Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph Anzaldua.
Hi Joseph, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I always had a wild and vivid imagination. Ever since I was a child, I would make up stories for my action figures and keep them going for as long as I could. I owe a lot to my 8th-grade teacher/coach – he gave us a big essay to do at the beginning of the year and forced us to rewrite it until it was perfect. This pushed me to think up new, better and quicker ways to write. In college, writing was easy to me. I decided to pursue a degree in literature and technical writing because I was good at it. I tried writing short stories, plays and even wrote a movie that I cheaply made with some small cameras. My debut novel “The Industry” took only one summer to write, but it took almost seven years of revisions and edits to finally get it right. When the pandemic hit, I knew that it was time to finally finish. Writing and creativity has always been a part of me, it’s helped me through a lot and I find it very soothing.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
As smooth as a morning commute from Fort Worth to Dallas – long, slow, and with multiple stops. It’s been an uphill battle to get here as I didn’t always have the resources or time to do this. Also, growing up in a big family of modest means… your voice tends to get lost sometimes. Writing however, gave me an outlet to express my thoughts, emotions and ideas but now the market is saturated with creatives it’s still very easy to get pushed aside. And yet, this wasn’t the biggest obstacle.
There were moments that I thought to myself “what’s the point?” Not just with writing, but with life too. If I may be candid, I’m in recovery now and struggled with drinking. I always thought of myself as a tortured artistic soul, but recently I discovered I was the one hurting myself. My mind was muddled and it took away my drive and discipline to actually make it work. I switched constantly from interest to interest and couldn’t find my voice. When I took away the drinking, my mind cleared and the path to create became easier and almost effortless. The change was very dramatic and since I’ve been constantly creating more stories than I can even keep up with.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I just released my debut novel titled “The Industry.” It focuses on the workers’ lives inside a modern north Texas restaurant chain. This book reads like an anthology and was loosely based on my personal experiences while working my way through college. It was very cathartic to write and it gave me some great insight on myself.
I’ve been known to take on ambitious projects like novels, anthologies, stage plays and screenplays for local artists. Any and all creative writing and formats interest me and inspire me to finish. I just completed a short story for an upcoming book that will be released in June/July.
I think when people think of writers, they think – a person locked away by a computer typing away alone. I don’t like that idea. Creativity and writing is a collaborative effort and for me, it requires critique. It’s very rewarding working with editors, beta readers, and actors for screenplays to put together a compelling story. I always like to bounce ideas off of others and include several people when I’m brainstorming, especially my wife! I don’t like to write alone and often times I’m writing my first draft on pen and paper.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
One of my favorite memories was taking a family trip by car to the Grand Canyon with my sister, my cousin and my parents. The sights were amazing and I was in awe of that crazy corny laser show they had at night. My father and I went for a small hike down into the canyon in the middle of summer with hardly any supplies. We didn’t make it very far before we turned back around. When we did, we were out of breath and drenched in sweat, trying to hike back up. This stands out because of being surrounded by nature’s overwhelming beauty.
Pricing:
- 11.99
Contact Info:
- Email: janzimages@gmail.com
- Website: https://janzimages.weebly.com/
- Instagram: @janzimages
- Twitter: @janzimages
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRJG_bYFhjV2XVrRRku-nAQ
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/Joseph-Anzaldua/e/B08D3JHWJR/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
Image Credits
Ariel Anzaldua
