Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacq Winter
Hi Jacq, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve been a writer my whole life, but only recently—within the past few years—have I started submitting my work to people who can publish, or help make it. I remember writing my first short story as a girl, around ten years old, maybe… about a twenty-something blonde moving into her own place for the first time. My teacher showed it to my Grams (who raised me), because she was taken aback; like how such a young kid could conceptualize that? I believe in past lives, so my vote’s there, but maybe I saw something like it unfold on tv… you never know! All this to say, I’ve been a writing stories for that long. On that note, I’m an avid rejector of genre and militant believer in story itself. I write everything from fiction to personal essays to screenplays for television and film. I love playing with words, and trying to get to the deepest, often darkest, possible place in whatever it is I’m exploring. However I arrive at it, the story itself is what drives me.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all smooth, but nothing worth pursuing is. I sort of revel in the challenges. To me, that’s where the magic happens. If life is just getting what you want, when you want it, where’s the sense of achievement in that? The biggest struggle with writing is frankly seeing your ideas come to life. Across the board, it’s hard. Publishing 1000-word essays with top mags is hard… it’s mostly rejection. Same with selling a tv show, which I haven’t done yet but am currently working on. The joy in being alive, for me, is the sort of relentless pursuit of seeing your vision manifest in the real world—and if you’re lucky—in a meaningful, resonant way that helps others feel seen and held.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a writer… an artist, really. Again, I’m not a fan of genre, so I don’t work in just one form. I’ve been nominated for some nice awards… the Pushcart Prize is a big one, so I guess that counts for something. I suppose I’m known for exploring pretty dark corners. I go to the least comfortable places… addiction, poverty, self-hate and harm, suicide, violence, abuse. I think more people either struggle directly with these things, or know someone who has, than they let on. It’s important for me in my work to show these worlds and characters, so that anyone who’s ever lived in them, or can relate even tangentially, has something, or someone, recognizable in the landscape. The loneliest feeling in the world is that of feeling unseen. There’s a lot of shame in feeling like “the only one.” I hope in showing these hard-to-explore places, I provide some sense of solace for those who need it most.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I think that does it! Thank you for including me in Hidden Gems. There are some really outstanding profiles here. I’m honored.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jacqwinter.com
- Instagram: @jacquelinwinter
- Facebook: /imjacquelin
- Twitter: @jacqwinterwrite
