly toward the last quarter, October – December of that same year.
I recreated the historical setting and conflicts between Comanche, Texans and Federal Soldiers as close to historically accurate as is possible using fictional characters who are acting out a set of fictional story events. I’ve also worked to portray the cultural belief-system in spirit power, type and style of clothing, food, war regalia, culture in general, etc., of the pre-reservation Kwahadi Comanche (much of which isn’t known.) The best historical documentation comes from the Kwahadi Comanche who surrendered to soldiers after 1875, and whose information was put into book form during the end of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century (see bibliography at end of the novel.) In addition, and during the 1990’s and early 2000’s, Comanche elders living in, and around Lawton, OK happily shared oral stories passed to them from their parents and grandparents. Much of this valuable information has been documented. Sadly, more elders are passing away and any stories or information not recorded will be lost. If in some way I’ve managed to save a bit of history not yet recorded, then I will feel I’ve done my small part at keeping alive the memory and culture of a still great people and important culture.
How did you come up with the title?
Originally, I had written three versions of the present story between 1997 and 1999; all three versions were geared to be Y-A’s or what is known as Young Adult novels. The story was originally named Dream Walkers then I changed it to Spirit Walkers, and later Who Are My People, and once again, back to Spirit Walkers to be a series called: Those Who Walk Between. Naturally, when I decided to pull out this story I had to totally rewrite it, plus do much more research as the story structure and theme changed. Something warned me to check the title. And sure enough what books had been written on the subject of spirituality, Native American themes, and overall mysticism, magic, and the supernatural, I discovered an over-use, and over-abundance, of all of it, especially in teen books. Worse for me, all of my titles up to now had been used in some form as a title, sub-title, chapter heading, or within the pages of a stand-alone novel or novel series. Now, for those of you who do not know this, ideas, and titles are not copyrighted. So any title can be over-used, and they are. To get on with it, I fixed the novel, titled it POHOI. I soon found out I needed a better title. How I longed to use Spirit Walkers. My editor said, “You must have a title readers can understand.” I agreed, but I was told I needed to keep the name because it’s about a young Comanche woman named Pohoi. I also had to think of some way to use the word Comanche in the title. After a long, mind-fatiguing trial, that sweet inner voice we all have, said, “Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power.” So there you have it.
Is there a message in your book that you want readers to grasp?
Most all stories have message/s derived from the over-arching theme, and/or lesser, often parallel themes. In Pohoi and Comanche Spirit Power I have one main theme and a salting of lesser, but relevant themes that mirror and counter Pohoi as she struggles along her quest. So to say if readers need to grasp a particular message, I say “NO.” I believe the main message will stand out, but that message may not be the message a particular reader chooses to focus on. I prefer that each reader find the message pertinent to where they are in their lives when they read the novel. And, if the same person re-reads the novel down the way, they are quite likely to get something else from the book. I know I do when I re-read my favorite novels.
List your favorite quotation or words you live by.
“Be a light unto the world … do unto others as you would have them do unto you … as you forgive others, you are forgiven … spirit is breath, remember you cannot breathe yourself alive … there exists something greater that is not seen, nor heard, but felt and experienced … call that something, Love.”
Thinking outside the box, if you could do/be/accomplish anything in the world, what would it be?
I’d keep being me, a teacher teaching people with words; the writer me who holds the key to the power of the Word that brings healing, peace and love to the world.
Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?
I had the joy and honor of growing up in household who loved books. My parents had a well-developed library. From an early age I was told stories, read to then I began to read. Since my family library consisted mostly of classics I gravitated toward stories by Mark Twain and Rudyard Kipling. The adventures they wrote appealed to me and later upon re-reading their works I learned to love their style and descriptions. Much later, I fell in love with William Faulkner’s works, most notable for me is a collection of favorite short stories. The southern story, that’s what I still love, its earthiness, its long sentences that do not shout out “I’m too long,” and most of all, the life that leaps off the page like I’m present and experiencing the story as it is being shown to me.
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